MLA report August 24

Hello Chestermere,
This week I would like to speak about a very important issue, but first I hope you had a chance to check out Alberta Open Farm Days. We have so many amazing local producers. We were invited by owner Laurel Winter out to Winter’s Turkeys near Dalemead. Winter’s raises free range antibiotic free turkeys, both your regular turkey and an heirloom organic variety. Did you know that Canadians prefer Hen turkeys whereas Americans prefer Toms? We were treated to seeing these beautiful birds and the care that goes into raising healthy birds that eventually make it to our tables for Thanksgiving and Christmas. What a privilege to meet the folks that grow and raise the food we eat right here in our communities. Make sure you buy local if at all possible. It contributes greatly to our local economy and instills a sense of pride in our local producers. They truly have earned it.
As we head into back to school season, we are reminded of many things: New backpacks, pencils, a box of Kleenex, new shoes and erasers. We are grateful to see our teachers and school staff, and we feel so fortunate that our children are so privileged to receive such an excellent education. Our teachers are the focal point of our community and are integral in building that community. I would like to thank our teachers from the bottom of my heart for their work and for educating our precious children. I truly wish that this was all I had to report with respect to “back to school”. I wish that I was able to tell you that the government had listened to you. You are the parents of children at Chestermere High School, and you wanted a set of lights at the intersection of Highway 1 and 791. This project would have cost around $800,000 and I know was the overwhelming choice of the parents and families that attended the last meeting on June 17th about what to do with this deadly intersection. I was mortified to find out that a meeting took place in Chestermere with an official from the Ministry of Transportation after the previous meeting and even though we explained that it was imperative that I attend any meetings and be able to represent you appropriately, I was not invited to participate or even listen in. Apparently the Ministry has decided to reduce the speed limit without installing lights. We would appreciate your letters to send to the Government to let them know that this is not a solution for the hundreds of youth that pour out of that school everyday and cross that horrible stretch of highway. I would like to thank the Sommerfeld family for continuing to fight on behalf of all of our children. I will keep sending letters and I will publish the letter I send this following week to keep you in the loop. To all of our parents, please write to us and we will send your concerns along with ours to the Ministry of Transportation. We have to make sure our kids can travel safely. As always we love to hear from you.