st. albert leader sept 4, 2014

Call Me! Location is important... But

ST. ALBERT

Because For Sale & SOLD are not the same thing! CRAIG PILGRIM

ButTiming isEVERYTHING!

2 Thursday, Sept. 4, 2014

Men and women want to giveback to their communities, but toooften find themselves strapped fortime. Commitments to work andfamily can make it hard to findtime to volunteer.But hectic schedules do not

have to prevent people from doinggood in their communities andbeyond. The following are a fewsimple ways time-strapped menand women can give back to theircommunities.

• Promote a good cause.Shedding light on a good causecan help the less fortunate. Whena local nonprofit organization ishaving a fundraiser or an event toraise awareness, men and womenwho won’t be able to participatecan still chip in by promotingsuch events via social media or byencouraging friends and familymembers to go in their stead. Itwon’t take long to post a link to afavorite charity’s Web site on yoursocial media profile, and doing socan raise awareness of that charityamong family and friends.

• Make a donation. Whilemaking a donation may not seemlike the most creative way togive back, men and women whoare short on time should notdownplay the significance of suchdonations. Writing a check to afavorite charity may be a less thansatisfying way to support a goodcause, but nonprofit organizationscannot succeed and continue their

missions without donations. Sowhile a financial donation mightnot seem like an active way to giveback, that does not mean suchdonations are not as appreciated asvolunteering time.

• Work with organizationsthat host short-term projects.Volunteering is often asignificant commitment, as manyorganizations prefer volunteers topromise a certain number of hoursper week or per month. But manyother organizations host short-term projects that may last onlya day. Some organizations allowvolunteers to sign up for one-dayprojects that are ideal for thosewho want to give back but don’thave the time to make long-termcommitments. Signing up for suchprojects well in advance allowstime-strapped individuals to cleartheir schedules in advance withouthaving to rearrange their dailylives.

• Become a mentor. Mentoringis a great way to give backwithout making a significanttime commitment. Mentors cantake young persons under theirwings and offer advice on careers,education and many other areaswhere they might ask for someguidance. Such advice can beoffered over a weekly lunch,through email or weekly phonecalls, none of which will eat uptoo much time. Mentoring is asignificant responsibility and one

that provides an invaluable service,and it’s a great way for busyprofessionals to give back to theircommunities.

• Make it a family affair. Parentswho find it difficult to volunteerbecause it takes away from timethey can spend with their familiescan combine the two activities andvolunteer as a family. Bring yourchildren along when volunteeringat the local park, beach or soupkitchen. You will still get qualitytime with your kids, and youwill be instilling a sense of socialresponsibility in your children.Finding time to volunteer can be

difficult. But even the busiest menand women can still give back totheir communities in a variety ofways.

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How to give back even when time isn’t on your side

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3Thursday, Sept. 4, 2014

LEADthe

COVER

INDEXNews . . . . . . . . .3Council Notes. . . . . .4Opinion . . . . . . . .8Interactive . . . . . . .9SCHOOL IS IN! . . . . 13BAM! Feature . . . . . 24Entertainment . . . . 25Fun & Games . . . . . 28Business . . . . . . . 30Photo Booth . . . . . 32

Former St. Albert Heavenly Roller Leanne Johnson — better known on the roller derby track as Cherry-Oto-Fire — is set to show her stuff with her new team, the Naptown Roller Girls, at the WFTDA Division 1 playoffs Oct. 3-5 in Charleston, W.Va. (page 10). Meanwhile, her colleagues at STAHR have the chance to become a full member of the WFTDA as they host a team from Calgary on Sept. 13 (page 11).

That’s the Guinness world record for points scored by an

individual during a power jam in WFTDA competition, set by Megan Lazorski (aka Slim Skatey) during a game in Broomfield, Colo., on April 27, 2013. Points are scored when jammers pass opposing players; power jams occur when the opposing jammer is in the penalty box.

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BY THE NUMBERS

PK student lives the life in PeruGLENN COOKSt. Albert Leader

Colleen Moore may be heading back to school, but she got quite an education on a charity trip over the summer.

Just before starting her Grade 11 year at Paul Kane High School this week, Moore returned from a three-week trip to Peru through Girl Guides of Canada and Canada World Youth, where she and 15 other girls from across the country helped make bricks, build an ecological stove, serve breakfast to local schoolchildren and create an anti-litter campaign.

“It was a really incredible trip. It was a great experience to go down there and help serve the community, and live the way they do,” said the 16-year-old.

While Moore was well-prepared before departing, meaning few surprises along the way, she did note that the Peruvian way of life is much different from the one she’s used to back home.

“Living with the host family, I was sort of immersed in their culture. I lived the way they do, the way they live their daily lives,” Moore said.

“The food was a little different; it was more of a rice, chicken and potatoes diet,” she added. “There was no hot water and there were dirt floors. It was a simpler way of life.”

But, despite what they may not have had, Moore said the Peruvian people were still grateful and happy.

“The people I was interacting with, they were very kind, We built a stove for a lady there, and

she was very grateful and kind to us while we were there,” she said.

Moore was also able to make new friends among the group of 16 Girl Guides from Canada who made the trip.

“With the host family, I was staying with another girl from St. John’s, N.L.,” said Moore, who was one of only two girls from Alberta. “We’re still staying in

touch.”Moore first applied through

Girl Guides to go on the trip to Peru last fall, and got word that she would be going in February.

Although there was about six months between finding out she would go and actually taking off, Moore said the time passed fairly quickly.

“It seemed so far away when

I first heard about, but then it started getting closer and there was all the preparation,” she said.

Some of those preparations included paperwork, packing and gathering Canadian gifts for the host family she stayed with.

Moore is involved with student government at Paul Kane, and she is an active volunteer within Girl Guides, helping out with a local Brownie troop, and with Operation Christmas Child during the holiday season.

Her experience in Peru, though, has inspired her to keep going in those endeavours.

“I want to definitely spread the word about the trip and what I was able to do when I was down there,” she said.

“I lived the way they do, the way they live their daily lives.”

Colleen Moore, Paul Kane student

Photo SuppliedPaul Kane High School Grade 11 student Colleen Moore (centre) poses for a photo with the host family that she stayed with during a three-week trip to Peru in August that was organized through Girl Guides of Canada.

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COUNCIL NOTES• SEPT. 2, 2014 •

NE XT MEETING: SEPTEMBER 15, 2014 at 3 p .m.

FULL AGENDA AVAILABLE AT WWW.STALBERT.CA BY 5 P.M. ON FRIDAY PRIOR TO THE MEETING

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Long-Term Plan for New Schools

Electric Bus Report/GreenTRIP Funding

Council voted to receive as information the current

draft of the Long-Term Plan for New Schools,

which outlines the future direction of selection

school sites for St. Albert.

Council voted whether to continue testing electric

transit buses and to assist in developing an application for the GreenTRIP project to Alberta Transportation,

for $3.2 million for four 12-metre-long electric buses.

“I love the idea of the electric bus and I’m glad we’re heading down this direction.”

— Coun. Gilles Prefontaine

The final recommendation for St. Albert’s electric buses now

needs to be completed and submitted to council by March

31, and the Capital Region Board needs to give its endorsement for the application of the GreenTRIP

project funding.

The Long-Term Plan for New Schools will be given

to the school boards for further input and then be presented again to council on Jan. 30, 2015, before it’s

open for public input.

CROUSE. . . . . . . . . .BRODHEAD . . . . . . .HERON. . . . . . . . . . .HUGHES . . . . . . . . .OSBORNE . . . . . . . .PREFONTAINE . . . .MacKAY . . . . . . . . . .

CROUSE. . . . . . . . . .BRODHEAD . . . . . . .HERON. . . . . . . . . . .HUGHES . . . . . . . . .OSBORNE . . . . . . . .PREFONTAINE . . . .MacKAY . . . . . . . . . .

“Recent reports say that 60 per cent of kids are being driven to school by their parents. I wonder if a consideration for traffic should be taken for future school sites.”

— Coun. Wes Brodhead

“Based on different labour market and other population reports and demographics, we’re projecting our school populations up to the year 2042.”

— Adryan Slaght, manager, planning branch

“We’ve noted that electric buses cost considerably less to run, take less time to maintain, and there was less noise and odour on the street. We see electric buses as being supportive of the Botanical Arts City brand.”

— Bob McDonald,St. Albert Transit director

Search halted for local man missing in B.C.

GLENN COOKSt. Albert Leader

Police have called off the search for a St. Albert man who went missing last week on Lake Okanagan.

Brian Daryl Lakevold, 64, was last seen on Tuesday, Aug. 26, when he went out for a boat ride on the lake in the interior of British Columbia, where his family spends time each summer. But he never returned.

