October 26 Lamont Leader

Premier Smith tasks MLA Armstrong

Homeniuk with helping Ukrainian refugees

BY JOHN MATHER

When Premier Danielle Smith announced her new provincial cabinet Oct. 21, Fort Saskatchewan Vegreville MLA Jackie Armstrong Homeniuk was dropped as the Associate Minister for the Status of Women.

But the next day, Armstrong Homeniuk was singled out by Smith for the new role the Premier has tasked her with as Smith made her major speech at the UCP Annual General Meeting.

After introducing some of her new cabinet ministers and her two deputy premiers, Smith stated she could name all of her cabinet but she didn’t want to do that immediately.

“But I do want to make special mention of Jackie Armstrong Homeniuk,” said Smith.

“She is one of our special parliamentary secretaries and she’s tasked with a very specific mandate.

“I’ve asked her to take charge of the Ukrainian Refugee Resettlement file.”

Smith said she wanted to help those who were displaced by the war in Ukraine following the invasion by Russia.

“We must help each of these new Albertans and their families find a place to stay and have a community and friends to call their own.

“Jackie will help us by making several announcements on what we are doing to help these people in the coming days and weeks.”

Armstrong Homeniuk posted her thanks for having served in the cabinet stating she is looking forward to her

new role.

“I would like to express a heartfelt thank you to all of those with whom I have had the pleasure of working with in the Ministry for the Status of Women,” she said. “We have worked hard and have seen some amazing

projects come to fruition.

“As I move forward I will be taking on a new portfolio as the Parliamentary Secretary for Ukrainian Refugee Settlement. I am extremely honoured to be in this new position.

“I have been the Chair of ACAUR

(Advisory Council on Alberta Ukraine Relations) for the past 3 1/2 years. Everyone knows that I am a strong advocate for Ukraine and I am looking forward to working with individuals and stakeholders and producing great outcomes for all Ukrainian Refugees.”

Armstrong Homeniuk comes from a strong Ukrainian background and had previously served as the chair of the Advisory Council on Alberta Ukraine Relations under Jason Kenney.

In writing a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau earlier this year emphasizing this province’s support for Ukraine and the people of Ukraine she wrote, “As chair for the Advisory Council on AlbertaUkraine Relations and as a person of Ukrainian descent, I hold the nation and people of Ukraine near to my heart. I will continue to monitor the situation in Ukraine and hope to have open doors of communication with the federal government as this situation unfolds.”

Armstrong Homeniuk can trace her roots back to Ivan Pylypow who left the village of Nebyliv in the Kalush district of Ukraine in the late 1800s and made his way to eventually settle in the Star area, one of the two original settlers in Lamont County’s ‘Cradle of Ukrainian Settlement.’

“My baba Annie Pylypow was born in Nebyliv in 1906 and came to Canada in 1909. My baba worked for Ivan and his wife Maria when she first arrived in Canada,” said Armstrong Homeniuk.

My

Jackie Armstrong Homeniuk

Premier Danielle Smith

MLA Jackie Armstrong Homeniuk

New Lamont daycare full before opening day

BY JANA SEMENIUK

A new Lamont Daycare, set to open Nov. 1, held its open house Oct. 24 introducing parents and their children to the staff and the play spaces.

Approximately 20 people came out for the event. Although the day-

care will not be opened until Nov. 1, the 700 square foot facility has already run out of available spaces for children.

Daycare Director Mia Davidson said registration began two weeks ago and the 21 available spaces were quickly snapped up.

“We are already full with a waitlist,” said Davidson. “We started taking registrations two weeks ago.”

Lisa Holt, Coordinator of the Lamont Daycare, said there is a need for more daycare spaces in the community.

“We’re not open yet

and I'm already turning people away which is really sad and terrible, but at least it's a start and then the dream is you know, hopefully to expand because obviously it's needed,” she said.

Holt said the non-profit daycare has been a dream of hers since she needed care for her own four children.

“My motivation to doing this was that I have four kids, and I've struggled with childcare for nine years. And now I have some time in my life that I could do this,” she said. “We have no daycare in this community. There's no daycare in Bruderheim and Mundare is always full and Chipman doesn't have a daycare.”

The Lamont daycare, which employs four people, rents space out of the Archer building at the Lamont Health Care Centre and will be open 6:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Trick or treat hours

Lamont High School recognizes high achievers at awards night

BY JANA SEMENIUK

Lamont High School held their Awards Night Oct. 24 highlighting outstanding achievements from the 2021-2022 school year.

More than 300 people attended the ceremony which was held in the school’s cafeteria space.

Principal Greg Cruickshank emceed the event where more than 70 students were recognized with scholarships and awards for academics, drama, citizenship, and a Jr. Fire Fighters award.

Bruderheim Mayor

Karl Hauch was on hand to award the $600 Bruderheim STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) award to grade 12 student Elizabeth Gaudman.

“Each year a student is selected from the grade twelve class who has distinguished themselves through outstanding academic achievement and personal excellence in the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics to receive this honour,” said Hauch before he presented the award. “We hope that

this award assists with your studies as you pursue your career goals.”

Others who attended to present awards included Lamont County School Trustee and Lamont Town Councillor Collen Holowaychuk, Lamont Mayor Kirk Perrin, Lamont Fire Chief Scott Calder, and Lamont Lions member Chris Mintenko.

