It’s cool and it may rain, so please come prepared.  If it is pouring when you are scheduled to start, turn back home!

Everyone loves Canada Day in Redwood and the event is growing in popularity every year.  The RMCA needs volunteers to keep this event a running success.   This is a great opportunity to get involved in the community, meet new friends and have fun all at the same time!   Help is needed Sunday, July 1 in the following areas: 

·         Bike parade decorating helpers (for crafty people who like to work with kids)

·         Table and chair set-up and take down (for behind-the-scenes types with strong backs)

·         Beer garden security (must have very cool sunglasses)

·         Bartenders (cheerful with experience pouring beer)

·         Food service (familiarity with basic food handling safety an asset)

·         Kid’s activity helpers (another fun thing to do if you like to work with kids!)

·         Ticket sales (for those who are good with money!)

·         And more!!

To sign up for the big day, call Wanda at Townsite Office @ 949-3563 or email redwoodvolunteer@gmail.com

For ages 7 & up.  Join Art Instructor Jola Muran on Sunday afternoons in May and June to learn about the great painters.  Express yourself on canvas with watercolour and acrylics and on paper with chalk and oil pastels.  If the weather is nice, sessions will go outdoors.  Sign up for all four Sunday sessions for $80 or $25 per session.  Cost includes all art supplies. 

Dates:  Sunday, May 20, 27, June 3, 10

Time:  1:00 – 4:00pm

Download a registration form Sunday Series Registration Form

by Jeremy Broadfield of the Cochrane Eagle

After 30 years of service, Redwood Meadows Emergency Services (RMES) Capt. Dave McPherson has hung up his helmet for the last time.  “I decided that 30 years was a good career,” said McPherson, a resident of the townsite.

RMES deputy chief Rob Evans said that to volunteer for that long is something special.  “Giving that much time and effort to the department, it just means the world to the community,” he said.“It’s sad to see Dave go and a lot of knowledge goes with him,” Evans added.

McPherson joined RMES in 1981 after he moved to the community while working for Alberta Government Telephones where he did switching maintenance and later database management.

After joining RMES, McPherson literally helped to build the department.  He remembers working with fire chief Ed Bowen to build some of the original fire trucks.  “Fundraising was just about non-existent back then, so we bid on decommissioned trucks and rebuilt them in house,” said McPherson.

The biggest project was building the department’s second engine, known as the Squirt, which features a 50-foot boom. It was constructed from parts of several decommissioned trucks purchased by the department.  “I spent most of the winter of ’97 here tearing the truck apart,” he said.  McPherson thinks that both he and Bowen spent around 1,500 hours each working to build the Squirt.

After spending all that time building it McPherson said they had the misfortune of having a small electrical fire burn out some of the truck’s wiring.  “I spent about three weeks laying on my back and I had to splice in about six feet of wiring underneath it to get the truck running again,” said McPherson, laughing.

In addition to all the time he spent building the fire trucks, he also spent a lot of time responding to emergencies.  “I went on probably 95-99 per cent of the calls at that time,” he said.

McPherson could almost run down to the hall faster than he could jump in his car and drive down.  One call that stands out in his memory was when a house on his cul-de-sac burnt to the ground on a freezing cold, snowy, night in November 1997.  “I got a call 8 o’clock at night and they said your neighbour’s house is on fire,” said McPherson, “I rolled up my garage door and they were right.”

The cold weather made fighting that fire difficult, initially the fire hydrants were frozen.  “At about that time I was getting a little more urgent on my messages over the radio to get the water tanker down here, we’ve got problems with water,” he said.  McPherson ended up staying up all night at that scene.

In the morning a neighbour made him breakfast and he started digging the hose lines out from under the snow.  “We had probably 2,000 feet of fire hose laying under three feet of snow…it was one of the heaviest snowfalls we’ve ever had,” he said.

Despite the hardships that come with the job, McPherson never really considered retirement until after he turned 65. McPherson turns 67 in May.  “My goal was to get the 30 years,” he said.

Sustain Kananaskis is a grass-roots initiative made up of Bragg Creek and Calgary residents, campers, trail users and out-door enthusiasts.   The group was formed in response to the apparent lack of public awareness, both locally and in Calgary, of proposed clear-cut logging plans in the West Bragg Creek area, particularly in the areas where recreational trails are located. 

Sustain Kananskis is asking that the public be given a “voice” – a transparent approval process that includes facilitated, accessible and meaningful public consultation in regards to logging activities in Kananaskis Country. 

The group also encourages the residents of Redwood Meadows to get involved and informed because of the potential impact of logging activity on the Elbow River Watershed.  Writing letters to local MLAs and government officials is the most effective means of having a voice and SustainK strongly encourages residents to make their concerns known.  Please visit the Sustain Kananaskis website at www.sustaink.ca for contacts and details on an effective  letter writing campaign.

 The Wild Rose Club was established so that older adults (50+) would have a place to meet socially, with coffee and muffins every Wednesday morning from 10:00 am to Noon in the Wild Rose Room at Redwood House.  It is an opportunity to chat, discuss local and national events, share stories, problems, good news, bad news and generally put the world right.  We also have gatherings to discuss club business, and to enjoy the fellowship of dinners and outings together.  Some of our 2012 outings included:  a visit to Stars Ambulance Service and attending Rosebud Theatre in Rosebud Alberta.  Our program of activities runs from September to May.    For further information you are welcome to come and join us Wednesdays or contact President Irene Lenz lenzci@shaw.ca

Click here to read the Assessment as prepared for Alberta Sustainable Resource Development

Bragg Creek Bear Hazard Assessment Final

The Redwood Meadows Sustainability Committee (RMSC) is now an official branch of town council. The committee, made up of a group of local citizens, sought and was granted council approval at the January 20 council meeting. The following outlines some of the key features of the new committee.

The purpose of the RMSC is to partner with council and community members to:

• Provide creative hands-on support in decision-making.
• Offer education and tools.
• Research sustainability opportunities for the community.
• Promote stewardship locally, and as members of a global community.

 Projects we are currently working on:

• Promoting wildlife awareness through the BearSmart program.
• Promoting local trading and commerce.
• Building awareness through community events.
• Researching and implementing a sustainable waste management program.
• Supporting sustainability discussion and decision-making as part of ongoing and future Redwood Meadows community development.
• Pursuing and planning for Redwood Meadows to acquire “Green Neighbourhood” certification from the International Audubon Society.

 The RMSC has already taken action on a number of initiatives. These include:

• Setting up a Freecycle Network for the communities of Redwood Meadows and Bragg Creek.  http://groups.freecycle.org/BraggCreekAB/posts/all.
• Planning to establish a waste management subcommittee.
• Partnering with the Redwood Meadows Golf Course to groom winter cross-country ski trails.
• Adding a “sustainability” page to the new Redwood Meadows website.
• Planning a March 26^th Earth Hour Celebration in conjunction with the RMCA.
• Planning an Earth Day Celebration on April 22^nd to include events, vendors, art workshops, etc.

 The RMSC is looking for community members to be advocates for sustainability in our backyard and on a global level. Our vision encompasses a broad range of commitments that include lessening our ecological footprint as individuals and as a community, enhancing social connections and finding ways to live happily and healthfully within the community. 

 Do you have the skills?  Do you have the passion?  Is there a project or a cause that is dear to your heart? If so, we strongly encourage you to join us in taking an active role in shaping this community.                                              

Please contact Shana at shana@barbourwelsh.com.