Max Quilliam, Theo Donovan, Gloria Loitz, Paula E. Kirman and Rosewald Studios
CONTRIBUTOR
Gene Kosowan, Paula E. Kirman, Gloria Loitz, and Tom Murray
OFFICE MANAGER
Janice Lightfoot
CONTRIBUTING AGENCIES
Adobe Stock: foldyart1980, Alienmarsh, Elvira Astahova Pexels: Andrea Piacquadio.
ISSN 2368-707X (PRINT)
ISSN 2368-7088 (ONLINE)
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Why bills and coins could disappear from our monetary system
Culture
10 ART, ADVOCACY, AND ACCESSIBILITY
Visual artist Max Quilliam encourages the need for community connection
Living
14 FOOD & GATHERINGS
HANKERING FOR THE HARVEST
Hearty meals to savour those fall crops
20 THE 8S
FALL BUCKET LIST IDEAS
Suggestions on what to do before the snow flies
City
22 MEET YOU THERE
UPSCALE & UPTOWN
High-end clientele continues to flock to The Shops at Boudreau
25 THEN & NOW
A HAMLET’S RICH HERITAGE
Despite its size, Villeneuve enjoys a vibrant history
Spotlight
28 MUSIC THERAPY
Stephanie Hayden weaves her life lessons into songs
Down Time
30 CRUSH THIS CANDY COUNT
Here’s another challenge that offers sweet rewards
Summer’s gradual shift to fall is a vivid reminder that the only constant in our lives is change. How we tear ourselves away from those days lounging in the sun and get behind a desk is a daunting task in itself, but still we manage.
As consumers, we’re also adjusting to digital transactions contributing to cash’s decline at retail counters. Proponents of electronic alternatives love the convenience and security, although several pundits state that the transition will further shortchange disenfranchised citizens. Find out what lies ahead for the beloved loonie and toonie on page 5.
Artists tend to hunger for change, especially in how audiences view their work. Cases in point include Max Quilliam, who hopes audiences will be more understanding of LGBTQ+ issues evident in the visual artist’s creations (page 10), while songstress Stephanie Hayden endeavours to get more listeners who can relate to her coming-of-age material (page 28).
Other content in this edition provides innovative ways to prep freshly-harvested produce for feasting (page 14), suggests bucket-list suggestions for fall (page 20), explores the legacy of nearby Villeneuve (page 25), and heads to the high-end complex that is The Shops at Boudreau (page 22).
As we notice the greenery of our natural surroundings convert to brown, we want to assure readers that one thing that will never change is T8N’s continuing mandate to provide you with entertaining and informative stories that will help get you through the season. Enjoy the read. t8n
On the Cover
More than ever, technology is exerting greater influence on how we manage our own finances. In the process, it's slowly replacing more traditional ways of conducting transactions, including the use of hard currency. On page 5, we weigh the pros and cons of such a shift.
Cover design by Isaac White
Rob Lightfoot
CASHING OUT
Why bills and coins could disappear from our monetary system
BY: GENE KOSOWAN
AS CEO OF St. Albert-based Canadian Retail Solutions, Dan Holman has seen consumers take advantage of a lot of expanded options when they pay for goods and services. Debit and credit cards, whether tapped or swiped, still dominate at the checkout counter, although more and more he’s seeing people use smartphones with apps like Shopify’s Shop Pay platform and even cryptocurrency.
What Holman doesn’t see anywhere near as often is cash. Moreover, he’s noticed some retailers even refuse cash in favor of more electronic alternatives.
“Really, that’s not an appropriate way to do business,” said Holman. “Cash is still legal tender and shouldn’t be refused. But we’re seeing it in all kinds of resell markets, whether that’s retail, food and beverage, food truck, where they’re saying no cash is allowed.”
Faster Transition
Most retailers still welcome loonies, toonies, and bank notes, but the stats argue that high-tech methods are eclipsing the traditional method of forking over the dough. It’s also happening faster than previously predicted. Nearly a decade ago, Moneris Solutions Corporations prophesied that cash would make up only 10 percent of financial transactions by 2030. However, a study commissioned by the Bank of Canada in 2023 revealed that we had already hit that mark, a considerable tailspin from the 54-percent level reported in 2009, arguably the last time cash reportedly dominated financial transactions.
But if anyone’s worried that cash is no longer king, Holman hasn’t noticed. “We are not seeing concern in a migrational way towards a cashless society,” he said. “We’re actually seeing a reduction of that. As retail technology advances, and we’re seeing more and more online connected business, we’re even seeing online payment applications appearing in physical stores now.”