His boat, a maroon-and-white Malibu LXI, was found around 9:15 p.m. that same day when another boat on the lake ran into it. The boat’s lights were turned off, but the keys and some of Lakevold’s personal effects were found on

board.Search and rescue teams in the area

scoured the lake for three days, but called off their search around 4:30 p.m. PT Friday

having turned up no signs of Lakevold.

His family and friends are now asking anyone who was near the lake around the time he disappeared to look closely at any photos they may have taken and see if they can spot the boat or Lakevold, so that RCMP would have new information to continue the search.

His last contact with another person came at around 2 p.m. on Aug. 26, when he texted a business associate. Lakevold

worked as a financial planner, owning his own company in downtown Edmonton.

Brian Lakevold

Missing

Dogpaddling for a causeSmelling like a wet dog was a good thing on Monday at Grosvenor Outdoor Pool as the City of St. Albert hosted its third annual Dog Swim to raise money for Second Chance Animal Rescue Society before the pool closed up for the winter.

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“Electric buses are certainly the Holy Grail of public transit.”

— Coun. Wes Brodhead


Police dog has his dayGLENN COOKSt. Albert Leader

St. Albert’s newest dog-friendly park will bear the name of one of the most doggedly determined searchers in the local RCMP detachment’s history.

City of St. Albert officials announced on Friday that the new park being built just north of Servus Credit Union Place will be named Dodger Dog Park, in honour of former St. Albert RCMP search dog Dodger.

“As we look back over the past 10 years, Dodger was a symbol of support to the schools. Dodger was a symbol of support for addressing crime. Dodger was a symbol that we wanted to ensure animals in the community were acknowledged as residents of our community,” said Mayor Nolan Crouse. “Dodger was a symbol of policing in our community. Dodger was a symbol of breaking down barriers, a bridge between the community and police, between youth and the police.”

The golden retriever, who is now about 12 years old, completed his

training in July 2005 and started working in St. Albert a month later. Dodger was trained to detect narcotics, and did most of his work in local schools. But he also served as a mascot for the local RCMP detachment, giving more than 100 demonstrations to students across the city.

Dodger retired from active service in January 2013.

Const. Greg Hawkins was Dodger’s handler while he was with the St. Albert detachment, and he said Dodger was a “tremendous searcher” and an “awesome working dog.”

“I was always impressed with the amount of energy and enthusiasm he’d bring to work every day,” Hawkins said. “He was a real inspiration to me every day at work.”

But, as hard as Dodger worked, he still loved to play, which makes naming the park after him much more meaningful.

“One of Dodger’s favourite things to do — even more than searching, if that’s possible — would be to go for off-leash walks,” Hawkins said. “We’d do it twice a

day, once in the morning and once at night. We’d find a park, kind of like (the new dog-friendly park). I’d park the police car and take him out, and just let him run around and be a dog. It really was his favourite thing to do.”

These days, Dodger is living in Innisfail, Alta., with Sgt. Dave Sylvestri, an instructor at the RCMP’s Police Dog Service Training Centre. There, he lives in the lap of luxury with Sylvestri’s family and the retired police dog Sylvestri was partnered with for many years.

“He enjoys watching TV, but he can’t watch Animal Planet — he just loses it,” Sylvestri said with a laugh.

The new dog-friendly park is being built in a dry stormwater pond just north of Servus Place. Once completed this fall, it will join Lacombe Lake Park as one of two dog-friendly parks in St. Albert, with dog-specific amenities and garbage cans. A total of 18 other parks have been designated as off-leash parks for dogs under the City’s new animal bylaw, which came into effect on Monday.

Photo: GLENN COOK, St. Albert LeaderFormer St. Albert RCMP search dog Dodger had plenty to wag his tail about on Friday as the City’s new dog-friendly park was officially named after him.

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It is that time of year again and we here at the St. Albert Food Bank

and Community Village are preparing for our Annual Food Drive on Saturday, Sept. 20 from noon to 4 p.m.

The residents of St. Albert are known for their generosity, and we at the St. Albert Food Bank and Community Village are so very grateful for the financial support and food donations we receive throughout the year. We especially love this time of year because of all of the wonderful produce we receive from local gardens in addition to the regular staples we need. We are very fortunate to have a walk-in cooler so we can take all of the fresh fruit and

vegetables that are donated.As in the past, the

St. Albert Breakfast Lions Club and the Red Willow Community Church, located in Campbell Business Park, are partnering with us on the big day. The Lions always prepare a barbecue lunch for volunteers, while the Red Willow workers pick the bags of food left out in front of people’s residences and deliver them to the Food Bank.

Individual community volunteers will have distributed the brown

paper grocery bags to all residences in the city prior to the day of the drive, and others will work at the Food Bank, receiving the bags and sorting the items they contain as they are brought in.

We extend sincere thanks to these organizations, as well as to all of the individuals involved in the bag delivery and at the Food Bank itself — this is truly a community effort.

Our volunteer co-ordinator is still looking for volunteers to deliver bags for the food drive. The routes have been made smaller this year, which makes it easier for volunteers, but means that we have had to increase the number of routes.

This can be a fun family

activity and is a great way to fulfill school volunteer hour requirements.

Interested individuals can contact Margaret at 780-722-8007 for more details and to sign up.

Please stop by to visit us so you can become familiar with the Food Bank and the enhanced programming at the Community Village. We are happy to provide tours, and we are certain you will find our services and opportunities interesting. We are very excited about the upcoming Cultural and Community Kitchen programs that will start later in September.

We want to thank the community for their outstanding support and generosity — it is very much appreciated.

Food Bank gearing up for annual fall drive

Give our kids a big brake

The calendar has turned over to September, and that familiar chill is in the air. A few leaves have started

turning orange, but those will become more and more numerous as the days turn into weeks.

These are the sure signs of autumn in Canada, and just as sure is the return of students to their schools.

As students return to the responsibilities of their education — to studying and homework and athletics — so too do the rest of us return to our own responsibilities in and around schools, not the least of which is to be sure we slow down when driving through school zones.

Far too often we are in a hurry or our minds are somewhere other than on the road ahead of us, and we wind up speeding through school zones at unsafe speeds. But the children of our community deserve better than that; they deserve to feel safe around their schools whether police or photo radar vehicles are there to enforce the 30 km/h limit or not.

To that end, it is refreshing to see the re-institution of school zones in Edmonton proper this year. For almost four decades, drivers in Edmonton did not have lowered speed limits around schools to contend with. Common sense likely dictated that many people slowed down near schools anyway, but technically there was nothing stopping them from ripping through those areas.

What has been pleasantly surprising to watch as the awareness campaigns around school zones in Edmonton have ramped up is how willing motorists have been to comply. Other such legislative changes are usually met with resistance, but perhaps this little bit of common sense is more common than one might have bargained for.

That said, we’ve always had school zones in St. Albert, and once again, as students head back to class for another academic year, we are reminded about the need to observe them. As has been said so many times before, speeding up in a school zone might save you a minute or two, but slowing down could very possibly save a life.

EDITORIALby Glenn Cook

OPINION

Owned and operated by

RJ Lolly Media Inc.13 Mission Ave.

St. Albert, Alta. T8N 1H6

Phone: 780-460-1035

Delivery concerns? Email us at [email protected]

All claims of errors in advertisements must be received in writing by the publisher within 5 days after the first publication. Liability for errors or failure to publish is limited

to the amount paid for the space occupied. The opinions expressed within publication are not necessarily those of the St. Albert Leader or RJ Lolly Media. Material published may not be copied or reproduced without the express written consent of the publisher.

Publisher: Rob LeLacheur [email protected]

Editor: Glenn Cook [email protected]

Client Services: Michelle Barstad [email protected]

Suzan KRECSY

St. Albert Food Bank

My City

WHEREIS THIS?

Here’s a photo of a building or landmark around St. Albert.Can you figure out where it is?

Last Week: Eagles Hall


INTERACTIVE» Comment on stories at StAlbertLeader.com » Follow @stalbertleader and use #stalbert » Use hashtag #stalbert

WEB POLL

Now that it has come into effect, what do

you think of the City’s new animal bylaw?

Really excited! .....................25%Fairly excited ..........................8%Kind of excited .....................25%Not that excited .....................0%Not excited at all ................. 42%

Vote in this week’s pollat StAlbertLeader.com

How excited are you that school is back in?

Waiting for breakfast! Guess it’s time to crawl outa bed!! #minischnauzers #stalbert

— @Burkeeboy

RE: “POLICE DOG DODGER GETS HIS DUE” (AUG. 29, 2014)

C o n g r a t u l a t i o n s Dodger! What a great dog he is :)

— Wanda Wagner Corcoran

RE: “GROUP ENCOURAGES YOUTH TO LIVE OUTLOUD” (AUG. 27, 2014)

I applaud Mia and her parents for stepping up to help others feel welcome. This takes courage and strength. Bravo!

