2012

Mount Assiniboine Lodge restoration project part of Rockies history

The Naiset Huts at Mount Assiniboine Lodge in British Columbia

A ride in a helicopter is an occasion for celebration, but a ride in a helicopter flying to Mount Assiniboine Lodge is one that soars into the history of the Canadian Rockies.

A 20-minute chopper ride from Canmore casually floats you over endless mountaintops akin to waves gently approaching the surf. Mount Assiniboine is an easily recognizable place. It’s picturesque landscape, with clear blue waters from Lake Magog and Matterhorn-resembling peak, make it one of the jewels of the area known as the Great Divide along the Alberta/British Columbia border.

Escaping the grasp of the closely-knit pack of mountains, travellers circle a valley adjacent to Canada’s “Matterhorn” where little red rooftop cabins are scattered throughout the area leading up to Mount Assiniboine Lodge. The light brown-coloured logs that make up the building’s exterior shine with newness in the morning light. However, it’s not the building, the scenery, nor the fresh mountain air you can see your breath in after exiting the helicopter that makes this place so special. Read the full piece at the Rocky Mountain Outlook.

New Canmore mayor set to tackle local issues, improve communication with residents

Since being elected last month, new Canmore mayor John Borrowman has met with Premier Redford, presided over two town council meetings and insists hearing concerns from individual constituents will be a priority throughout his term.

In the June 19 byelection, Borrowman defeated candidates Pam Hilstad and Ed Russell with 1,461 of the 3,024 votes cast. With nearly 40 years of combined experience as a volunteer, local business owner and town councillor, the new mayor is prepared for the role he’s expected to fill. Read the full story at the Rocky Mountain Outlook.

Column: Why the Euro Cup matters to Canadians

The 2012 Euro Cup soccer tournament, which is being held in Poland and Ukraine, has just about finished a week and a half of play and though it is a European country exclusive event, the major sporting spectacle has relevance to Canadians in more ways than one.

First off, as you may have observed while scrolling through a phone book in towns like St. Paul or anywhere else in Canada, we live in an immigrant nation. Though not all European, a vast amount of settlers ventured across the Atlantic Ocean to pursue a new life while also bringing their hard to spell, and usually hard to pronounce, last names with them. Read the full column at the St. Paul Journal.

Elk Point man pleads guilty to manslaughter

A 21-year-old man from Elk Point plead guilty to manslaughter last week at Court of Queen’s Bench in St. Paul in connection with the death of a 76-year-old Bonnyville woman.

Judge P.B. Michalyshn from Edmonton sentenced Jesse Colton Leppanen to 10 years in jail, less time served, in the death of Mary Ella Jane Corbiere whose body was found on November 15, 2010 in Kehewin.

Crown Prosecutor Jeff Rudiak and defense lawyer Naeem Rauf agreed upon the sentence of 10 years for manslaughter before submitting it to the judge. Leppanen has already served 15 and a half months and was originally charged with second-degree murder. Read the full story at the St. Paul Journal.

Severance packages and tax-free salaries scrapped by Alberta government

Local MLA Shayne Saskiw says the steps made by the PC government in implementing 13 of the 15 recommendations laid out by retired Supreme Court Justice Jack Major are a step in the right direction, but insists the Wildrose party will fight “tooth and nail” to ensure the proposed defined pension plan for MLAs does not become legislation.

Last week, in conjunction with the first session of Alberta’s 28th legislature, house leader Dave Hancock announced Premier Alison Redford’s government approval of most of the recommendations laid down by Major in his written report on salaries paid to Alberta politicians. Redford had originally pledged to accept every one of Major’s recommendations around MLA pay. However, immediately following the 327-page report’s publication, the premier announced she would not accept the recommendation for an increase in her salary to $335,000 (a raise of $124,000).

 

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Column: Married to the game

If there’s one thing the playoffs for any sport reveals to us, it’s this: the amount of passion and emotion running through athletes’ bodies can be paramount, sometimes even reducing them to tears. Whether they’re tears of sadness or joy, the power sport holds among individuals is a feeling only they can describe and for others, it is difficult to understand. Read the full column at the St. Paul Journal.

Imperial Oil plans to expand Cold Lake operations

Published in 2012 edition of ‘Our Natural Resources’ – special supplement to Athabasca Advocate, Bonnyville Nouvelle, Elk Point Review, Lac La Biche Post, Lakeland Regional and St. Paul Journal.

Imperial Oil Ltd. has announced plans to expand its stake in Alberta’s oilsands through the Nabiye Project at a cost of $2 billion, which will create around 1,000 jobs and produce an extra 40,000 barrels of oil per day, according to company spokesman Pius Rolheiser.

Nabiye, which is a Dene word meaning “otter,” is located at Imperial’s Cold Lake operation and received regulatory approval in 2004, but was put aside only to be reinitiated in 2008.

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Column: Stop. Think. Then Tweet

For provincial Wildrose candidate Danielle Smith, it was a cheap shot. For incumbent Premier Alison Redford, it was an embarrassing moment in her push to get re-elected. And for executive assistant Amanda Wilkie, it was her last act on behalf of Alberta’s Progressive Conservative Party.

I’m talking about what has been dubbed ‘the tweet heard round the province’ a week and a half ago when Wilkie openly questioned Smith’s commitment to families because she has no children of her own. The Wildrose leader explained she had tried and failed to have children with her husband. Redford had to apologize and Wilkie resigned. Read the full column at the St. Paul Journal.

Forward Mark Letestu looks back on season with Pens, Blue Jackets

photo by Jason Mowry/Columbus Wired

Despite sitting last in the National Hockey League with only 25 wins, Elk Point product and Columbus Blue Jackets forward Mark Letestu can see some light at the end of the tunnel.

Playing in the central division among heavyweights St. Louis, Detroit, Nashville and Chicago, the Jackets struggled throughout the year, but have managed a few wins here and there, like last week against the Red Wings. Read the full story at the St. Paul Journal.