More up-in-arms over that shift, however, is the Bank
of Canada, which claimed in a 2023 study that 80 percent of Canadians had no desire to part with cash. Despairingly, its research determined that a gravitation towards a cashless economy would continue to disenfranchise vulnerable, low-income citizens who still rely on physical currency.
“For many—such as Indigenous peoples, unhoused individuals, older Canadians, victims of domestic abuse and others who are vulnerable—cash is a beacon of economic security, a source of financial autonomy, an emergency lifeline and an emblem of cultural traditions,” said Aftab Ahmed in Policy Options, a digital magazine published by the Institute for Research on Public Policy.
Cash Still Significant
Stacy Yanchuk Oleksy, CEO of Money Mentors, a not-for-profit association that advises clients on how to handle debt, believes cash still has a significant role in Canada’s financial system. “I think it’s important that we have a society that accepts cash, because not everybody has online access to online banking,” she said. “Having the ability to pay cash is an important thing for consumers in Canada.”
"Having the ability to pay cash is an important thing for consumers in Canada."
Tangentially, a 2023 poll involving 1,500 participants conducted by Payments Canada, an association that operates and regulates the country’s transaction infrastructure, revealed that 55 percent of respondents said they had no plans to go totally cashless, while only 13 percent reported they’ve totally transitioned away from physical currency.
“As we continue to see more payment innovations evolve, such as digital ID, buy now, pay later and open banking, there’s no doubt we’ll see further shifts in how Canadians choose to pay and get paid,” noted Jon Purther, Payments Canada’s director or research. “But for now, Canadians value the use of cash, including holding it for emergency purposes.”
Defenders of cash proclaim the old tried-and-true transaction method isn’t hampered by bank fees, privacy issues, and days when computer systems crash around the planet. “When there are those outages or issues, it becomes really problematic when you don’t have any ability to pay,” added Yanchuk Oleksy.
Independents Struggling
On the retailer side of the equation however, Holman has noticed independent businesses struggle to keep pace with more advanced transaction methods than their chain counterparts. “In today’s world, as technology is moving so fast, it’s putting a burden on that retailer to move at the speed that technology is moving,” he said.
“In an independent world, that can certainly be challenging. If we look inside our local community, here in greater St. Albert or greater Edmonton, there’s a much larger force behind independent retail than there is corporate retail. And it’s those independent retailers that have to come to terms with the advancements in technology.”
According to Holmon, it’s only a matter of time before they catch up, especially as customers continue to drive the changes by adopting newer ways of purchasing items. “Think about cash and the reconciliation of cash and how easy it is for cash to go missing; there is some comfort that that’s being removed,” he said. “The
more we adopt where the consumer is more comfortable spending, the easier it is for us to move the needle in our business.”
Pandemic Acceleration
Both Holman and Yanchuk Olesky agree that a huge leap towards a cashless future took place during the pandemic, where lockdowns and quarantine directives drastically reduced face-to-face expenditures at points of purchase. During that period, Statistics Canada reported that online ordering between 2020 and 2022 jumped by 67.9 percent.
But if COVID-19 accelerated the use of electronic transactions, a few holdouts are preventing a total transition away from cash from being realized, at least for now. According to the Bank of Canada, seniors, especially those lacking easy access to credit, are least likely to abandon cash, having grown up with physical currency. But with subsequent generations far more eager to embrace newer transaction technology, the clock might be ticking on bills and coins.
“At some point, I hope it’s not soon, because we have to deal with the issues that come up with a cashless society,” said Yanchuk Olesky. “If we address those issues, then my sense is that we would probably head towards a completely cashless society.” t8n
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Art, Advocacy, and Accessibility
Visual artist Max Quilliam encourages the need for community connection
BY: PAULA E. KIRMAN
PHOTOGRAPHY: MAX QUILLIAM, THEO DONOVAN
ST. ALBERT-BASED ARTIST Max Quilliam connects art with advocacy, a point succinctly made in 2019 as a leader of an art-centred protest over the lack of publicly-accessible gender-neutral washroom facilities in Allard Hall at Edmonton’s MacEwan University.
QQuilliam, who is queer, trans, and disabled, created a series of figures resembling the stick people found on bathroom signs, and included testimonies from community members about the importance of gender-neutral facilities. The figures were placed outside Allard Hall’s washrooms, so that people had to pass them on their way to answer nature’s call.