Citizenship Grade 7 Madeline Zacharko Matthew Janssen

Grade 8 Mary Jo Alyward

Joseph Theissen Grade 9 Aniesha Fossen Lance Kilsdonk

Grade 10 Ruth Andruchow Jevan Jackson

Grade 11 Bryana Hawryluk Logan Bork

Grade 12 – Presented by Lamont Mayor Kirk Perrin Breanna Plowman Jonathen Derksen

Jr High Honours Grade 7 Mason Bilan Hambal Khamis Sydney Cossey Hank Dzioba

Brittany Holt Matthew Janssen Jackson Johnston Rachel Klos Bella MacDonald Leah McCaffrey Everett Mercier Ryley Wait Isabel Weleschuk

Grade 8 Mary Jo Alyward Conlan Aylward Kianna Dul Taylor Fossum

Trinity Rajtmajer

Elk Island Public Schools Honours Certificates

Grade 9 – presented by Trustee Colleen Holowaychuk

Aniesha Fossen Camryn Fossum Odette Geise Taylor Iverson Ben Melnyk Rylee Rideout

Gabby Wendorff Sienna Whaling

Drama student J'Lyn Derksen was presented with five drama awards including Best Actor School, Best Actor Zones, Best Physical Comedic Actors Provincial, Honorable mention for costumes Provincial, and Honorable mention for outstanding director. Drama teacher Breanna Sorotsky presented the awards.

Lamont County School Trustee and Town Councillor Colleen Holowaychuk presents a grade nine honours award to Aniesha Fossen. Holowaychuk also presented seven other grade nine honour awards to Camryn Fossum, Odette Giese, Taylor Iverson, Ben Melnyk, Rylee Rideout, Gabby Wendorff and Sienna Whaling.

Lamont Lions Scholarship award is presented to Madison Dey by Lions member Chris Mintenko. A second award was presented to Adelynn Kroeker (not shown).

A Jr. Fire Fighters award was presented to Cole Hanson by Lamont Fire Chief Scott Calder. Two more awards were presented to Mason Brown and Katie Pickering (not shown).

A positive week for Premier Smith

BY JOHN MATHER

Well, that was a positive weekend.

two weeks of getting every manner of insult, stick and stone hurled at her from political opponents and the mainstream media and those wonderful university- based political pundits (and really… who knows better than university-based political pundits. Believe me they’ll tell you so), Premier Danielle Smith announced a rock solid new cabinet and made a very strong speech at the UCP annual general meeting that certainly, initially, shows the party is united behind her as we head into a provincial election year.

Her weekend began with a caucus retreat in Sylvan Lake where she joined the caucus in a team building afternoon of paintball.

Can you imagine any other leader of a political party doing this? Notley and her NDP kin would more likely be seen gathering at a Starbucks. Former Premier Jason Kenney would have looked right at home trying paintball wearing a new suit and driving a blue pick up (NOT) and of course Justin Trudeau would have just used the event as an opportunity to confiscate the paintball guns.

Smith mentioned she still had welts from the day as she made her speech at the Saturday afternoon convention in Edmonton.

In her new cabinet she appointed all but one of her leadership rivals. In fact it was former leadership rivals Travis Toews and Brian Jean who introduced her at the Saturday afternoon speech. That alone showed a strong leaning towards a unified party. Smith, Toews and Jean all shared with a large assembled crowd, that she had met with each caucus member and discussed what they wanted to see with the government moving ahead.

“We just spent three days together and I can assure you as a team we are united, energized and ready to move forward representing all Albertans,” said Toews. Not the words of a sore loser in the leadership race.

Bravo!

Smith gave every indication that she was going to listen to Calgary, Edmonton, and all major cities, and rural Alberta as she moved ahead with her government agenda.

She stated, like Ralph Klein, she wanted to hear from all her MLAs because she stated, “they are the face of the party.”

“Ralph,” she stated “Understood no one could govern a province as diverse as Alberta without a strong team behind them, and I’m going to try my best to learn from that example.”

CONTINUED

This was a refreshing turn away from Jason Kenney who managed with a very top down style where decision making was made within his office rather than debated first with his cabinet and caucus.

She outlined a plan with four basic planks: affordability and the rising inflation, which she blamed on the Liberal/NDP alliance in Ottawa; jobs and economy during the time of global economic instability; improving healthcare on an expedited basis; and standing up to the Liberal/NDP coalition in Ottawa and defending Alberta’s interests.

She expanded on each of these topics in a well thought out logical way drawing large applause from the crowd.

Meanwhile, down in Calgary, Rachel Notley was rallying her NDP troops to gird themselves for the upcoming election. And her modest gathering cheered lustily for their leader (because really who else would want to lead this gang of misfits).

“Albertans want to know who we are and what we are going to do,” she stated. So fittingly she outlined a few core socialist principles involving hiring and spending, yet never once mentioning where the money to pay for it would come from.

Well we know it will come from taxpayer pockets.

She carried on about blending our economy together with climate change policies… probably unproven issues which the NDP and woke crowd will use to stir up fear mongering in our communities.

Notley also stated she would have a very diverse caucus, not top heavy with men, but equal women, men and ethnicities, a plan that was championed by Trudeau… how has that turned out?

Smith ignored this and announced a cabinet where she put those most qualified to do the job into the position where they could best serve Alberta.

And one last thing to remember about Rachel Notley:

She leads the Alberta wing of the Federal NDP, not a separate Alberta party with

its own unique identity. No, this party must be in lockstep with the policies of Jagmeet Singh. He who wants so badly to be prime minister he sold his soul to the devil with his alliance to keep the Liberals in power much longer than they ever deserve to be.

So going into to next May’s election, we have Danielle Smith offering a unified party with all her MLAs having a voice; or  Notley who while a competent leader on her own, is surrounded by zealots all who must fall under the policy guidelines of Singh, who was only allowed to deliver a video message to the Alberta wing of the party at their convention.

Albertans will have a clear choice in the election. A pragmatic government putting Albertans’ interest at the core of their policies, or a socialist group who want to spend their way out of trouble all the while remaining subservient to their Ottawa masters.

