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This special Christmas episode of The Pulse Community Podcast brings Vancouver Island Christmas music to life as Santa Claus takes over hosting duties while Peter and Dave finish their holiday shopping. Santa shares enchanting stories between performances from Vancouver Island and Gulf Islands artists including Valdy, Shari Ulrich, David Gogo, Vince Warry, Zachary Stevenson, The Heels and Spirit of the West. Santa weaves timeless tales about hope, determination, and community connection.

Episode Highlights & Quotes

"Christmas isn't really about the presents under the tree or the decorations on the mantle. It's about the light we keep burning for one another—the love that waits, the door that's always open, the welcome that never fades." - Santa Claus

"Christmas magic isn't something I bring in my sleigh. It's something you create every day through kindness, through music, through the love you share with one another." - Santa Claus

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Episode Sponsors: Ian Lindsay & Associates, Windsor Plywood French Creek, Thrifty Foods Parksville, Tablet Pharmacy, Fireside Books and Society for Organized Services (SOS) .

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BONUS RECIPE: Download Chef Jonathan Frazier's Recipe for the iconic Juicy Lucy, a cheese-stuffed burger. https://bit.ly/S1EP9FootballRecipe

This week on the F3 Podcast with hosts Erin Frazier and Chef Jonathan Frazier of the Comox Valley turn their attention to the Minnesota Vikings as fantasy football playoffs arrive — bringing tough lineup decisions, shaken confidence, and a whole lot of second-guessing. With Week 15 underway, Erin breaks down her quarterfinal matchup, the pain of recent two-point losses.

Jonathan and Erin unpack a chaotic week that saw major stars go down, Kansas City officially eliminated, and new contenders like Denver and the Rams securing postseason berths. Predictions fly as they debate who’s actually built to survive January football in one of the most unpredictable NFL seasons in recent memory.

Then it’s time to eat — Minnesota style. Jonathan delves into the Vikings' game-day culture through food. The undisputed star of the episode, though, is the iconic Juicy Lucy — a cheese-stuffed burger that defines Minnesota football Sundays and demands patience before the first bite.

This Episode Features:

(02:30) Fantasy Playoffs Begin: Erin’s quarterfinal matchup, shaky confidence, and brutal close losses.

(07:45) Lineup Dilemmas: Mahomes struggles, Jared Goff on the bench, and trusting projections vs. instincts.

(13:20) NFL Injury Fallout: Season-altering injuries and what they mean for contenders and pretenders.

(19:10) Playoff Picture Update: Denver and the Rams clinch, Chiefs eliminated, and surprise teams rising.

(25:40) Team of the Week: Minnesota Vikings — history, identity, quarterback development, and a year to write off.

(33:00) Taste of Minnesota: Tater tot hotdish, walleye fingers, lefse, Polish sausage, and cold-weather comfort food.

(41:15) Lone Star (North Star) Bite: The Juicy Lucy — why Minnesota’s cheese-stuffed burger reigns supreme.

“The Juicy Lucy is football food at its finest. Simple, comforting, and absolutely unforgiving if you bite too soon.” – Chef Jonathan Frazier

Special Thanks to Our Sponsor: Thrifty Foods Parksville for supporting ThePulseCommunity.ca.

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This Episode Features:

(25:48) Vince Warry, singer-songwriter and tribute artist from Nanaimo, shares his remarkable journey from tribute bands honouring The Doors, Led Zeppelin, and The Cult to releasing his own EP "Like a Runaway Train" with Big Records. Teaching history and his custom History of Music and Pop Culture course by day, Warry is finding his authentic voice in Nanaimo's music scene.

(07:21) Geoff Ball from Milner Gardens reveals how their annual Christmas light display has exploded from a few thousand lights to an astounding 150,000-200,000 lights transforming over half a kilometre of gardens. Over 12,000 visitors attended last year. Ball Talks abou the special holiday glasses that turn every light into festive shapes, food trucks, choirs performing and a free RDN bus service on weekends from Qualicum Beach Civic Centre.

(14:17) Stevan Paranosic of Festive Brass discusses bringing professional holiday brass music to 10 Vancouver Island communities in December. Festive Brass will partner with local choirs including Village Voices in Parksville at Knox United Church. Tour details: https://www.festivebrass.com/

"The woman who had been in the picture with me was in stage four cancer, and all she wanted to do was see the Doors tribute before she passed away. That really hit me and I was glad that we had a good show." - Vince Warry

"We're just happy to take all these shows on the road to these wonderful locations and provide music for some of these people that maybe never get a chance to see it." - Stevan Paranosic, Festive Brass

"We have grown from a few thousand to, I'm estimating we're up around 150, 200,000 lights. Our volunteers started in September to hang them and we had a great team, probably 15 people out to every setup day." - Geoff Ball, Milner Gardens

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Voice message: Voice message The PULSE and be part of the podcast!

You'll find all episodes of The PULSE Podcast on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, TikTok, YouTube, and ThePulseCommunity.ca

Click here to learn how to Support the show

Episode Sponsors: Ian Lindsay & Associates, Windsor Plywood French Creek, Thrifty Foods Parksville, Tablet Pharmacy & SOSD69.

Check out Skookum Kid's Stories on Apple, Spotify, Amazon, iHeart, and

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