After nearly a decade of discussion and planning, the Rotary Wellness House Society, which includes members of the different Rotary Clubs of Grande Prairie, is building the Ken Sargent Compassion House.

Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation will be the facility’s managing partner, and Ken Sargent will be the major naming sponsor; both announcements were made at the 2023 Festival of Trees Gala. Major Gifts Officer Dawn Miller says moving forward, Rotary will be working to fundraise an additional $8 million needed to meet the $10 million it is expected to cost to build the facility.

She says the goal is to have the 20-room facility, which will also have a common cooking, eating and living area, completed and open by 2026 to give those coming to Grande Prairie from out of town for medical treatments who may need a hand somewhere to stay. Miller says the foundation is excited to be working in partnership with Rotary to manage the facility when it is open, adding it is a partnership that makes sense.

“We are in the hospital, we know the donors, we know the patients, we work with healthcare providers and staff on a daily basis, so it is really a win-win for everybody.”

Miller says as the managing partner of the Ken Sargent Compassion House, the Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation will need to find an Executive Director who will be in charge of the facility, hiring staff and managing volunteers. However, between now and the facility opening, they will be working to raise funds to help offset operating costs.

“We need to make this house sustainable; we also are trying to make it very, very reasonable for patients and families to stay and that all requires money, and it also requires volunteers to come in. Whether it is helping to greet people, clean up, or whatever it might be, and just helping the families navigate.”

She adds the $2 million donation the foundation received from Ken Sargent for the wellness house will be used for operation costs and help keep the expense low for those who are referred to stay at the facility, which will be located kitty-corner from the hospital.

Miller says she expects more announcements and presentations will be made for the project in time.

The Grande Prairie Regional Airshow is returning for the first time since 1993.

From July 26-28, 2024, pilots will fly high around Grande Prairie to support the D-Coy Community Hub Project to aid with the Rotary Club’s goal of restoring and renovating the D Company Armouries building.

Rotary Club President Bruce Tattrie says with the growth of the Army and Air Cadet corps in Grande Priaire, restoration of the space is essential for the cadets and the community.

“Both squads are growing, so to have the extra space and extra storage as well is a big thing for them,” he says. “We have been sponsoring them for decades, and we’re continuing that, so we want them to have as good of a facility as they can have really, and they are excited.”

The Rotary Club says the total cost of the project is estimated at $3.5 million and $1.8 million has been pledged toward the cause so far.

“I think the guys that give up all their volunteer time, the officers from these programs, will benefit greatly from having such a nice facility, and Grande Prairie will too, it’s not just the air and army cadets, the whole idea is to create a youth-centric hub that several not-for-profits can utilize as well.”

According to Tattrie, the airshow will feature civilian and military performances, and talks with the British RAF Red Arrows and Snow Birds are awaiting confirmation. Additionally, Tattrie says the show will host a static display of specialty aircraft and family activities like face painting, bouncy castles, and live music.

The City of Grande Prairie is recognizing registered Grande Prairie Accessible Transit riders in December through a number of initiatives.

The City is granting free transit during regular hours for registered GPAT riders on Friday December 1st to recognize International Day of Persons with Disabilities.

Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton says free service for GPAT customers is an important aspect of encouraging inclusivity in the city.

“Initiatives that provide free services for GPAT customers contribute to an enhanced quality of life for residents by ensuring reliable transportation, fostering social connection, and encouraging community wellbeing.”

Additionally, city transit is offering GPAT clients free round-trip rides to the Northern Spirit Lights Show, including driving through the light displays at the event every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night at 6:00 p.m. from December 1st to the 17th.

Interested GPAT customers are encouraged to sign up with their driver or by calling dispatch at 780-830-7433.

Police are investigating another hit-and-run involving a pedestrian in the Grande Prairie area. The RCMP says it was called to the corner of 97 Avenue and 100 Street around 1:39 p.m. Friday, November 24th.

It’s reported a pedestrian suffered minor injuries when it was hit by a vehicle that may have been a dark-coloured, possibly black SUV. The vehicle allegedly did not stay at the scene.

Officers are looking to identify the vehicle and driver. Anyone who may have seen what happened or who may have dash cam footage of the intersection between 1:15 and 1:30 p.m. on the 24th is asked to come forward.

This investigation comes just a few days after another incident where a pedestrian was hit by a vehicle that fled the scene. In that case, it happened sometime between 7 and 8 p.m. on Highway 672 between Range Roads 74 and 75.

The eighth annual Stocking Stuffers for Seniors event is returning to London Drugs in Grande Prairie. The local branch is supporting 17 senior homes and roughly 632 residents in 2023.