As Smith rightly pointed out in her speech - the UCP has a plan that Ralph Klein could be proud of.

Kerry Anderson

John Mather

Jana Semeniuk

Crystal Moren Office Manager

Sales

(CPF)

BY HAZEL ANAKA

In a past column or two I mentioned the stray dog that showed up in our lives a few weeks ago and Roy’s attempts to find his owner. He’s sort of wormed his way into our hearts and seems to be a keeper. He hasn’t been able to tell us his name so far and Dawg and Pooch weren’t going to cut it long term.

So, I said to Roy, we gotta name this guy. Rex, he said. No, I said; no one syllable names. Hilary consulted her list of male names drawn up before the gender reveal of a Gertie and not a Frank when she bought her dog. I vetoed any that were names of actual men we know in the area. I suggested Rocky and in the absence of anything better, Rocky he is.

During harvest, I spotted a dog house on sale in the Peavey Mart flyer. By the time Roy acted on it, the sale was over and the idea fell off our radar. Now, as the weather is getting colder, we got serious again.

Like most things these days, there are many choices and not enough choices. Obviously, size matters. You want the animal to fit comfortably but not have too large a space because of body heat loss. The igloo style houses look claustrophobic to me. Is a large dog

really going to scrunch down to get in it and then hope there’s enough room to turn around.

And besides, they’re not insulated. You would expect the chain pet stores to have some sort of selection. You’d think farm supply stores like UFA and Peavey Mart and St. Paul Co-op would have several models and price points.

We finally ended up biting the bullet and spending too much on a custom, hand-made insulated, looks-like-adoghouse doghouse at UFA Co-op. Several days later Roy returned for it with the truck. We agreed on the exact location for it to have maximum shelter from east, west, and north winds. The only feature lacking in the design is a canvas flap to cover the opening to break any direct wind. Knowing Roy, he’ll rig something up to solve the problem. A couple of old entrance rugs from the house will form a cushy padding for the floor. They’re those nonskid rubber backed ones that get crumbly after too many washings. Top it off with a Costco pet bed with removeable washable cover and Rocky is set for the winter.

Most nights he barks at what we suspect are wildlife intruders in the yard. Coyotes howling nearby. Small mammals. Deer. Seems he even chases moose that wander into our yard because of the evidence of their skidded tracks. I rue the day he tangles with a skunk! He’s been known to run alongside the tractor as Roy works the rounds on a field.

The payoff was the chance to chase some deer, I guess. By round two, he’s taking the shortcut home. Gotta get some zzzz’s in so he can patrol and bark all night.

Sadly, it seems that at no time in his former life did he get the tutorial about porcupines. One Sunday morning this guy presents himself with about eight porcupine quills in his snout. Based on some YouTube videos it could have been so much worse. In one video, the dog had one in her tongue, a couple in her gum line, and many more visible on her nose. Quite often their paws get hit as well which really affects the ability to walk properly.

Our quill extraction attempts lasted all day long and were unsuccessful. He gobbled up the treats and dog food we used to lure him but skedaddled under a truck or farm implement anytime one of us got too close. Hilary said she knew people who used peanut butter as a distraction because the dog needs to work at it a bit rather than simply inhaling the treats. It seems Rocky doesn’t like my Only Peanuts All Natural Crunchy peanut butter; he couldn’t be bothered smelling it never mind licking it up.

You know how a stubborn sliver you can’t get at will eventually pus up and allow it to surface, maybe the same thing can happen with quills. Roy managed to get two out with no effort and no apparent reaction from the dog. By Thursday of that week the rest of the quills had come out

without human intervention. I don’t think they’d gone into his skin that far and there was no distinct ‘barb’ on the ends of the two we examined. With my Costco cart filled up with an 18-kilogram bag of adult dog food and the dog bed with the removable washable cover, I told the guys there that the stray who’d found our farm was costing us some big money. They laughed and said that was the price of compassion. And we’re not going overboard like city pet owners do with poop

bags, leashes, dog licence, identification chip, vet health coverage, clothing for every season, Halloween costumes, dog treats, dog car seat, sleeping crates, and toys galore. Rocky is not a puppy but we have no way of guessing his age or weight. It would be good to know his weight so we could follow the feeding guide printed on the back of the food bag.

When we finally unloaded the doghouse from the back of the truck, it was no easy job.

The house itself is very heavy and is attached to a pallet. We don’t own anything with forks so Roy had to summon his knowledge of physics and channel his inner Red Green. Only one thing got damaged and no humans were hurt. Once I lined the bottom with the old mats and stuffed the new dog bed into it, we lured him with dog treats and bits of dogfood. Roy’s seen him in it lounging or more likely sleeping with one eye open. For whatever reason, this dog came into our lives. So far, it’s been win-win for us and him, from where I sit.

The Lamont Leader (Lamont, Alberta),

BY JANA SEMENIUK

The Village of Chipman’s National Hall was hopping Oct. 22 when a community Halloween Party drew more than 100 people out to dance, make crafts, and join in costumed Halloween fun.

The party was organized by new Chipman resident Melissa Martindale who said she and her family moved to Chipman four months ago.

“We moved here to be closer to my brother,” said Martindale. “It’s a small town but lots of super, super wonderful people and slow paced.”

Martindale’s family

consists of she, her husband, mother and three children ages nine, 11 and 18.

In terms of organizing the Halloween party, Martindale said she was only too happy to do it.

“I was approached by somebody on the town council, because she saw me painting a bunch of Halloween decorations. And she (aksed), ‘Would you be interested in hosting a Halloween party?’

And I said, Yeah, absolutely. I don't mind pitching in,” she said.

