stettler independent, december 31, 2014
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December 31, 2014 edition of the Stettler IndependentTRANSCRIPT
IndependentStettlerthe
S E R V I N G T H E O F C E N T R A L A L B E R T A F O R 1 0 7 Y E A R SHeart
Dec. 31, 2014STETTLER, ALBERTA
VOLUME ONE-HUNDRED EIGHT NUMBER FIFTY THREE
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Looking back at sports in 2014
Story on P14
Sports
CommunityCarol sing fills
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festive soundsStory on P9
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Joel van der VeenINDEPENDENT REPORTER
The Alberta Prairie Railway was a hot ticket last week as hundreds of kids, parents and other guests rode the rails for free.
As has become an annual tra-dition, the railway offered free train rides on Tuesday, Dec. 23, in conjunction with The Night Before the Night Before, a holi-day event organized each year by the Stettler Downtown Busi-ness Association.
Rides were offered every two hours between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., with lines forming
outside the train station on the east side of Stettler. The train rides were an hour long, tak-ing guests south of Stettler and back.
General manager Bob Willis reported that more than 1,700 people rode the train altogeth-er on Tuesday. While that’s a great increase over their usual passenger load, he said the staff handled it well.
“That is significantly more people than we normally car-ry,” he said, adding that the staff “just did an absolutely su-perb job, in our opinion.”
The railway began offering the free holiday rides in 1997.
Willis said it requires a great deal of planning, adding that the weather was excellent.
“It’s our way of saying thank you to our community that we live in,” he said, explaining that the railway offers the an-nual rides to ensure that all lo-cal people get an opportunity to ride the train.
During the trip, staff mem-bers and volunteers made their way through the train to offer cookies and juice to guests. Each child on board was also presented with a stuffed toy as a Christmas gift.
Kids were also greeted by a few familiar faces, as Dr. Se-
uss’s character the Grinch and his faithful dog Max walked up and down the aisle, followed later by Sylvester the cat and Tweety Bird.
Kids were invited to ride free of charge, while parents and other adults were asked to con-tribute $5 each or a donation to the Stettler and District Food Bank.
Betty Birch, chairwoman of the food bank board, reported that well over 1,200 pounds of food was donated by the train passengers, in addition to gen-erous cash donations.
“That support for the food bank is amazing,” she said.
Families enjoy free ride on Prairie Railway
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Joel van der Veen/Independent reporter
Parents and kids wait in line to board the Alberta Prairie Railway train during one of its free holiday rides on Tuesday, Dec. 23.
Independent NEWSWednesday, December 31, 2014Page 2 The Stettler Independent
Jan. 1: Farm family deaths suspicious
A man who lost his entire family in a farm fire east of Castor just weeks before Christmas is devastated about the deaths and tired of the suspicions.
Jan. 7: New Year’s baby arrives
Stettler’s New Year’s baby didn’t arrive right at the dawn of the New Year, but was still the Stettler area’s first baby of 2014. Saphira Nola Hofer made her way into the world one minute before midnight on Jan. 2.
Jan. 15: Town’s CAO to end long run
Longtime Town of Stet-tler CAO Rob Stoutenberg is stepping down after 27 years at his post. After June 2 of this year, he plans to go on to experience new ad-ventures.
“It wasn’t easy to make the decision, but you have to take a look at your own circumstances and say, ‘At what point in your life do you want to switch gears?’
” Stoutenberg said Tuesday in announcing his decision.
Jan. 22: County: ‘We do feel vindicated’
The County of Stettler welcomed Elections Al-berta’s ruling Tuesday that it didn’t violate election fi-nancing bylaws in the 2012 provincial election.
The Wildrose Party ac-cused the county of con-travening the Election Fi-nances and Contributions Disclosure Act by using staff time or county ve-hicles for former PC MLA Jack Hayden’s campaign.
Jan. 22: Stettler entry among Alberta art stolen from Las Vegas competi-tion
When Andrea Hatch of Stettler’s Cabinet of Curi-osities went to Las Vegas last week to compete in a picture-framing contest, she didn’t think her visit would end in a police station.
Hatch and Cathie Antoni-uk of Onoway both submit-ted pieces in an
international competition put on by the Professional
Picture Framers Associa-tion (PPFA). And out of all the pieces in the competi-tion, their works were the only ones stolen.
Feb 5: Hip-Hoppin’ to tackle bullying
Josh Blumhagen is any-thing but a bully, but the Halkirk native played the role to perfection in a music video released online last weekend.
Blumhagen, 17, also showcased his smooth hip-hop dancing ability in the anti-bullying video, which features Edmonton urban-pop vocalist ESMA.
Feb. 12: Students chart healthy course
The Clearview school board is meeting with school councils Thursday to discuss education issues. School board chairman Ken Checkel said the board tries to meet with the school councils at least once a year, though sometimes there’s not enough interest to plan a joint meeting.
Feb. 19: Winnie’s world marks milestone
For 25 years, children and teenagers bursting through the doors of the Heartland Youth Centre’s doors have seen many different faces, though one has remained the same. This year marks the 25th year for Winnie Bissett as the centre’s exec-utive-director.
Feb. 26: Switenky to take over as town CAO
The Town of Stettler didn’t have to look far to find a new chief adminis-trative officer. Assistant CAO Greg Switenky has been chosen to replace cur-rent CAO Rob Stoutenberg, who plans to retire in June.
March 5: Budding sci-entists showcase puzzling projects
Students from Stettler El-ementary School’s Grade 5 Science Club gathered in the entrance foyer and adja-cent hallways last Friday to put their hard work on dis-play for the annual science fair. Twenty-eight projects were completed by almost 50 students, science club teacher Rob Howell said.
March 12: Internet shortage snags town
Town council and lo-cal businesses are trying to find a solution to an Internet shortage affecting Stettler.
“Obviously, I want the problem fixed yesterday, but that’s not going to hap-pen,” Mayor Dick Richards said Monday.
March 19: Stettler police officer bound for RCMP musical ride
This May, Const. Sarah MacQuarrie will leave the Stettler detachment for Ot-tawa, where she’ll take her place as one of the riders in the RCMP’s legendary mu-sical ride.
March 26: Bailey pre-pares to bid farewell to Clearview
Clearview school divi-sion superintendent John Bailey will remain a mem-ber of the “Clearview fam-ily” for only four more months.
“He’s done great, he’s been a great superinten-dent,” said board
chair Ken Checkel. “We wish him well as he moves on to Foothills.
April 2: Music festival underway
Stettler-area performers are ready to show off their talent at this year’s Stettler and District Music Festival
continued on page 3
Looking back at highlights of 2014
File photo
POP QUIZ — Popcorn lovers Emma Werbowesky (left) and Elisa Collard decided to take their love of the snack food and apply science during the Grade 5 science fair at Stettler Elementary School. The two tested several different types of microwave popcorn to find out which popped the best.
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File photo
Stettler Mayor Dick Richards (with scissors) prepares to cut the ribbon in front of the Hub, a new gathering centre in the Stettler Recreation Centre on Saturday, April 5. He is joined by members of the Seniors’ Community.
Independent NEWSWednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 3
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“We hope it will go re-ally well,” said festival committee president Sherry Rempel. “I guess it just de-pends on how prepared the students are.”
April 9: Hard work cel-ebrated at SRC Grand Opening
If there was a theme that was constant on Saturday, April 4 during the grand opening ceremonies at the Stettler Recreation Cen-tre, it was that everyone involved contributed hard work, extra hours, and a lot of blood, sweat and tears.
It was a beautiful spring day, full of sunshine and warm breezes, as people gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the SRC, the Hub and the Library.
April 16: Exhibitors show off their stuff at an-nual trade show
The recently opened Stet-tler Recreation Centre was buzzing with activity April 11 to 13 as exhibitors from all over western Canada showed off their wares over the course of the three days.
April 22: Full house for annual music festival
After a week of perfor-mances and competitions, the top acts brought their shows to the Performing Arts Centre in Stettler on April 15.
The show saw the best acts in the various catego-ries – speech, vocal, band, piano, musical theatre and dance – performed before a packed audience.
April 30: Points West Living celebrate grand opening
After opening its doors last July, Points West Liv-ing officially opened on Monday, April 28. Points West residents greeted the guests at the door, and juice and snacks were on offer.
May 7: Stettler Rotary Club gearing up for 90th anniversary
For the past 90 years, members of the Stettler community have donat-ed their time and money through the Rotary Club to help better the local com-munity, province, and in-ternational community and next week, the club is look-ing to celebrate its past.
May 14: Transparency, cost-cutting big issues at school board meeting
The school board’s trans-parency was a divisive is-
sue at the May 8 meeting, with trustee Yvette Cassidy opposing the majority re-garding the level of open-ness adopted by the gov-erning body in the face of public interest.
May 21: Late start to seeding unlikely to affect crops, says county
Spring has been a slow time coming, but now that it’s here, farmers are out seeding their fields, work-ing at times around the clock just so they can have a bit of breathing time be-fore starting on weed con-trol.
May 28: Club members learn work ethic, respect at beef show and sale
4-H members from around the area congregat-ed in Stettler for the Stettler District 4-H Beef Show and Sale on May 19 and 20 with many kids being rewarded for their hard work.
June 4: Flames devour Stettler structure, vehicles
In just the few minutes it took Brandon Thompson to go from his father-in-law’s garage to the house and then back to the garage, the few flames licking at the door of the garage across the
alleyway had turned into a raging inferno.
June 11: Awesome Auc-tion brings in the bucks
It was the best evening at the beach to be found indoors at the Stettler Com-munity Centre as the com-munity gathered for the
Heartland Youth Centre’s annual Awesome Auction on June 7.
June 18: Main Street be-comes home to painters, musicians at annual Art Walk
Main Street Stettler be-came one big art gallery over the weekend, with lo-cal artists showing off what they do during the town’s annual Art Walk.
The event, which was organized by the town and
Cabinet of Curiosities own-er Andrea Hatch, took place on Saturday, June 13, and Hatch hopes that the event will get the word out about Stettler’s many artists.
June 25: Pedestrian bumped, bruised, but OK
A few bumps and bruises is all a Stettler pedestrian has to show after being struck by a 2014 Dodge pick-up truck on Thursday, June 14, at the intersection of 50 Street and 49 Avenue.
Looking back at highlights of 2014
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File photo
Mike Lawlor (centre with hat) is joined by patrons of the current skate park for a photo. The kids welcomed Lawlor with enthusiasm, excitedly asking questions about the new skate park, during his brief visit.
Independent NEWSWednesday, December 31, 2014Page 4 The Stettler Independent
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Stacey LavallieINDEPENDENT REPORTER
The current watermain replacement construc-tion on Highway 56 has wrapped up as of Dec. 20, including a giant hole
a driver drove his SUV into earlier this month.
The watermain con-struction is part of a multi-phase project to replace cast-iron water-mains, which are more prone to breaks, accord-
ing to Melissa Robbins, director of operational services for the Town of Stettler.
The replacements are being made ahead of the province’s plan to repave a section of the high-
way, which was delayed a year so that the town could replace the water-mains now, rather than have to do so in later replacements, or in case of a break, damaging the newly paved section of
highway.“The first (phase)
detour was hardest to sign,” Robbins admitted. “The next ones won’t be as challenging.”
The next phase of the project is set to start in
January, but Robbins noted that it may not start until spring, as win-ter weather is unpredict-able.
“If it’s -30 (degrees Celsius), we won’t be starting,” she said.
Highway 56 construction wraps up, but more to come
Stacey LavallieINDEPENDENT REPORTER
The Stettler Public Library was bustling with the sounds of delighted young voices as the future architects of the community took part in a Gingerbread House Building day, hosted by the library.
The event, which required pre-registra-tion, was in fact so popular that the library had to turn away about six kids who want-ed to register at the last minute.
For the lucky 14 kids who registered well ahead of the event, though, the day was full of fun.
Darlene Philpot, the activities coordi-nator with the library, said she and pages were busy the night before “gluing” the gingerbread houses together with icing so they’d be well and sturdily assembled for the kids taking part in the activity the next day. The decorating of the houses would be left to the little architects, as Philpot called them, though she noted that if the houses hadn’t required setup at least a day before, she would have let the kids enjoy that part, too.
“Oh, it’s wonderful seeing them have so
much fun,” she said, taking a brief break from helping the architects learn to use a little extra water to help spread icing.
A bright blue tarp covered the library floor under the work tables, there to catch run-away candy and dripping icing, but not much made it onto the floor – not with eager children ready to smear and stick it all to the flat gingerbread surfaces of their little houses.
Some children used the icing and candy for more than decoration, sneaking covert mouthfuls of the sweet treats when they thought no one was looking.
Just hours before the event began on Monday, Dec. 22, the library’s gingerbread team suffered a setback when one of the houses, precariously situated at the edge of a cliff (otherwise known as a table), took a tumble into the abyss (also known as the floor). The destroyed house had to be re-placed, but fortunately staff were able to get another one setup before the architects arrived.