— Helen Arnott

What a great turn out so far at the third annual dog swim! #StAlbert #dogswim2014 #puppies!

— @YoGoerz

It’s official! #StAlbert is the Pinkest Little City in the West! Abandon your dinner plans and come to the BBQ!

— @stalbertchamber

This chubby chap joined us for breakfast in #stalbert this morning @NatureAlberta @BBObservatory

— @Chrizul

Wow! The train rolling through #stalbert right now is LOUD! I love it!

Probably not so much for people near the tracks...

— @MarnieStretch

I won’t fault them for their enthusiasm, but this will be the one & only

day they’re 30 mins early for school #firstdayofschool #stalbert

— @KathleenRange

Councillor Broadhead wants a regional transit plan instead of the mish

mash we have. Great idea, long time coming. #yeg #stalbert #shpk

— @CityHallIGuy

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Cherry-Oto-Fire rolls into WFTDA playoffs


A former St. Albert Heavenly Roller is shooting for the stars with her new roller derby team.

Leanne Johnson — better known as Cherry-Oto-Fire in the roller derby community — is one of the founding members of the Heavenly Rollers, but had to switch teams after moving to Lafayette, Ind., earlier this year. Now, she and her new team, Indianapolis’s Naptown Roller Girls, are heading to the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association Division 1 playoffs in Charleston, W.Va., from Oct. 3 to 5, with a chance to advance to the WFTDA championships in Nashville, Tenn., at the end of October.

“I’m thrilled. I was not expecting that at all, so I’m very thrilled at this opportunity,” Johnson said over the phone from Indiana. “... We’re going to be playing against some of the top teams in the world, so it’s exciting.”

The WFTDA is the international governing body for women’s roller derby, setting standards for rules and safety across the world. There are currently 260 roller derby leagues that are members of the WFTDA, as well as 97 members of its apprentice program, including the St. Albert Heavenly Rollers, who gained apprentice status this year. STAHR vice-president Celeste Thiesen told the Leader in March 2014 that “it’s basically like joining the NHL for roller derby.”

That said, Johnson is expecting a big step up in competition at the Division 1 playoffs.

“The competition is very strong; it would be the equivalent of an elite-level athletics event in any sport,” she said. “This is the top bar, essentially, and (Naptown) is very excited as a league and a team to be competing again.”

This year is the fifth time Naptown has entered the Division 1 playoffs, and they have advanced to the WFTDA championships twice before.

Johnson skated with STAHR for about three years, but she and her husband made the move to Indiana about a month ago after he was transferred for work. She tried out for the Naptown Roller Girls and was offered a spot on their varsity team, the Tornado Sirens.

So far, it’s been a lot of hard work, but things have gone smoothly in Indianapolis for Johnson.

“Everybody has been very welcoming. They’re very hard-working and competitive. I definitely had to fight my way in — not in a personality sense, but in the competition level,” she said. “They train hard; when you show up at practice, it’s go time until the final whistle.”

Roller derby is a popular sport in Indianapolis, and the Naptown Roller Girls have been around for much longer than

STAHR has, so it was a bit of a surprise when Johnson went out for tryouts.

“With St. Albert, we were definitely on our way to moving up to being at that higher competitive level,” she said, “but here, it’s just so common to be competing at that level, it was quite a shock. Everybody here is really good, so you have to work hard to be average here.”

Like many of her peers, Johnson first got involved in roller

derby after going out to watch a game. She was intrigued by the atmosphere, the physicality of the game and the pride the athletes had.

“I was like, ‘Wow, this is really intense — where do I sign up?’” she said with a laugh. “Most people would be running the other way, and I was trying to run to where I could register.”

Despite the move to Indiana, Johnson is keeping her derby name, Cherry-Oto-Fire, because it has a lot of sentimental value.

“It’s a play on Chariots of Fire, the movie, and the whole storyline, concept and characters in that movie are something that really means a lot to me,” she said.

And she hopes to keep using it for a long time, as she plans to continue with roller derby as long as she can.

“This is one of the best team sports I’ve ever played. The camaraderie and the teamwork is incomparable to other team sports I’ve played,” Johnson said, adding that even having a baby about six months ago hasn’t kept her away from the track. “We’re all fighting together. There’s no ball or object to hit. It’s very physical; it’s using your body, your skills and your abilities to contribute to that team. It’s raw, athletic and exciting, and I’ll play it as long as I can.”

“Everybody here is really good, so you have to work hard to be average here.”

Leanne JohnsonFormer STAHR member

Cold comfortSt. Albert Public Schools superintendent Barry Wowk had a chilly start to the new school year as he took the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge at the district office on Sir Winston Churchill Avenue on Friday. Doing the honours is deputy superintendent Doug McDavid.

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Photo: DAVE McQUEEN, McQueen PhotographyLeanne Johnson — a.k.a Cherry-Oto-Fire — is honoured by her St. Albert Heavenly Rollers teammates during her final game in St. Albert earlier this year. Now skating out of Indianapolis, Ind., Johnson is ready to make her first trip to the WFTDA Division 1 playoffs next month.


STAHR ready for big leaguesGLENN COOKSt. Albert Leader

The St. Albert Heavenly Rollers are hoping to take the final step toward playing in the big leagues later this month.

On Saturday, Sept. 13, the local roller derby team is hosting the Calgary Roller Derby Association All-Stars at Servus Credit Union Place, and if everything goes smoothly, STAHR will have the chance to graduate from apprentice members to full members of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association.

“They’re sort of our big deal,” said Heavenly Rollers captain Jillian Pearse Gent, who goes by the name Cee Cee Sickness out on the derby track.

“(Being a full member) would give us access to better training, better tournaments. Leagues that never would have played us before, now we’ll be able to play them. It’s sort of our step into the big leagues.”

The game against the CRDA features STAHR’s elite travelling team, the Arch Angels. There’s also another bout on the bill that evening, as their house team, the Beelzebubs, takes on the East Side Wheelers out of Indus, Alta.

The WFTDA is the international governing body for women’s roller derby,

setting rules and holding championship tournaments each year. There are currently 260 full member leagues around the world, along with 97 apprentice leagues like STAHR, which has been around since September 2010.

Being a full member of the WFTDA has many advantages, Pearse Gent said.

“It shows our league’s goals for future; it shows what we want to be,” she said. “It also gives us a voice in roller derby. We all play by the rules set out by WFTDA, but being a member league allows us to have a say in those rules.”

And it would also help in recruiting players.

“There are two other leagues in the Edmonton area, but we’d be the only WFTDA league, so it shows our league’s commitment to really being the best, being the most competitive and getting into more high-level and international play,” Pearse Gent said.

Currently, the CRDA is the only full WFTDA member league in Alberta.

“They really did the groundwork. The first one to go through the process always has the hardest time,” Pearse Gent said. “Part of the process to become a full member is that you have to play other member leagues, so they had to travel to the U.S. But we have them close by and

they can come up. They’ve really paved the way.”

As much as they admire their southern counterparts, though, Pearse Gent and the rest of the Arch Angels are out to win on the track, and are expecting a stiff test on Sept. 13.

“They are very good. I believe they’re ranked fourth in Canada right now,” she said. “This is their first year as a full WFTDA member, and they’re doing very well. They’ve been playing tournaments across the U.S. and Eastern Canada, and blowing everyone away.”

STAHR’s season began on March 22 at the Tri-Leisure Centre in Spruce Grove, although they usually call the Tudor Glen Veterinary Hospital fieldhouse in Servus Place home.

But they have also travelled extensively to tournaments across Canada and the United States, including one in Salt Lake City, Utah, in July. The Arch Angels also participated in the Flat Track Fever tournament in Calgary in May, and surprised a lot of people by finishing second.

Tickets for the doubleheader on Sept. 13 are $10 in advance, or $15 at the door. Advance tickets are available through the Heavenly Rollers’ website at www.stahrderby.com.

Leader file photoThe St. Albert Heavenly Rollers are battling to become full members of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association, with the next step being a bout against the Calgary Roller Derby Association All-Stars on Saturday, Sept. 13 at Servus Credit Union Place.

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BMX and skateboard competition takes over local skateboard parkPhotos; JESSE KUSHNERYK, St. Albert Leader

The St. Albert Skateboard Park was buzzing with activity on Sunday afternoon as the first-ever Shake Down BMX and skateboard competition was held, with beginner, amateur and pro classes laying down their best runs for more than $4,000 in prizes, as well as a best trick competition for each discipline.

