There are two corrections to last week’s article ‘Town to rent skid shack for mat program.’ First, there is no zoning change needed, just permission from the Municipal Planning Commission. Second, the proposed site is in the southeast portion of the fire hall site which is in northwest Slave Lake. These are reflected in the follow up article on Page 1 and 2.
Next Friday, September 30 is the second annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. This used to be called Orange Shirt Day, and people still often wear orange shirts to raise awareness about the history and inter-generational trauma caused by the Indian residential school system in Canada and the U.S. See article on Page 10 for local Truth and Reconciliation events.
This is a statutory holiday for federally regulated businesses such as the post office (which exist in the area) and uranium mines (which do not exist around here). However, businesses have the option of treating it as a stat. Schools, the Town of Slave Lake, and some other places are closed that day.
People are encouraged to wear orange.
Saturday (Oct. 1) is also busy.
During the day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., the the Kinuso and District Fish and Game Association has its annual Turkey Shoot. Prizes are gift certificates just in time for your turkey dinner. Events are multiple .22 rifle rounds, rimfire handgun rounds, bow competition, and axe throwing. There’s also a potluck supper. People don’t have to be a member to attend.
The Lesser Slave Lake Regional Arts Council has two art workshops that day.
In the evening starting at 7 p.m., there is a film festival in the Legacy Centre in Slave Lake. It is part of the Banff Centre Mountain Film Festival circuit.
For more details on these and other events, check out the calendar on www.lakesideleader.com.
October 4 is Sisters in Spirit, to raise awareness about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (MMIW). People are encouraged to wear red. There are two events in Slave Lake. For details, see article on Page 14 and ad on Page 24.
People needing criminal record checks for work will now have to pay $50, because of a new Town of Slave Lake bylaw. But volunteers can get them for free with a letter from the organization they are volunteering with.
Your Page 9 scribe recently flew to Moncton, New Brunswick and back. It was a surprise and a treat to not have to change planes or even stop in Toronto or Montreal or Halifax on the way down there.
Direct from Edmonton to Moncton is apparently something new and probably a bit of an experiment. Using smaller, ‘out-of-the-way’ airports is something the new or ‘discount’ airlines tend to attempt. For most travelers, it translates to a certain amount of inconvenience at one or both ends of the trip. But if you happen to be going to Moncton (in this case), boom! There you are.
The airline, by the way, is called Swoop.
Oh, and the experiment seems to be working! The plane was full, or very near to it, both ways.
It’s sure nice to see a mural shaping up in downtown Slave Lake, with a couple more in offing. The energetic volunteers with the Regional Arts Council deserve a lot of credit for making it happen.
Reeve Murray Kerik of the M.D. of Lesser Slave River says the M.D.’s publicity campaign on the need for a new bridge over the Athabasca River at Smith is getting some attention. The M.D. has been “getting calls from people all over Alberta” supporting the campaign for replacement, he says.
Kerik didn’t say whether any of those calls have been from Government of Alberta folks who are in a position to actually do something about it, but chances are good they haven’t.
Kerik, along with councillors Brad Pearson and Norm Seatter, attended last week’s Alberta Municipalities (formerly Alberta Urban Municipalities Association) conference in Calgary. The rurals don’t have voting privileges, but they were hoping to pursue their lobbying efforts on the bridge replacement with whoever was willing to listen. The conference ran from Sept. 21 – 23.
One thing we missed earlier this month was to mention the donation of a meal to the U13 Heat baseball team by Mr. Mike’s of Slave Lake. Support from the local business community is an important part of what it takes to make programs such as minor baseball successful.