“What was highlighted through the work is that while trans and gender non-conforming people benefit from gender neutral bathrooms, so do parents, disabled people, those with social anxiety... the list goes on,” says Quilliam, known for creating art that explores ideas and themes around community and care, including disability rights and health matters affecting queer and trans people.
“This whole situation highlights why I find visual art to be such an important platform for activism. Not only did this work allow me to bring many people’s voices forward to a public audience for further engagement, but it allowed me to bolster the work that previous activists had already been doing up to that point.”
Allard Hall now has a set of gender-neutral washrooms, likely in part due to Quilliam’s efforts. Pivotal protest notwithstanding, MacEwan University is now the artist’s alma mater, courtesy of a BFA from the institution’s studio arts program. “My time in that program is what sparked and fostered my interest in arts-based research, which plays a major role in where my practice is at the moment and where I see it moving in the future,” Quilliam notes.
Quilliam approaches the use of visual art as advocacy from a perspective of accessibility and engagement, believing the medium can provide a point of connection for people who may not be familiar with the issues the artist brings up. “I’m drawn to visual art as a way of opening the door, inviting more people into the conversation and work of advocacy,” Quilliam explains.
A longtime St. Albert resident, Quilliam also spent a lot of time with grandparents during childhood in rural Newfoundland. “I think that living between these places has led me to think a lot about community connections and structures, which is a topic I often explore in my artistic practice,” says the artist. “While there are obviously many differences between St. Albert and Dildo, Nfld., having such a stark contrast has helped to highlight similarities in what brings people together and why. All of this is to say that living in both of these places has given my artistic practice perspective, which I think is useful for any artist!”
Quilliam also credits the city with facilitating artist opportunities for youths, particularly Amplify St. Albert, which provided that push to ultimately apply to art school. “Being able to share my artwork publicly for the first time, and helping other visual artists to do the same in the festival gallery, really highlighted my love for working in and around the arts, and helped me to realize that I did want to keep expanding my artistic practice in one way or another,” adds Quilliam.
I’m drawn to visual art as a way of opening the door, inviting more people into the conversation and work of advocacy
- Quilliam
That practice was recognized earlier this year when the St. Albert Mayor’s Celebration of the Arts awarded the former student with an emerging artist distinction, something Quilliam says was not only a huge honour, but a real confidence-booster when it comes to facing the future as a post-graduate.
Quilliam believes that emerging artists, especially those from marginalized sectors, need to “find their community” in order to get ahead. “It may take some time to find, for sure, but being in creative spaces with people who ‘get’ you and your work will do so much to feed your spirit and your artistic practice,” says the artist. “When people around you understand the type of work you’re trying to make, they will be the best guide for how you can improve it and push your ideas further.”
The artist notes that establishing such a connection is essential for artists coming from marginalized communities, given that the art scene wasn’t created with such experiences in the first place.
“Having these greater systems not welcome your work can get really disheartening if you don’t have anyone in your corner to cheer you on, which is why I think that having that community connection is important,” says Qulliam.
One doesn’t need to be an artist to take a stand, however. Quilliam encourages others to become advocates as well. “Maybe you make advocacy artwork of your own,” says the artist. “Maybe you attend your first rally. Maybe you have a tough conversation with your family members. It can be as simple as taking the time to email or call a politician to share your concerns. Anything that you can do to push this world towards justice and equity for all is always worth doing.” t8n
for the
Hearty meals to savour those fall crops
BY GLORIA LOITZ | PHOTOGRAPHY: GLORIA LOITZ
FALL IS A beautiful season of warm colours and crispier air. It’s also a season that marks the final harvest for the year. With the arrival of the freshest root vegetables from beets to potatoes, and even some winter squash, one can eat comfortingly: healthy, yet robust.
Creamy Coriander Carrot Soup
This wonder of a soup is so captivating, you may want to eat it as your main meal. I once made this to serve at a restaurant I was working at and the owner banned the staff from eating any more of it because it was going too fast. Compliments will be had!
4 lbs. carrots
1 large onion
1 serrano (optional)
7 cloves of garlic
1.5-inch piece of ginger, minced
1 tsp. pepper
3 tbsp. freshly ground coriander
3 L of filtered water
1 L of coconut milk (one tetrapak) coconut oil
Preheat the oven to 375°F and place parchment paper on a large cookie tray. Cut the carrots into pieces about two inches long by a half an inch wide and place on the cookie tray, lathering in coconut oil and adding salt and pepper generously. Roast for 30 minutes then flip the carrots and roast another 15 minutes.
