Weekly Roundup — June 12

Here's what's making news in Leduc and area this week:

• The manager of a local Chevrolet dealership says GM's decision to terminate their sales and service agreement is "unfair" and an inaccurate reflection of the store's recent sales record.

• A new website hopes to bring closure to families of missing persons.

• The children of Southfork finally have a park.

• Accessibility is a key issue in the construction of the new Leduc Recreation Centre.

• A local team is preparing for the upcoming Ride to Conquer Cancer in Calgary.

• In county news, Leduc County councillors want residents to be aware that an application has been filed to develop a gravel mining operation on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River, Warburg reviewed its financial audit, and Epcor hopes its new project will make its Genesee generating station a world leader in clean energy and carbon capture and sequestration.

• In sports, the LCHS Tiger rugby boys are hoping for redemption in the Tier 2 provincials, the Bantam Ticats football team has wrapped up their spring training camp, the Otters swim team is winding down their season after a strong showing at a recent meet in Red Deer, and it's charity golf season again.

• Alex has an omnibus edition of provincial court briefs, including a man who racked up $4,500 in fines stemming from one drunken ride through Beaumont and a man who stole tip money from a bartender to play the VLTs.

(Photo: Cheryl Agostinho, wife of the late Cst. Jose Agostinho, and Kool Mom Shannon Moroz unveiled the temporary sign dedicating the brand new Southfork park to Agostinho's memory after the park build on June 6. Agostinho, who was killed in the line of duty on July 4, 2005, while serving as a member of the Wetaskiwin RCMP, believed passionately in helping children become good citizens and loved Leduc, friends said. Photo by Alexandra Pope.)

Trouble Dog

Me and my dog Zoey have a love hate relationship.

She loves to chew up everything she can get her paws on and I hate to replace and the random items she destroys.

Don't get me wrong; I think I have a great dog that is very smart. But that’s her problem, she is just too smart for her own good.

It has been months since she tore apart the back seat of my car, and since then she has been sticking to socks and sandals. 

The other day I was preparing for what I knew would be a long day of layout at work.

I noticed Zoey and Twix (my roommates Chihuahua) were being oddly quiet. Usually when they are together Zoey is chasing Twix trying to get him to play with her, or he is growling and trying to attack her.   

I walked into my living room only to see Zoey looking scared to death with my fairly new glasses hanging out of her mouth. She dropped them the second she noticed me and ran to the back door.

I punished her, locked her in her kennel and left for work. 

This was the same day I decided it was time to sign Zoey up for obedience classes.

I was surprised to learn the six-week course would be about $130, which is good since I had to pay $200 to replace my glasses.

When I cam home from work I was still furious, but like usual she was cute, playful and wouldn’t take no for an answer. So I gave in, forgot about all the money I could be saving for a nice trip but instead had to spend on fixing all the stuff she broke, and played with her all evening and told her what a great dog she is and how much I adore her. (What can I say, I am sucker for her one floppy ear and the way she jumps around the second she thinks I am going to play with her.)

June 16 is the big day. She will start classes and hopefully chewing on socks, glasses and car seats will be a thing of the past.

I am not expecting for a miracle, just hoping, and maybe just maybe she will finally learn her name!

 

With the greatest of ease

Ashley Schiewe completes a jump on her horse Twice As Smooth during the open pre-training show jumping at the Beaumont horse trials, held at the Beaumont Ag Fairgrounds on June 6. Photo by Alex Pope.

Weekend madness!

I just had the most intense and tiring weekend workday I've had since I started working for the Rep. It's almost summer in Leduc and the surrounding area, so of course every weekend is stacked with outdoor events, and this one was no exception.

I went to an equestrian show and Timbits soccer jamboree in Beaumont, met some amazing young people who are making a difference in Devon at the Servus Credit Union Leaders of Tomorrow awards, and saw bad fashion and drunken baseball converge at the 37th annual New Sarepta Fair.

It was also an historic day in Leduc: the Southfork Moms (by far the Koolest moms in the city) realized their dream of having a playground in their own neighborhood for their kids to play on. Construction started at 8 a.m. and by 3 p.m. the park was full of kids swinging, sliding, running and climbing. It was inspiring to see how hundreds of volunteers could make quick work of the very labour-intensive building process, all with the best interests of the kids at heart.

It was fitting that the build happened on the anniversary of D-Day, because the park has been named for the late Jose Agostinho, who was not only an RCMP officer who gave his life in the line of duty on July 4, 2005, but also a former commanding officer of the Leduc 831 Black Knights Air Cadets Squadron and a huge proponent of the cadet program. The park is a fitting testament to his commitment to encouraging children to grow into helpful, respectful, active citizens of their community.

Check out the June 12 Rep for full coverage of the build. And also check out the Beaumont News and the Devon Dispatch, our sister papers. We share a lot of content but they also contain exclusives contributed by the Rep's staff. We're all one big, happy family.

And because no one reads this blog, I have absolutely no qualms whatsoever about posting this as a final thought: my very own LOLcat, starring Loki, the baddest tabby in Renaissance Place.

Weekly Roundup - June 5

Here's what's making news in Leduc and area this week:

• We went all Edmonton Sun-esque on our front page this week with this story.

• The International Region has been voted the best place in Alberta to do business by Venture Magazine.

• What's the 211? Our summer intern, Bobby Roy, knows.

• Leduc County councillors are urging the county's subdivision authority to treat all residents fairly after a development was approved in the Wizard Lake area despite the fact that an area structure plan has yet to be completed for the region.

• In other county news, New Sarepta has released an overview of their finances in advance of their 2009 budget, Calmar is cracking down on speeders,

• Leduc's Storefront School is undergoing a change of name and location.

• I am so proud of this cuteness.

• Alex interviewed the retired cop who helped take down an armed robber at CIBC on April 7.

• A provincial court judge had some harsh words for a man who pleaded guilty to dealing marijuana in Leduc.

• The Rep has kicked off its auction to raise funds for the Boys and Girls Club of Leduc.

• Everyone is invited to learn about Leduc's history at the Grain Elevator this summer.

Steer smooch

Sadie Hofstra leans in to give her steer a smooch after receiving the title of Grand Champion Steer at the Leduc 4-H Beef Club's Show and Sale at the Leduc Recreation Centre June 1. (Photo by Alex Pope.)

Bloomin' Leduc

I have this fascination with taking pictures of plant life in its various states of bloom and barrenness throughout the year. I've done frosty berries in the fall, ice-encrusted trees in winter and budding branches in early spring. This has got to be the prettiest season yet, though:


This is a bush right outside the entrance to our office. Not sure what it is, but it's lovely.


I really feel like we've earned this spring, considering two weeks ago another bush outside our office looked like this:


Welcome to spring in Alberta!