More photos online at

StAlbertSports.com

13S C H O O L I S I N !

www.stalbertleader.com 780.460.1035 JOIN OUR COMMUNITY IN CELEBRATING

THE START OF THE NEW SCHOOL YEAR.SCHOOL IS IN!

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14 S C H O O L I S I N !

Albert Lacombe Catholic Elementary School celebrates its 50th Anniversary this year. Continuing a great legacy of learning with the families of St. Albert, we are pleased to expand our Gymnastics-Cheer-Dance program, in addition to Hockey and Soccer. Full-day kindergarten, featuring a Fine Arts and Fitness Academy,

Daycare offer important programming options for families.

strong academic programming while accommodating their unique learning needs. Regular, natural use of technology and partnerships with parents are very important parts of our plan for student success. We welcome Mr. Duane Hayes as our new Vice-Principal, adding his skills and talents to our school administrative team. The Albert Lacombe BEARS are looking forward to a fantastic year of active learning, friendships, and growth. Please join us on the journey!

Celebrating 50Years

CELEBRATING 50 GREAT YEARS OF LEARNING!

Bobkats are Active, Spiritual and Academic!At Bertha Kennedy Catholic Community School we are pleased

community from across the city, province, and country. As a leader in the community with regards to the Healthy Schools Initiative, we are excited this year to expand our plans with continued support from our partners. Our families know that ensuring our kids are active and healthy contributes to academic success. Catholic values are part of our academic programming throughout

collaboration with parents and the community, we work to provide the best possible learning environment to meet the needs of all the students of Bertha Kennedy. Through strong teacher and parent partnerships, we provide students with the necessary supports to be successful.

Together, ‘We are all God’s Hands’ as we become lifelong learners and responsible, caring contributors in God’s world.

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Welcomenewandreturningfamilies.Weareproudtocelebrate150yearsofservicetostudentsthroughCatholicEducation inourregion!

— yourBoardof Trustees

Have faith in your futureGreater St. AlbertCatholic SchoolsFaith in Our Students

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Nestled in the heart of historic Mission Hill,

features one of the most futuristic “electronic parks”

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‘Ya gotta’ love the excitement and buzz of the start up of a new school year…The fresh start is always invigorating, life giving and filled with possibilities….

150 years ago, French Catholics were among the earliest settlers in the region. At École Marie Poburan, we are proud to continue their heritage of the French language and our faith through our French Immersion Program. We are always in awe to witness our young students learn and excel in a second language as well as grow in their faith. When they enter school, they may have some French or none at all but what is truly remarkable is their understanding and grasp of the language when they finish their grade six year. We are also honoured to have the opportunity to model our faith with our students and guide them to be living examples of the teachings of our Lord.

We are excited to welcome our new families to our community. You are entering a vibrant community that excels in learning and teaching because of the amazing engagement, commitment and partnership of our students, parents and staff. We also have an exciting year learning ahead! With the help of our faith theme, ‘Cooking With Christ’, we will be cooking up some great ‘recipes’ that will help us care for God’s flock. We will be honing our writing skills with author Marty Chan with the help of our Artist in Residency program. We will also be launching our ‘Safety Round-Up’ fair in September to help educate our students about their safe journeys to and from school.

We have an exciting year ahead, so, roll up your sleeves and… ”On y va!” Bonne année! Principal, Marie Gamache-Hauptman

Say Oui to French!Say Oui to French!École Marie Poburan

The staff of ESSMY looks forward to another vibrant year of learning and

relationship building. Last year, we graduated students who are now studying

the summer we welcomed a new vice–principal to our school. Mme Cindy Pereira

joins the ESSMY family and is looking forward to working with and amongst the

very best students and educators.

Along with our robust French Immersion programming, Grade 12 students have the opportunity to earn dual credits through

MacEwan University. This provides them with an academic head start and introduces

them to the rigor of post-secondary studies. Our junior high students are

excited to take some new options and have embraced the opportunity to participate in

in hockey, soccer and gym-cheer-dance. We look forward to celebrating the

this year as we recognize 150 years of Catholic Education in St. Albert! We wish everyone a year of many successes and

we do and say.

THE HONOR ROLL

École Secondaire

Sainte Marguerite d’Youville


With Christ We inspire Excellence and Life Long LearningOn behalf of the staff of NEIL M. ROSS SCHOOL, we would like to welcome back our 450 students and their families to another exciting school year. To our new families, we are delighted to have you join our community. New staff is our new Vice Principal Ms. Sherry Foote, Grade 2 teacher Nicolina Pavicic and Kindergarten teacher Karra Dubrule. We also welcome Tree House preschool to Neil M. Ross.

Neil M. Ross has a history of academic excellence and is a great place for children to learn. Stop by and check out our new and exciting SOAR Literacy and Technology Centre. Our theme for the year is “GPS for Jesus” - Shepherding the Next Generation. This faith theme is correlated with the Division Faith Goal –“Shepherding Our Flock – Called to Love One Another.” We begin each school day with prayer. If you happen to be in our school, we invite you to stop and to reflect and share in our prayer experience.

Principal, Mrs. Sandy Cimino

Richard S. Fowler Catholic Junior High School

The R.S. Fowler School Community is about to embark upon another exciting school year! We are very pleased to announce that our

enrollments have increased and another homeroom class has been added. Our focus on using technology continues with the introduction of Google Apps for Education. Students will be accessing a notebook type device for their daily instruction. This year we look forward to

integrating more technology into our Fabrication and Art classes using 3D printers and plotters. We are pleased to welcome Mr. Damon

Clayton to the role of Vice Principal. Mr. Clayton has extensive background in Physical Education and will be a wonderful complement

to our many option classes as well as our Sports Academy program.

FALCONS ARE GROWING

Principal, Susan Coates & Vice Principal. Damon Clayton

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Our students soar at SACHS academically, athletically and spiritually. In this regard, we are truly a small giant! This year we are pleased to welcome Mme. Danielle Karaki who will be leading our French Immersion program on-site and join the administrative team as our new Vice-Principal. Mme. Karaki joins us from ESSMY and will be a strong addition to our team at the school.

Continuing this year, our Grade 12 students will be offered an opportunity to take university dual credit courses through MacEwan University. Our first group of students took the business courses last year and we are expecting this program to grow and expand. To support student success, our “Hawk Block” is designed to provide

academic support and time for career exploration. This is important for all our students in planning their transition to post-secondary and the world of work. New students joining SACHS this year can look forward to more programming and opportunities in the coming years.

WHERE STUDENTS SOAR!

ALLA warm welcome back to all of our returning students and a hardy

welcome to all the new students who will be joining St. Gabriel High School this year. We are looking forward to a great year with plans for even more

With the rapidly increasing student numbers we are experiencing we have made two additions to our St. Gabriel staff. I would like to welcome

Angela Gauthier who will be taking on the role of Vice-Principal and Melanie Morrison who be our Youth Coach, a new role at the school.

Do you want to experience the school of tomorrow today?

Do you need to upgrade courses? Do you need to take courses not available at your local school?

We can help. Check out St. Gabriel High School online at http://stgabe.gsacrd.ab.ca

St. Gabriel High School

St. Gabriel High School Principal, David Feist

HIGH SCHOOL FLEX - ALL DAY, EVERY DAY!

VINCENT J. MALONEY CATHOLIC JUNIOR HIGH

MARAUDERS EXCEL THIS YEAR!Students attending V.J. Maloney

School this year will experience the Marauders Excel Block to support them in providing time to complete homework or access additional help. We know that our students are active in and outside of school and any supports we can put in place for students to achieve higher at school is important. This could free up some time

to pursue extra-curricular or provide greater understanding

on topics that students need assistance with.

Our students have the broadest range of options available

to them from signature programs like IB and Sports Academy to athletics. V.J.

Maloney is a place for everyone to pursue their passions while excelling at school.

Opportunities for involvement at the school are abundant. We are a large school that feels small!

We are eager to begin the new school year with a strong focus on literacy and numeracy. Our teachers work hard with students to build a solid foundation for learning. As we are a Learning Through the Arts school, our teachers strive to differentiate instruction using the

program; it is a program that infuses arts into the exploration, learning, as well as the presentation

Vital Grandin has a vibrant community of learners; including students, parents and staff. We are excited to continue our learning journey this year. Together we will all REACH for the stars; to be Respectful, Engaging, Accepting, Contributing and Hardworking in who we are and in all we do!!

CARINGSHARING&GROWING

Principal, Marina Lotoski


Bienvenue et bonne année scolaire!

As Acting Principal, I am pleased to welcome new and returning families to the Taché family for the 2014-15 school year. We had a successful registration day, thanks to the hard work of staff and volunteer students - merci beaucoup!

Staff are buzzing with excitement as we organize the implementation of our High School Redesign project. We are passionate about student engagement and I am proud of our team efforts to prepare for a great year of learning!

