Jill Lavis

Amidst another wave of crib recalls, Health Canada is reminding parents of the potential hazards of drop-side cribs.

Five million cribs have been recalled since 2007. There have been seven suffocation deaths in the United States, and three non-fatal entrapments in Canada because of drop-side cribs.

The most recent recall Feb. 24 was for 1,200 Generation 2 (no longer in business) and ChildESIGNS drop-side cribs, distributed by Montreal-based Juvenile Products Inc., that were sold in Canada at the Bay, Sears Canada and other large retailers from 2001 to 2004.

This comes after the January drop-side crib recall from Quebec-based Dorell Distribution Canada, and the largest crib recall in Canadian history totalling 968,841 from the British Columbia-based company Stork Craft in November.

This is something that is all too familiar to Cochrane’s Jill Lavis.

She was shocked last November to find out her baby’s Stork Craft crib had been recalled. Her little girl had been sleeping in it since April.

The problem was plastic hardware on the cribs wore out over time, allowing the drop-side to detach creating a space between the mattress where infants can get stuck, even leading to suffocation.

She was even more shocked to find out the crib had already been recalled in January 2009 because plastic brackets holding up the drop-side wore out and released the side of the crib.

“After watching the stories on the news I said there is no way she is going back in that crib,” said Lavis.

While Stork Craft did not refund the cribs, the company sent out plastic repair kits, which Lavis thinks is “a joke.”

Cochrane mom Jill Lavis holds the plastic replacement parts sent to her by Stork Craft cribs, which spurred the biggest crib recall — nearly one million — in Canadian history. Photo by Rachel Maclean

“It looks like cheap plastic . . . do you want to trust your kid’s life to that?” Lavis asked. “The problem in the first place was cheap plastic breaking.”

In January, Stork Craft announced concern there could be thousands of faulty cribs still in use, despite the two recalls, because so few parents had ordered the repair kits.

Lavis has now joined a group filing a class action suit, being put together by Merchant Law Group LLP, to at least get back the cost of the bed.

“It’s $250 of firewood,” said Lavis, who kept the crib for the class action suit. “And I spent $500 on a new one. I bought the most solid hunk of crib I could find.”

But what Lavis finds really ridiculous is cribs are not the only baby products being recalled — not only has her crib been recalled twice, but her play pen once, and she even thought her car seat was, but it turned out it was a different model.

“I’m just waiting for the next thing to be recalled,” she said. “It makes you wonder about the safety of anything.”

Over the past few years lead-tainted toys, suffocating bassinets and faulty changing tables have made news for the wrong reasons.

Lavis said quality should be of the utmost importance when it comes to products for kids. She feels there is a need for stricter regulations and better testing from Health Canada.

Health Canada is currently looking to revamp the Cribs and Cradles Regulations, which hasn’t seen any changes since it’s inception in 1974.

The section of Health Canada responsible for the enforcement of the Hazardous Products Act (HPA) is the Consumer Product Safety Directorate. But officials have to follow the current legislation — which approved the dropside cribs — and if there is a problem there are no mandatory recalls in Canada. Even making the problems public is voluntary.

“The product safety guys say they test things, but why so many recalls,” Lavis asked.

“I was on a group conference call with Health Canada and they said they can only simulate so much in a lab.” .

Health Canada said the best thing for concerned parents is to visit cpsr-rspc.hc-sc.gc.ca/PR-RP/home-accueil-eng.jsp to verify if their model of crib has been recalled and what further action is recommended.

Samantha Schaerer

A Cochrane High School graduate is gradually readjusting to life on dry land after a spectacular shipwreck that saw her stranded on a crowded lifeboat for more than 40 hours.

Samantha Schaerer, 18, of Bearspaw had been taking some university classes aboard the S.V. Concordia, a floating classroom for the Nova Scotia-based West Island College International that capsized 893 kilometres off the coast of Brazil.

“I had wanted to travel after high school, but I also wanted to take some courses,” Schaerer said from her Bearspaw home Feb. 25 of the Class Afloat program.

With her parents’ support, she left in September, and says she fell in love with sea life.

“We learned so much about maintenance, sailing, day watch and so on,” she explained adding after adjusting to a life without the modern conveniences such as texting and Facebook, it was “nice to be away from all that.”

The Concordia ship, a floating classroom. Photos submitted

But on Feb. 19, Schaerer was in a classroom with some of the other 48 students on board when she became aware that a storm was brewing.

“I knew something wasn’t right,” she said, describing water coming up into the mess area and onto the deck. “I was a little scared, but the crew . . .  were pretty organized considering the situation.”

All 48 students, eight teachers and eight professional crew members abandoned the sinking ship, spending the next two days crammed together on four life rafts waiting to be rescued.

Samantha Schaerer of Bearspaw (grey sweater), who was on the boat, is now safe at home with her family.

“We huddled together and sang a bit,” said Schaerer. “And we talked a lot about what we’d do when we got home.”

