Dreams Unturned

And then there are those who say, if you want something in life, you must speak it into existence.

When we asked readers in The Restless Dreamers Volume to share what their dream business would be, a wide variety of ideas sparked up. Some were pragmatic and community-minded, some outlandish and fanciful. A handful of years later, following up with a few of those dreamers, we can see how the ebbs and flows of life tend to morph and expand magical ideas.

__

Eli Hason – Advocating for a Weird and Wonderful Community 

When Eli Hason and his wife, Megan Rose, bought 14 acres of land on a small island in the Salish Sea, they didn’t know what to do with it all, so they came up with the idea to start a solar farm on their property. The dream was to help move the community of 1,400 people toward net-zero energy. Unfortunately, the project was put on hold when Eli realized the money it would take to build the farm—an estimated $200,000—wouldn’t be paid back at the time by BC Hydro's "distributed generation" program. He remains on the lookout for a willing investor.

While the solar farm is on hold, Eli is still set on advocating for amenities that will help island residents thrive—from basic necessities to infrastructure for communication and play. As president of the non-profit organization in charge of maintaining and promoting the community hall, he is proud to work alongside fellow islanders who are making the community a better place for all, from kids to artists to elders to visitors, and everyone in between.

The organization’s most recent project was the installation of a phone booth near the park spearheaded by local resident, Nathan, “which kids use all the time to call their parents!” he says, beaming. The line runs through and is paid for by the community hall, and allows island residents to make free calls across North America.

Many of Eli’s favourite initiatives are housed in the community hall. There, Eli’s love of music has led him to organize concerts, and most recently, transform the upstairs storage space into a youth centre that runs three days a week.

Eli takes some inspiration for the youth centre from his upbringing in Chicago, where he spent many hours at the arcade. “It’s nice to have a place where the teenagers can go and hang out, a space for kids to have as their own,” he says. There’s a pinball machine and a soon-to-be-built music studio for the self-proclaimed “audio nerd.” Next, the organization is working to get funding so a skate park and pump track can be built.

Eli’s talking faster now, excited about the endless possibilities for the community. “I’ve always had a million ideas, so it’s just about finding which one’s currently working and acting on it.” Reflecting on how he and Megan Rose don’t have any children of their own, Eli says, “I love kids, but I’m actually into doing stuff with the community because I’m one of the few people who is not exhausted all the time because of kids.”

Playing and helping others seems to be in Eli’s nature, as his “regular job” is doing sound design for video games. “I make things go boom!” he says with a laugh, acknowledging that it’s not the first time he’s used that joke. He’s in the process of developing with the audiology department at UBC a video reality game project called EARISM that helps to retrain people’s brains who suffer from hearing loss.

Offline, the team has also been working on having community washrooms, showers, and laundry facilities built. But again, getting funding is a barrier, especially when the island has more immediate needs, such as building an updated fire station. 

“The big thing is that there are tons of wealthy people who live or have second homes on the islands,” he says. “How do we convince them that $50,000 to help the community isn’t a big contribution when you’ve got tens of millions?”

Eli is worried the sustained cost of living crisis will drive the type of folks off the island who make it special. “Less weirdos and artists will be able to live here. And that sucks, cause they are what make this place amazing,” he says. Luckily, there are folks like Eli, doing everything in their power to keep their quaint island not only weird but equitable and fun for everyone who calls it home.

In this world of ours that is dominated by convenience and technology, Kate Ortwein is passionate about reconnecting community through classic traditions. When we last spoke with Kate, she was dreaming of making a letter-writing business in which she would write personalized poems prompted by people’s experiences and relationships. She ended up successfully creating this business, calling it Letters to Loved Ones.

“It was really fun and rewarding,” she explains of her process, connecting with each person, turning their words into poetry, handwriting each piece using well-practiced calligraphy, and sometimes accompanying it with a drawing. “But as far as business ventures go, life just went in a totally different direction,” she admits.

For one thing, that different direction was moving her family into a 100-year-old house on a two-acre plot of land with her parents. With a suite each on the main and second floor, Kate’s family is able to practice multigenerational living while still having their own space. The family’s hope is to eventually make their home self-sufficient, complete with rabbits and quail, a garden, and a robust trading system with neighbours.

To live on a small island, find a life partner she could build a family and start a life with, and build a floral business—these were Emma Engstrom’s wishes, solidified in a letter she wrote to her future self nearly a decade ago. Check, check, check!

Now, with three successful summers of her business, under her belt and her young son, Ellis, in tow, Emma is figuring out the balance of building her business and being fully present as a mother.

She reminisces about when she and her husband Marcus first bought the ten-acre farm. Because it was COVID at the time, it allowed them the time and space to research and plan the flower farm intentionally. They took an intensive flower farming course beforehand, but Emma, letting out a soft laugh, still acknowledges, “I think we were a little bit naive, thinking, This is going to be such a great journey! not yet knowing how arduous and labour-intensive farming is.”

But they soon got the hang of it. By the time the post-pandemic wedding boom hit, Emma was very pregnant and designing arrangements for 35 weddings across the region. Navigating midsummer ferries from island to island, she had to don a parka while the air conditioning blasted throughout the car so as to preserve the delicate arrangements. “It was pretty full on!” Emma exclaims.

“That season solidified and validated the farm for me, knowing I can make a business out of this,” she says.

With Ellis now strapped to her back out in the field and in the studio, Emma’s perspective on life has changed. When I ask what she would write in a letter to her future self now, Emma ponders for a moment.

She admits that due to a lull in weddings this year and having had to turn down many of them in 2024 because of Ellis’s arrival, she is practicing letting go of the hustle. “I really want to enjoy these little moments with my son. Because this business ebbs and flows, and there are going to be peaks and valleys.”

With a number of exciting inquiries for 2026, Emma says she wants to focus on quality over quantity, designing unique, thoughtful weddings. “I think the one thing that I’m really trying to learn now and teach—and hopefully future Emma will be doing this in five years—is just being slower, being proactive, being more present, and enjoying the quieter times, while knowing that money will come and go. This time with my son and as a young 35-year-old, physically able person is here, now.”

📖 This article is a follow up to "21 Dreamers and the Businesses They’d Love to Start" that appeared in The Restless Dreamers Volume of FOLKLIFE Magazine.