Thursday, December 9, 2021
VOLUME 4 I ISSUE 24
MERIDIANSOURCE.CA
Taylor Weaver Meridian Source
Santa and his elves were back in the Border City this weekend to help celebrate the 14th annual Here Comes Santa Claus Day. Although a tad cold, the lineup to get photos taken with Santa and The Grinch were to the road by 11 a.m. Luckily, there was hot chocolate served later in the afternoon. See Page 6 for more.
End of life Hospice on the Border within reach GEOFF LEE
WRITER
.................................. Dr. Raff Sayeed, a f o u ndi ng me mb e r o f the Lloydminster Concerned Citizens for Seniors Care Society, provided an update on a planned end-of-life hospice for the Lloydminster region. At Tuesday’s seniors’ meeting, Sayeed said he hopes
a proposed 10-bed hospice for Lloydminster and area residents could be shovel-ready before the end of 2022. Sayeed is a volunteer board member of the Hospice on the Border Society that expects to receive about $200,000 per bed in operating costs from the Government of Saskatchewan to move forward. “We are waiting for
the Saskatchewan government to give us the funding approval in their spring budget, said Sayeed. “I reported last week, we will be shovel ready in six months of the day we have approval.” The estimated capital cost of the hospice is between $5.5 to $6 million that would be raised by residents of Lloydminster and the
surrounding area. “We will have it complete within three years,” said Sayeed. The facility would be managed by the volunteer board and would augment healthcare in the region. “It will give dignity for people who are dying. In their last few days, they will die with dignity; they will die with their loved ones,”
said Sayeed. “They will die in a place that’s as close to their home as possible.” He noted a donor is set to provide the land in Saskatchewan if and when they get the operational funding from Saskatchewan. “The reason we chose a Saskatchewan location as opposed to Alberta is in Alberta, they only come up with
60 per cent of operating funding,” explained Sayeed. He said that would require the Hospice on the Border Society to raise operational funds every year. He says Saskatchewan will get a 50 per cent share of the operating costs from Alberta, the same way it’s done with schools. CONTINUED ON PAGE 2