Martindale said that she had a lot of help from family and friends to organize the party.

“It was put on

through donations from the community as well as the town. My husband and I also matched (what) our neighbours gave in donations of decorations, and juice. Everyone kind of pitched in so if it was a whole town event for sure,” she said.

Martindale said some of the games included punch out boards so kids could pick a prize out of a punch out, a witch hat ring toss, a feed the ghost beanbag toss as well as some Minute to Win It challenges. In addition, the dance and costume competitions were also very popular with partygoers.

“The Chipman Market donated two $25 gift cards for each of the competitions,” said Martindale. She said that although she did not get the winners’ names, the dance competition was won by a little girl named Stella who was dressed as Harley Quinn, and the costume competition was won by a little boy dressed as an astronaut.

Chipman councillor Trudy Smith said the party was amazing.

“It was amazing how many kids were there. The hall was full of dressed up little creatures,” she said. “It really was remarkable. They put a hell of a lot of work into it.”

In terms of next year, Martindale said she is already planning.

“I would love to (do it

next year). It seems like it was very well received (and) everyone seems like they had a really great time,” she said.

“Some more donations, candy donations, or towards decorations. We did everything mostly by hand. There were very few purchased decorations. So next year, the money that gets donated will go probably more towards candy.”

Holiday train to stop at Josephburg

KERRY ANDERSON

The only stop the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) Holiday Train will make this year in our area, will be its Dec. 9 stop at the Moyer Rec. Centre in Josephburg at 5 pm.

The train which raises money, items and awareness for food banks across Canada will be resuming it journey after a three year Covid hiatus.

Included in the stop is a half hour of wintertime entertainment, and

the stop in Josephburg will include a performance by Tenille Townes & Aysanbee.

The Holiday Train begins at Montreal, and chugs along for three weeks reaching over 160 communities in Canada.

The special CP train will have 14 cars at a length of approximately 1,000 feet. Those welcoming the train are asked to bring cash or a food item.

Since 1999, the CP Holiday Train has raised over $21 million.

Chipman’s highly successful Halloween party

BY JANA SEMENIUK

Lamont resident Olivia Able, 7, is hoping to make a difference for children living with type one diabetes through her Art for Diabetes campaign, where she sells her artwork online and donates the proceeds to the Diabetes Foundation.

In one week, she raised $300.

“She asks us every day how close they are to the cure,” said Olivia’s mother Haley Able. Able said the family was hopeful when they read about islet cell transplants as a possible treatment, but discovered Olivia was not eligible being under the age of 18.

“The islet transplant testing that they’ve done has been successful in some type one diabetics that they have not had to give themselves insulin in over a year,” said Able. “So, we are constantly following that. Olivia is a big advocate for wanting to help raise money for a cure.”

Able said Olivia was

diagnosed in 2020 at the age of five after many misdiagnoses. Her type of diabetes is so severe Able had to take the first year off work to learn how to manage Olivia’s symptoms and her treatment. She has since taken a job working from home to be available for Olivia.

“She is very insulin dependent (and) gets upwards of 11 needles a day,” she said. “I have to go to the elementary school every day to give her insulin for her lunch.”

In addition to injecting Olivia with numerous needles, Able said she must read nutritional labels on everything Olivia eats including any food in a restaurant.

“We're looking for the carb value, not the sugar value,” she said. “Sugar is a carb. But there's so many different things that you eat that your liver converts to sugar. So, it's actually more than sugar that affects her glycemic index.

Anything with high pro-

tein amounts can convert to sugar.”

Able said the careful attention to Olivia’s diet means that visits to friends’ homes or a sleepover are off limits for now. She added that while Olivia’s type of diabetes hasn’t produced the coma-inducing ketones that affect some diabetics, her condition does become insulinresistant if she comes down with a cold or a virus.

Olivia’s blood sugar is also checked several times a day at home, with the ideal level, said Able, between five and 10. As we were conducting this interview, Olivia spread her various vials, pen injectors, needles, and testing strips on the kitchen table in front of her, confidently describing each piece of equipment and how it’s used.

She applied the fingerpoking device to her index finger and didn’t flinch as the needle quickly pierced her skin.

When the test strip had soaked up an adequate

amount of blood, the screen displayed 17.

Able explained that earlier Olivia found some pretzels and ate them before having insulin.

“She started eating these pretzels before I realized she was eating my pretzels, so she got her insulin after she started eating,” explained Able. “It can take an hour to get it back to where we want her.”

Meanwhile, Olivia’s favourite thing to draw are dragons. Among her artwork, paper and markers are a few of her favorites, namely a red one with orangecoloured scales, wings and a plastic flame coming from its mouth.

“I like the different types, and how they can breathe fire. I like all that stuff,” said Olivia admiring her red and orange dragon figurine.

Able said a call in to

the Diabetes Foundation has not yet been returned, but she is hoping to arrange for Olivia to give them her money in person.

“So, the reason why I started drawing is because every time I

draw its working towards saving one person's life,” said Olivia.

“So that's why I started a fundraiser because I kind of want my diabetes to go away.”

The Lamont Leader (Lamont, Alberta),

Photo: Jana Semeniuk

Roads issues raised again at Lamont County

BY JOHN MATHER

The state of County of Lamont roads came up at the regular council meeting Oct. 11.

“I’m getting calls all the time,” fumed Division 5 Councillor and Deputy Reeve Neil Woitas. “People are questioning me and the long and short of it is when are we going to get some road maintenance in Division 5?

“We finally got a grader after about ten weeks,” he said. “We have Range Road 204 that gets destroyed by the bikers and stuff. Well, it used to get regular grading but I don’t know how long it has been since it saw a grader.”