A sincere thanks to all, and I wish everyone a fantastic school year. Bonne rentrée à tous! Katherine DerenActing PrincipalÉcole Alexandre-Taché

Je crée, donc j’apprends!Cette année, les élèves de l’école La Mission vivront le thème, « Je crée, donc j’apprends! ». L’inclusion et l’accompagnement jouent un grand rôle stratégique dans l’apprentissage chez les élèves. Dans sa préparation pour l’année scolaire, le personnel s’est préparé afin de mieux organiser l’apprentissage pour qu’il soit plus centré sur l’élève et sur les compétences à développer. Nous continuerons notre projet AVAN (apporter votre appareil numérique) de la 4e à la 6e année. Ceci facilitera l’accès à la technologie.

C’est une année de croissance pour l’école. Pour la première fois dans l’histoire de l’école, il y a deux classes de maternelle. De plus, nous commençons notre troisième année de programmation sport-études où nous avons connu une explosion d’inscriptions. L’école mettra davantage l’accent sur une bonne santé physique, mentale et encouragera une bonne alimentation saine.

Ce qui est garantie, c’est que les projets de cette année seront nombreux, productifs et enrichissants. Grâce à notre personnel engagé, dynamique, accueillant et à l’écoute, nous anticipons une année extraordinaire remplis de succès.

Bonne année à tous!Claude Viel, Directeur

e année extraordinair

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Principal’s Message

Welcome to the 2014-2015 school year at Bellerose! To all those returning students, I can commit to making every effort to ensure your school maintains the exceptional level of positive high school experience that you have had and expect. To all the new Grade 10 students and their families, we understand the difficulty to choose between high schools and, with that, we appreciate your decision to come to Bellerose. I believe few schools in Alberta offer more for young people to do than Bellerose, so I would encourage you to get involved right from the start. I also believe each and every staff member is dedicated to making your time at Bellerose a successful high school experience – exciting, happy and filled with all kinds of learning.

On a personal note, the staff of BCHS is a marvelous group of people with a large range of skills and experience. You have made being principal here an exciting experience. You have been so willing to do more, to think about being better educators and to exemplify a dedication to students’ growth that I am filled with pride to work with you. Thank you.

Larry Dick

Keenooshayo Elementary School

“Magic” at Keenooshayo! We are so excited to welcome back last year’s members of the Keenooshayo family and we are ready to embrace the new families who will be joining our school.

Our focus will continue to support the strong academics and social well-being of our students, including an extensive array of extracurricular activities. Several exciting events are planned and ready for the students to discover, explore and enjoy as they take their educational journey with us.

Keenooshayo will continue to educate our students about the world while encouraging them to contribute towards making the world a better place through our school’s participation in the UNESCO Associated Schools Project Network.

We welcome volunteers in our classrooms and around our school. If you would like to share your time with Keenooshayo, please contact us at 780.459.3114 or keem.spschools.org.

Sincerely, Michael Erickson Principal

Greetings Gators and welcome to the 2014-15 school year at Lorne Akins Junior High School. Together we will endeavor to learn to live and to live to learn within the common sense rules and relationships of a big family. Being a Lorne Akins Gator means being respectful of one’s self and all other stakeholders who work together to ensure that the 600 or so days of junior high school are valuable academically, socially, athletically and in the service of others.

Learning occurs along various pathways at Lorne Akins. Whether by formal instruction in the core and complementary classes, through joining clubs, being on teams and by becoming involved in leadership and service activities, students will learn how to think and how to organize their time and materials to prepare themselves for success in school and in life. This is what we mean when we say that ‘Learning is Job #1 at Lorne Akins’.

Loretta Manning, Principal

WELCOME BACK! TO LORNE AKINS JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL OUTREACH High School

September is a busy month. It is the end of summer, back to school, new

High School would like to welcome back our returning students and welcome our new students to an exciting year.

knowledgeable teachers.

forward to another successful year full of success and personal growth.

Sincerely,Brian SamuelPrincipal


Welcome to another exciting year at Robert Rundle. We are delighted to welcome back so many familiar faces , and are equally as pleased to welcome many new families to our school.

We have an exceptional and dedicated staff! Together we will continue our quest for excellence. Building on the last number of years as a springboard, we will work together with staff, parents and students to maintain our high standards, enthusiasm and spirit of cooperation that make success possible.

Students will be given support, encouragement and the direction they need to reach their goals and hopes and dreams while they enjoy the many and varied learning experiences at our school.

As we prepare for the year together, the staff members at Robert Rundle look forward to sharing another great year with you. We extend our very best wishes for a happy and successful year.

Message from the Principal

Principal John Osgood

STREM “BITS”SAM School staff have been planning for the best school year ever! The Leader in Me Program provides a strong foundation

across all subject areas. Covey’s 7 Habits are prevalent in everything we do, as student and staff leadership is

paramount at SAM School. Since EVERY student is a leader at SAM School, bullying is significantly reduced.

We are proud of our history of academic excellence; we continue to lead the way. Music and physical education specialists provide significant extra-

curricular activities with fine arts and athletics. We are proud that stakeholder

satisfaction is extremely high.

Technology complements excellent teaching. Every classroom has a SMART Board and

several Surface Pro tablets. Our desk top lab features IBM Lenovo I-7 quad core

computers and we have two portable net book labs, numerous Apple iPads, and three sets of

digital cameras for students.

Visit us online: samem.spschools.org

Principal, John Strembitsky

Sir Alexander Mackenzie Elementary School

District Administration Office, 60 Sir Winston Churchill Avenue780.460.3712 � www.spschools.org

Welcome back to all of our students,their families and our staff.We are so excited to be sharing another year with you!

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On behalf of our staff we would like to welcome everyone back to another amazing, busy year at W.D. Cuts Junior High. We are a small school where everybody knows your name, a friendly community-based environment.

W.D. Cuts is pleased to be the only junior high in St. Albert offering an academic morning with afternoons devoted to options. This innovative and unique program provides academic instruction during optimal learning time along with a flexible afternoon, balancing school experiences with personal interests – fine arts enhance the creative student; active options create personal growth in a wide variety of activities; and academic options are available for students who want to improve or move beyond the ordinary boundaries of the curriculum. We are proud of this student-centered approach to learning, as we recognize our student body is busy within and outside of our school.

W. D. Cuts is home to a Recreational and Hockey Academy. “Rec” exposes students to a dynamic scope of indoor and outdoor activities, while the Hockey Academy offers skills improvement, no matter the level.

To find out more check our website at www.wdcuts.spschools.org. Principal, Mike Tod

William D. Cuts Junior High School

Welcome to E.S. Gish, an exciting and vibrant school. Our focus is on community collaboration and providing excellent learning experiences for all students. We are a triple track school offering Cogito, Global and Logos programmes.

Being K-9, we have a unique opportunity to provide leadership opportunities to students, staff and parents across the grades.

We encourage open communication with all stakeholders therefore, if you have any questions please contact your child’s teacher or drop by the office. I am excited to be a member of such a strong community that excels in the classroom and at extracurricular participation. Come and Get the Gish Energy!

ELMER S. GISH Elementary &

Junior High School

Erin Steele E.S. Gish Principal

Leo Nickerson Elementary School is a triple-track school, offering English, French Immersion and Logos Christian programming. We welcome students into colourful, cheerful and stimulating classrooms where dedicated and skilled teachers make learning come alive.

An effective partnership of students, staff and parents creates an amazing school that features a warm, inviting and safe atmosphere, a diverse range of extracurricular activities, strong academic performance, and specialist teachers in Art, Music, Drama, French as a Second Language and Physical Education.

Students participate in a host of activities, including Downhill Ski Club and community service projects such as Reverse Trick or Treating, Terry Fox Run, Operation Christmas Child, and Hair Mass-a-cure.

A focus of the school is cultural enrichment, including presentations by groups like the Alberta Dance Troupe, the Alberta Opera Society, l’unithéatre, the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra, and the Artist-in-Residence program.

At Leo Nickerson, students receive a quality education, parents feel valued and involved, and the community is enriched with the presence of a school characterized by a strong social conscience.

Principal, Kevin Jones

At École Muriel Martin,

we are excited about the

2014-15 school year!

Katie Boyd - Asst. Principal, Les Kirchner - Principal, Gloria Knutson - Counsellor


Welcome Back BBQ School Photos

Clubs Day

Duncan Knoll

PAUL KANE HIGH SCHOOL

On behalf of the staff at Ronald Harvey Elementary School, it is with great enthusiasm and excitement that I welcome our students. To our returning RHES “Hooters”, thank you in advance for making the school such a vibrant, caring, enjoyable place. For our new students, whether in our Recreational Academy, the Hockey Program, or in our ever-expanding regular English Program, welcome and have the most enjoyable year. A very special welcome goes out to our kindergarten kids, who are about to begin an amazing journey of learning and growth. To all students returning to schools everywhere, enjoy

your experience and be grateful for the wonderful opportunities that education provides!