This was the first gingerbread house building event for the library, but given its success, Philpot said she expects it will re-turn next year.
Little architects practice
their house-building skills
Stacey Lavallie/Independent reporterOlivia and Pamela Smith, with mom Lisa, are all smiles as they get additional instructions to help them decorate their gingerbread houses at the library on Dec. 22. The pre-Christmas craft was nothing new to the girls, who make them every year, but this was the first time they did it at the library.
Stacey Lavallie/Independent reporter
Riding along - It was a far cry from the -40 degrees Celsius temperatures of the Moonlight Madness Sales night as the annual Night before the Night before Christmas sales got under way on Main Street. Unlike the frosted days in November, the temperature was almost balmy, and people responded by coming out to the events in droves. Whether it was to have a last-minute visit with Santa Claus at Wells Furniture for those forgotten Christmas wish-list items or a ride on a wagon full of hay up and down Main Street, people were there, shopping and having fun together as friends and as family.
Independent NEWSWednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 5
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Joel van der VeenINDEPENDENT REPORTER
Rick Strankman said he was “incredulous” to learn of a mass defection from the Wildrose Party that left Alberta’s official opposi-tion with just five MLAs in the provincial legislature.
The MLA for Drum-heller-Stettler since 2012, Strankman was just one day into a family vacation when he received the news on Dec. 17 that nine of his fellow Wildrose MLAs, in-cluding party leader Dani-elle Smith, would cross the floor to join the governing Progressive Conservatives under leader and premier Jim Prentice.
Strankman’s office is-sued a lengthy statement on his behalf on Tuesday, Dec. 23, in which he ac-cuses his colleagues of abandoning “their respon-sibilities and obligations as members of the Wildrose
caucus.”He also accused both
Smith and Airdrie MLA Rob Anderson of leading “a revolt against their own party and their own lead-ership” and persuading “seven of their colleagues to go along with their du-plicitous act.”
He made a distinction between Smith and An-derson, whom he called perpetrators, and the other seven MLAs, whom he de-scribed as “collaborators.”
Strankman said that the party’s constituency asso-ciations, its 25,000 mem-bers and executive council were let down by the “act of betrayal,” as were the 442,429 Albertans who cast their vote for party candidates in 2012.
Ending his statement on a positive note, he remarked that the party would begin 2015 with a new leader to start its next chapter, liken-ing it to a phoenix rising
from the ashes.“As one of the many
thousands of Wildrose Par-ty members who has stuck to principle, who has not betrayed the public trust, and who has not sold out in exchange for the prom-ise of political baubles, I look forward to the rebirth of the Wildrose Party,” he was quoted as saying.
Repeated attempts to contact Strankman for comment were unsuccess-ful; a staffer from Strank-man’s constituency office only remarked that the MLA was “blindsided” by the turn of events.
The Wildrose Party an-nounced Dec. 22 that Calgary-Fish Creek MLA Heather Forsyth had been selected as interim leader.
Previously the party’s culture and tourism critic, Strankman will add agri-culture, Service Alberta, jobs, skills, training and labour to his portfolio.
On Tuesday, Dec. 23, Speaker of the House Gene Zwozdesky affirmed that the Wildrose Party would remain the province’s Offi-cial Opposition, despite its diminished numbers.
Ken Perreault of Castor, who serves as president of the Wildrose Party’s riding association in Drumheller-Stettler, declined to com-ment when reached by the Independent.
The defection increases the PCs’ majority in the assembly from 63 to 72 MLAs, leaving the Wil-drose with just five MLAs. This puts them on an equal footing with the Liberal Party, with five MLAs, and barely ahead of the New Democrats, with four.
Joe Anglin, who rep-resents Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre, has sat as the assembly’s lone independent MLA since leaving the Wildrose caucus in November.
Strankman “incredulous” at mass
Wildrose Party defection
Independent VOICESWednesday, December 31, 2014Page 6 The Stettler Independent
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STAFF DIRECTORY
Mustafa EricRegional Editor
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Just like birthdays are for individuals, anniversaries and calendar milestones are good occasions for communities, societies and nations to take a step back and take stock of what happened since the last time the same milestone was marked.
As the point in time when we renew our calendars is the uni-versally accepted turning point in our communal life, it should be considered a good opportu-nity to review and assess how we fared over the past year and what we could expect from the next.
Our small town of Stettler re-mained mostly what one could consider an oasis of peace in a conflict-ridden world through-out 2014, with the exception of a couple of fires and car crashes while the neighbouring commu-nity of Castor was shocked with a gruesome triple murder and arson, the culprits of which are expected to stand trial in 2015.
In the province, we have seen yet again that our politicians
fail to learn from mistakes and they keep sticking to their old ways: Dependency on bitumen royalties, a trade mark policy of Progressive Conservatives has once again brought our finances to the brink of disaster, so much so that the fear of strong criti-cism has led our newly installed premier to recruit MLAs from the official opposition.
At the national level, prime minister’s “high moral ground” foreign policy led Canada into the Middle Eastern swamp, and was quickly reciprocated with attacks on Canadian soil, including one targeting the na-tion’s seat of sovereignty.
Internationally, we have had two new developments with potentially far reaching conse-quences:
The crisis in Ukraine and Russia’s intervention there have created a volatile situation that has the potential to threaten both political stability and the fragile economies of the old continent. In the Middle East, the emer-
gence of the Islamic State, de-spite all talk of successful air strikes, still threatens to dis-integrate Iraq and Syria and to create new proxy entities in the area that will make it easier for outside powers to manipulate further the regional balance of power or lack thereof.
On the economic front, Saudi Arabia single-handedly contin-ues to drive down the price of oil for both political and eco-nomic gain, causing havoc in countries that rely on oil rev-enues, including Canada.
And last but not least, it doesn’t mean what didn’t hap-pen in 2014 will not happen in 2015 or in 2016: The financial storm that has been brewing with continued money printing and monetization of debt will reach hurricane proportions by the time it arrives, but irrespon-sible politicians and bankers continue to suppress the levers that could help reduce the size of the bubble we live in.
As one can clearly conclude,
this is not a bright picture, not to say nasty.
How hopeful can we realisti-cally be in terms our fortunes changing for the better? Prob-ably not much, at least in the short term.
The conflicts and culture of confrontation that shape our lives both as individuals and communities/nations appear to have an amazing ability to re-produce themselves thanks to the mastery of powers that be to use, spin, manipulate and ex-ploit a wide variety of factors both to cling on to their posi-tions and to perpetuate tensions to justify their practices.
And why do we always seem incapable of hanging on to the hope of peace and stability whenever it somehow emerges?
Could it be because the divi-dends of peace and harmony are much harder to monopolize and exploit than the profits of con-flict and confrontation?
Happy New Year…– Mustafa Eric
Looking at the old, what toexpect from the new
Wednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 7
Festival of Lights 2014Festival of Lights 2014The successs of Stettler’s 17th Annual Festival of Lights is attributed to our remarkable sponsors and volunteers. All proceeds from this year’s event will be used to purchase a new Nurse Call System at the
Stettler Hospital and Care Centre.Diamond ($3001 + ). Bond-O Communications Ltd. . . Canalta Properties
Star ($1500 - $3000)Star ($1500 - $3000). Anna Shirreff . . Sean’s No Frills . . Wares Jewelers . . Scotiabank . . SK Welding Ltd. . Woody’s Automotive
Silver ($1000 - $1499). Brennan Autobody Repair Ltd. . Gilbert Financial . Petro eld Industries . Byemoor Colony . Greg Patterson Concrete . Servus Credit Union. CJ Oil eld . Harvey & Shirley Kassian . SolutionCorp Inc.. Dr. Alasdair Drummond Prof. Corp. . Heartland Auto Supply . Stettler Downtown Business Association . Dr. Juliet Fairfax-Crone Prof. Corp. . John’s . Wilfort Construction. Foremost . Kendra Walgenbach
Bronze ($500 - $999). . 59th Street Liquor Store . . Festival of Lights Committee . . Jude’s Liquor Store. . . Schnell Hardy Jones LLP . . Admiral Welding . . Flaretech . . Kal Tire . . Stettler & District Agricultural Society. . Aspen Ford . Goodsense Healthcare . . Kim Smyth . . Stettler Auction Mart . . Brenda’s Country Catering . . Greg & Karen Hayden . . Letty Docherty . . Stettler Dodge . . Canadian Enviro-Tub . . Hadley Contracting . . Metalex Metal Buildings . . Stettler Flooring & Paint . . Chapman & Co. . . Heartland Medical Clinic . . Nordstrom Family Dental . . Stettler GM. . Di’s Consulting . . Heartland Quilter’s Guild . . Numera Tax & Accounting Service . . Stettler Stitchers . . DNR Pressure Welding . i.d. apparel . . One Better Hair Design . . Stettler Veterinary Clinic. . Dr. Martins Agwaze . . IJD Inspections . . Pam Blake . . Valhalla Filtration . . Dr. Sam Huang . . Jerry Bond . . Re-Glycol 2014 Ltd. . . Vivian Bennett, Shaunna Tremmel, Mary Ann Baltimore, Sophie Hewlett . . Dust Fairies . . Jim Renschler Construction Ltd. . . Rob & Marg Grand eld . . Vortex . . Empire Industries Ltd. . . JT Autobody Ltd . . Royal LePage Central . . WISH Kitchen & Gift Inc. . . Savage Value Drug Mart . . Wayne Tebbe
Friend ($100 - $499). . Action Plumbing & Excavating . . CR Glass . . Kathy Thomas . . Sherrie Kuef er. . Alberta Prairie Railway . . Collard Family . . Keith’s Refrigeration . . Silvia Oswald . . Al Tremmel . . Dancie Couttie . . Kempf’s Greenhouse . . Sobeys . . Alison Knocklby - Scentsy . . DanD Variety . . Kelsie Miller . . Smitty’s Restaurant . . Amanda Ollerhead . . Dean & Irene Kerbes . . Ken Bond . . Source for Sports . . Amy & Mike Roberts . . Debbeez Flowers . . Keyera Corp. . . Sophie Hewlett . . An Affair for the Heart of Alberta . . Debbie Waugh . . Kinette Club of Stettler . . Stacey Roberts – Jamberry/Silpada. . Andy Birch - Royal Lepage . . Denise Reinbold . . Koehler Financial Group . . Stephanie Hadley . . Annette Muyres . . Designer Frames . . Lawlor Jewelry . . Stephanie Siegrist . . Apple Drugs . . Don Fooks . . Leschert & Associates . . Stettler Elementary School Grade 5. . Artemis Computers . . Don’s Car Sales . . Letty Docherty & Tanille Timmons . . Stettler Golf Course . . ATB Financial . . Drumheller Equipment . . Linda Carstairs . . Stettler Independent. . Atco Electric . . DYBO Oil eld Sales & Rentals . . Lisa Johnson . . Stettler Recreation Centre . . Attic Hair Design . . Dynamo Electric Ltd. . . Lyncott Ladies . . Stettler Registry Services . . B&B Construction . . Echoglen Gardens . . Magnetsigns Stettler Ltd. . . Steve’s Barnboard Stuff . . Bagshaw Electric . . Ethel Howlett . . Marlaine Duncan . . Sue Peterson . . Baird Denture Clinic . . Fran Smith . . Michelle Pinder . . Super uity . . Bloke’s Bakery . . Gary G. Grant Law Of ce . . Neil Thorogood . . Suzanne Bond. . Bonnie Nelson . . Gary Wyness . . Northstar Trucking . . Sutton landmark Realty . . Boston Pizza . . Generations RV Inc. . . Northlands Derby . . Suzanne’s & Jenny’s . . Bounty Onsite Inc. . . Gitzel Krejci Dand Peterson . . Old Fashion Candy . . Szi Szi Kostenuk. . Boys Financial Services . . Glenn Ruttan . . Panda Flowers . . TAK Oil eld . . Brandy Erickson . . Gordon Mielke . . Pastor Ross Helgeton . Tami Robinson – Healing Colors Skincare. . Brenda Ogden . . GT Hydraulic & Bearing . . Pat’s Pet Care . . The Brick . . Brennen Funeral Home . . Heartland Hearing . . Performance Health & Fitness Centre . . The Mortgage Centre – Tana Nixon . . Bronzing Boutique . . James Scheerschmidt . . Perry & Pauline Christian . . The Otherside Restaurant . . Cabinet of Curiosities . . Jason Sabbe – Canadian Linen . . Pharmasave . . The Shoe Closet & Boutique . . Calgary Flames . . Jenece Baker . . Phoenix House B&B . . Thorogood & Pinches CGA . . Canadian Natural Resources Limited . . Jenkins Welding . . RBC Royal Bank . . Thrive 360 . . Canalta Hotel . . Jim Long . . Red Deer Co-op . . Tim Hortons . . Cathy Papaly . . Joanne Hoopfer . . Red Willow Colony . . Tom’s Boots . . Central Alberta Co-op Ltd. . . Joanne MacDonald . . Robert H. DeVries Prof. Corp. . . Tracy Lee Rosin . . Central Alberta Credit Union . . Jody’s Creations – Jody Perry . . Robert McNeill . . Tremmel Construction . . Cervus Equipment . . Johnson Connor Agencies . . Rollie’s Vac Systems (1991) . . Urban Cottage. . Cewal Construction . . Judy Le ar . . Rushton Agencies Ltd. . . Valley Green Landscaping . . Charlotte Drummond . . Karen Sernecky . . Sarah Chapman . . Vision Credit Union . . Cheryl Charles . . Karin Phibbs . . Sara Hegberg . . Walmart. . Christ King Catholic School . . Kathleen Kossowan . . Schwartz Home Building Centre . . Wendy Rowledge. . Cindy Clark . . Kathy’s Printing . . Shane’s Instrument Services Ltd. . . Wells Furniture . . WTS Manufacturing
Our apologies if you were missed, your support is appreciated!