He said other roads in his division hadn’t been graded for eight to ten weeks.

He added he had calls about other roads.

“I  haven’t seen the roads this bad since I don’t know when. The other night I was called out to help a woman’s husband change a flat tire which was a brand new tire. “Others have

stuff flying out of the pick up boxes.

“When am I going to get graders in Division 5?”

Darby Dietz, who was standing in for Public Works Director Andrew Phillips, said the biggest issue in Division 5 was one grader was responsible for the majority of the roads where in other divisions grading was split between three or four graders.

Dietz added if an operator has to take time off that also slows things down.

He further stated it had been a dry year and washboard was an issue everywhere.

“We’ve had to tell other grader operators to slow down because it’s not just about how many miles you do in a day, it’s about the product you leave.”

Woitas said he had followed behind a grader when it was working on the roads and it wasn’t cutting through the washboard, so the road's condition wasn’t being improved.

Woitas explained he was at a social function and it was embarrassing because people were continually coming to him to complain about the state of the roads.

“They wonder if the County has run out of money because we can’t repair the roads,” he stated.

“How do you answer that?”

“I know we have brand new graders.”

Division two Councillor Daniel Warawa said he understands where Woitas is coming from.

“I have the same problem,” he said. “South of 542 every road is just a washboard half a mile from the corners. It’s just terrible.”

He said there were some grader operators who did a better job on the roads.

He mused whether some of the grader operators aren’t aware how to properly run their equipment.

“You know there are some areas where the roads are good and oth-

ers where they're terrible and they are different grader operators.”

He said he had a new truck he bought that already had rattles in the front end.

Woitas said along bus route 36 the roads were terrible and a school bus had actually had to go in for repairs.

Administration was asked to assess the road conditions along bus route 36 and give a report back to council and that was passed.

Dietz admitted public works was “under the gun to get everything done,” before winter set in. He added some other grader operators could be pulled together to get Division five roads levelled out before the snow flies.

“We can definitely work on that,” Deitz said. He stated, earlier in the year they had tried to get at the Division five roads after Reeve David Diduck stated the problem did have to get sorted out.

Diduck stated all divisions had washboard,

but some areas were considerably worse than others.

Woitas added it had to be dealt with before there were serious fall rains.

“If those ruts stay as they are they’ll fill with water and become soft spots that we won’t be able to fix for years,” said Woitas.

Division four Councillor Roy Anaka said the only complaint he had been receiving concerned intersections people felt could be bladed better.

“Years back we used to do some calcium on the collector roads to eliminate the washboards,” he said. “I realize calcium is now an added expense but maybe some watering and blading at some of the bad spots is something that could be addressed.”

Council passed a second motion directing administration to address the allocation of graders among each division to address adequate road maintenance, which was passed.

Kubasa, Cabbage Rolls, Coleslaw

Beet Pickles, Apple Bread Pudding with Vanilla Sauce. Beverages.

Premier Ed Stelmach & his wife Marie will be in attendance.

of net proceeds to help support Ukraine.

TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM THE HOSTESS @ PIONEER HOUSE

BY JOHN MATHER

Lamont County has turned away from a plan to buy some new vehicles through a provincial purchasing program because of worldwide shortages in the supply chain. Instead they will opt to purchase the vehicles from a local dealership.

Chief Administrative Officer Peter Tarnawsky said the administration was continuing to experience supply chain issues when it came to the delivery of vehicles during the regular council meeting Oct. 11.

“Earlier in the year as part of the budget we were directed to purchase two Chevy halftons, one Chevy threequarter ton double and one Ford 550 cab and chassis.”

He said they were for public works, agriculture services and emergency services.

He said they were recently notified by the fleet management company they were using for procurement that deliv-

ery of all the vehicles were at risk.

“They then came back and said one could be delivered but the others couldn’t be,” he added.

“Initially they said we couldn’t get any of the vehicles, but then stepped back and said they could supply one but the others would have to be reordered.”

He said Agriculture Fieldman Terry Eleniak did some research in the local area and was able to find a dealership that could supply some compatible trucks to what the County had ordered.

“They are the same or perhaps better in terms of capacity,” Tarnawsky added.

He said a downside might be the County would have to pay a small penalty to the fleet management company for cancellation of the original order.

He said the County could purchase three of the vehicles they wanted within the week, if council gave the go ahead.

The opportunity

would let the County purchase three one-ton trucks and by using savings from some other capital projects during the year, Tarnawsky suggested they could acquire the vehicles despite having to pay a slightly higher price than originally anticipated.

Each of the new vehicles would cost $67,513 each. Tarnawsky said the costs would amount to a premium of around $17,000 but the budget savings from the other capital projects totalled $28,000.

With the final two vehicles, he said, the County would continue to pursue through the fleet management company or other means.

He added purchasing the trucks would allow the County employees to haul gooseneck trailers.

Eleniak added agricultural services had been waiting for its truck for two years and while the trucks in question didn’t have all the bells and whistles, they did meet the needs of the munici-

pality.

“It allows us to make better use of the trailers and trucks and allows various departments to have vehicles that can pull the trailers.”

Division five councillor Neil Woitas  made a motion to purchase all three trucks as approved in the 2022 budget and it was carried unanimously.

Vegreville Family Dental, located next to the Boston Pizza in Vegreville is looking for a very enthusiastic Registered Dental Hygienist to join our team on a part time or full time basis. Our practice is committed to and focused on providing excellent quality patient care.

We are looking for someone who is professional, reliable, possesses excellent interpersonal skills, is warm and friendly with patients. We offer competitive wages commensurate with experience as well as a great and friendly work environment! We are willing to compensate for travel as well.

