Hello Chestermere! Well, Canada Day is rapidly approaching. This is Canada’s 150TH birthday, or sesquicentennial for those of you who are fond of big words! It’s time to start talking about what’s going to be happening around our beautiful city on July 1. You can begin the day at 9 AM in John Peake Park for a free pancake breakfast. I will be speaking at Prince Of Peace Village a short drive from Chestermere at 10 AM for the flag raising ceremony, then heading back to Chestermere.
One exciting highlight of the upcoming festivities will be the “Langar” at Sunset Beach from 11:30 -2:00 PM. Spearheaded by long time Chestermere resident Narmail Singh and assisted by Bakshi Mann, my husband Malkeet Aheer from the Food Bank, and many other volunteers, the Langar is a wonderful expression of the Sikh tradition of inclusion and giving back to the community. Guru Nanak Dev Ji, founder of the Sikh faith, established the Langar, or community kitchen, in the 15TH century because he rejected the caste system. A central tenet of the Sikh faith is “Seva” which means to serve others. At a Langar everyone is served a free meal regardless of faith, colour, or social standing. All are welcome. What a wonderful way to celebrate Canada’s diversity and the multicultural heritage that enriches us all! At Chestermere’s Langar there will be great vegetarian food to sample and they will be collecting food and money donations for the Chestermere Food Bank. Tax receipts will be available. Please come on out, feed yourself, Feed The Need, and celebrate Canada’s Birthday with your neighbours!
Please join me at1 PM in the Library as we cut Canada’s birthday cake! There are many other great activities in and around town. See the City Of Chestermere website for all the details.
These are epic times in Alberta politics. As you know the Wildrose and the Progressive Conservatives have reached an agreement in principal to form a new United Conservative Party to defeat the disastrous NDP Government in 2019. This agreement, however, as Wildrose leader Brian Jean has said, is not just about one election. It is about forging a fiscally prudent party and forming a Government that protects our most vulnerable and provides the services that all Albertans need. We cannot continue down the road of mortgaging the future of our grandchildren. We cannot allow our debt to reach the point where Wall Street banks are dictating policy to the government. The vote on the unity agreement will be held July 22 but you MUST be a member of either or both of the Wildrose Party or the Progressive Conservatives BEFORE July 8 in order to vote. Please join us and let your voice be heard. Check out www.wildrose.ca for all the details and to join the Wildrose. I am supporting this agreement and I hope to meet with as many of you as possible in the next while to tell you why. Please see my Facebook page: www.facebook.com/WildroseLeela .
In closing, I would like all of you to reflect on how blessed we are to live in Canada. In Canada, we look out for each other. We help our neighbours and extend a warm welcome to the world. We have strength in diversity. Men and women have an equal voice. We are free to speak our minds and free to disagree. We are a democracy. Your voice and vote matter. Beginning with the unity agreement, through the municipal elections in October, and the provincial and federal elections you have an opportunity to shape the city, province, and country you live in. This is a privilege denied to vast numbers of people throughout the world and I urge you to not take it lightly. Many of you will have your first opportunity to vote this year. Use it! Get informed about the issues and get involved! You are our future leaders so please help shape that future.
We have our issues and problems these days but I firmly believe we live in the greatest province in the greatest country in the world. Let’s celebrate this on July 1. Happy Canada Day to all of you!