Store Manager Shelly Abrey says her store has partnered with the Grande Spirit Foundation to support local seniors in and around the city this holiday season.

“I believe that it provides essential support and provides joy to our seniors who may be experiencing financial hardship.”

“Our store has been doing it for about five or six years and we usually run out of tags quite quickly,” she adds. “The program [launched] on November 12th and we’re usually out of tags by the end of November.”

Abrey says helping out is easy. She says interested individuals only need to spot a gift tag on one of the store’s two trees, shop around as normal, and purchase the gifts at the front counter.

“Once the community comes into our store they look for our Christmas trees and they’ll look for a gift tag, and the gift tag has the name of a senior, with some very specific items that they’re hoping for a Christmas gift this year.”

“So you can take the gift tag, go do some shopping, and come back with the present with the gift tag, and we package it up and organize it so that each home comes to collect their gifts for the seniors.”

According to Abrey, some hot-ticket items this year include blankets, mittens, gloves, chocolates, and cookies, which are all available in-store. The last day to purchase gift tags is December 8th, and gifts will be delivered the week before Christmas to all participating homes and seniors.

The Mustard Seed has been given the service provision contract for Grande Prairie’s Coordinated Care Campus. According to the City, the Mustard Seed’s mission is in alignment with the Coordinated Care Centre in their “recovery-oriented” model of care which includes housing, employment, health and spiritual wellness, and community engagement.

Grande Prairie Mayor Jackie Clayton says the Mustard Seed’s experience and expertise make them “well-equipped” to lead services and programs at the CCC. Additionally, Clayton says the move supports multiple city council goals related to housing and homelessness.

“[This] will support residents in sustaining long-term housing, meeting our objectives for the Homelessness Strategy, and ensuring a social and economic return on investment.”

The Mustard Seed was selected as the new service provider for the CCC through a lengthy procurement process and the change replaces the city’s former service provider Northreach Society. The Mustard Seed will begin operations at the campus on February 1, 2024.

Students at St. Mary Catholic School in Beaverlodge got the chance to wet their engineering palate in a cardboard boat race experiment.

The young scientists were given just two sheets of cardboard, one roll of duct tape, and eight feet of polyurethane to help their boats float.

Beaverlodge teacher Melanie Alde says she organized the event to expand on the STEM-focused curriculum for Grade 8 students. She says the opportunity to get hands-on is valuable for students so they can visually experience Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math away from the textbook.

“Our professional development this year is based on STEM activities, and we’ve been asked to really incorporate it into our lessons,” she says. “The Grade 8 curriculum has buoyancy outcomes in it so I was trying to relate something in real life and exciting they could do.”

“It’s very valuable and I think they learned a lot and if they could do it again they would do things differently and that’s the whole idea behind engineering.”

Alde adds that the opportunity for students to get away from the classroom to experience real-life applications is important because it allows students to learn, and have fun at the same time.

“Just seeing their faces when they’re coming down when they first get in the boat seeing if its going to float or not, and to their surprise it did,” she laughs. “The excitement trying to row them, they raced them, and they were just jumping up and down on the edge of the pool and super excited.”

In addition to STEM, Alde says students were required to incorporate Social Studies into their experiments, allowing students to apply art theory to their designs as well.

“In Social Studies, they have this history piece with Marco Polo’s adventures, so they had to incorporate Marco Polo’s events trying to sail across the ocean.”

Alde says the only problem with the event was that students from other grade levels were jealous they couldn’t participate in their own poolside experiments.

“I had grade nines asking me why didn’t we get to do this and grade sevens asking me- do we get to do this next year?”

According to Alde, the young minds at St. Mary’s are “excited to carry on the tradition,” and she says there are already plans to continue the event next year.

A man has been reported missing from Fairview. 31-year-old Coalton Robert Breuer was last seen by a friend in Fairview the week of October 30th.

The RCMP says on November 1st, a man matching his description was picked up on the Chinchaga Forestry Road near Hotchkiss and dropped off in Warrensville. The next day, that man went to a home in Whitelaw where he asked to use a phone and promptly left.

Coalton has not been seen or heard from since, and police are concerned for his wellbeing.

The man has been described as 5’8″ and 140 pounds with a fair complexion, brown hair, and green eyes. He has a tattoo on his left forearm of a Walleye and was last seen wearing brown bib overalls and a grey hoodie.

Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the RCMP or Crime Stoppers.