If this opportunity sounds interesting to you, please apply to vegredental@gmail.com. All applications will be treated confidential. Thank you!

Lamont

Astotin Lake

Elk Island National Park, Oct.

what a beautiful area of the province we are blessed to live in.

Crystal Moren Photo

Town of Bruderheim to beautify parks through memorial program

BY JANA SEMENIUK

The Town of Bruderheim voted at their Oct. 19 council meeting to adjust their town memorial program policy to allow residents to plant a tree in a public park in the name of their loved one.

Acting Chief Administrative Officer Dennis Tomuschat said the move will serve a dual purpose.

“The changes made in this policy will provide

individual groups and organizations with the opportunity to beautify parks in Bruderheim by planting trees or dedicating a bench in remembrance, observance or acknowledgement of an appropriate event or occasion or an individual,” he said.

Mayor Karl Hauch was supportive of the motion and questioned whether people would have input into where the tree would be planted.

Director of Legislative Services, Sherry Cote, explained that residents would have an opportunity to choose their space within a park, and the program would go beyond memorials.

“It's not just exclusively for a memorial for someone that may have passed on. There's lots of other reasons to celebrate in our community,” said Cote. “It could be a 100th birthday, it could be a child's birthday, and

somebody wants to put a tree in their name, and the child wants to see it grow. With the addition of the community park over by the skate park, there's lots of open space there that we would love to have trees in, and this might be a way to get the community involved in the landscaping part it.”

Councillor George Campbell wanted to know if people would have their choice of what type of tree to plant, to

which Cote said people will have a list of trees to choose from.

“There will be a list of trees that we would recommend because we would want hardy trees. We don't want to plant a tree out there that's going to die in a year, because we want it to live,” said Cote. “And so the person putting the money out has something to come back to.”

Just before the vote was made, Hauch

explained to the council that the family would be financially responsible for the tree.

“Just a note that if the tree does pass on, for whatever reason, and doesn't make it, that's not on the town to replace that tree,” he said.

“I just wanted to make sure that people are aware of that.”

The vote was carried unanimously.

Jackie ArmstrongHomeniuk, MLA Fort SaskatchewanVegreville

Women in rural Alberta face unique challenges. Unfortunately, one of those challenges is accessing sexual assault evidence collection services.

Often, victims of sexual assault need to travel significant distances to receive these services.

Since becoming Minister of Status of Women it has been my priority to close these gaps and increase the support we provide survivors. I am proud that our government is investing $1 million to launch a new made-inAlberta forensic evidence collection training program to ensure that more health-care providers can deliver this essential service in communities across Alberta.

This project will increase the number of health-care providers in rural areas that are trained in providing sexual assault evidence kits.

It will be piloted with a group of health-care providers across rural Alberta, in communities

that need it the most, and will include grants for health-care providers to ensure they are able to access this training free of charge.

Support for Ukraine

Our government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ivano-Frankivsk region of Ukraine to undertake exploratory missions over a 5 year period.  During this period the private sector, public institutions, municipalities and community groups will be encouraged to look at mutually beneficial activities.

With Europe facing an energy crisis stemming from the Russian invasion, Ukraine continues to have a need for humanitarian assistance and a critical need for modern oil and gas equipment, services and training to maintain and grow its domestic natural gas production.

Alberta has committed to working with the Ukrainian Embassy, the Consulate General of Ukraine in Edmonton, and Ukrainian energy companies to connect them with Alberta companies aligned with their needs. A similar offer has

been made to help Ukraine replace food storage facilities destroyed before the harvest.

In addition, we are committing an additional $10 million to frontline humanitarian efforts. The new funding goes to the Ukrainian World Congress, the global voice for Ukrainian people worldwide, for the Unite with Ukraine campaign to deliver humanitarian aid. This brings Alberta’s total contribution to Ukrainian relief to more than $23 million, and builds on $5 million provided to this effort earlier this year.

Alberta’s bond with the Ukrainian community has never been stronger and Albertans can take pride knowing our province’s unwavering support will make a real difference for all Ukrainians whose lives have been impacted by this conflict.

Please contact my constituency office at fortsaskatchewan.vegreville@assembly.ab.ca if you have any questions or concerns.

Jackie ArmstrongHomeniuk, MLA Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville

Elk Island prescribed burn on hold

BY JOHN MATHER

A fall prescribed burn for the Shirley Lake area in Elk Island National Park has been postponed.

The fire was to have been conducted on Oct, 13 and may have been rescheduled for Oct. 17,

if weather conditions were favourable.

An area closure is in place, including a map of the area that crews are focusing on at this time.

Weather and environmental conditions are monitored. If conditions exist to safely conduct

the guard burn in the Shirley Lake area along the west side of the park.

.The Shirley Lake prescribed fire plays a key role in multi-year restoration projects to rejuvenate, expand and restore grasslands.

BY JOHN MATHER

After a two year absence caused by the pandemic, the Town of Lamont and Lamont County FCSS will team up to once again to honour Canada’s fallen soldiers by being part of the program, “No Stone Left Alone Memorial Foundation.”

The Town has request-

ed that children taking part in the Remembrance Day service at the Lamont Memorial Hall, Nov. 11, place a poppy on one of the crosses in the hall during the ceremony.

Town officials are hoping to have at least 25 children available to present the poppies.

Children should regis-

ter with Darlene at FCSS at 780-895-2233 ext. 226.

Students asked to recognize fallen vetsRural Sexual Assault Evidence Collection

No Stone Left Alone’s goal is to honour every Canadian veteran who has passed by placing a poppy on their headstone each November.

In 2021, 7,702 students from 88 communities placed 67,171 poppies in 131 ceremonies.