Festival reaches new levels of community supportJoel van der Veen/Independent reporter Stettler’s 17th annual Festival of Lights had another successful year, raising a record-breaking $103,000 in support of the Stettler Health Services Foundation. Committee chair Sue Peterson said the total raised as of Monday, Dec. 15, was $103,236.25.The goal of the event — held from Nov. 25 to 29 — was to raise enough money to purchase a modern nurse call system for the local hospital, valued at roughly $90,000.“We’re thrilled that we were able to meet that goal and surpass it by some,” said Peterson. “Everything
went very, very well.”The festival consisted of a busy week packed with events, includ-ing a gourmet breakfast, dessert night, seniors tea, a Sounds of the Season concert, and a children’s afternoon, including cocoa, cookies, pictures with Santa and sleigh rides. Christmas Spirits, an evening of festive drinks, appetizers and jazz music on Nov. 26, was a runaway success, with the 175 available tickets quickly selling out. A gingerbread house contest was held in advance of the other festival events on Nov. 15, while the week closed on Nov. 29 with the Dine,
Dance and Auction. Peterson said the events ran smoothly, although inclement weather forced the organizers to adapt, particularly for Thursday’s concert when several acts were forced to cancel. “We were exhausted — all of us — by the end of the week,” she said, adding that her committee is already talking about what they can do to top this year’s events. “We’re already scheming and plan-ning for next year,” said Peterson. “Those girls don’t take any breaks . . . It always impresses me, their dedication to this project.”
Peterson also extended a “huge and heartfelt thank-you to the com-munity for their continued support of this festival, and thus the hospital.”Each year, festival organizers con-sult with the health foundation and hospital staff to determine areas of need for which they can raise funds. Previous festivals have provided funding for a variety of equipment, including birthing beds, overhead lifts, a colonoscope, infant incu-bator, palliative care beds, heart monitors and a patient monitoring system.
Joel van der VeenINDEPENDENT REPORTER
Students from Christ-King Catholic School added a touch of the holidays to three seniors residences in Stettler on Thursday, Dec. 18.
The students and staff went on their annual carol sing that morning, sharing the songs of the season with residents and inviting them to join in on the more familiar tunes.
Teacher Jaclyn Delhommeau said the short carol-ling tour has become a regular Christmas tradition for the school, with the entire student body — more than 100 kids — taking part.
“I don’t know who likes it more, the teachers, the kids or the seniors,” said Delhommeau.
The students divided into two groups, with the first visiting Heart Haven Lodge and the second visiting Points West. The singers were accompanied on the piano by Delhommeau and by Evelyn Strandquist.
Later, the two groups joined together for a perfor-mance at Willow Creek Lodge, after which cookies and juice were served.
Catholic students
go carolling at
seniors’ homes
Independent NEWSWednesday, December 31, 2014Page 8 The Stettler Independent
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Students and staff from Christ-King Catholic School sing Christmas carols at Willow Creek Lodge on Friday, Dec. 19.
Independent COMMUNITYWednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 9
Joel van der VeemINDEPENDENT REPORTER
Surrounded by choir members, musicians and an audience full of sing-ers, Evelyn Shursen said the effect was like listen-ing to music in stereo, with “sound in every direction.”
Shursen was the em-cee of the Stettler United Church’s annual carol sing, hosted the evening of Wednesday, Dec. 17, and featuring a total of eight choirs and singing groups.
The event attracted up-wards of 175 people to the church sanctuary, and Shursen said it provided ample evidence of the wealth of musical talent to be found in the Stettler community.
“We can share with one another the gifts that we’ve been given,” she said, “and it brings joy to everyone.”
Shursen proved a most enthusiastic emcee, leading the audience in singing and occasionally calling for a halt to the proceedings, in good humour, when she detected that a song was off to a poor start.
The evening began with “Silent Night,” introduced
by pianist Cassidy Braun, and continued by the core trio of musicians — pianist Elaine Hennel, organist Doug McKay and bass-ist Dave Carstairs — that led most of the audience’s singing that evening.
The crowd was encour-aged to sing a variety of songs, ranging from tradi-tional standards like “What Child is This?” and “The First Noel,” to popular songs like “Winter Won-derland” and “Marshmal-low World,” to newer hymns like “Still, Still, Still” and “Hope is a Star.”
The Heartland Belles, a group of red-hatted sing-ers who meet weekly at St. George’s Anglican Church, were the first on the program, accompanied
by pianist Maxine Frick-leton, singing “Come On, Ring Those Bells” and “Do You Hear What I Hear?”
Next up was the Erskine United Church choir, led by pianist Evelyn Strandquist, singing “Gentle Mary Laid Her Child” and “Advent Alleluia.”
The Happy Gang, which meets regularly to sing for residents at the Stettler Hospital and Care Cen-tre, performed “You Are My Sunshine” and “White Christmas,” led by Hennel at the piano.
This was followed by the St. George’s Angli-can Church choir, led by Strandquist, singing “Mary, Did You Know?” and an arrangement of the Lord’s Prayer.
Strandquist then led the Stettler Senior Singers in several songs, among them “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” “Ring the Bells” and “Come On, Ring Those Bells.”
Up next was a quartet consisting of two couples, Dave and Barbara-Lynn Goodwin and Jan and Bob Richardson, accompanied by Doug McKay on piano.
The quartet sang “Christ-mas Dreams,” after which
Dave Goodwin performed a solo of an original song of his, entitled “A Christ-mas Lullaby.”
McKay and the choir from St. Peter’s Evangeli-cal Lutheran Church then performed three songs: “All About Christmas,” “A Moment in Time” and “Baby, What You Gonna Be.”
The final group to per-form was the Stettler Unit-ed Church choir, led by
Stursen and accompanied by Hennel on the piano. They sang two songs: “A Special Night,” and “O Holy Night,” joined by Cassidy Munholland on the saxophone.
Stursen led the audience in singing “We Wish You a Merry Christmas,” fol-lowed by a closing prayer by Rev. Jan Richardson. Refreshments were served in the Christian Education Wing afterward.
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Carol sing fills United Church with festive soundsJoel van der Veen/Independent reporter
Evelyn Shursen leads the Stettler United Church choir during a carol sing held at the church on Wednesday, Dec. 17.
Independent NEWSPage 10 The Stettler Independent Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Joel van der Veen/Independent reporter
Chelsea Smith gives Dani Coolen a little help on the ice during the Skate with Santa afternoon at the Stettler Recreation Centre on Saturday, Dec. 20.
Joel van der VeenINDEPENDENT REPORTER
For the second year in a row, Santa Claus strapped on his skates and took to the ice with local kids at the Stettler Recreation Centre.
Skate with Santa, held from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, Dec. 20, attracted more than 100 kids to the arena, and organizers said they were pleased with the early turn-out.
“It was pretty steady from 11 to 2,” said Michelle Duchscherer, a front desk em-ployee at the Recreation Centre. “From 2 o’clock on, it slowed right down.”
Plenty of activities were available on the
rink surface, including bean bag toss and ring toss games, a relay race, tic tac toe and a shoot-the-puck competition.
Kids could also grab a rod and try fish-ing for candy canes, while those looking to express themselves artistically could take a brush and paint a design on the ice.
“We had a lot of kids playing shinny hockey as well,” said Duchscherer.
Though she was happy with the response, Duchscherer added, “I think next year we’re just going to cut it back to 11 till 2.”
Free hot dogs and hot chocolate were served, and organizers said that close to 200 hot dogs were consumed. Prizes were also available to be won.
Fun on the ice as SRC hosts Skate
with Santa
EXTRA SPECIAL THANKSGood News! Reliable sources tell us that Christmas is on the way,
so it’s time to deliver our sincere thanks and best wishes toour readers, advertisers, associates and friends.
We hope you all have a wonderful holiday and want you to knowthat we really appreciate your loyal readership this past year.
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Independent COLUMNSWednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 11
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2014 started out with a lot of frustration: Grain was hardly moving through Canada as the Great White North experienced some record cold temperatures and significant ice cover on the Great Lakes. With the railroads making more money moving oil, elevators couldn’t take deliveries and the amount of ships sitting at the port waiting for grain started to grow. The govern-ment finally made the deci-sion to step in and force the railroads to move grain or else face some pretty hefty fines. At the same time, geopolitical risk started to grow in Eastern Europe as Ukraine decided to join the European Union, anger-ing pro-Russian separatists which lead to a civil war on the Russian-Ukrainian bor-der. This intuitively equaled some higher grain prices globally as concerns mount-ed if the growing grain-pro-ducing powerhouse that is the Black Sea would be able to move grain. However, grain did get moved as ship-ments barely slowed down and prices started to fall while North America drills hit the fields in April/May.
At that time, there were also some muted concerns of an El Nino event rearing its head in the latter half of the year. This did add some pre-mium to the markets, as did the North America seeding rate falling behind schedule, but with the new technolo-gies available to produc-ers, everything got seeded, including a record U.S. soybean crop. While the growing season in Western Canada saw see-saw grow-ing conditions (a lot of Can-ada Day rain!), the Ameri-can Midwest saw some of its best conditions ever, which forced prices to continue to slide. There were short pops
in the market that sharp pro-ducers took advantage of, but a bottom wasn’t realized all the way until October for most crops. This was be-cause the North American harvest was slowed down by untimely rains, seriously affecting quality, especially in Western Canada for pulse and cereal crops yet to be taken off, namely durum and lentils. If you found yourself with either of these taken off before the rains, it was quite likely that you enjoyed a multi-decade high in the price that you received.
From a production stand-point, Canada didn’t see 2013-like yields, the rest of the world saw did. Eu-rope enjoyed huge rapeseed and wheat crops, although the quality of the latter was also adversely affected by untimely harvest rains. Re-cord U.S. corn and soybean output has now led to a large rebuilding of ending stocks and to aggravate the bear-ish implications, weather and growing conditions for the big South American soybean crop looks very positive. What’s the bullish news? Demand continues to grow thanks to Asia (namely China) and the Middle East, but slower than produc-tion did this year. Western economic sanctions and oil prices sliding to $60 per barrel have put the Rus-
sian economy on the ropes, compounded by the Russian rouble losing almost half its value in 2014. Ultimately, there’s a global gluttony of grain this year that we have to work through now – we are seeing better rail move-ment in Western Canada but the U.S. is now having some problems. This means that apart from Russia limiting wheat exports and trying to buy more for itself (it’s one of the largest growers and exporters in the world), one can expect more sideways to lower trading through the spring in other coarse grains and oilseeds. This doesn’t mean that all prices will fall immediately, but I’m not confident they’ll remain elevated for too, too long, barring a further escalation of geopolitical risk or poor-er weather in the southern hemisphere.
To growth, Brennan TurnerPresident, FarmLead.comBrennan Turner is origi-
nally from Foam Lake, SK, where his family started farming the land in the 1920s. After completing his degree in economics from Yale University and then playing some pro hockey, Mr. Turner spent some time working in finance before starting FarmLead.com, a risk-free, transparent online and mobile grain market-place (app available for iOS and Android). His weekly column is a summary of his free, daily market note, the FarmLead Breakfast Brief. He can be reached via email ([email protected]) or phone (1-855-332-7653).
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2014: Relativelypositive year
Ag Market Update
BRENNAN TURNER
Will VerbovenAHEAD OF THE HEARD
Readers will be forgiven for not having heard of a recent obscure event held in far-away Toronto. Although National Farm-ers Union (NFU) members might want to pay attention being their hard-earned dol-lars seem to be frivolously spent on green political silliness. The NFU is identified as a sponsor of an event entitled “Festival of Dangerous Ideas.” Calling it a “Festi-val of Fools” would be more appropriate as it brought together a rag-tag collection of green lobby whackos and ideologues, organic production blowhards and scam artists, back-to-the earth hippies, and the usual delusional green dreamers and mal-contents. Most of the speakers at the event were self-appointed and self-righteous experts on food and agriculture. Bashing modern commercial agriculture was of course the theme of the meeting, along with wild conspiracies of world domina-tion by every corporate entity, with spe-cial emphasis on the evil Monsanto.