Principal,Randy Roszell

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Welcome, on behalf of all staff members, it is my pleasure and honour to welcome you to École Sir

George Simpson Junior High School.

Sir George Simpson School is blessed with a team of wonderful educators and support staff who truly live

their commitment to our children. Our school is not a mere building where one goes to take courses; it is a

community where we are all called to give the very best of ourselves. We are called to share our talents and our own

gifts with our entire school population.

Our school houses several programs: English, French Immersion, Academic Challenge, Learning Assistance,

Opportunity, Knowledge and Employability, and Behaviour Improvement. While learning in their respective programs,

all students are invited to rally around our six virtues: Courage, Determination, Respect of self, Respect of Others, Sharing and

Enthusiasm.

I invite you to explore our website and to learn about our school! Feel free to contact our office if you have any questions or inquiries!

Pierre Rousseau, [email protected]

www.sgsjh.spschools.org

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Principal, Barb Scott

Welcome back, wolf pack! We have so many educational adventures

of engaged and authentic learning with them.

At Wild Rose, our mission is Wellness, Respect and Success for all. We deliver this through a strong academic program alongside a powerful character education focus that enhances the ability of

each child as an individual with a unique potential for success. This is accomplished through the effort of the entire Wild Rose pack, including staff, parents, students and community members.

Our Kindergarten program offers a learning environment that

developing personally. Wild Rose is vibrant, growing school community and our staff look forward to sharing in the educational journey of our students in the 2014-15 school year.

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Go to bamforyouth.ca for information on this events.More events to be announced soon!

September 20 8:30PM-1030PMStarting at Lion’s Park

On Tuesday, August 26th, I adoptedthe persona of Glen Guten, as part of apoverty simulation. While I expected thesimulation to be a small group, no morethan twenty, I was pleasantly surprisedwith the showing of easily over onehundred people. Those in attendanceincluded people with the power to�� simulation, such as Nolan Crouse andmultiple city council members. The largeamount of people who attended onlyfurthered my expectations and theseexpectations were not let down.As Glen Guten, I had to balance

providing for a stay at a homelessshelter with agirlfriend (wehad no home),working fulltime, andhouse hunting,as we had tobuy a houseby the secondweek. Eachweek wasshown in��periods, with ��weekend. Thiscontinuedfor just overan hour, torepresent amonth.Throughout

the time of thesimulation,familieswere getting“evicted” from their homes due to lackof the ability to pay the bills. Drug dealsoccurred regularly at my work, and thesmall ray of hope that was the pawnshopturned out to be a total scam. By the endof the fourth week, almost every familywas left destroyed, unable to cope withthe amount of burdens they had beengiven. The simulation had done its job,and it had done it well.

During the groupdiscussion that tookplace after the simulation,we explored the deeperthoughts on those in poverty.�� foremost, stressed the massiveburdens on those in poverty.They are forced to make the choicebetween food or shelter, water and�� second option. Their hand is forced, and�� basic needs over another. Take a secondto think on that. What would you do, ifyou absolutely had to choose one

basic needover another?Granted there

are services toassist those inpoverty, andthese werepresent in thesimulation. Butthese servicesare nowherenear enough.A youngcouple with achild cannotsupportthemselves�� job and asmall amount�� supportfrom thegovernment.I know that

as a fact from the simulation.�� to even survive, is what I think is themost important thing shown to me by�� leads to further thoughts on stereotypesand assumptions those in poverty face.I have heard my family and friends say!�� "�� "�#� �� own fault.” That is simply disgusting. The

simulationbroughtforth something I�� time ago.Poverty is not a choice. It is never a

choice. Humans do not choose to livein terrible circumstances, they do notchoose to lose their job, and they donot choose to live in poverty. Balancingeverything in the simulation was insanely�� #�� stake, would be even more stressful.Those in poverty work harder than mostpeople do, in an attempt to get out ofpoverty. In the meantime, society putsmore social expectations and burdens on�� to work harder than everyone else todefy these assumptions.The simulation stimulated thoughts I

had never dwelled on, and opened myeyes to reality. Those in poverty workharder than all of us to escape poverty,and even with the services provided tothem, it is not always enough. However,this understanding and the ability torelate to their situation is what needs tobe felt by everyone who has never livedin poverty. The simulation did just thatand I would greatly recommend it; youreyes will be opened to something youdid not think they were closed to: thestresses on those in poverty, and the��

by Erik Archimowitz

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On Tuesthe persotpoverty spsimulatiosthan twetwith thewhundredhincludedi��simulatios

A 5km Fun Run that will take place at night! We are asking all participants to bring with them aminimum $5 donation and wear some form of lighting. All money raised will go to the Jumpstart

Program. Food, prizes, music and more will be included in the event!

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ENTERTAINMENTWorlds of fiction, biology mix for Eriksson


The worlds of biology and fiction don’t often mix, but they will when author Ann Eriksson visits the St. Albert Public Library later this month.

Eriksson, who hails from Thetis Island, B.C., will be in St. Albert on Sunday, Sept. 14, to read from and answer questions about her latest novel, High Clear Bell of Morning, which calls on her background as a biologist to explore both the environment and the murky issues surrounding mental health.

It’s a background Eriksson has called on many times throughout her literary career.

“It’s very big … the very first law (of ecology) is that everything is connected to everything else, so I really find my life interests, biology and my writing, really do intertwine,” she said. “I think every book so far has, even if it’s just natural history, description of setting and place.”

Eriksson’s previous novels include Decomposing Maggie (2003), In the Hands of Anubis (2009) and Falling from Grace (2011).

High Clear Bell of Morning tells the tale of Glen, himself a biologist, as he studies both killer whales in the Salish Sea off the coast and his daughter, Ruby, who has recently been diagnosed with schizophrenia. As Glen struggles to understand both his subjects, he finds a number of parallels between the two, including the possible harmful effects of environmental toxins.

Eriksson found the inspiration for the book in two experiences: first, volunteering with a marine mammal research group while she attended the University of Victoria; and second, seeing the daughter of a friend diagnosed with schizophrenia about 10 years ago.

“I gathered all the data that had been collected on toxins up and down the coast — it was the first time it had all been brought together and looked at in a holistic way — and I was shocked by what I learned in terms of what I learned about the level of toxins in whales particularly,” she said.

She added of the friend’s daughter: “I was kind of on the sidelines watching this whole thing happen, and I was quite

helpless but also quite appalled at how hard it was for them to get help, and when they got help, what the result was.”

Before she started writing this book, Eriksson said she knew “probably what the average person knows, which is very little,” about mental health issues, but her research really opened her eyes.

“It changed my attitudes about a lot of things, particularly the issue of involuntary treatment,” she said. “... And just understanding the stigma around mental illness, both for the person and for the families.”

So far, the response to High Clear Bell of Morning has been overwhelmingly

positive — it even spent two months on the B.C. bestseller list. But Eriksson said the most meaningful feedback is that which she has received from the families of people struggling with mental illness.

“There’s been a real sense of gratitude from that group, and that’s really gratifying for me,” she said. “Having not had a family member myself in that position, I was somewhat of an outsider writing about it, so it was reassuring to know that people who lived

this experience appreciated what I was doing and were telling that it was accurate.”

Eriksson’s presentation is part of the new Mind, Body and Spirit series being put on by the St. Albert Public Library, which focuses on lifestyle and health issues.

In that vein, Eriksson hopes people who come to her presentation take away a heightened awareness of what people with mental illness and their families, as well as the role environmental toxins might play.

“While it’s very difficult to prove cause and effect, I was posing a hypothesis there, and there is certainly evidence that maternal exposure to certain toxins can cause brain damage in fetuses,” she said.

The Mind, Body and Spirit series continues on Sept. 24 with local author and motivational speaker Bronwen Strembiski, who will talk about her own struggles with chronic depression and borderline personality disorder. Other installments in the series will focus on genetic testing, mindfulness and eating local.

Admission to any of the Mind, Body and Spirit series sessions is free, but you must register in advance by calling 780-459-1682.

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Photo: GARY GEDDES/SuppliedBritish Columbia author Ann Eriksson visits the St. Albert Public Library on Sunday, Sept. 14, to kick off the library’s new Mind, Body and Spirit series.

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Virginia to Vegas set to headline Amplify festivalGLENN COOKSt. Albert Leader

A Canadian singer-songwriter’s journey to stardom will bring him to St. Albert next month.