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Office and paper supplies for sale at The Tofield Mercury, Weekly Review, Lamont Leader offices. If we don't have it, we can probably order it for you. Don't forget to ask about custom printing - we can do almost anything either in-house or working with our print shop.

Mopsy Tucks has a great selection of costumes to rent for Halloween or all occasions. Hours Tuesday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sundays and evenings by appointment only.

780-386-2353

Lougheed, AB

COMING EVENTS

Kinsella Annual Fall Turkey Supper

Tuesday, November 4 at the Kinsella Community Hall from 5 to 7 p.m. $15 Adults $10 12 and under 6 and under FREE Everyone Welcome!

Round Hill Halloween Market on Friday Oct 28th from 5-7 pm.

Costume parade and pumpkin carving contest. For a free table call Terry at 780-678-6131

FOR RENT

Large 3 bdrm home with detached garage in Viking. Ph (403) 461-4350.

FOR RENT

Large, quiet, non-smoking 2 bedroom apartment in Killam. For viewing, call Chuck at 780-263-7290

GIVEAWAY

Tame kittens, looking for a new home. Located near Tofield. Call 780-910-7068 or 780-662-4981.

FEED AND SEED

ALBERTA FEED GRAIN: Buying Oats, Barley, Wheat, Canola, Peas, Screenings, Mixed Grains. Dry, Wet, Heated, or Spring Thresh. Prompt Payment. In House Trucks, In House Excreta Cleaning. Vac Rental. 1-888483-8789.

WE BUY DAMAGED GRAIN - Heated, Mixed, Tough, Light, Bugs, Spring Thrashed....Barley, Wheat, Oats, Peas, Flax, Canola. "On Farm Pickup". Westcan Feed & Grain 1-877-250-5252.

FOR SALE

Stihl BR 450 backpack leaf blower, good condition $325. Eskimo power ice auger with 5" & 8" augers $65. Best to call before noon 780-6623793.

WHITE SPRUCE TREES: 5’ average $50. Installation ONLY $19. Includes: hole augered, Wurzel Dip enzyme injection, bark mulch application, staking. Minimum order 20. One-time fuel charge: $125-175. Crystal Springs. 403-820-0961. Quality guaranteed.

LAND FOR SALE

FARMLAND AND PASTURE LAND BY SASKATCHEWAN RIVER. 160 acres. Best hunting in Saskatchewan. Excellent fishing. Thick pine & poplar bluffs, by water coulee. Old yard site with power and water. Revenue Potential. East of Prince Albert, SK. $248,000. Call Doug 306-7162671.

43p

LAND FOR SALE

3 QUARTERS OF CROPLAND South of Weyburn, SK. Distressed sale. Priced below market at 1.27 x assessment, with a 4% return with lease. $594,800.00. Call Doug at 306-716-2671.

HEALTH

HIP/KNEE REPLACEMENT. Other medical conditions causing TROUBLE WALKING or DRESSING? The Disability Tax Credit allows for $3,000 yearly tax credit and $30,000 lump sum refund. Take advantage of this offer. Apply NOW; quickest refund Nationwide: Expert help. 1844-453-5372.

HELP WANTED

JP's Country Daycare in Daysland is hiring. Please send resumes to jpcountrydaycare@gmail.com

ROCKY MOUNTAIN EQUIPMENT HIRING: AG Equipment Techs, Heavy Equipment TechsJourneyman, Apprentices, and CVIP/Truck Techs. View Open Roles www.rockymtn.com/careers. Relocation and Signing Bonus Offered.

REAL ESTATE

Nick’s Oilfield Welding Shop. Turn key operation, located in Killam, AB. Call 780-3852342 or 780-385-1305.

SERVICES

CRIMINAL RECORD? Why suffer employment/licensing loss? Travel/business opportunities? Be embarrassed?

Think: Criminal Pardon. US entry waiver. Record purge. File destruction. Free consultation. 1-800-347-2540. www.accesslegalmjf.com.

GET BACK ON TRACK! Bad credit? Bills? Unemployed? Need Money? We Lend! If you own your own home - you qualify. Pioneer Acceptance Corp. Member BBB. 1-877-9871420. www.pioneerwest.com.

SERVICES

Housekeeping and/or Laundry Services. $25/hr. Call 780385-0200

Drywall Taping/Texturing 35+ Years. No Job too small Experienced drywall taper/texturer here to help you with any job big or small. Don't want to do it yourself, give me a call! Based in Killam but willing to travel.

Hand taper by trade but have experience with boxes, roller/flusher, taping tube. No bazooka exp. Have own tools (10-12" boxes, pump, angle box, roller, flusher, hand tools, etc.) Also do ceiling texture. Non- drinker, just want to work. Willing to work with existing taping crew. Call 780-385- 2106 or 780-3851251.

Roy's Handyman Services. Flooring, Trim work, basement finishing, decks, fences, kitchen cabinet installs and carpentry work. Call 780-2323097

Shane’s Stucco & Drywall Service Shane Hollar Stucco (Traditional & Acrylic), Drywall, Stone, Textured Ceilings, Tile and Spray Painting 780-336-4832 shanes.stucco@gmail.com

Town & Country Guardian Drugs - Killam

We have:

•a Kodak picture maker.

•a colour/b&w photocopier.

•cold pop and fresh snacks.

•a great selection of candles, giftware, and fragrances. toys, games,and plush animals.

•a huge selection of Hallmark cards.

•plastic gift cards

•vitamins, minerals, and herbals.

•free gift wrapping.

•prescription service Open 6 days a week.

Carpet and Upholstery cleaning - residential and commercial. Truck mount unit, sewer backup, and flood cleaning. Auto and RV Cleaning. Call John and Sheri at Fancy Shine Auto and Carpet Care at 780-384-3087 tfnp

SERVICES Painting

Quality Residential and Commercial Painting Betty Tkaczyk 780-632-8749 or 780-688-3564

Need to re-order:

•Company Forms?