I expect to the folks attending this event every advancement in agricultural production for the past 100 years is vile and must be banned for the sake of hu-man civilization. There is some humour in what these folks believe, particular as most are products of the society they seem to despise. As expected geneti-cally engineered (GE) plants, herbicides, pesticides, patented seeds and science in general were cited as the root of all evil. The event head liner was Vandana Shiva an anti-commercial agriculture activist from India. She apparently told event at-tendees what they wanted to hear blaming capitalism and corporate agriculture for the world’s ills. She advocated a return to some sort of subsistence agriculture based on the socialist concept of “the commons” where everything is shared. One would have thought that the disastrous commu-nist collective farming system would be a lesson as to how that type of agriculture does not work, but apparently there are still fools out there that have little under-standing about basic human nature. a
Ms. Shiva stated that small diverse farms were more productive than corpo-rate agriculture. If that were true Africa would be the world’s biggest producer and exporter of food being that continent outside of South Africa is essentially the world’s largest conglomeration of small organic farmers. Did I mention that Af-rica is also the largest recipient of food aid in the world, its one of those inconve-
nient truths folks like Ms. Shiva neglect to mention. Did I also mention that virtually all the food aid in the world comes from the commercial agriculture industry that these folks rail against. But I digress.
In checking some websites and news articles it would seem that Ms. Shiva is a sort of small agriculture guru having writ-ten a couple of books on the topic along with women’s issues. No doubt she is a darling of leftish, organic, anti-capitalist groups and makes a living flying around the world to delusional events like the re-cent Festival of Fools in Toronto. Inter-estingly, organizers of the event insisted on calling it the “Festival of Dangerous Ideas” even though a much more promi-nent and long-time event of the same name is sponsored by the Sydney opera house. Maybe fools is too kind of a word for these folks.
These types of green and organic in-dustry booster events are nothing new; it’s no different from events held by other sectors, societies, political par-ties etc... They are designed to rally the troops, raise some money and to engage in much self-delusion depending on the cause of course. This Toronto Festival of Fools would see carefully selected biased speakers and ideological heroes making outrageous statements that the audience would already agree with. I expect most would be vegetarians and the banquet was intensely politically-correct - featuring or-ganic, fair-trade, local beets and rutabagas grown by socially aware women and gen-der friendly peasant workers’ collectives and brought to the event by wind powered wagons.
Many of the sponsors were the usual suspects all involved in the green and or-ganic lobbies and most very urban based with no connection to actual agriculture outside of Toronto. One does ponder why the National Farmers Union would be in-volved in an essentially anti-agriculture event. I expect many NFU members, especially in western Canada, would be defined as environmental enemies by the folks involved in this event. There certainly would seem to be little hope in drumming up new NFU memberships with these folks. Why any agricultural organization would want to be associated with the notorious Sierra Club one of the sponsors of the event, boggles the mind. Taking part in events like this would only serve to question the relevancy of the NFU in today’s modern agriculture industry.
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ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION5010-51st, Stettler, AB | (403) 742-2404
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Jan. 1, 2015 - Closed Jan. 1, 2015 - Closed Jan. 2, 2015 - 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. Jan. 2, 2015 - 3:30 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Meat Draw at 5 pm.Meat Draw at 5 pm. Jan. 3, 2015 - 3:30 p.m. to 9 pm. Jan. 3, 2015 - 3:30 p.m. to 9 pm.
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Wishing Everyone a Wonderful New Year! Wishing Everyone a Wonderful New Year!
Thank You to everyone for the continued Thank You to everyone for the continued support in 2014 and helping to keepsupport in 2014 and helping to keepBranch #59 alive in our community.Branch #59 alive in our community.Meat DrawsMeat Draws every Friday & Saturday every Friday & Saturday
at 5pm. Join us for comradeship and fun! at 5pm. Join us for comradeship and fun!
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Wednesday,December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 13
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Independent SPORTSWednesday, December 31, 2014Page 14 The Stettler Independent
Stacey LavallieINDEPENDENT REPORTER
2014 was a banner year for many sports and ath-letes in Stettler, both at the school and league levels. Let’s look back at some of the best moments of 2014.
HockeyThe Stettler Minor
Hockey Association was named Association of the Year by Hockey Alberta at an event in Edmonton, and President Jason Heg-berg was on hand to ac-cept the award.
The Stettler Lightning Junior B team bade fare-well to their head coach, Doug Smith, at their an-nual banquet. Smith, who was retiring coaching after 30 years – the past seven with the Lightning – said he would be enjoy-ing winters somewhere warmer. However, after not finding a replacement coach for the 2014-15 season, he returned to the bench in the head coach role.
In Senior Hockey ac-tion, the Big Valley Oil Kings sweep the awards
in the Battle River Hock-ey League, netting goal-ies of the year, coaches of the year, and rookie of the year – the most awards won by any singular team that year.
RodeoBotha resident Darrell
Cholach, 50, is entered into the Canadian Ro-deo Hall of Fame. In his career, Cholach won the Canadian Championship in Bareback in 1993, 1996 and 1999.
In 1995, he was the Calgary Stampede Cham-pion, in 1999 Cowboy of the Year, and he qualified for the CFR 16 times be-fore he retired about eight years ago.
Riley Warren went on to compete in two different Canadian Finals Rodeo (CFR) events in Novem-ber.
He competed in the team roping and tie-down roping events at the CFR in Edmonton last week from Nov. 5 to 9. This was his second appearance at the finals and Warren says he felt more comfortable this time around.
continued on page 15
File Photo
Stettler’s Jake Schwarzenberger seeks to score against Airdrie during the second period of the game on Sunday, Oct. 19.
File photo
Stettler’s U18 girls’ soccer team brought home a silver medal and the fair play award from provincials in Edson on July 11-13.
A look back at sports in 2014
Independent SPORTSWednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 15
continued from page 14Soccer
It was a banner season for the U18 girls’ soccer club as secured league first in the Central Alberta Soccer Association in a blowout match against the girls from Rimbey, winning 7-0. The league had a powerful sea-son, winning almost every game they played through-out the summer, including several tournaments.
The boys’ U12 team also saw substantial wins, head-ing to the provincials after winning their league first-place spot in a July game against Camrose United. The Stettler team had fallen in every game against Cam-rose in the 2014 season until the final gold medal match.
Alberta Summer GamesAfter dominating in all
her track and field compe-titions this season, Stettler high school student Dacia Gramlick headed to the Al-berta Summer Games. She
went with nothing more than a desire to do her best and enjoy the experience, and in achieving those two goals came home with sev-en gold medals and several personal bests.
Gramlich wasn’t the only one to head to the Summer Games. Tyler Matchett, Ed-die Kim, Jordan Lane, Will McDonald, Ty McCann and Keegan St. Denis went to the competition to compete in football.
FootballThe William E. Hay
Wildcats make it all the way to the semi-finals, where they claimed the league’s third place spot by stomp-ing the Rocky Rebels.
The Stettler Panthers fin-ished second in the league to the Sylvan Lake Bears in a final season match, after going nearly without loss all season. In fact, the only team to beat them other than the Bears was the team from Strathmore.
A look back at sports in 2014SALE DATESPhone (403) 742-2368Regular Sales ~ Tuesdays - 9 a.m.
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File photo
Dacia Gramlick is Stettler’s golden girl! The track and field athlete competed this past weekend in Airdrie at the Alberta Summer Games in the heptathlon, which consists of seven different events – and blew her competition out of the water, taking gold in each event.
File photo
Wildcats’ Trey Nichols executes a flying tackle to bring down the Sylvan Lake ball carrier during the penultimate game of the season in Sylvan Lake on Thursday, Oct. 23.
Independent SPORTSPage 16 The Stettler Independent Wednesday, December 31, 2014
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Submitted by Todd LewisThe Central Alberta Buccaneers are
well underway in preparation for their upcoming AFL season. With the sign-ing of a Devon Hand as head coach, the Bucs are entering the 2015 season with a new direction and vision. By fostering a football culture of commitment and ac-countability and recruiting a large and competitive roster, the team will “allow as much fun as possible without compro-mising the work it takes to win a title,” said coach Hand. “This will be a pro-gram guys want to play in.”
Linebacker Elliott Mabbott, former Stettler Wildcat, is heading into his sec-ond season as a Buccaneer and couldn’t be more excited: “the 2015 season is looking promising. I’m really looking forward to seeing what Coach Hand has in store for the team.” Mabbott admitted that the transition from high school to se-nior’s league was a bit daunting, but “be-ing on the Bucs and knowing that your teammates have your back puts your mind at ease. The team has a brotherly atmosphere – everyone feels welcome.”
After falling short of the 2014 AFL title, the Bucs are continuing to bolster its roster size and talent pool. With in-creased depth, the team will be better able to endure injuries as well as avoid over-fatiguing players. To find these ad-ditional recruits, the Bucs will operate booths at trade shows during the spring (Ponoka, Lacombe, and Stettler), host its first annual Bucs Recruitment Night, and continue to have a presence in the Cen-tral Albertan community via fundraisers and charity events.
The Bucs will continue its partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters Ponoka by entering a team into the Bowl for Kids
fundraiser. At this event, participants raise pledges, which greatly contribute to BBBS’s yearly operating funds, and bowl for game or two. This will be the Bucs fourth year participating in this event and the team aims at raising $1200 for Big Brothers.
After completing its fourth team-blood-drive on Dec. 13th (which includ-ed 17 blood donators), the Buccaneers sent out a friendly challenge to the rest of the AFL to see which club is more willing to bleed for Alberta. On Feb. 7th, 2015, the nine teams that comprise the Alberta Football League will collective-ly roll up their sleeves in their respective blood clinics in order to donate. Fans and interested players are encouraged to participate.
The Bucs Recruitment Night will function as a meet and greet for interest-ed potential players. Coaching staff and veteran players will be more than will-ing to share information regarding the team, its culture, its history, and, most importantly, its goals for 2015. While an exact location has not yet been decided upon, the Recruitment Night will happen on Jan. 24th. For more details, follow the team’s website at www.cabucs.com.
When asked about the 2015 expecta-tions, Coach Hand said: “When we strap up in red and black this upcoming sum-mer, players will be challenged to leave it all on the field for the better of the team. There will be no excuses. There will be no shortcuts. When the summer turns to fall and the dust settles, players will be able to look each other in the eye and say they laid it on the line for the team.
That is what 2015 Central Alberta Buccaneers will be all about.”
Buccaneers looking forward to 2015 season
Stacey LavallieINDEPENDENT REPORTER
The Big Valley Oil Kings hit the road on Dec. 20, heading to To-field to face the Satellites – and came home limping after a 7-2 loss.
It was a hard night for the Oil Kings, who due to the nearness of the Christmas season had a thin roster to take the ice in Tofield, including a short defence roster.
This resulted in the Oil Kings having to put three forwards on the ice in the role of defencemen, ac-
cording to General Man-ager Dustin Edwards, including one man who hadn’t played yet this season.
It was also the first time rookie goaltender Braden Redman suited up, hold-ing down the Oil Kings’ fort for the first two peri-ods before being replaced by seasoned goalie and the 2014-15 goalie of the year in the Battle River Hockey League, Chance Clark.
“Tofield had a big ros-ter,” Edwards said. “They were hungry for the win.”
Edwards said after the
game that in hindsight the team should have put Clark in the net after the first period, but he knew that Redman was ner-vous and he hoped the rookie would shake off the nerves. With Clark in the net for the third, though, the game shifted away from the Satellites, and the Oil Kings finally put themselves on the board with a 2:58 goal by Chance Abbott, and a last-seconds effort by Luke Boyer.
The Oil Kings will have a chance to even the score with the Satellites on Jan. 3 at 7:30 p.m. and Jan. 4 at 2 p.m. when the team comes to Big Val-ley.
“We’ll beat them with a full roster,” Edwards said confidently. “I’m not that impressed.”
The Oil Kings, with that Dec. 20 loss, sit in the middle of the five-team league, behind the Bonnyville Pontiacs and Tofield Satellites, and ahead of the Lloydmin-ster Border Kings and Daysland Northstars.
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Short line Oil Kings lose hard to Tofield
Contributed photo
Players of Central Alberta Buccaneers pictured during their last fall’s blood donation drive.
Independent COMMUNITYWednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 17
Dear Editor, Ever since the global
financial crisis struck in 2008, Canadians have been subjected to a con-stant refrain: Canada has the “most sound banking system in the world”. Dur-ing the worst of the crisis, from 2008 to 2010, the of-ficial line was that Cana-da’s banks did not require the extraordinary bailout measures that were being offered in other countries, particularly in the U.S. We knew that as early as 2008 the federal government had made provisions to buy in-sured mortgage pools from Canada’s banks in order to keep credit flowing during recessionary times. The government was careful to call it a “liquidity support”, not a “bailout” but, as one report reveals, government support for the country’s biggest banks was far more generous than the official
line would suggest. Support spanned the course of two years and Canada’s banks turned not only to the Ca-nadian federal government and the Bank of Canada for help during this protracted time period; they also took advantage of American bailout programs.