While the carrots are roasting, thinly slice two carrots and add to a large stock pot to sauté. Thinly chop the onions then add to the pot. Mince the garlic and ginger, grind the coriander seeds and then add to the pot once the carrots and onions are browned. After ensuring the spices are coated in the oil, add in the filtered water and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer. Add in the roasted carrots and simmer for a few more minutes before adding the coconut milk. Once the coconut milk is added, purée until smooth and creamy. Bring back up to a boil, then immediately turn back down to simmer for a few more minutes.
Sweet Potato and Beef Stew
Though technically sweet potatoes are a tropical plant, this recipe is too good not to share! Very hearty and filling yet doesn’t weigh you down, you won’t need seconds, but you will want them anyway.
1 lb. sirloin chunks
ghee or coconut oil
4 medium sweet potatoes
4 carrots
1-inch piece of fresh ginger
1 medium onion
4-5 cloves of garlic
3 stalks of celery
sea salt to taste
2 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp. brown mustard seeds
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1.5 tsp. freshly ground pepper
1 beef stock cube
1 bay leaf
Brown the sirloin in a pan, salt and pepper generously. Begin slicing the veggies while keeping an eye on the browning steak. After the steak cubes are browned, set aside. In a stock pot heat some coconut oil and add the carrots and onions. Once browned, add the sweet potatoes and celery. Generously add sea salt. Once everything is warmed up, add the ground spices, ginger, and garlic. After everything is coated in the oil and gently salted, add in the steak cubes and stock with filtered water to preference. Bring to a boil them simmer on low for at least two hours to tenderize the beef.
Beef Tallow Fried Potatoes
Fun fact: McDonald’s fries in part got so popular because they fried them in beef tallow. After years of being nagged by the American Heart Association, they finally made the switch to vegetable oil in 1990. I hear they’re still mad about it! In recent years, it has now come to light that beef tallow is in fact far healthier than vegetable oil, which wreaks havoc on our systems. So give this original fry a try, your body and taste buds will thank you.
3-4 red potatoes
beef tallow
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
green onions or chives
sea salt and pepper to taste
Chop the potatoes into bite-sized pieces, add to generously salted cold water and boil until fork tender. Heat a generous amount of beef tallow in a pan and add the potatoes, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Continue to fry, adding more beef tallow when needed. Make sure the crispy pieces are brown, not burned. Sprinkle a handful of chives or green onions on top of the plated potatoes.
Puréed
Rosemary Borsht
Not traditional in the least, this puréed soup of mine has even converted nonborsht lovers to asking for seconds. Thick and with hints of unexpected flavours, this soup will impress eyes and taste buds alike.
approx. 15 beets, enough to cover a large cookie tray
coconut oil
3 carrots
1 large onion
4-5 cloves of garlic (about 1 heaping tbsp)
1.5 tsp. ground pepper
1 tsp. sea salt
1/3 tsp. paprika
1 spring fresh rosemary (about 1 tsp. minced)
1/4 cup coconut, avocado or olive oil
3.5L filtered water
half and half cream
Preheat oven to 375°F and line cookie sheet with parchment. Cover the tray with chopped beets, lather with coconut oil and salt and pepper generously. Flip the beets after 30 minutes then bake for another 10 minutes. While the beets are in the oven, chop the rest of the vegetables, then sauté with salt in a stock pot. Sauté in the spices and sea salt, then add the water. Bring to a boil, then reduce to simmer. Add in the roasted beets and let simmer for a few more minutes before puréeing. Garnish generously with half and half cream.
Sloppy Shepherd's Pie
Think of it as Sloppy Joe meets the classic hearty dish. No need to peel the potatoes! They are made to be purposefully sticky, blending the layers together as you scoop the dish out onto hungry plates.
Mash:
5 large red potatoes
5 tbsp. butter, ghee or coconut oil
3 tbsp. half and half
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
1/2 tsp. pepper a pinch of paprika
Filling:
1 lb. lamb, beef, or both
1/2 cup fresh carrots, finely chopped
1/2 cup onion, finely chopped
3/4 c. corn
1/2 cup green peas
4 cloves garlic
3/4 tsp. sea salt
1 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
2 tbsp. + 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. fresh thyme, minced
Chop potatoes and add to a large pot of generously salted cold water. Bring to a boil, then simmer until very tender. Drain the water out, then add the potatoes back into the pot along with the remaining mash ingredients. Blend until there are no lumps, set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large pan add in the carrots and onion, sauce until they start to brown then add in the remaining filling ingredients. Simmer on low/medium until cooked then place in a small casserole dish. Add the mash on top. Bake for 25 minutes then broil for one minute.
