You can see the signs everywhere that Burquitlam is changing. There is one sign, however, that says some things don't change.
It looks like any other street sign, except that it marks a lane, not a street, and you won't find it on any map.
"It's a landmark," Ray Litram says of the sign that was put up Sept. 19 at his request.
The sign reads "Littleman Lane," after Little Man, which is what people called Ray and Donna Litrap's son, Michael. Perhaps others in the community will remember him, too.
He was a fixture in the neighbourhood behind Burquitlam Plaza. A special needs child, he could often be seen bumping along the gravel lane in his wheelchair on the way to Value Village, where he enjoyed touching the fabric of the clothing, and Burquitlam Park where he loved to roll in and tug at the grass.
He was well known at Mountain View elementary school, Sir Frederick Banting middle and Dr. Charles Best secondary. Kids were eager to play with him even though he couldn't communicate and looked different because he suffered from grand mal seizures.
"I was afraid he would be made fun of," Ray recalled. "Boy, was I wrong."
Ray and Donna say Michael was a joy to be with but one day he grew up. They couldn't miss the signs. He'd sprouted a moustache and had the hairy legs of a teenager.
They couldn't call him "little" any more, so they called him Little Man," instead, and everyone else did, too.
"It's hard to describe, actually, but everybody who knew him fell in love with him," says Ray.
Unfortunately, signs of aging meant time was short for Michael. He had trouble breathing as he grew older and, when he was 16, he died at Canuck Place Children's Hospice of a respiratory ailment.
Marking five years since his passing became important to Ray and Donna, and they asked the city for help.
Operations manager Dan Mooney agreed to put up an informal sign on the lane, which was paved when a new townhouse was built.
City sign maker Michelle Malo made it on her lunch hour and workers Jim Gillis and Lobsang Nornang installed it.
"Our staff got a great sense of accomplishment," Mooney said.
Now Burquitlam might change but Ray and Donna Litrap have a sign that reminds them that when it comes to love, some things don't.
Ray and Donna Litram say they will make a donation to Canuck Place in thanks to the city of Coquitlam.