The organizers of the Amplify Youth Festival announced last week that Derik Baker, who goes by the stage name Virginia to Vegas (VIIV), will close out the festival — which runs Oct. 17 and 18 at the Enjoy Centre — as its headlining musical act.

Kathleen Bell, youth festival associate with the City of St. Albert, said the message that VIIV shares in his songs is a perfect fit with Amplify.

“His big hit single is ‘We Are Stars,’ and it talks about keep dreaming, keep believing; it’s very uplifting and encouraging of daring to be you,” Bell said. “... It’s going to be a really good way to end our first Amplify.”

VIIV recently performed “We Are Stars,” which features singer Alyssa Reid, at the 2014 MuchMusic Video Awards, and that same song was certified gold in Canada less than three months after it was released in January 2014.

Aside from the concert on Saturday, Oct. 18, the Amplify Youth Festival will also feature a wide variety of workshops for young people from 13 to 21 years of age to explore their creative

sides. The workshops range from yoga and henna body art to photography, metalwork, tape art and improv theatre.

Participants must pre-register for the workshops, which range in price from $22 to $38, but that price also includes admission to Amplify for both days. A two-day pass, which does not include any workshops, costs $15, while single-day passes cost $10 each. The workshop pass, the two-day pass and the single-day pass for Saturday will also include admission into Virginia to Vegas’s concert.

For more information on the festival, including a full list of workshops, visit amplifyfestival.ca.

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*The above area market averages represent the trailing 3-month averages, except where otherwise indicated, of single-family homes only as of the Friday prior to publication week. Data is provided by CRAIG PILGRIM of RE/MAX Real Estate (St. Albert), member of the Real Estate Association of Edmonton.Data does not include condos, townhomes or apartments, and does not differentiate between styles of homes. All efforts are made to ensure data is accurate for information purposes, but please consult a licensed real estate agent for additional market information.

ST. A LBERT REAL ESTATE MARKET REPORT

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Serving up funThe St. Albert Grain Elevator Park was packed on Friday evening as the Arts and Heritage Foundation of St. Albert held its first-ever The Food Trucks are Coming! event, with mobile munchies coming in from all across the Capital Region. Above: Kelsey Kemp, 9, gets a plate of poutine and bacon from Wyatt Korner at Afterbite Mobile Kitchen. Left: Const. Omid Nezami of the St. Albert RCMP meets future cop Emerson Torney, 3, of Wainwright at the event.Photo courtesy St. Albert RCMP

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Calgary..................(403) 252-3582 (Deerfoot Meadows)Calgary..................(403) 207-0466 125 565-36 St. N.E.Edmonton.............(780) 457-5515 13150-137th Ave.Edmonton.............(780) 483-2212 296 Mayfield CommonEdmonton S. .........(780) 701-1791 550-3803 Calgary Trail N.W.

Grande Prairie ......(780) 882-7925 10510-109a St.Lethbridge ............(403) 320-5040 501-1st Ave. S. (Park Place Mall)Medicine Hat ........(403) 580-4770 3201-13 Ave S.E. (Southview Centre)Red Deer ...............(403) 358-5977 105-2004 50th Ave. (South Point Common)

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ACROSS1 Comic strip

sound6 One of a cereal

threesome10 Get ready14 Way to cook

eggs15 Exceptional16 Miner's bonanza17 Weave together19 Bump up against20 Hang in the

balance21 Summer starter23 Florentine

farewell24 Makeup bag item25 Photoshop, say27 Made tracks28 Self starter29 Dark cloud32 Protuberant36 Lacking the

knack 2 Southern bread 46 Update, as 52 Career soldier39 Dove call 3 Show disrupter, machinery 53 Absconded with40 Manicurist's maybe 48 Thingamabob 54 Old photo tint

board 4 Type of acid 49 Fuel efficiency, 58 Stevie Wonder 41 Barn bedding 5 Bully's warning less commonly song, "____42 Midterm event 6 Logger's tool 50 Free from She Lovely"44 Forest dweller 7 Library no-no restraint 59 Spud's buds45 Cassis cocktail 8 Exasperate 51 Dutch cheese 62 Tom, to the piper47 Asylum 9 Kitchen gadget

occupant 10 Record sales 50 Duckling's status

problem 11 Maid Marian's 55 Work like a dog man56 Morsel of meat 12 Reason out57 Katzen of 13 One of the

cookbooks Greats60 Hair piece? 18 Scouting unit61 Words to a 22 Roofing material

toppled tot 25 Force63 Brainchild 26 Marathon, e.g.64 This and that 28 Towel word65 In the past, in 30 Bagel topper

the past 31 Fertile soil66 Bring in 33 Taxicab emblem67 Ground beef 34 Heavy metal

option 35 Salon service68 Fender flaws 37 Islamabad's

localeDOWN 38 Packaging string

1 Roasting rod 43 Mother, in Milan

The Weekly Crossword by Margie E. Burke

Copyright 2014 by The Puzzle Syndicate

Answer to Last Week's Crossword:

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

14 15 16

17 18 19

20 21 22

23 24

25 26 27

28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35

36 37 38 39 40

41 42 43 44

45 46 47 48 49

50 51 52 53 54 55

56 57 58 59

60 61 62

63 64 65

66 67 68

P O N D C O Y P U B A L LA V O W O N A I R A R I AL A M A M U M P S L E E R

D R O P S I S L A N DU S E F U L P I N U PB O P R E G E N E R A T EO W L S T U N T E R E C TA B U T E I D E R K A L ET U M I D T E N E T T A M

G E T U P A N D G O R I PI N E R T I M P O R T

L E A V E S S M E L LA U R A E A G L E U L N AW R I T T I E I N S E A TN O D E A D E P T H Y P E

The koala does not need to drink liquids. The majority of their water comes from

the leaves they eat. (discovery.com)

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FUN & GAMESEdited by Margie E. Burke

Answer to Last Week's Sudoku

Copyright 2014 by The Puzzle Syndicate

Difficulty : EasyThis week in history and

celebrity birthdays

DID YOU

KNOW?

SEPT. 5, 1975An assassination attempt

against U.S. President Gerald Ford is foiled when a Secret

Service agent wrestles a gun away from Lynette Fromme, a follower of cult leader Charles Manson, in Sacramento, Calif.

SEPT. 4, 1981Singer Beyoncé

Knowles — formerly of the group

Destiny’s Child and currently

married to rapper Jay-Z — is born in Houston, Texas.

SEPT. 7, 1936Singer Buddy Holly — real name Charles Hardin Holley — is born

in Lubbock, Texas.

SEPT. 8, 1974U.S. President Gerald Ford grants his predecessor, Richard Nixon,

a full pardon for all offenses connected to the Watergate

scandal.

SEPT. 9, 1984Pope John Paul II arrives in

Quebec City to begin a 12-day tour of Canada, which includes a

stop in Edmonton.

ANSWERS: 1. ‘6’ removed from arm; 2. CN logo removed from background; 3. Logo removed from red suit; 4. Flag pattern on black suit changed to green; 5. Writing removed from medal ribbon.

Photo: CODIE McLACHLAN, Sun Media News ServicesJavier Gomez Noya is sprayed by Great Britain’s Alistair Brownlee at the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final in Edmonton on Sunday.

SEPT. 6, 1997 More than 2.5 billion people

tune in to watch the funeral of Princess Diana, who was killed

the week before in a car crash in Paris, France.

SEPT. 10, 1991The band Nirvana catapults

to the top of the music scene with the release of their single,

“Smells Like Teen Spirit.”

Thousands of St. Albert Minor Sports Photos!AD{CS5337937}

29Thursday, Sept. 4, 2014IN

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Answers online atstalbertleader.com

© 2014 FROGLE COMICS

© 2014 FROGLE COMICS

Kids Krossword

ACROSS5) Roll the ball down this

7) Frame with pins left standing9) Three strikes in a row11) Ten of these in a game12) Foot goes over the line

14) Be sure to change these15) Target in between pins17) Pin right in the middle

18) Gutter cushion

DOWN1) Knock ’em down2) Bowling building

3) Keep the ball out of this4) Shot that curves

6) Got ’em all in one shot8) Game with all strikes

10) Pins left standing are far apart13) Two shots to get all the pins

16) Number of pins in Canada

BOWLINGCompiled by Leader staff

WWW.STALBERTLEA

DER.COM/CARRIER

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Got a nose for news? Be a Leader NewsHound and share yourphotos and story ideas with us! www.stalbertleader.com

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You can also get in touch with us via social media:Twitter: @stalbertleader Facebook: StAlbertLeader Instagram: @StAlbertLeader

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A fast food restaurant owner is ready to �ght back at the federal government over changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, and he’ll be looking to drum up some support from the local business community this week.