Pumpkin Breakfast Muffins
Not too sweet and made using oats, these muffins are a perfect breakfast option when needing something on the go or for a cozy, butter-laden, coffee-ritualizing morning.
2 c. oat flour
1/2 c. maple syrup
1 + 1/4 c. pumpkin purèe
1/3 c. coconut oil
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. sea salt
2.5 tsp. cinnamon
1.5 tsp. ginger
1/8 tsp. cloves
1/8 tsp. allspice
1/4 tsp. cardamom
Preheat the oven to 350°F and line the muffin tins. Mix all the dry ingredients together. Add the room temperature maple syrup, pumpkin and melted coconut oil. Bake for 22-24 minutes then let cool before eating.
Fall bucket list ideas
Suggestions on what to do before the snow flies…
PHOTOGRAPHY: STEPHANIE CRAGG
BUCKET LISTS ARE popular with folks who want to be a bit more anecdotal in planning their lives and can be as ambitious as climbing Mount Everest or experiencing a foreign
country they’ve always wanted to visit. But for those looking for something closer to home with a more seasonal deadline, here are a few options.
Change up your coffee routine!
Ottoman Coffee ($4.25) Turkish Coffee House, 24 Perron St.
Get the family hooked on a board game! Sagrada ($53.95)
Mission: Fun & Games, 560 St. Albert Tr.
Cozy up at a local restaurant! Italian menu entrees ($18-$26) Luisa Risto, 8 Perron St.
Use Halloween as an excuse to load up on sweets! Pop Shoppe Pop ($2.50), Reese’s Dipped Animal Crackers ($5.99) Dynamite Candy Shop, 9 St. Anne St.
Experience something different!
Community tea & bannock with St. Albert Sturgeon County Métis Local 1904 bannock provided by Fiddler Family Services last Tuesday of each month (Free) St. Albert Public Library, 5 St. Anne St.
Try a new class! Eight weekly one-hour beginner and intermediate belly dance classes ($195) bellydancebeats.ca
Freshen up your outerwear style!
Frank Lyman printed open sweater ($239) Flash Fashion, 109-392 St. Albert Tr.
Ben Nye makeup palettes ($34.95) Karrie’s Kostumes & Dance Supplies, 2004 Tudor Glen Place 1 2 3 5 6 7 8 4 5 6 7 8
Start planning an epic costume!
Upscale & Uptown
High-end clientele continues to flock to The Shops at Boudreau
BY: GENE KOSOWAN
PHOTOGRAPHY: PAULA E. KIRMAN
BY: GENE KOSOWAN
PHOTOGRAPHY: PAULA E. KIRMAN
BUSINESS OWNERS IN The Shops at Boudreau at the intersection of Bellerose Drive and Boudreau Road have no problem coming up with superlatives about the commercial centre they occupy.
“It was perfect for what we wanted to do,” said Adamo Rossi, who owns the family-operated food retailer Italian Bakery’s Mercato.
‘It’s very well-rounded,” added Thyda Lim, a hairstylist and proprietor of Suburbia Hair Spa. “And you’re not here looking for basic services and basic supplies. You’re looking at top-tier in everything you see around here.”
That positivity is a common mantra among the merchants that occupy The Shops at Boudreau, billed as a “newgeneration” neighbourhood shopping centre when it first opened in 2014. Instead of copying the conventional mall model consisting of a series of concrete building-block structures surrounded by an asphalt oasis, the complex treats visitors to a more European-style boutique look.
Structures on the 2.2-hectare lot are no taller than two stories, all graced with a textured exterior of cast stones with varying shades of Sioux City bricks. An abundance of walkways provides pedestrians with easy access to each store, with one path leading to the northern bank of the Sturgeon River. The surroundings include a great deal of green space, doubling as a park complete with benches and a canopy.
Besides Mercato and Suburbia, other businesses promising an array of goods and services to suit more discriminating clientele include XIX Nineteen restaurant, interior specialists California Closets, spa chain Frilly Lilly, and java joint Good Earth Coffeehouse. They’re among some 30 businesses in a complex boasting a cumulative 52,585 square feet of commercial space, designed to bring in more high-end customers living nearby.