When finally a plane flew overhead, the students knew help was on the way, but even as a cargo ship came into view, the ordeal wasn’t over yet.

“It was very rough and we could only get two on the cargo ship until the next day, so that was tough,” Schaerer said.

Students and faculty are loaded off their lifeboats.

But by the end of following day, all 64 passengers had been safely transported to Rio de Janeiro, where they made contact with their families.

The students left most of their possessions on the ship that sank within 30 minutes, but it’s her classmates Schaerer would most like to see.

“I miss them a lot,” she said adding, she’s preparing to complete her courses at the college’s dry land campus.

Ted Morton

Bragg Creek could have a new MLA to vote for in the next provincial election.

The hamlet, currently represented by Conservative Foothills-Rocky View MLA Ted Morton, could be pulled into the Banff-Cochrane riding according to recommendations from the Electoral Boundaries Commission, which released its interim report for provincial election boundaries changes Feb. 25.

Another big change is the addition of four seats, bringing the Alberta legislature to 87 seats: two in Calgary, one in Edmonton and one in Fort McMurray.
Conservative Banff-Cochrane MLA Janis Tarchuk said the recommendations could actually simplify things in her riding.

In the last provincial election newly annexed land in Cochrane still fell into the Foothills-Rocky View riding, so some neighbours who lived across the street from each other in Sunset Ridge were in two different ridings.

“But overall not a huge amount of changes for us,” said Tarchuk.

Brian Evans, the former MLA for Banff-Cochrane from 1989 to 1997 and member of the electoral boundary commission, said the riding reflects more of the riding that was under his term — including Bragg Creek.

He said the commission’s biggest challenge was the rapidly growing corridor between Edmonton and Calgary — which effects Conservative Foothills-Rocky View MLA Ted Morton who could see some big changes — even a name change to Carstairs-Rocky View.

The commission recommends the area south of Tsuu T’ina Nation should be added to the Highwood riding from the Foothills-Rocky View division, and the area east of Highway 22 is added to the existing Banff-Cochrane division — including Bragg Creek but not Redwood Meadows.

The area of the existing Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills division south of Highway 582 and east of Highway 766 is proposed for the new Rocky View riding, as is the area of the existing Airdrie-Chestermere division north of Township Road 260.

Morton said he wants to talk to his board and communities before he makes a decision on whether or not to support the recommended changes.

“Not everyone is happy,” said Morton.

The proposed boundary changes are now back on the table for public feedback until April 2, 2010.

Based on this feedback, a second series of public hearings will be held from April 12 to 30 before finalizing the electoral boundaries and names.

A final report will be submitted to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly by July, 2010.

If approved by the Legislative Assembly in the fall the new electoral map will be used for the next provincial election.

To make your comments heard, visit www.altaebc.ab.ca.

Alberta’s total population, according to the commission, is 3,556,583. Based on this number, electoral divisions should have an average population of 40,880, and the goal is to have electoral divisions within +/- 25 per cent of this average.

On the ground in Haiti

By Tamara Palinka
Special to the Eagle

Haiti embeds itself further into my soul as each day passes.

I can no longer imagine life without Sonson being the centre of it. I have grown accustomed to the rank smells of rot in the markets, the horns going all day long, the chaos of driving here, seeing army tanks and uniforms every where.

I am no longer surprised or overwhelmed, well at least not most of the time.

Last week a child died and there is something about the loss of a baby that strikes the heart.

The mother of the child was wailing in agony. I have been fighting to hold on emotionally from day one. I’ve been pushing everything back so I could move forward and do what I came to do, but  throughout the day I find tears surfacing with an ambition of their own.

By mid-afternoon, for the first time since I arrived, I hung my head and let it all out.

I cried for the orphans we found on the street that day. I cried for all the little babies that died. I cried for the hope that the people of Haiti carry in their hearts. I cried for the amputated parents that could no longer care for their children.

I cried for all the homeless in the streets, for all the patients we release who have nothing to go back to, and for all the people that only have a sheet for protection. I cried for the future that is upon us — the rainy season.

Rainy season is slowly making its way and constantly reminding us, with previews almost nightly, of what is coming.

I fear that with this will be a new rush of sickness and death. How can people live through the rains and hurricanes with no shelter?

The tents couldn’t possibly survive a category hurricane. I have no answers. There are just more problems than solutions and it’s difficult to accept.

A few days ago a team of us went to an area not far from our hospital.

They still had not received aid.

A three-year-old child with an amputation came to me. He is living in the street with his family of  about 25, and he is sick.

We made our way through the area and came upon a small community of people who had lost everything.

Tamara Palinka holds a malnourished baby in the front seat of this aid vehicle. Photo submitted

Their new homes were dangerously located below what was left of their old homes — just waiting for another aftershock to finish what the earthquake did not.

I watched from a hill as they bathed, cleaned, ate and did laundry in water filled with human waste. It was grey and they are drinking it. A man with a bull horn explains  they need assistance. We listen but there is nothing we can do.