I would suggest that all Canadians read this inter-esting report published by the CCPA “Canadian Cen-tre for Policy Alternatives” in April of 2012 called “Big Bank’s Secrets” and you can read the whole report at: www.policyal-ternatives.ca as documents some surprising truths as to what really happened.
I have no issue with our banks needing to be well capitalised and profitable, but we now have a situa-tion where our big banks have almost a virtual mo-nopoly in Canada approved by our Federal Govern-
ment. And wanting to fur-ther extend their scope of operations well beyond the original mandates they were granted. One issue that I have touched on sev-eral times is credit, life and mortgage insurance being sold in banks by unlicensed employees. The Supreme Court of Canada recently ruled that this practice is il-legal, this because the sale of insurance is not one of our chartered bank’s core obligations, so as a result insurance products sold by any bank employee are now subject to provincial legislation, including leg-islation that says life in-surance must be sold on a separate premise from the rest of the bank and also that any sale of insurance products must be done by a licensed individual and that there are certain fidu-ciary obligations that go along with that licensed in-
dividual. Which begs the ques-
tion as relates to past sales of credit life and mortgage life insurance by banks: “Was this compliant or not, if sold in-branch by an un-licensed bank employee?” So, now what can be done? According the Supreme Court of Canada, the bulk of credit and mortgage in-surance policies were sold illegally.
Which leads to the ques-tion, what legal remedies might now be available to bank customers having purchased a product “sold illegally”, does this make their policy null and void and what’s the impact of this for all the bank cus-tomers involved?
This whole issue was highlighted for me this spring when a life-insured client passed away and I delivered a large insurance cheque to the family, only
to find out that two creditor life policy claims from two different banks were denied on the excuse that the cli-ent had failed to disclose a pre-existing medical condi-tion; so both only refunded the premiums paid, a small fraction of the actual cover-age the family thought was in place.
Another of my many beefs with banks is the re-strictions now built into mortgages that many con-sumers are not aware of, the primary concern being the draconian early surren-der penalties; used to be three-month’s interest pen-alty, which now is “the in-terest differential” or bank speak for the opportunity to really hose you!
I recently met with a young couple wanting to move to an innovative bank option that I refer clients to, only to find out they were facing a $42,000 pay out
penalty. This was never explained to them and the disclosure on this hidden in the fine print on their mort-gage document?
The latest federal gov-ernment initiative has been to set up a financial educa-tion task force to improve the level of financial edu-cation for Canadians, espe-cially for school children. Better late than never in my opinion, but the con-cern that I have now is that the big banks want to be in on the front in line to help “educate” our students, which, as a farm boy, re-minds me of that old saying “putting the foxes in charge of the chicken coup”; plus considering Canadians to-day are piling on debt like there’s no tomorrow, will only make a bad situation even worse.
Peter Boys – A con-cerned Canadian
Are big banks earning big profits off of their clients’ backs?
PAUL, James Gibson Paul (“Jim”) Dec 1st, 1934 – Dec 11th, 2014Late of Big Valley, Alberta.Jim passed away with family by his side at the hospice in Red Deer after a lengthy illness.Jim was predeceased by his wife Yvonne Paul (Simpson), his parents James & Jessie Paul, and his brother Bob.He is survived by his children Jim Paul Jr. (Arlene Oswald), and Tammie-Lynn Paul and her husband (Andy Holden), his Grandchildren, great Grandchildren, Sister Pat Brandon (Ray), many nieces and nephews, and numerous dear and beautiful friends.Friends and family are invited to attend a celebration of Jim’s life at Pheasantback cc in Stettler, AB on May 30th, 2015. A day to pay tribute and share “Old Jim” stories, play some cards and/or golf.Please RSVP by May 15, 2015 to:[email protected] Memorial Donations if desired pay directly to:Red Deer Hospice Society99 Arnot AveRed Deer, AB T4R 3S6
4
OBITUARY
Donalda has always been a small place but not without periods of growth and decline. It is interesting to trace its population since it was in-corporated as a village in December 1912. By then the population was al-ready 200.
Of course, at one time there was virtually no one living on a year-round basis where Donalda is located. Native people and later explorers and Métis came through but did not stay here, although Boss Hill on Buffalo Lake not far from Donalda became a major Métis settlement in the 1870s. But it was abandoned after the disap-pearance of the buffalo a decade later. Then came the first homesteaders in the 1890s and by the first decade of the 20th century, the countryside around Donalda grew full of immi-grants, many from Scandinavia.
With the arrival of the Canadian
Northern Railway in 1911, the village soon became a central place for farm-ers and ranchers in the area. The first official census information from 1914 shows that Donalda had boomed to a population of 250. There was, how-ever, a decline to 150 during the First World War. After the War there was an increase to 275 by 1921, then an-other decline during the Depression years.
After World War II, the population of Donalda grew again, to an apogee of 318 people, probably a reflection of the general post-war boom. Since the 1960s the population of Donalda has remained relatively stable, be-tween 230 and 278 people. The last census in 2011 showed 259 inhabit-ants. For information year by year, see: http://www.altapop.ca/villages/donalda.pdf
What will the future bring? Don-
alda certainly has the capacity to grow. But the economic base has been transformed, transportation is easier to larger centres, and the growth of Stettler and Camrose have created a critical mass for shopping and ser-vices making it hard for Donalda to compete. As a place to retire and for recreation, however, Donalda is a prime location.
Happy New Year to all our readers, and residents and visitors of Donalda!
Happy Birthdays these last days of December 2014 and first few days of January 2015 to Clay Awe, Ian Stone, Aveya Laye, Cindy Au-ton, Dusty Vikse, Amy-Ann Kotz, Duncan Charles, Harper Tantrum, Juston Clement, Raesha Berry. And to other birthday celebrants we may have missed who are bringing out the old year and ringing in the new, best wishes.
Submitted by Rayell Haustein
The Erskine 4-H Beef Club is up and running again with 20 members.
Our leader is Lyle Big-
nell, president: Carly Big-nell, Vice President: Low-ell Van Straten, Treasurer: Drew Bignell, Secretary: Cole Heck, Club Reporter: Rayell Haustein with the as-
sistance of Karlee & Kelsey Konschuh, we also have a bunch of capable Histori-ans.
Our Christmas party is on Jan. 4th, 2015 we are going
curling and having a chine-segift exchange, along with a pot luck supper. We are looking forward to another succsesful year! We’ll keep you updated to club events.
Turn off the television.
Turn ontheirminds.
In school or at home, the newspaper is a textbook for life. Encourage your children to make reading the newspaper a part of their everyday routine for lifelong learning.
Celebrate Newspaper in Education Week by donating your newspaper subscription or sponsoring a classroom subscription today! Call 403-742-2395 INDEPENDENTINDEPENDENT
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Erskine 4-H News
The Population of Donalda over the yearsDonalda
DiaryBY DARLENE TANTRUM
403-883-2100
ARTHUR WILLIAM SKALEY1937 - 2014 On December 16, 2014, Mr. Art Skaley passed away peacefully surrounded by his loving family. Art was born in Gadsby, Alberta on March 6, 1937 to Otto and Margaret Skaley. Art was the youngest son in a family of three other brothers and three sisters. He lived and worked on the family farm until he was 16 years old. He ventured on to Monitor, Alberta where he was employed at Peterson Electric. It was here he met the love of his life Sharon Mitchell who soon became his wife of 59 years. Art and Sharon were married on December 5, 1955. The couple moved to Stettler where Art found employment at the Travel Inn for a short time before gaining employment with the Town Of Stettler where he worked for nine years. With the experience Art had gained, he was ready to start a business of his own and in 1965, Skaley
Construction was formed. It all began as a business with two pump trucks and grew to include truck mounted backhoes, dump trucks, trackhoes and bobcats all gathered over the years. His business expanded over the 43 years it existed and served the community of Stettler and the surrounding area. Art and Sharon started their family life together in the town of Stettler. Their daughter Bev arrived on February 18, 1960 and their son Lenard was born June 8, 1961. In 1975, they moved to an acreage just east of town. In 1990 the family moved to a quarter section south of town. Here Art continued with his construction business but had an opportunity to engage in new adventures like raising Ostriches and composting. Art also started working with Angus Cattle with his son and got involved with showing pure bread Angus cattle. In 1985 at the 5th World Angus Forum, Art was awarded Grand Champion Female! An achievement he was very proud of. Art very much enjoyed music and was a self-taught drum player and also played the saxophone. He enjoyed many weekends and evenings playing in several bands in the area. Art’s greatest joy however was his fi ve grandchildren. He was so very proud of them all and loved to share stories with everyone about their many accomplishments. Art was predeceased by his parents Otto and Margaret Skaley, sisters Grace, Marie (Lenin) and brothers Harold and Edgar. He is survived by his loving wife Sharon, daughter Bev (Wade) Konschuh and Lenard (Carolyn) Skaley; grandchildren Parker (Taylor), Rebecca (Jordan), Jessica, Jeffrey and Caylen. He is also survived by brother John Skaley, sister Shirley Somer and sister in law Darlene Skaley as well as many nieces, nephews, other relatives and so many very dear friends. A gathering to celebrate Arts life will be held at the Brennen Funeral Home reception area on January 10, 2015 from 2:00 P.M. to 4:00 P.M. As an expression of sympathy and in loving memory of Art memorial contributions may be made to the Stettler Health Services Foundation - Heritage House or the Stettler Renal Dialysis in care of Brennen Funeral Home and Cremation Services P.O. Box 193 Stettler, Alberta TOC 2LO who have been entrusted with the care and arrangements. 403.742.3315 Condolences can be forwarded to the family by visiting our website at www.brennenfuneralhome.com.
Free Bird
Like a bird, you’ve grown a set of wingsSo you may fl y away to a safe place
And be free.
Looking down from your perch admiring the view,Guiding us through the brambles and roses,
making the right Gambles and choices.
Once in a while you’ll get close enoughTo touch, spreading a smile on our faces
And whispering a fl utter of your Glorious span.
All the love and well wishes could not
Bring you back to us now,But we have our very own Guardian Angel
To watch over us now.
SMITHAlbert Norman1927 - 2014Mr. Albert Norman ‘Norm’ Smith of Red Deer, Alberta passed away peacefully at Extendicare Michener Hill, Red Deer on Wednesday, December 17, 2014 at the age of 87 years. Once he married Evelyn, they moved to Calgary, Alberta, where they raised their family. Norm spent his fi rst fi fteen years working for National Supply. He then went on to work for Loffl and Bros. Drilling for the next twenty-fi ve
years. Eventually they moved to Red Deer after his retirement, where they spent many happy years. Norm was very talented and loved woodworking and also doing Lapidary; the art of forming, honing and designing gemstones. He was extremely gifted in his artistry and his pieces were loved and desired by all for their exquisite shapes and beauty. Norm, however, was happiest when with his family whom he loved dearly. He was a very devoted and loving husband, father and grandfather. His relationships and his marriage were most important to him and his wife and family were dear to his heart. Norm will be fondly remembered for his wonderful warm smile which he maintained and kept even throughout his illness and in tough times. His kind and loving spirit will be deeply missed but forever remembered by all. Norm will be lovingly remembered by his beloved wife and best friend of sixty-one years, Evelyn of Red Deer; his two daughters, Deb (Murray) McKay of Olds, Alberta and Eva-Leah Smith of Red Deer; and his three grandchildren, Alisa McKay, Breanna (Rob) Houlton and Cody Smith Pond. He will also be sadly missed by his sister, Ruth Streit of Stettler, Alberta, as well as numerous other extended family, cousins, nieces, nephews and dear friends. Norm was predeceased by his father, Albert Smith, his mother, Clara Johnston and a brother, Ted Smith. In honoring Norm’s wishes, no formal service will be held. An Interment will take place at the Donalda Cemetery, Donalda, Alberta at a later date. The family would like to extend their sincere thanks and appreciation to Unit 33 of the Red Deer Regional Hospital Centre and also to Unit 3800 of Extendicare Michener Hill, Red Deer. If desired, Memorial Donations in Norm’s honor may be made directly to the Red Deer Regional Health Foundation at www.rdrhfoundation.com/donate-now or to a charity of the donor’s choice. Condolences may be sent or viewed at www.parklandfuneralhome.com.
Arrangements in care of Rhian Solecki, Funeral Director at
PARKLAND FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATORIUM6287 - 67 A Street (Taylor Drive), Red Deer. 403.340.4040.
Obituaries
The Stettler
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The family of Art Skaley want to thank
Dr. Drummond, Dr. Fairfax, the staff at Heritage House and the dialysis unit for the exceptional care they gave
to my husband, our dad and grandpa. Your
professionalism, kindness, guidance, comfort and
friendship meant so much and will always be
remembered.