“St. Albert having one of the highest average household incomes in the country and close proximity to Edmonton, made it an ideal destination for an upscale boutique shopping experience,” said Chris Sherry, president of Vancouver-based Narland Investments Ltd., which bought the complex from the site’s original developer Chrisen Realty Corporation of Edmonton in 2022.
Chrisen’s president Stewart Gillespie originally dreamed up the idea for a boutique-style centre in St. Albert after he had purchased the land in 2013 from the Hole family, owners of the venerable Hole’s Greenhouses, which had relocated to The Enjoy Centre two years earlier. The company had already built a similar complex in Edmonton’s Crestwood community and believed that a similar version would do well in the gardening establishment’s old location.
A MoneySense study at the time bore that out, citing St. Albert as Canada’s second-most affluent city (behind Calgary and considerably ahead of 11th-place Edmonton), boasting an annual average household income of $139,628. It also helped that the land was close to some of St. Albert’s more prosperous neighborhoods like Erin Ridge, Inglewood, Kingswood and Oakmont.
That year, Gillespie worked closely with the Hole family on fine-tuning the boutique proposal and persuaded St. Albert City Council to approve the $26-milion project.
Elizabeth Hay
Around that time, Rossi, whose family had been operating the Italian Bakery in Edmonton since 1960, was asked by Gillespie to see some plans he had made for the development. Rossi was impressed once he saw them.
“Once we sat down and we got all the details in order, it was a no-brainer for us,” he said. “We were pretty excited when we met, because we didn’t know it was going to go that well. So, he sold us on the idea, and it was a hit.”
Lim didn’t need any encouragement to get a shingle hung on a lot on the new site. A hair stylist for 10 years with another salon in St. Albert, she had never owned a business. But once she heard about the development, she jumped at the opportunity to own and run a shop at what she believed was an ideal location.
“This is going to be a landmark,” recalled Lim saying to herself at the time. “This is a place that people are going to be drawn to. This would be a perfect place to open a salon or business, if I wanted to. It felt right to me.” Her business wound up being the first tenant at The Shops at Boudreau, while the area was still under construction.
The area and the Hole legacy might have drawn Lim to set up shop there, but she’s found that the complex has developed a social atmosphere all its own over time. “For a commercial space, the amount of community that’s in here is better than anywhere else in any part of the city,” she said. “We actually know each other. And we actually try to support each other.”
That same vibe permeating throughout The Shops at Boudreau also turned into a bonus amenity for Rossi’s business. “It definitely was a hit,” he said about the success of Mercato. “The community really, really embraced us, which was very, very important for us.” t8n
Thank you St. Albert for voting us Best Breakfast and Best Brunch
A hamlet’s rich heritage
BY: GENE KOSOWAN PHOTOGRAPHY: PAULA E. KIRMAN
Despite its size, Villeneuve enjoys a vibrant history
VILLENEUVE MIGHT BE 20 years younger and about 200 times smaller than St. Albert, but those factors don’t take away from the hamlet’s own fruitful history. Located roughly 10 km west of St. Albert, Villeneuve started as a pivotal location for several Quebecois families willing to set root in the west. Today, it’s home to an airport that’s critical to support the capacity of small and commercial aircraft flying in the Edmonton region. But it’s during all those years in between that demonstrate how Villeneuve has held its own as a charming, yet durable community.
1890s
In 1891, settlement started in what would eventually be called Villeneuve, when Father Baptiste Morin, stationed in the prairies as a bequest from Bishop Grandin, filed papers for Quebec families to occupy a pocket of land just north of Big Lake. The following year, more settlers arrived from the U.S., although the area remained predominantly Roman Catholic. The Turcotte School Division was first established in 1895 due to the opening of a school two miles east of Villeneuve as well as two additional schools within five miles of the settlement. The new buildings took a considerable load off a previous school that operated on River Lot D on Big Lake.
Settlers tired of trekking all the way to St. Albert Mission for church services were granted permission by Bishop Grandin to build their own parish in 1897. The log structure, built under the direction of Bishop Legal and Father Dauphin, was named St. Pierre, which would shortly thereafter become the moniker for the hamlet. Two years later, the parish had its first resident priest, Father Samuel Bouchard, credited with performing the site’s first marriage.