On Wednesday, Rob Chiasson — who owns the four McDonald’s franchises in St. Albert along with his wife, Karen — will speak to the St. Albert and District Chamber of Commerce’s monthly luncheon meeting at the Kinsmen Banquet Centre (47 Riel Dr.) about the e�ect changes to the TFWP could have on St. Albert in the next few years.

“I hope to sensitize people to what the real problem is going to be in the years ahead,” Chiasson said. “Because if we wait for the shortage of workers to become critical, it’s going to a�ect our lifestyle, our community and our businesses.”

“My objective is to rally business owners and the community,” he added, “and hopefully they’ll speak up and say to the government that we’re not prepared to accept this. In the absence of another solution, they need to make some exceptions on the temporary foreign worker program for us. I’m very open to another solution, but the government’s not proposing one, and I don’t think that’s responsible.”

Even with the TFWP in place, Chiasson said there’s a major labour shortage in Alberta, and he has had di�culty hiring enough employees to keep service levels up to standard.

“I’ve heard business owners say that they’ve had the opportunity to expand, and they’ve either declined or been very reluctant to accept (due to labour shortages),” he said. “�at’s a pretty serious sign when you hear about a business owner that’s not jumping at the opportunity to grow, because naturally that’s what we’re in business for.”

But sometimes it’s tough for employers to get the message of how tough the situation is through to customers and

critics.“It’s di�cult to convey to people

today that we’re in for some di�cult times ahead, because people live in the present,” Chiasson said. “But when you

talk about 2003 to 2007, they go ‘�at was terrible. I couldn’t get service; I couldn’t �nd anybody to help me in the store.’ It’s expressed in a lot of di�erent ways. Certainly in Alberta, there’s more sensitivity to it.”

However, Chiasson maintains that he and other employers only use TFWs as a last resort to man their counters.

“It’s signi�cantly

more labour intensive for us to recruit, hire and on-board a temporary foreign worker than it is a domestic worker, not to mention more expensive from a salary point of view. �ere would be no motivation for me to pursue the temporary foreign worker program if the labour was available in town,”

he said, noting that most of his domestic employees are students who can’t work early mornings, late nights or some of the busiest shi�s during the day.

Chiasson added that, while there is a perception that McDonald’s is a minimum-wage employer, salaries are in fact based on experience, and in many instances, he has hired people at wages equal to what they were making at previous jobs. He also notes that wages at local McDonald’s locations have increased 10 per cent over the past three years, he said, while in�ation in Alberta has only risen by 2.5 per cent.

Among the changes announced in June is a rule capping the percentage of low-wage workers for a single employer to 10 per cent TFWs, which will be in e�ect by 2016. Chiasson said that will mean more than 100,000 workers being forced to leave Canada and uproot their lives when their work permit expires.

“Most of the pain has not been felt yet,”

he said, “but as the work permits come due and employers are not able to re-apply for them, this is when we’re going to start to feel the real impact.”

While Chiasson doesn’t agree with the changes the federal government made to the TFW program in June, he said he does support stronger enforcement of the program and sti�er penalties for employers who abuse it.

“With drivers on the road, when somebody doesn’t follow the rules, we don’t take driver’s licences away from everybody,” he said. “So I would suggest that, if there are people that break the rules, they need to be dealt with appropriately ... but I don’t think we should be penalizing people that respect the rules and make use of a program that’s unquestionably needed in Alberta.”

Tickets for the Chamber luncheon are $35 for members and $40 for non-members, and are available by emailing [email protected].

BUSINESS

Figures as of 3 p.m. Tuesday, compared to

one week prior. For information only.

DOLLAR

Up 0.05¢0.9153 US

TSX

Down 0.1315,619.08

NASDAQ

Up 27.554,598.19

DOW

Down 39.1417,067.56

GOLD

Down 18.201,265.50 US

OIL

Down 0.6793.16 US

McD’s owner to speak on TFW program

“If we wait for the shortage of workers to become critical, it’s going to affect our lifestyle.”

Rob ChiassonMcDonald’s owner

Leader �le photoMcDonald’s owner Rob Chiasson (right) — here with wife and co-owner Karen — is the keynote speaker at the St. Albert and District Chamber of Commerce’s monthly luncheon meeting on Wednesday at the Kinsmen Banquet Centre in Riel Business Park.

780-990-6266 Direct780-460-8558

LORENELECAVALIER 780-459-7786

www.bermontrealty.com

Call us today for all your St. AlbertReal Estate Needs

Pierre Hebert Guy Hebert


CLAIRE THEOBALDSun Media News Services

Most of Alberta’s minimum wage earners received a 25 cents per hour raise Monday, but critics say the increase won’t make any real difference for the working poor.

“Having a job isn’t a ticket out of poverty,” Lori Sigurdson, manager of professional affairs at the Alberta College of Social Workers, said. “Minimum wage in Alberta is significantly lower than a living wage at $10.20 an hour.”

Most minimum wage earners saw their hourly rate jump from $9.95 to $10.20, while liquor servers received a 15 cent raise to $9.20 an hour. Alberta is the last province in Canada to raise the minimum wage above $10 per hour.

Public Interest Alberta released new Statistics Canada data on Labour Day that show more than 20 per cent of Albertans — around 383,900 employed workers — earn less than $15 an hour, a rate considered the minimum required for a worker to afford to live off their wage.

The report dispels the myth that all low-wage earners are teenagers, estimating almost

80 per cent are over 20 years old and over 35 per cent are between the ages of 25 and 44.

“We’re calling on the provincial government ... to address the fact that so many families are struggling to make ends meet and actually increase the minimum wage to a living wage,” Public Interest Alberta executive director Bill Moore-Killgannon said.

The report also highlights continued wage inequality between genders, with women making up 62 per cent of all low-income earners in Edmonton.

“There is no level playing field. We need to know there are some barriers that women face more than men,” Sigurdson said, adding the high cost of child care and the expectations of women to be primary caregivers for their extended families often force them to choose between the well-being of their families and their careers.

“Working people have had a hard time in the last number of years, and it’s getting worse and worse,” said Sandra Der, a single working mother who attended the Edmonton and District Labour Council BBQ for the Unemployed and Underemployed in Giovanni Caboto Park on Monday.

Minimum wage up 25¢

Photo: Sun Media News Services

Homebuilders look to StatesSUN MEDIA NEWS SERVICES – Overheating worries at home are driving Canada’s homebuilders south of the border where they buy up rural land, betting on a recovery in the U.S. suburban housing market even as many local players remain on the sidelines.

Homebuilders such as Mattamy Homes and Brookfield Residential Properties Inc are buying undeveloped land in Florida, Texas and other states where prices tumbled during the global financial crisis and remain well below pre-crisis levels.

The companies said that, by moving now, they give themselves enough time to prepare the land and build homes so they will be ready for sale once the U.S. recovery gains momentum in a couple of years.

“We are probably a good two years away before we are at a normalized U.S. housing market and so it is actually a good time to go and buy in the U.S.,” Mattamy Homes chief operating officer Brian Johnston said.

He said the company was focusing on suburban areas, where more and far cheaper land is available than in the cities, allowing to build on a bigger scale.

Mattamy and its peers also expect to hit a sweet spot with retirees and affluent second-home buyers who want amenities like shopping, dining and entertainment, and “snowbirds” — Canadians who migrate to southern U.S. states for the winter.

Some analysts warn Canadian builders could end up waiting much longer than they expect for returns from those investments and many of their U.S.

rivals appear not sold yet on the idea of suburban market revival.

“There is little bit of a timing risk. You can go buy the land now but it will be sometime before demand really bounces back,” said Ryan Severino, an economist at real estate research firm Reis.

The contrast between the Canadians’ vigorous push into the U.S. market and caution of their local rivals largely reflects starkly different market conditions in which they operate.

Canadian house prices have doubled in the past 11 years, and the household-debt-to-GDP ratio is around the all-time high of 164 per cent, fuelling concerns that the market might be overheating. In the U.S., that ratio is closer to 80 per cent, according to data published by the St. Louis Federal Reserve, and the market is still at

early stages of a tentative recovery after buckling in the second half of 2013.

New housing starts bounced in July and the National Association of Home Builders expects a 26 per cent rise next year while the nation’s realtors’ association is forecasting new home prices to rise four per cent by mid-2015. But new home sales fell for the second straight month in July and, just like north of the border, there are concerns about affordability of housing in the light of stagnating incomes.

U.S. builders are also working through a backlog of unsold homes, which limits their ability to finance new projects.

Inventory of new houses reached an equivalent of six months’ sales in July, the highest since October 2011.

“It is actually a good time to go and buy in the U.S.”

Brian JohnstonCOO, Mattamy Homes

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