•Invoices? •Envelopes?

•Business Cards?

•Bookmarks? •Score Cards?

•Certificates? •Receipts?

•Posters? •Menus?

•Invitations? •Calendars? •Letterhead?

Call your local paper with your print order today!

WEEKLY REVIEW Ph. 780-336-3422

Email: vikingreview @gmail.com

TOFIELD MERCURY Ph. 780-662-4046

Email: adsmercury @gmail.com

LAMONT LEADER Ph. 780-895-2780

Email: lmtleader @gmail.com

WANTED

Wanting to buy 2 copies of the history book “Dreams and Destinies, Andrew & District”. Call Brian @ 780-896-2133

Looking to buy old walking axle field sprayer with 500 gallon tank. Don’t need the booms. 780-893-5490

WANTED SASQUATCH SKULL - Also purchasing SILVER & GOLD coins, bars, jewelry, scrap, nuggets, sterling, 999+ BULLION, maple leafs, bulk silver, pre-1969 coins. Coin collector BUYING ENTIRE COIN COLLECTIONS, old $ & Royal Canadian Mint coins. TODD 250-864-3521.

WANTED: Old advertising dealership signs, gas pumps, globes, pop machines, light ups. White Rose, Red Indian, Buffalo, North Star, Case Eagles, etc. Collector paying TOP PRICES. 306-221-5908.

County to apply for grant for orthophotographic mapping

BY JOHN MATHER

Lamont County, at its Oct. 11 regular meeting authorized the administration to apply for a grant in conjunction with the Counties of Two Hills, Minburn, Thorhild, Smoky Lake and the Village of Andrew to get an updated orthophotographic map made.

“Orthophotography,” said Lamont Agricultural Fieldman Terry Eleniak. “Let’s our County see where devel-

opment has taken place, where water courses are. You get to see everything from a 30,000 foot level.”

He said the County had used previous maps to reference water courses when there was serious flooding.

“It’s definitely a key item in the tool box,” he said.

The County had previously applied for the Alberta Community Partnership grant and it had been denied. At that time the County would

have had to pay a matching portion of between $1,500 to $2,000 to proceed with the mapping project.

Eleniak and Chief Administrative Officer Peter Tarnawsky both told council that this fee had been waived for this year.

The last orthographic flyover of the County was done in 2018.

Two Hills will act as the managing partner is pursuing the grant.

Town of Bruderheim appoints new community member at large for FCSS

BY JANA SEMENIUK

The Town of Bruderheim voted to appoint Amy Kohlman as their public member at large for the Lamont County Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) board.

Acting Chief Administrative Officer Dennis Tomuschat explained the role of a public member at large.

“Ensuring our community is represented at the regional FCSS board

meetings by a council member and a community member at large to share information,” he said. “The Lamont County FCSS agreement states that each of the communities in Lamont County agreed to have one member of council and one member at large appointed to the board.

The public at large board member represents the view of the public at large within their appointed munici-

pality.”

Mayor Karl Hauch wanted to know if there was a specified term for the new appointee, to which Director of Legislative Services, Sherry Cote, said there is none.

“Generally, when they decide they don't want to be representing the community at large anymore, they let us know,” she said.

The appointment was carried unanimously.

LAMONT COUNTY

on

in Lamont County adjacent to the town of Lamont. There is an approximately 15 acres of gravelled yard with partial chain link fencing. located at 195043 HWY 29 Lamont County Price $3,175,000 or inquire about lease price

• W4-18-54-18-NW, 2 parcel farm 158.48 acres 130 ± acres of grain cultivation 3 bedroom house. Property has gas, power, well, septic with aerial discharge, Dug out and a shop. Price: $850,000

• Range Road 203 between Highway 15 and TWP Rd 552, 6.77 acre lot near Bruderheim. Good building site. Price: $160,000.

• Office Building 5015 - 50 Street Chipman. 946 sq ft building with reception area, office area and washrooms. Price: $125,000

• W4-18-53-24-SW Plan 0826481 Block 2 Lot 1 5.02 acres yard site in Lamont County. Utilities at the property line. Price $49,000

• W4-18-53-26-SE N ½ Lamont County 80 acres property with a 60‘ by 40’ shop and the remainder of the land currently in hay. Price: $235,000

• W4-20-55-27-SE Plan 1023701 Block 1 Lot 1A Lamont County. 138.09 acres in the Lamont Heartland for industrial use. Located North of Highway 15 on Range Road 202. Price: $4,400,000

TWO HILLS COUNTY RECREATION

•

•

STRATHCONA COUNTY

Board and Committee Members Needed

Lamont

Check out lamontcounty.ca/boards-committees

Other Events

Lamont Lions BINGO – Nov. 23, Chipman Lions Harvest Fest – Oct. 28, Town of Lamont Christmas Light UP! – Nov. 26, Friends of the Ukrainian Village Society (fouvs.ca) looking for Members/ Directors and

donations for its Red Barn Roof. Facility bookings, gift shop and catering (year-round); St. Nick and Snooker & Kalyna Kitchen Menu – Frozen

items for pick-up.

Next Council Meeting

The

at: www.lamontcounty.ca/communications

Babysitting

7), Bruderheim Youth Centre, Chipman Youth Group, Flex for Boys, True You for Girls, Yoga for Older Adults, Parents and Tots, Family Activity Nights, Halloween Party, Youth Retreat, No Stone

Alone, Christmas Card Craft and New Parents

Kalyna

FCSS and KFRN Resources and Programs

Lamontcounty.ca/firefighting