Grande Prairie RCMP is looking for the public’s help in tracking down a vehicle and driver following a crash involving a pedestrian. Police say they were called to reports of a vehicle hitting a pedestrian and fleeing the scene around 8:30 p.m. on November 22nd.

The pedestrian was brought to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Police say the incident took place sometime between 7 and 8 p.m. on Highway 672 between Range Road 74 and 75.

Mounties are asking anyone who may have witnessed the event or saw the pedestrian walking on the road prior to the incident to come forward. Additionally, anyone with dashcam footage from the night of the incident is asked to review the footage and share any findings with police.

Anyone with information in relation to this incident is asked to contact the Grande Prairie RCMP or Crime Stoppers.

Alberta Occupational Health and Safety is investigating a workplace death that occurred on November 18th, 2023 at Weyerhaeuser Lumber Mill.

According to investigators, a man was struck and killed by an object while working and investigations are underway.

Additionally, OHS says no other details surrounding the incident, including the worker’s name, will be released at this time as the investigation into the matter remains active.

Local non-profit Seniors Outreach has brought back its “Snow Fairies” program to help seniors with snow removal during the winter season.

Snow Fairies is a snow removal program where seniors fill out an application and are then placed on a map where volunteers can access information about homes in need of snow removal. Snow Fairies organizer Dee Sayles says volunteers only need to find a marked snowflake on the map and in the spirit of fairies, no communication is necessary.

“In snow fairy nature, they [volunteers] will fly over with their magic wand and poof away the snow,” she says. “Much like the tooth fairy, there’s no communication necessary, they just go in and do their thing.”

Sayles says the program is important for seniors as the aim of Seniors Outreach is to keep seniors in their homes for longer and while they may be able to complete everyday tasks like cooking, labour-intensive tasks like snow shovelling can be quite dangerous for some.

“We just want to make sure that seniors are staying safe,” she says. “As Canadians, we all know that going out and shovelling snow, there are some times that you can slip and fall, and as a senior, that means a lot more than someone in their twenties and thirties.”

According to Sayles, this year’s program will operate a bit differently than last year’s. She says this year, snow removal is much more accessible, as there is no commitment like the “adopt a driveway” model used last year.

“We just found that was really difficult because if you’re going away for Christmas and you’re going to be gone for a week and you know there’s a senior that absolutely relies on you that if it snows, there were people that were quite deterred because they couldn’t commit to every time it snows.”

Last year’s program saw 30 recipients, and Sayles says she hopes the new accessible model will promote even more volunteers this year.

Seniors looking to sign up can contact Seniors Outreach at (780)-539-6255.

Grande Prairie pop culture fair “GPop” is returning for a second time. It will be held at D-Coy Armouries on November 24th from 4 to 9 p.m. and the 25th from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The self-proclaimed “best darn B-tier event” in Grande Prairie features everything from fashion to meet-and-greets. Event founder Blaine Burke says the show puts an emphasis on local artists and writers, to give them an opportunity to showcase their art in an affordable and fun setting.

“You would never realize that Grande Prairie has some really creative people, like sci-fi book authors, independent comic book creators, and board game designers. I think it’s so important because I didn’t see an event that showcased local talent the way I wanted to showcase local talent, and I really wanted to create more of a pop-culture, grassroots community here in Grande Prairie.”

Burke says when he started the event in 2022, he wanted to make sure that cost was not a prohibitive factor for vendors or customers. This year, entry to the venue is $5 and table rental for vendors is $65 for the full two days.

“We wanted to make it affordable, we wanted to make it about pop culture and not about making a pile of money. It’s very attainable for a vendor who may just be starting out, like the many artists we have, or for a seasoned veteran who is just looking for the opportunity to really showcase the stuff they have without having to sacrifice a lot of product up front.”

Additionally, Burke says when he came up with the idea, interaction was front of mind, and this year’s event features a variety of opportunities for attendees including photo ops, gaming, and meet-and-greets with local artists and this year’s special guest One Bad Sun lead singer and comic writer Shane Connery Volk.

Volk’s popular “Nottingham” series has been published five times, and Burke says Volk will be in attendance to sign and give away multiple first-edition copies to fans. The event is cash and e-transfer only, and a cash machine will not be on site.

The Town of Sexsmith received a four out of five bloom rating from Communities in Bloom.

The non-profit awards communities based on population category and criteria, and judges award the community with a “bloom rating” from one to five blooms. Wellness Coordinator for the Town of Sexsmith Melody Sample says the high rating is meaningful, as it validates the hard work community members have put into their gardens this year.

