Hello Chestermere! I am so sorry that we missed our chance to write to you last week. It has been a busy couple of weeks, and Chestermere has been bustling with activity. I had quite an experience jumping from 14,500 feet as part of the “Jump For Kamp Kids” fundraiser put on by the amazing Kelly Falardeau. Severely burned as a child and shunned for it, Kelly has dedicated herself to helping kids with similar challenges know that they are loved and that they matter. I am pleased to be able to report that the parachute opened!
The annual Synergy Duck races were a huge success this year, and like always our little quacker didn’t do so well. However, it is win-win no matter how your rubber duckie did. It is about helping this amazing group whose mission is to cultivate the development of leadership and wellness education in Chestermere, Langdon and S.E. Rocky View and whose vision is: “Engaged, Empowered Healthy Community Leaders.”
We also dropped in and had some pancakes in Langdon with these incredible youth, and their fabulous mentors. Thank you to Christy Redl, the youth development coordinator for Synergy. Thank you for everything you do for our future leaders. Make sure you come and visit them at their new home beside the skate park at 101-340 Merganser Dr. W Chestermere.
We also participated in a program called Island Tea hosted by the human dynamo Althea Powell- Clarke. Althea hosts Sunday Tea with Althea on Omni TV, is a contributing author in Volume 3 of I am a Brilliant Woman, and is the owner of Different Trenz Salon and Spa in Calgary. It was such an honour to be interviewed by this incredible Jamaican-born Albertan, and I look forward to her continued success.
This past weekend Century Downs, which is a “short pace” from Chestermere and one of the jewels of my constituency, hosted the inaugural races of the 2017 World Drivers Championship. 11 top drivers from around the world will cross Canada this summer competing for the crown. I am pleased to report that James MacDonald, our Canadian representative, is currently in second place. Go James! In conjunction with this I had the honour of choosing the Title Charity for their fundraising Gala. I picked the Alberta Adolescent Recovery Centre (AARC). Led by Executive Director Dr. Dean Vause, for 27 years this privately funded organization has assisted over 500 of our children to escape the “Equal Opportunity Destroyer”, drug and alcohol addiction. Don’t kid yourself, this tragedy can strike any family. The Keynote Speaker was the magnificent Hayley Wickenheiser, the greatest female hockey player of all time who was a big factor in winning 4 Olympic Gold Medals for Canada. She has now retired after a 23-year career doing Canada proud and is “relaxing” by entering Medical School. What a great example to our young women! Hayley inspired all of us to focus, and to believe, and to never give up. Thanks to Hayley, my new mantra is: “Pressure is a privilege”.
Brad Wall left politics this week, and along with leaving politics, for me he has left a little hole in my heart. Brad Wall has been the voice of the West, and stands for responsible resource development, less red tape and bureaucracy, and is a fighter for his province and their contribution to the prosperity of Canada. He has stood strong and with confidence on social issues supporting GSAs and managed to bring together a big tent of conservatives with his ability to be centrist and conservative at the same time. This resource dependent province was still able to create jobs in this economy, keep drill rigs going, and attract investment. He fiercely fought the federal carbon tax, and perhaps best of all inspired renewed pride in his province. Rex Murphy said it best in his article for the National Post:
“Wall offered instruction by way of example that emphasis on lived reality–this matter of jobs, industry, and hope of secure and dignified livelihood”
“He wasn’t in politics for status, but service.”
We will miss him in this role but I am confident he will keep contributing to Saskatchewan and Canada.
I love to hear all the children and families at the various beaches around our community. The wet towels and sand filled wagons that fill the streets as the sun goes down, the ice cream covered faces, and tired little ones with fistfuls of dandelions and M&Ms crawling into car seats and falling asleep before they even hit the road. These are beautiful sounds and colors that fill us with hope and joy, and it reminds me once again to hug my own young men fiercely. Chestermere has lost one of our precious children to a tragic accident. We send our deepest love and our thoughts to the family, and I know this community will rally around to help this family through the very difficult hours, days, months and years ahead. As always, we love to hear from you.