Sharon, Bev (Wade), Parker & Rebecca, Len
(Carolyn), Jessica, Jeffrey & Caylen
BETTY HORNEBorn on Christmas DayCelebrating 85 years!
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Independent CLASSIFIEDS Wednesday, December 31, 2014Page 18
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Have a safe & happy holiday
RED WILLOW AG. SOCIETY
Annual General Meeting Monday, January 5, 2015
Red Willow Community Hall
6:00 p.m.Pot Luck Supper with meeting to
follow at 7:00 p.m.Please join with the
present Board at this meeting to discuss the future of the Ag Society
organization itself, as well as the future of Hall and Ball Park/Campground in Red Willow. Your input is
urgently needed. Everyone in the community, hamlet,
surrounding area, and former community
members are welcome and encouraged to attend.
A potluck supper will be held prior to the meeting!
Is someone’s drinking causing you problems?
AL-ANON 403-346-0320
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Medical 790MEDICAL
TRANSCRIPTION is an in-demand career in
Canada! Employers have work-at-home positions available. Get the online
training you need from an employer-trusted program. Visit: CareerStep.ca/MT or
1-888-528-0809 to start training for your work-at-
home career today!
MEDICAL BILLING Train-ees needed! Learn to
process & submit claims for hospitals and doctors!
No experience needed! Lo-cal training gets you ready to work! 1-888-627-0297.
Restaurant/Hotel 820
THE RUSTY PELICAN is now accepting resumes for F/T Exp’d LINE COOKS at all stations. MUST HAVE:
• 2 yrs. min. on-the-job exp., must have com-pleted High School be reliable, self motivated work well under limited supervision.
Rate is $13.25 - $15./hr. No benefi ts.
733644 Ab Ltd. O/A The Rusty Pelican
Location of employment: 4105 2079 - 50 Ave.
Red Deer, AB T4R 1Z4email:
[email protected] Call 403-347-1414
or Fax to: 403-347-1161Only candidates selected
for an interview will be contacted.
Trades 850
Sales &Distributors 830
INSIDE SALES REPRE-SENTATIVE. Responsible for providing professional service to customers in a
team atmosphere, thru customer service, product delivery & technical sup-port. Maintain exceptional
knowledge of products sold & industry serviced. Proven sales/customer
service, time management, above-average communi-
cation & computer profi cient. High school di-
ploma required; post-secondary schooling ad-
vantageous. Apply: [email protected].
Trades 850AN ALBERTA OILFIELD company is hiring experi-
enced dozer and excavator operators, meals and lodg-ing provided. Drug testing required. 1-780-723-5051.
AUTOMOTIVE TECHNI-CIAN. Looking for trained technicians to work in our
Chrysler store. Clean, safe, progressive town of 6,000 in central Alberta.
Only hardworking, honest, team builders need apply;
Trades 850JOURNEYMAN Heavy
Duty Mechanic required for oilfi eld trucking company.
Will consider 3rd year apprentice or higher.
Full-time position. Phone resume to: 780-842-6444. Fax 780-842-6581. Email:
HIRING F/T Outdoor power equipment
technician, apprenticeship & benefi ts avail, good
working conditions. Email Resume to [email protected]
or Fax to 403-742-8777
JOURNALISTS, Graphic Artists, Marketing and more. Alberta’s weekly
newspapers are looking for people like you. Post
your resume online. Free. Visit: awna.com/for-job-
seekers.
RIVERBEND Co-op in Outlook, SK is now hiring for a Meat Manager. Ex-
perience required. Contact Dale or Shauna at
306-867-8614 or by email: sforrister.rvrbnd@
sasktel.net.
Shop online www.wishkitchen.comMain Street Stettler 403.742.8484
Christmas ClearanceSelect items up to 50% OFF!
wish kitchen & gift
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Stettler Rifle and Pistol ClubMonday, Jan. 5 @ 7 p.m.
at Indoor Range
Everyone welcomewww.stettlergunclub.com
Administrative Assistant 1Campus Alberta Central has an exciting
opportunity for a part-time Administrative Assistant to work 2 days per week with the
possibility of additional hours in peak periods. Th e position is located at our Stettler Campus.To become part of this dynamic team, please
forward a resume quoting competition #14156A by January 16, 2015.
For further information on these or other employment opportunities, please visit our
website at www.oldscollege.ca/employment
Allied Fabrication is a young aggressive company looking for like-mindedindividuals to join our team. If you enjoy a fast paced, positive work environment, pride yourself on having an eye for details, a strong work ethic, and consider yurself reliable please send your resume. Allied manufactures oil & gas production equipment from our facility in Stettler, AB. We are quickly gaining a reputation as a high quality, dependable, competitive supplier.
We are now accepting resumes for:
- Apprentice Welders- Labourers
Allied Fabrication offers competitive wages, a health & wellness program, access to overtime hours, and the opportunity to advance your career; division manage-ment positions will become available as we continue to grow.
Please send resumes to:Fax: 1-888-526-0274 or Email: [email protected]
Allied is an enterprising company that manufactures oil & gas production equipment from our facility in Stettler, AB. We are actively looking for like-mindedindividuals to join our team. If you enjoy a fast paced, positive work environment, pride yourself on having an eye for details, a strong work ethic, and consider yourself reliable please contact us!
We are now accepting resumes for:
“B” Pressure, Journeyman and Apprentice Welders
LaborersAllied offers competitive wages, a health & wellness program, access to overtime hours, and the opportunity to advance your career; division management positions will become available as we continue to grow.
Please apply in person at 3808 - 46 Ave. in Stettler or send resumes to:Fax: 1-888-526-0274 or Email: [email protected]
Bearspaw Petroleum Ltd. is seeking qualifi ed candidates to fi ll Floorhand, Derrickhand and Driller positions. These positions are locally based.Applicants must have all necessary valid tickets for the positionapplied for.Bearspaw offers a very competitive salary & benefi ts package along with a steady work schedule.Please submit resumes: Attn: Human Resources
Email: [email protected]: 403-258-3197
Or mail to: Ste. 5309, 333 - 96 Ave. NE, Calgary, AB T3K 0S3
Service Rig
Class 1 Drivers • Oilfi eld Tickets Preferred • Driver’s Abstract • Oilfi eld Experience Preferred • Competitive Wage • Benefi t Package • RRSP Plan
Fax resume to:403-742-6590
Email: [email protected] drop off resume at Stettler offi ce
Industries Ltd.
Heavy Duty Mechanic
- Journeyman - Heavy Duty Mechanic- Driver’s Abstract- Must have own tools- Competitive Wage- Benefi t Package
Bring your resume to one of the listed locations for an interview and start a new career today!
Tuesday, January 6 – 9am to 4:30pm Hanna Learning Centre - 401 Centre Street
Wednesday, January 7 – 9am to 4:30pm Alberta Works Centre (Drumheller) - 180 Riverside Drive, 2nd Floor
Thursday, January 8 – 9am to 4:30pm
Oyen Senior Recreation Centre – 219 2nd St West
For more information visit: www.candoltd.com
Cando Rail Services is currently seeking Labourers and Loader Operators to work with our abandonments group on a 200km stretch through Alberta. The work will be carried out from Oyen to Drumheller beginning January 2015.
ComingEvents 52 Personals 60
TELL it all! Tell it well! Make your ads sell for you by giving full description of goods or services offered. Include prices and terms. Phone 1-877-223-3311 for a friendly ad taker.
Personals 60Independent CLASSIFIEDS Page 19Wednesday, December 31, 2014
ComingEvents 52
A Star MakesYour Ad
A Winner!CALL:
1-877-223-3311To Place Your
Ad Now!
Just had a baby?
Tell everyone with
a Milestone
Announcement
1.877.223.33111.877.223.3311
EASY!The easy way to find a buyer for items you want to sell is with a Classified want ad. Phone 1-877-223-3311
FOR fast results: Classified Want Ads. Phone 1-877-223-3311.
Advertisers in the showcaseAdvertisers in the showcasesection maintain Real Estatesection maintain Real Estateoffices in Stettler, are membersoffices in Stettler, are membersof the Red Deer & District Real Estateof the Red Deer & District Real EstateBoard Co-op Ltd., and all offer full Board Co-op Ltd., and all offer full multiple listing services.multiple listing services.
Stettler’s Best Read Real Estate Section Reaches
Buyers and SellersWhere They Live, Work
and Farm
Are you interested in pursuing an exciting career with Petro eld
Industries at our Tornado Hydovac Trucks manufac-turing production facility?
We are centrally located in the family friendly
community of Stettler, Alberta.
We currently have an openings for:
Service and Parts ManagerQuality Assurance Team
LeaderFinisher Product Testing
AssistantPurchaser
Industrial Painters/HelpersWelders Helper
General LabourersConstruction Workers
Our Company has a enthusiastic fast paced
working environment, with advancement opportu-nities. Wage would be commensurate withexperience/skills.
For more information about these positions and our company, check out our
website www.tornadotrucks.com.
Resumes can be emailed to hr@petro eld.com or faxed to 403-742-5544.
Trades 850 Trades 850 Truckers/Drivers 860ROADEX SERVICES re-
quires O/O 3/4 tons, 1 tons and 3 tons for our RV divi-sion and O/O Semis and
drivers for our RV and gen-eral freight deck division. Paid by direct deposit,
bene ts and company fuel cards. Border crossing re-quired with valid passport and clean criminal record.
1-800-867-6233; www.roadexservices.com.
BusinessOpportunities 870
GET FREE vending ma-chines. Can earn
$100,000. + per year. All cash-retire in just 3 years. Protected territories. Full
details call now 1-866-668-6629. Website:
www.tcvend.com.
Misc.Help 880
FULL-TIME GENERAL MANAGER required for Canadian Professional
Rodeo Association. Must be highly motivated with
strong business manage-ment, negotiating,
nancial planning, leader-ship, team building, strategic thinking &
organizational skills. Duties: Of ce operations,
staff supervision, marketing, sponsorship &
communication. Email resume with covering letter & references:
Website: rodeocanada.com.
Misc.Help 880
Misc.Help 880
Look for your name in the Classifieds (stating you’re a winner) and come to the Stettler Independent to claim your prize, compliments of KFC!
EYE SPY…EYE SPY…EYE SPY…
Canadian Tire Stettler
Automotive Technician requiredWe are looking for a Licensed Automotive Mechanic for our fast paced 3 bay Service Centre. The Licensed Automotive Technician plays a key role on the automotive service team. Working in a busy Service Centre, with state-of-the-art equipment and modern technical training, the technician’s ability to combine automotive expertise with good customer relations skills contribute to making Canadian Tire the most recognized leader in the automotive service industry. Suitable candidates will possess proven problem solving abilities, ability to take instruction, safe working practices and a passion for all aspects of the automotive trade.
Minimum requirements are: - Energetic with strong work ethic - Red Seal Interprovincial license. - Valid driver’s license. - 2 years’ experience as a technician.
This job brings with it a higher than average hourly rate (Up to $38) for experienced technicians, with bene ts.
If you are interested in this position and would like to join our team,
please contact Allen Plant by phone at (403) 742-8319 ext 222 or 1-416-988-9809
Bashaw Golf and Country Club in Central Alberta requires a
GENERAL MANAGER for our 9 hole course that includes a newly renovated clubhouse and seasonal/day use campground.
The successful applicant must be self-managing, have strong organization skills, customer service experience and be capable of managing the overall performance of all operations. Golf experience is not necessary, but would be a considerable asset.
The club is prepared to offer a competitive compensation package in accordance with previous experience and education.
Please email your cover letter with resume to both [email protected] and to the President of the Board [email protected] no later than Friday, January 2, 2015.
To see more details about our club please visit our website at www.bashawgolf.com. We thank everyone in advance for their interest in this opportunity. Please be aware that only the short listed candidates will be contacted for further consideration for this position.
12345Place your ad in this newspaper and province wide
with a combined circulation of over 800,000 for only...
$995plus GST/HST
Value Ad NetworkAlberta Weekly Newspapers Association toll free 1-800-282-6903 x228 email [email protected] or visit this community newspaper
the MOST out of your advertising dollars Squeeze
Independent CLASSIFIEDS Wednesday, December 31, 2014Page 20
AN EXCELLENTCHOICE
WHERE YOURAD
REACHESRURAL
READERSCALL
1-877-223-3311CLASSIFIEDSHOT-LINE
WHATEVER YOU’RESELLING...
WE HAVE THE PAPERYOU NEED!
Training for lifeFirst Aid Training teaches how torespond confidentlywhen injuries occur.
Be environmentally friendlyRECYCLE YOUR PAPER!
We always look forward to this time of year to let you know just how muchwe value your friendship and support. Here’s hoping all your year brings
much opportunity and happiness to you and your loved ones. Happy New Year!
Ph. 403-742-44244908 - 51 Street
Candor Realty Ltd.