“It really encourages the gardeners and the people who take the extra time to make their yards beautiful and tidy, and it really is a lovely reflection of the community,” she says. “It means that we’re doing well, and we have a good base to go from, we have done a lot of work with our historical buildings, and beautifying the greenspaces within town.”

Additionally, Sample says the four out of five rating leaves room for improvement, and the community plans to use feedback to be even better next year.

“It’s a really great honour that we did get the four blooms, and good feedback that we can take back and find areas that we can improve on, and where we can tweak things so that we can just get better, which is really what we want to do.”

“We’re definitely looking forward to running again next year and even expanding on what we did this year.”

Sample says that Sexsmith is proud of the work that has been made in the sustainability sector in the community as well, between the community garden and the town’s solar farm beginning operations in 2020.

“All that gets taken into consideration in their rating.”

“We don’t have the same budget or volunteer base or staff base as some larger communities, so as a small community it does take a lot of hands to make a difference and that’s what we found this year.”

The local Communities in Bloom branch also awarded local gardener Jeff Peters with the 1st place prize for his 2023 garden in August.

The third annual Battle of the Badges charity hockey game is happening Sunday after the Grande Prairie Christmas Tree lighting. The game, hosted by the Grande Prairie Firefighters Association, will see the Grande Prairie Fire Department take on the Grande Prairie RCMP in the most Canadian way possible, a good old-fashioned hockey game.

Vice Chair of the Grande Prairie Firefighters Association Riley Boomgaarden says all the funds raised from the 50/50 tickets that are sold throughout the game and the donations made at the door will be donated back to the community, with this year’s charity of choice being the Sunrise House Youth Emergency Shelter.

“We try to keep all the funds raised within the community of Grande Prairie so people can see the direct result of their donations. This year, we chose Sunrise House. They just built a new building, and we are excited to support them this year.”

When it comes to what people can expect to see on the ice, Boomgaarden says there are good players on both sides, and he doesn’t expect that either team will hold anything back, but the Grande Prairie Fire Department team is coming in with a hot streak.

“I don’t want to be this guy, but we have kind of spanked them the past couple of years, so I think they are probably looking for a little bit of revenge. So we will have to see what kind of firepower they have this year.”

Entrance to the game at Bonnetts Energy Centre is by donation, and the doors will open at 5 p.m., with puck drop scheduled for 6 p.m. However, beforehand, the city will be holding the annual Christmas Tree Light Up festivities, with the tree itself being lit at 4:35 p.m.

The Grande Prairie Firefighters Charitable Foundation made a $10,000 donation to the Grande Prairie Public School Division to its division Nutrition Program on November 22nd.

According to the GPPSD, the foundation has remained committed to supporting the Nutrition Program to ensure students have access to nutritious food to support students’ academic and personal growth.

GPPSD Director of Teaching and Learning Corinne Kruse, received the donation on behalf of the school division from Foundation Chair Justin Davidson, his son Brooks, committee member Mark Brazier, and firefighters from Bravo 2.

The GPPSD says all of the funding will go towards schools as they continue to support students with breakfast and snacks.

In honour of National Child Day, the federal government has committed $750,000 over five years to PACE, Community Support Sexual Assault, and Trauma Centre for their Child Advocacy Centre in Grande Prairie.

PACE CEO Jacquie Aitken says the funding boost is significant, as the organization is in need of multiple staff positions to ensure services and support are available for clients.

“We really have the need for three to four staff positions, and last year we completed 283 forensic interviews,” she says. “In order to run an organization like that, we need a coordinator, we need frontline staff, and the frontline staff do crisis intervention, and they take care of the families through the court system.”

The Caribou Centre offers multiple support systems for child and youth victims of abuse and their families through the entire judicial process from as soon as charges are laid all the way through the trial process. Program Coordinator of the Caribou Centre Nicole Bockus says the entire process can be quite lengthy, and the funding will serve to support the hundreds of ongoing cases that go through the centre.

“The court system is such that it may take two or three years for the child to go through the entire process,” she says. “At any one time, we could be carrying probably 100 to 150 ongoing files, so we’re providing a lot of services to families throughout the year,”

Some of the supports provided by the Caribou Centre include stress management techniques for victims and their families, remote testimony options, and even a support dog for children and youth to utilize should they testify in person.

“If it does move to a trial we provide court preparations, so preparing children and youth for what they can expect when they go to testify, and we also provide court accompaniments, so we’ll go with them on the day of for them to testify before the judge.”

“We also have a facility dog, Archer, he is a yellow lab that supports children and youth when they have to either give a forensic interview or attend court so he’s there to emotionally support them through this.”