1900s
A new century brought about a name change to the settlement from St. Pierre to Villeneuve, in honour of Frederic Villeneuve, a political representative of the Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly and proprietor of Francophone paper L’Ouest Canadien.
The village also opened the first post office, followed by its first general store, which took over the building occupied by the post office that was relocated to another part of the hamlet. Also moved was the community’s first gravesite to a spot near the church. Meanwhile, Father Joseph Normandeau launched Villeneuve’s first major religious custom, a regular church picnic as a community get-together.
1910s-1930s
Development in Villeneuve warranted the construction of a new church in 1910 to replace the old log building, which would later be converted into a barn. Father Alfred Clairmont, who directed the project, also supervised construction of a parish hall and relocation of a rectory built roughly a decade earlier.
In the early 1900s, the Edmonton & Slave Lake line, eventually taken over by the Canadian National Railway, bypassed Villeneuve by a mile northward. Still, it was close enough for the CNR to build a station, three grain elevators, and housing
for grain brokers. That same year, the community borrowed $2,382 to build the Turcotte School, which included a neighbouring teacher’s residence and a water well.
Progress continued with the opening of the first blacksmith shop in 1918 and a trucking and fuel supplier three years later. But in 1931, Villeneuve’s church, built a couple decades earlier, was destroyed by fire. It was rebuilt in 1933 at a cost of $6,250.
1940s-1960s
Business in Villeneuve expanded in the 1940s to include a barbershop and pool hall as well as a new general store the following decade. By 1948, construction was completed on a two-room complex dubbed the Villeneuve School, which opened the same year.
The hamlet witnessed more construction during the 1950s, with extensive renovation of the church, which featured a new spire and a bell dubbed Peter to commemorate the efforts of Father Peter O’Neil, who oversaw the rebuilding of the structure after the 1931 fire. The church would eventually be known as St. Peter’s.
After years of district shuffling and renaming, Villeneuve officially became part of the Municipal District of Sturgeon No. 90 and Sturgeon School Division No. 24 in 1965. The following year saw the closure of the Villeneuve School, prompting students to attend class in St. Albert. A portable used as part of the Villeneuve School was hauled to the Bon Accord School District, where it fell victim to a fire in 1969.
1970s-1990s
Thanks to funding from the parish and the provincial government, as well a great deal of volunteer sweat equity, Villeneuve’s Community Hall was built during the ’70s, replacing the 60-year-old Parish Hall. But the decade also
saw the closure of the original post office as well as the train station and eventually the nearby grain elevators.
Villeneuve students wound up having a more permanent place to learn when they were relocated to Sturgeon Heights School, starting in 1971. But Villeneuve’s reputation as an aeronautic centre first started to soar in 1976 when its airport, built by Transport Canada, was open as a flight training site.
In 1980, courtesy of funding to celebrate Albert’s 75th year in existence as a province, the Community Hall witnessed the addition of a senior citizen’s centre to the complex. Three years later, after servicing a farmstead as a barn, the Turcotte School was demolished.
2000s-2020s
Edmonton Airports purchased Villeneuve airport from Transport Canada in 2000, a fortuitous transaction, considering the hamlet’s terminal would have to handle overflow from the closure of Edmonton City Centre Airport 13 years later. To accommodate that additional traffic, Villeneuve’s airport greatly expanded to accommodate a 5,000-foot runway. That same year, it witnessed a final historic flight of an old Pacific Western Boeing 737 passenger plane from Edmonton’s closed airport to Villeneuve. Since 2015, the airport has also hosted the annual Alberta International Airshow.
As of 2021, Villeneuve’s population stood at 260, a 9.2 percent increase from 238 five years earlier. t8n
Live, Laugh, Amour
Chérot is St. Albert’s newest French-inspired community. It offers exceptional value, a future recreation center, and nature at your doorstep. Minutes from major amenities, it's where Parisian charm meets Alberta's best living. Live, Laugh, Amour, right here in Chérot.
Music Therapy
Stephanie Hayden weaves her life lessons into songs
BY: TOM MURRAY | PHOTOGRAPHY: ROSEWALD STUDIOS
STEPHANIE HAYDEN CAN’T pinpoint the exact moment that she wanted to be a musician, but she does remember her first song.
“I was 11 and I wrote it because I was being picked on all the time,” the St. Albert based singer- songwriter recalls. “So, I was like, ‘Hey, this is great, writing a song is actually kind of therapeutic.’”