FranSnowden
KarenCannady
DarienChapman
JonniHegberg
From Fran, Karen, Darien & Jonni
Buy & Sell#1500 - #1990
Aircraft ..............................1510Antiques & Art ..................1520Auctions ............................1530Bicycles ............................1540Building Supplies ..............1550Business Machines ..........1560Cameras & Accessories ..1570Children’s Items ................1580Clothing ............................1590Computers ........................1600Concert & Event Tickets ..1610Equipment - Misc. ............1620Equipment - Heavy ..........1630Tools ................................1640Farmers’ Market &Food Basket......................1650Firewood ..........................1660Lumber ............................1670Garden Supplies ..............1680Lawn Tractors ..................1690Health, Dietary, Beauty ....1700Household Appliances......1710Household Furnishings ....1720TV’s, Stereos, VCR’s ........1730Hot Tubs & Accessories ..1740Jewellery ..........................1750Kid’s Deals........................1755Misc. For Sale ..................1760Musical Instruments..........1770Music Lessons..................1780Piano & Organs ................1790Office Supplies ................1800Pets & Supplies ................1810Pet Services ....................1820Cats ..................................1830Dogs ................................1840Sports Cards ....................1850Sporting Goods ................1860Collectors’ Items ..............1870Swap, Barter & Trade ......1880Travel Packages ..............1900Wedding Supplies ............1910Recycled Products............1920Wanted to Buy ..................1930Items to Give Away ..........1940
Auctions 1530AUCTION
Sales Wed. @ 6 pm. Antique sales 1st. Sun. of the month @ 1 pm. Dec. 7 Moose Hall 2 miles south
of Ponoka on 2A WE BUY FOR CASH.
403-304-4791Check website for full listingswww.bigstrapperauctions.net
LAST SALE of the season
Wed. Dec. 17. Resume weekly sales Jan. 14, 2015
Misc.Help 880
BuildingSupplies 1550
METAL ROOFING & SIDING. 30+ colours available at over 40 Distributors. 40 year
warranty. 48 hour Express Service available at select
supporting Distributors. Call 1-888-263-8254.
Equipment-Misc. 1620A-STEEL SHIPPING Dry Storage Containers. Used
20’ & 40’ Seacans high cube & insulated contain-
ers 40’ HC. Winter Specials in stock now. Self unloading delivery. Phone toll free 1-866-528-7108; www.rtccontainer.com.
Equipment-Heavy 1630
2006 PETERBUILT 18.3 M3 Aluminum Wabash 406 Code Tank. Truck has 550
Cat engine. Well main-tained. In Edson. Asking
$90,000 + GST. Call 780-723-4781 or 780-728-9502.
Firewood 1660SPLIT FIREWOOD
Dried, Shedded,on Pallets
Pine & Tamarack WoodPick up in yard
or UFA Bulk FuelDelivery AvailableVolume Discounts.403-876-2422
Distributor for
Blaze King Stoves403-740-3285403-742-2647
Serving Stettler for 10 years
LOGSSemi loads of pine, spruce,
tamarack, poplar. Price depends on location.
Lil Mule Logging 403-318-4346
SEASONED SPLITFIREWOOD
4.5 kms. West of StettlerCall 403-323-0744
Misc. forSale 1760
THE DISABILITY Tax Credit. $1,500 yearly tax credit. $15,000 lump sum refund (on average). Cov-
ers: hip/knee replacements, arthritic
joints, COPD. Apply to-day! 1-844-453-5372.
RSSJ Holdings Ltd. O/A Tim Horton’s
6608 - 50th Ave, Stettler, AB, T0C 2L2
SupervisorFull Time / Part Time / Shift Work
Night / Overnight / Early Morning / WeekendSome high school education
$13.50 Per HourWage based on experience/availability
Please send resume to [email protected] 403-742-1755
Springbank Service Station’s
Stett ler Bott le Depot5005-48 Street, Stett ler
is looking for a
SUPERVISORFull Time/Part Time/Shift Work/Early Morning/Weekend
Some high school education
$13.75 Per Hour
Wage based on experience/availability
Please send resume to [email protected] 403-742-2631
Business Services#1000 - #1430
Accounting 1010
4819 - 51 StreetStettler, AB
403-742-3141www.numeratax.com
4814 - 49 Street,Stettler
403-742-5520
403-882-3740 (Castor)
Thorogood
Pinches&Certified General Accountants
Ph:403-742-5979Fax:403-742-3656
Box 1595, 4907 - 50 Street,
Stettler AB
Betee
Bet,
ABtree
AABt,
B
Chapman and Co.Professional
Accountants LLP
Guy Chapman, CAChris Annand, CA
Kendra Walgenbach, CANaomi Roth, CGA
P.O. Box 1328 4702- 51 Ave., Stettler
Tel: 403-742-3438e-mail: [email protected]
Gitzel KrejciGitzel KrejciDand PetersonDand Peterson
CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS
4912 - 51 StreetP.O. Box 460, Stettler, Alberta
403-742-4431
Toll free1-877-742-4431
e-mail:[email protected]
website:www.gkdpca.com
GG KKPPDD
Automotive 1029JT AUTO BODY LTD.
“Serving Stettler & areafor years”
• Complete auto bodyrepair & painting
Call Curt or Rob
Phone 403-742-2869 4606 - 40 St., Stettler
Quality Collision Repairand Professional Service…
Guaranteed!
Find out more about us at:www.brennanautobody.com
Phone: 403-742-35554109 - 48 Avenue, Stettler
AUTO BODY REPAIR LTD.
Contractors 1100
403-742-1330
Buzz AndersenServing Stettler
area over 35 years
-Residential-Commercial
-Farm Buildings-Renovations
Drafting& Design 1120House Plan DesignHouse Plan DesignSmall CommercialSmall CommercialShop DrawingsShop DrawingsAs BuiltsAs Builts
Phone: 403-742-6612Cell: 780-935-0540
Email: [email protected]
Monika Stahlberg
Monika Stahlberg
Drafting Service
RAILSIDEDESIGNGALEN WIEBE
RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL
DRAFTING AND DESIGN
5004 - 48 AVE., STETTLER
PH: 403-742-4101FAX: 866-305-5686
Eavestroughing1130FINISHING TOUCH EXTERIORS LTD.
5”Continuous Eaves“Gutter Clean” Leaf Protection
Call Barry Harvey
403-742-8838*27 years experience*
Electrical 1150
“If It’s Electrical We Do It”
All types of Electrical Installation &Maintenance
403-742-5111Serving Stettler
& Area since 1978
FurnaceCleaning 1193Stettler Furnace
Cleaning
Qualifi ed and Qualifi ed and ReputableReputable
403-742-3418403-742-3418
Glass Shops 1196HEARTLAND
GLASS• Locks repinned & installed
• Windshields repaired & installed
• Residential & Commercial Windows & Doors
• All your glass & screen needsMain St., Stettler Emergency403-742-2665 403-742-3628
LTD.C.R. GLASS“Your Service Specialists”
Randy Long• Residential• Commercial
• Automotive Needs
403-742-25204607 - 59 St., Stettler
(Beside A & W)
HealthCare 1210
Hauck Optometry & Hearing5014 - 50 St., Stettler
403-742-4504
HealthCare 1210
Stettler Eye Care
Dr. R. TROY NELSONComprehensive eye
health and vision exams
Top quality frames,
lenses and contacts
Treatment of eye
disease, injuries and
surgical co-management
Phone 403-742-2683New patients welcome
Dr. E. LYNESChiropractor
4719 - 49 St.Stettler, AlbertaOne block East of Scotia Bank
403-742-5810 or 403-742-6443
DR. D.G. BECKLUNDChiropractor
-Gitzel Krejci Building
4912 - 51 StreetStettler, AB
Open Mon. - Sat.
Bus.: 403-742-2553Res.: 403-742-0370
PERFORMANCEPERFORMANCEPhysiotherapy, Physiotherapy, Acupuncture Acupuncture & Massage& Massage
“Keeping people in Motion...”
403-742-4533
4806 - 51 Ave., Stettler, AB403-742-EARS(3277)Open Monday to Friday9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
(Closed over lunch & on holidays)
Misc.Services 1290
LegalServices 1260
ANDERSON LAW OFFICE
Brenda Anderson,
B.Comm., LL.B.
5002 - 51 Ave., Stettler, AB
Phone 403-742-2529
Fax 403-742-2522
Gary G. GrantLaw Office
4910 - 51 StreetStettler, AB T0C 2L0
Phone: 403-742-4437
LANDMAN REULE LAW OFFICE
4819 - 51 Street
Lori R. ReuleLL. B.
StettlerProfessionalBuilding
403-742-3411
Barristers and Solicitors
Advocates
2401 Toronto Dominion Sq.Edmonton Centre
Edmonton, Alberta T5J 2Z1Telephone: 780-426-4660
Fax: 780-426-0982
BRYON D. BALTIMORE
of McCuaig Desrochers
LegalServices 1260
CRIMINAL RECORD? Think: Canadian pardon.
U.S. travel waiver. Divorce? Simple. Fast.
Inexpensive. Debt recovery?
Alberta collection to $25,000. Calgary 403-228-1300/
1-800-347-2540.
Misc.Services 1290
403-742-3007
Get rid of your Garbage with. . .
3R Management
PersonalServices 1315BANK SAID NO? Bank on us! Equity Mortgages for
purchases, debt consolidation,
foreclosures, renovations. Bruised credit, self-employed,
unemployed ok. Dave Fitzpatrick:
www.albertalending.ca. 587-437-8437,
Belmor Mortgage.
GET BACK on track! Bad credit? Bills?
Unemployed? Need money? We lend! If you own your own home -
you qualify. Pioneer Acceptance Corp.
Member BBB. 1-877-987-1420;
www.pioneerwest.com.
Plumbing& Heating 1330
• Complete Plumbing & Heating Services• Commercial and Residential• Water Conditioning & Pumps
• 24 Hour ServiceService Wise - We Specialize
Stettler
Ph. 403-742-5237
12345
View our 29 patented and patent pending inventions online at
www.1800bigiron.com
RURAL WATER TREATMENT (Province Wide)
Tell them DannyHooper sent you
Independent CLASSIFIEDS Page 21Wednesday, December 31, 2014
Business and Services Directory
TO ADVERTISE YOUR BUSINESS OR SERVICE HERE CALL CLASSIFIEDS today403-309-33001-877-223-3311
Misc.Services 1290 Misc.
Services 1290
OfficeSupplies 1800
403-742-2395
WHITE 20LB WHITE 20LB BOND PAPER: BOND PAPER:
8.5 X 118.5 X 1110 pkgs. of 500 sheets10 pkgs. of 500 sheets
$48$48/case/caseShop Stettler Shop Stettler
& Save!& Save!
WantedTo Buy 1930
FIREARMS. All types wanted, estates,
collections, single items, military. We handle all
paperwork and transportation. Licensed dealer. 1-866-960-0045; www.dollars4guns.com.
Agricultural#2000 - #2290
Farm Equipment ..............2010Haying Equipment ............2020Tractors ............................2030Combines & Headers ......2040Fertilizer Equipment..........2050Misc. Farm Machinery ......2060Equipment Wanted ..........2070Farm Custom Work ..........2080Farm Auctions ..................2090Livestock ..........................2100Livestock - Exotic..............2110Sheep ..............................2120Poultry ..............................2130Horses ..............................2140Horse Boarding ................2150Riding Supplies ................2160Horse/Stock Trailers ........2170Pasture Wanted ................2180Grain, Feed, Hay ..............2190Seed Grain ......................2200Seeding & Tillage ............2210
FarmEquipment 2010
FLEXI-COIL 6000 AIR DRILL, 40’, 3450 TBH tank,
double shoot, 7.5” spacing, rubber packer wheels. All new discs, bearings, air
hoses. Shedded& unused for 3 seasons.
$60,000 obo. 403-784-3633or 403-304-2266
Farm Auctions 2090
THIS WEEK’SEYE SPY WINNER IS
Ken LarsonPlease come into the
Stettler Independent to claim your prize!
Grain, FeedHay 2190HEATED CANOLA buying Green, Heated or Spring-thrashed Canola. Buying:
oats, barley, wheat & peas for feed. Buying damaged
or offgrade grain. “On Farm Pickup” Westcan
Feed & Grain, 1-877-250-5252.
For Rent#3000 - #3200
Acreages/Farms ..............3010Houses/Duplexes ............3020Condos/Townhouses........3030Manufactured Homes ......3040Four Plexes/Six Plexes ....3050Suites ..............................3060Cottages/Seasonal ..........3070Roommates Wanted ........3080Rooms for Rent................3090Motels/Hotels ..................3100Offices ..............................3110Stores/Commercial ..........3120Industrial ..........................3130Warehouse Space............3140Garage Space..................3150Storage Space ................3160Land ................................3170Pasture ............................3180Mobile Lot ........................3190Misc. for Rent ..................3200
Wanted to Rent#3250 - #3390
Acreages/Farms ..............3255Houses/Duplexes ............3260Suites ..............................3270Rooms..............................3280Manufactured Homes ......3290Housesitting Wanted ........3300Garage Space..................3310Storage Space ................3320Stores/Commercial ..........3330Office Space ....................3340Industrial ..........................3350Warehouse Space............3360Resorts & Cottages..........3370Pasture/Land....................3380Mobile Lot ........................3390
Houses/Duplexes 3020
1/2 duplex in Stettler, 2 bedrooms, 4 appliances, $600/mo. + utilities, $600 d.d., close to hospital. No
smoking, no pets. Available immediately.