According to Bockus, children and youth now have the option to testify remotely, as disclosure of abuse in front of their families can be “very upsetting” and the remote option gives young people the opportunity to be truthful and safe in a familiar setting.

“The best part about that is that the child or youth does not have to fear that they’re going to walk into the courthouse and come face to face with the accused.”

“We really want to give the message that there’s something bad that happened to the child and we need to get them through it with as much dignity as possible for both the family and the child, and they can get through it.”

Additionally, Bockus says a portion of the federal funding will go to help the Caribou Centre’s provincial network to ensure all Albertans who are affected by child abuse have access to support.

The Grande Prairie Golden Age Centre is putting on a “Carol ‘o Gram” fundraising event from 6 to 9:00 p.m. on December 7th, 13th, and 16th to raise money for senior Christmas programming heading into the holiday season.

The event features a caroling team from the Hart Valley Christan Youth group and all proceeds from the event will go directly to Golden Age Centre’s Senior Christmas Programs.

Event organizer Elaine Jobin says the event is important to Golden Age and its clients as the centre targets seniors who don’t live in lodging who still live at home and do not have prior support from family or outside services.

“These seniors that we focus on, they’re low-income, so we’re just trying to raise some extra funds for them so that we can help them with some necessities and essentials this year.”

Jobin adds that the donation needs have shifted from winter clothing and gifts to basic necessities like food due to rising costs.

“In previous years we’ve collected the usual stuff- socks, mitts, and a crossword book or something like that, but this year is really different now,” she says. “What we’ve been doing is getting gift cards at local grocery stores for them just to help that way.”

The event features a caroling team from the Hart Valley Christan Youth Group and Jobin says anyone receiving an ‘o gram should expect a group of young singers ready to bring some Christmas cheer.

“You can expect a group of youth to show up at your door, say you want your grandma to be surprised by carolers, and I think it’s just great that we have youth in our community that are willing to do these types of things, you don’t see that much anymore.”

Jobin says all donations are accepted, and tax receipts are available for donations above $5. Anyone interested in donating or purchasing a Carol ‘o Gram is asked to contact Jobin at (780)-532-5818 or email [email protected] to book.

As the Provincial Government prepares to introduce its 2024-25 budget, Alberta Medical Association President Dr. Paul Parks says the AMA is committed to ensuring rural family medicine is a top priority.

According to Parks, the AMA has “committed every necessary AMA resource” to ensuring rural practices are recognized across the province, including Grande Prairie. He says it is important for the AMA to recognize rural practices and urban practices may not operate in the same way, and funding should reflect that.

“Family physicians that are in an urban centre that work within a community, their practice looks different than a family physician that’s in a smaller community or a regional centre,” he says.

“They may do some of their time in the hospital, some of their time in long-term care and continued care facilities, and some of their time in their community practices, so we’re just trying to make sure that the funding model supports all types of primary care.”

Parks adds that as rural communities continue to dwindle while demand increases, the AMA hopes to create a model that incentivizes physicians to operate and continue to operate in communities like Grande Prairie.

“Because Grande Prairie is challenged, like many [communities], there are a high percentage of people that can’t get access to family physicians.”

“It’ll make it so existing practices can stay and be able to take more patients on because they can build the team around them.”

The AMA has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Alberta which commits the Province and the AMA to work together to “modernize” Alberta’s Primary Health Care System.

The International Day of Persons with Disabilities is being marked in Grande Prairie at the Teresa Sargent Hall with the IDPD Peace Country Inclusive Community Award and luncheon.

The event will feature talks from Alberta wheelchair basketball Hall of Famer Brian McPherson, and the local IDPD theme is: “Removing Barriers, The Future is Accessible.”

Co-President of the IDPD Peace Region Planning Committee Kristen Reiswig says the theme highlights the IDPD’s efforts to provide community opportunities for everyone, regardless of disability.

“A big part of IDPD, is to encourage education about persons with disabilities and create a very accommodating community,” she says. “We really want to emphasize that despite any barriers or disability, we really need to provide opportunities to create a community that is as diverse and inclusive as possible.”

As part of the luncheon, the IDPD Peace Region will be presenting the Inclusive Community Award. Reiswig adds that the award is significant for the community as it recognizes individuals who demonstrate dedication to offering support to persons with disabilities.

“It’s a way to honour those individuals who have gone above and beyond, whether it’s in their jobs, in their volunteering, who’ve made a lot of strides to make the community more inclusive.”

“We want to ensure that everyone in our community, regardless of barriers, are able to participate.”

The event is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on December 1st and tickets are available for $10.