Hayden has moved on from using mean girl bullies as her impetus for creativity, but the therapy part has certainly stuck as an important part of her creative process. Her 2021 single, “Blame,” fired back at an ex-boyfriend in a positive way, while the track “I’m Not OK,” from her recent EP “Split,” is about an old friend’s suicide.
Like many singer-songwriters, Hayden sees the creative impulse to track her personal life in lyrics as heavily linked to an instinct to connect with people.
“That’s definitely one of the most important reasons,” the 19-year-old affirms. “I want to help people through my music. That’s kind of my main goal, using music as therapy.”
While she hasn’t quite gotten out of her teens yet, Hayden can almost be described as a music veteran. She recalls that her mother was bringing her along to music classes when she was three months old, and while she wasn’t participating, she was certainly soaking it all in.
When she was six, Hayden began singing lessons, following up
with classical and light opera training at 13. Ten years worth of piano training helped her in composition. It was also around that time that Hayden began singing in public, emulating her early hero, Taylor Swift.
“She was just a good one to get into,” Hayden says. “My mom took me to a concert of Hers, when I was nine, and that was definitely pretty inspirational because she writes all her own music. So that was someone that I looked up to in my younger years, especially in terms of songwriting.”
If there was an early balance between her love of Swift with her classical training and appreciation for musical theatre, it was upset when Hayden turned to country and pop to make her mark locally. Big Valley Jamboree proved to be an excellent training ground as she honed her performance and songwriting skills to receptive audiences who recognized her emerging talents with two audience choice awards.
It began reaping dividends early on, as Hayden won the St. Albert’s Got Talent competition at the age of 11. A video release at St. Albert United Church in 2021 saw the singer-songwriter celebrating her first official single, the aforementioned “Blame.”
Through all of this she continued to work on her performance skills. A mix of gigs saw her playing at charity events for the Mustard Seed Church, bars like Blakbar Tavern, soft seaters,
I want to help people through my music. That’s kind of my main goal, using music as therapy
- Stephanie Hayden
and cafes like the Blackbyrd. The release of her EP “Split” in April of 2024 saw her performing for a large number of fans at the Arden Theatre, an experience that she describes as “amazing.”
Through all this she’s kept a busy schedule, teaching private music lessons while also studying it at Grant MacEwan University.
“It’s great to be surrounded by other musicians,” she says. “You’re kind of thrown in there and you’re learning about other genres. It’s a lot of fun. And teaching has been great as well; I like to help people who want to sing as well.”
You could say that Hayden is immersed in music. While she’s enthusiastic about performing, she’s also very involved in recording, as is her boyfriend, who has a small studio in his basement.
Hayden can often be found there working on new music with other local musicians, fine tuning the backlog of songs and song fragments that she’s accumulated from her pre-teen years.
“Obviously some of them are not so great,” Hayden acknowledges with a hint of a laugh. “I kind of pick and choose. I have a co-writer for a couple who lives in London, England, and he’s been helping me to fine tune them. It’s been really cool, because it helps to add another voice in there.”
She’s still in the early days of a career, but Hayden has concrete plans for the future. While still recovering from a January accident that left her with a concussion, she’s looking at future gigs, a possible tour, and a whole lot more recording. She hints at the possibility of a new album in the near future, and she continues to develop as a performer and musician.
“I’m definitely changing,” she notes. “Like, I feel that a song like ‘Split,’ which is a pop-rock song, is very different from the other music that I’ve done. That’s kind of what I was going for, because I want to always surprise people and show them that there are lots of things that I can do.” t8n
Crush this candy count
Here’s
another
challenge that offers sweet rewards
It’s a feat so sweet, we had to repeat. There’s something enticing about counting candy, which arguably generates more excitement than counting sheep, which obviously produces the opposite effect. So t8n returns with another candy count asking you, the reader, to figure out how many of these tempting treats are in this jar. All you have to do is first, write down your answer on this page, take a photo of it with your smartphone, then posting that image on either Facebook or Twitter (tagging #t8n, of course) or direct messaging us on those platforms. The closest guess wins. If there is a tie, we will randomly draw a winner. Prize is available only to St. Albert residents.
Home and auto insurance tailored to you
As
Jennifer Miles, Agent 15 Circle Dr Unit 125 St. Albert AB 780-460-2279
jen@jmilesinsurance.com jmilesinsurance.com
MBroadbent Insurance Agency Inc.
Michelle Broadbent, Agent 3523 Tudor Glen Market St. Albert AB 780-470-3276