403-742-8190.
Suites 3060L A R G E
One & Two BEDROOM APARTMENTS
FOR RENTNo pets
Phone Ellen at 403-742-1568
Phone Linda or Ernieat 403-742-5005
BEST RENTAL VALUEIN STETTLER
1 & 2 Bedroom, furnished kitchenette suites.
All utilities, cable, internet.1 Bedroom, $800/mo.2 Bedroom, $1100/mo.
plus D.D. Avail. immediately
Kimberly 403-690-5828
StorageSpace 3160STETTLER MINI
STORAGEHousehold, furniture,business records, etc.
Various sizes. Protectedby security alarm and
fenced and lightedperimeter. Owner:
Reg and Darlene Hunter403-740-9283 or
403-742-3153
Real Estate#4000 - #4190
Realtors & Services..........4010Houses for Sale................4020Houses Wanted................4030Condos/Townhouses ........4040Acreages ..........................4050Acreages Wanted ............4060Farms/Land ......................4070Farms/Land Wanted ........4080Manufactured/Mobile Homes ..................4090Income Property ..............4100Commercial Property ......4110Industrial Property ............4120Cottages/Resort Property ..4130Businesses for Sale..........4140Buildings for Sale ............4150Lots for Sale ....................4160Out of Town Property ......4170Investment Opportunities ..4180Mortgages Bought/Sold....4190
HousesFor Sale 40202 BDRM. house in Stettler,
on 6000 sq. ft. R2 lot, totally renovated.
Immediate Possession. 403-340-2727
Farms/Land 4070
BuildingsFor Sale 4150
Acreages 4050BARE ACREAGE
FOR SALE,400 meters north of
John Deere, 5 acres, $169,000.
Phone 403-742-5830.
ManufacturedHomes 40902013 SRI HOME 20 X 76: mint condition, 3 bedroom,
2 bath $125,000. 1995 Noble Acceptance 16 X 76: 3 bedroom, 2 bath, available immediately.
$49,000. For more infor-mation call United Homes
Canada 1-800-461-7632 or visit us at
www.unitedhomescanada.com.
BuildingsFor Sale 4150
STEEL BUILD-INGS/METAL BUILDINGS
60% off! 20x28, 30x40, 40x62, 45x90, 50x120, 60x150, 80x100, sell for
balance owed! Call 1-800-457-2206; www.crownsteelbuildings.ca.
Out Of TownProperty 4170
RV LOT OWNERSHIP. Radium, BC (almost half
price) $39,900. - $49,900. Enjoy golf, lake, hiking, great people. 75% sold;
www.mountain-shadows-resort.com. You Tube
http://youtu.be/qcy-KuYpE8AQ.
403-701-4623.
MortgagesBought/Sold4190
DO YOU OWN real es-tate? I offer 1st & 2nd
mortgages with no credit check. Get approved to-day. Call 1-866-405-1228 or email: info@fi rstandse-
condmortgages.ca
CommercialProperty 4110
Cars 5030
PublicNotices 6010
Public Notice#6000
Public Notices ..................6010Special Features ..............6050
Land for SaleSW2-40-16-W4 NW8-40-16-W4
Land also available for RentCALL: 403-574-2426,
403-740-0054 OR
Gary G. Grant, Barrister & Solicitor 403-742-4437
Toll Free: 1-877-966-8357
3 SHOPS FOR RENT PRICE REDUCED ~Now willing to separate shop ~Sitting on 2 acre lot in total
1st and 2nd Shops- 50’x90’ Duplex style construction, Metal Building, South and North sides identical. Offi ce Space @1000sq ft with bathroom, Shop fl oor 25’x70’ 1750 sq ft, with bathroom, 14ft overhead doors, insulated, 2 walk in doorways, 3 phase power available, Huge parking lot, rent dependent on duration of lease.
3rd Shop- 60’ x 40’ -2400 sq ft Metal building, insulated, infrared heat, single phase power. Small offi ce with mezzanine on top, 10’x14’ & 12’x14’ shop door with electric door opener. Huge parking lot. Rent price dependent on duration of lease. Triple net.Separate living accommodations on site can be provided
Email or Call: [email protected] 403-740-6630
• 7500 ft2 quonset shop on 1 acre• 208V and 480V service
• Overhead radiant heat and 4 exhaust fans• 2 bathrooms
• Two 16’ wide x 14’ high automaticoverhead doors
• Option to buy 12’ x 40’ offi ce skid and30’ x 40’ heated/insulated tent• Great setup for a welding or
machine shop
Call Jeff at 403-742-6400 oremail jeff @alliedfab.com
Industrial Shop/Landfor Sale in Stettler, AB
$335,000
12345
Let us amplify your message!
Add this feature to your next career ad booking
Call for more details 1-800-282-6903 ext 235
ADULTS/CHILDREN
ANONYMOUSWednesday, 7:30 p.m.
For more info Kira & Ian
FCSS, 403-742-2339
ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS403-742-3214; 403-742-2966 or 403-742-4271
AL-ANON403-742-0990
ALZHEIMERS SUPPORT
GROUP403-742-4263; 403-742-8122 or 403-742-4091
BEREAVEMENT
SUPPORT GROUP403-742-2337
BIG BROTHERS &
BIG SISTERS ORGANIZATION403-742-5437 during business hours
BRIGANTIA PLACE(formerly Camrose Women’s Shelter)
780-672-1035
CELIAC (Gluten Intolerance)Brenda 403-742-3067
COCAINE ANONYMOUSPager toll-free (20 sec. response time)
1-403-357-6266
COMPASSIONATE FRIENDS
SUPPORT GROUP403-742-2337 (parents who have lost a child[ren])
GAMBLERS ANONYMOUS403-742-4059
HOME SUPPORT
STETTLER & DISTRICT403-742-6568
NARCOTICS ANONYMOUSHot Line 403-342-1444
STETTLER & AREA
ACQUIRED BRAIN
INJURY SOCIETY(STABIS)
For more information phone
403-742-6456
STETTLER & DISTRICTFOOD BANK SOCIETYKathy Willis - 403-742-4567
Elaine Williams - 403-742-2745
4820 - 51 Street
STETTLER CITIZENS ON
PATROLRCMP office
403-742-3382
www.stettlercop.org
STETTLER HANDIBUS403-742-5858
STETTLER HEALTH
EMERGENCY LINE PROGRAM403-742-2337
STETTLER PEOPLE FOR
SUICIDE AWARENESS403-742-2337
STETTLER READ &
WRITE OFFICE403-742-2999
T.O.P.S.(Take Off Pounds Sensibly)
Grace – 403-742-0681
Vivian – 403-742-3935
VICTIM SERVICE403-741-7841
CONFUSED?GETTING THE RUN AROUND?
CONTACT YOUR INFORMATION
AND REFERRAL CENTRE
Residents of Stettler and the sur-rounding area now have access to this free and confi dential service. It provides information and referral on social agencies, government ser-vices, clubs and organizations, to best suit the caller’s need.
Just Dial - 403-742-1155
CommunitySupport Services
403-742-4271; 403-742-1887
Elaine Williams
403-742-2745
403-742-5233
County of Stettler No. 66602 - 44 Ave., Box 1270,
Stettler, AB T0C 2L0Phone: 742-4441 Fax: 742-1277
PUBLIC NOTICE
County of Stettler No. 66602 - 44 Ave., Box 1270,
Stettler, AB T0C 2L0Phone: 403-742-4441 Fax: 403-742-1277
PUBLIC NOTICE
2015 Public Budget Consultations
Wednesday, January 7 from 3 p.m. - 7 p.m.
County of Stettler Administration Building 6602 - 44 Ave.
Stettler, AB T0C 2L0P: 403-742-4441
Councillors and staff will be on hand to answer any questions. 2015 Draft Budget is available on our website at www.StettlerCounty.ca.
ClassifiedsYour place to SELLYour place to BUY
PublicNotices 6010
Independent CLASSIFIEDS Wednesday, December 31, 2014Page 22
LookingLookingfor a newfor a new
best friend?best friend?Check the classifiedsCheck the classifieds
1-877-223-33111-877-223-3311
Purses • C
andles • Spices
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Independent COLUMNSWednesday, December 31, 2014 The Stettler Independent Page 23
Albertans have to accept they
live in a one-party state
Box 280 (5031 - 50 St.)Stettler, AB T0C 2L0
www.stettler.net
PUBLIC OPEN HOUSEThe Town of Stettler will host a Public Open House on Wednesday, January 14, 2015 from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. upstairs in the Meeting Room at the Stettler Recreation Centre.
The Public Open House will be a come and go format and will introduce residents and business owners of the Town’s proposed Land Use Bylaw amendments. The amendments are of a housekeeping nature and intend to address some gaps discovered through the application of the existing bylaw as well as introduce some new or refi ned regulations.
The Town of Stettler is interested in the public views on: • new environmental policies, • portable sign regulations, and • any of the other proposed amendments that may impact you.
If you are unable to attend the Public Open House, please feel free to contact Leann Graham at the Town of Stettler offi ce for a copy of the proposed Land Use Bylaw amendments.
Leann GrahamPlanning and Development ServicesTown of [email protected]
By Roger GibbinsTroy Media columnist
As the Progressive Con-servatives swallow the Wildrose, there will un-doubtedly be teeth gnash-ing and garment rending as commentators reflect on the health of democracy in Al-berta.
Certainly the Conserva-tives’ electoral grip will only strengthen going forward, and Premier Jim Prentice can put the champagne on ice as his party plans for its 50th year in office in 2021.
The state of the opposition is nicely described by John Cleese’s classic Monty Py-thon parrot skit: “it’s passed on, is no more, ceased to be, bereft of life. It’s rung down the curtain and joined the choir invisible.”
This demise leaves Alber-tans in the uncomfortable position of living indefinite-ly in a one-party state, and thus we can expect a raft of proposals to resuscitate the opposition, to merge exist-ing parties or create new ones to challenge the Con-servative big tent from the left or right. All of this noise, however, may preclude a more constructive conversa-tion about the future of de-mocracy in the province.
The starting point for that conversation is to accept the reality of a one-party state, as Danielle Smith appears to have done, while also recog-nizing that a good measure of democracy can nonethe-less exist. Here we can learn
from the Americans who have been adept at using primary elections to replace electoral competition be-tween parties with competi-tion within parties.
In the South following the end of the Civil War it was next to impossible to elect anyone other than Demo-crats. Voters, it was alleged, would vote for a yellow dog before they would vote for a Republican. Yet democracy did not die with the death of party competition. It moved, or at least staggered, into the use of primaries to select Democratic candidates for state and federal office.
Since then, primary elec-tions have become common-place across the country, and in many cases are the only meaningful contests. Given that 96 per cent of incum-bents in the House of Repre-sentatives win if they stand for re-election, the only true competitions take place in the primaries.
Maybe, then, Albertans can redirect their long-stand-ing interest in democratic re-form to intra-party reform. If Conservative candidates are virtually assured of election in the one-party province it has become, maybe we have to open up the nomination process to much broader public participation.
Now admittedly, this would mean that provincial elections would be a mere formality with respect to choosing a government, and the Legislative Assembly would cease to be a signifi-
cant forum for political de-bate. But surely this point has been reached already?
If we’re clever, we could use provincial elections as a platform for citizen initia-tives and referendums, as a new way to hold the govern-ment in check.
It is useful to note the absence of references to California, the largest state, in the recent mid-term elec-tions. Congressional seats were locked down well be-fore the election, leaving no hot contests to report, but there were numerous and vigorous referendum cam-paigns. Democracy in Cali-fornia has been redirected more than muzzled.
Now, some may be un-comfortable using the American south or even California as a democratic model. I would argue, how-ever, that Albertans would be better off studying the American experience than beating their heads against the mantra “we need an ef-fective opposition.”
A serious exploration of intra-party democracy might also counter some of the external criticism Alberta is bound to encounter as oppo-sition parties expire. Those who describe Alberta as a petro-state will be happy to add “one party dictatorship.” We have to demonstrate that democracy is alive and well in Alberta; it has just found a new home.
Roger Gibbins is a senior fellow with the Canada West Foundation.
Calling Calling All Babies All Babies Of 2014Of 2014
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Box 310 4810 - 50 Ave. Stettler, AB T0C 2L0Box 310 4810 - 50 Ave. Stettler, AB T0C 2L0Ph: (403) 742-2395 Fax: (403) 742-8050Ph: (403) 742-2395 Fax: (403) 742-8050
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Page 24 The Stettler Independent Wednesday, December 31, 2014
14124MB0 14124MN1 14124MS114123MB0
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