The medics drain puss from the three-year-old’s arm stump, give him a shot and clean his wounds. We have done what we can for today.

Sometimes at night I like to walk through the adult tent and hand out lollipops. It is a high point for me to see how each face lights up as they graciously accept this small token.

Even the hard working doctors  accept this gift with a smile. The work the doctors  have done here is nothing short of amazing.

Back in the early days when they had to amputate without anaesthesia one doctor sobbed deeply as he sawed  through the leg of a child. This child tried to comfort the doctor while he was losing his limb.

I would never have believed that this kind of strength existed anywhere if I didn’t experience it every day.

Our hospital is changing. We are looking to renovate due to the coming storms and it is necessary if we want to survive.

We still have a lot of work to do before we are prepared for the rain. I consider myself very lucky as I have maneuvred my way into an abandoned trailer on our grounds.

It leaks a little, but it offers better protection for Sonson and I.

I dream of the day Sonson and I can go home together, and hope that time comes soon.

Tamara Palinka, a former area resident whose mother, Kate Millar, lives in Cochrane, has been on the ground in Haiti since Jan. 25 with the University of Miami’s Project Medishare and has agreed to send updates on the chaos caused by the 7.0 earthquake Jan. 12 and following aftershocks.

Paul Dorotich

Canada’s much-debated Own the Podium program has successfully turned the country into an athletics powerhouse, says a Cochrane performance analyst who was on-site for the 2010 Vancouver Games.

Paul Dorotich, who works as part of the training staff for the national speedskating team, said the 14 gold medals earned by Canadians at the Games — the most by any country in Winter Olympics history — is clear evidence that our athletes now have the necessary support to contend against the best in the world.

“Although we didn’t win the medal count as we certainly had tried for we did own the top step of the podium,” said Dorotich, whose job was created as a result of the Own the Podium program.

“I think the success of the Own the Podium is that it has put in place some of the extra things required to get to that next level and now it’s going to be a question of can we sustain that level of funding.”

In all, Canadian athletes took home 26 medals and finished in third in the overall standings behind Germany and the United States.

Dorotich said many of Canada’s top athletes didn’t seem satisfied with just a good showing in their respective event. He pointed to biathlete Jean-Phillipe Le Guellec’s performance in the 15-kilometre mass start event as an example of this.

“(Le Guellec) thought to himself either I play it safe and finish in the middle of the pack . . . or I absolutely go for it,” said Dorotich, who previously held a similar job with the Canadian biathlon team. “In the end, it didn’t work out, he finished near the back of the pack, but he absolutely went for it.”

“Own the Podium has created the mindset in the athletes that we can be the best and that’s what we’re striving for.”

Dorotich said a similar example from the speed-skating track came when Christine Nesbitt grabbed gold in the women’s 1,000-metre event.

Although she had won, Nesbitt seemed dissatisfied with her performance when speaking with reporters afterwards.

“It wasn’t her best skate, but she was Olympic champion,” Dorotich said. “She is the type of person that doesn’t just compare her results to everyone else’s, but instead wants to continue improving and pushing herself.”

Looking back, Dorotich describes the Olympics as a whirlwind of emotions, but an exciting experience nonetheless.

The Cochrane resident’s contract with the national speed-skating team expires in April and officials will have to see what funding is available before deciding whether to re-sign him.

“It’s an uncertain time for a lot of sports,” Dorotich said. “I am not sure where I’m going to end up, but one way or another I will still be involved in sport, new adventures ahead.”

Martin Parnell

It seems even the limitations of his own body can’t stop Cochrane’s Martin Parnell from reaching his goal of 250 marathons in a year.

During his 30th marathon Feb. 10, Parnell felt pain in his lower left leg and went to the doctor to have some tests run. Originally it was determined by a clinical doctor that Parnell had a stress fracture near his ankle that would sideline him for up to two months.But Parnell’s own physician, Dr. William Hanlon, was unconvinced and sent the seasoned runner to a specialist at the University of Calgary. There it was determined that Parnell had developed a muscle strain likely due to some inflexibility in his left ankle.

While coping with a muscle strain in his lower left leg, Cochrane's marathon man Martin Parnell, right, returned to his goal of 250 marathons in a year with some friends on March 1, walking 50 lengths on a trail in the Cochrane community of West Pointe. Photo by Jeremy Nolais.

“As you can imagine it was a bit of a rollercoaster for me,” Parnell said.

“One day I was told it’s a stress fracture and you’re out for six to eight weeks, the next thing I’m told is it’s a muscle strain, which you can probably do something with.”

Cochrane physiotherapist Serge Tessier, who works with Parnell on a weekly basis at Cochrane Sport Physical Therapy, said his patient is able to carry on with his campaign, but must remain careful in the weeks ahead.

“As seasoned of an athlete as Martin is, taking on the task of running this distance in such a short period of time is going to lead to certain adaptive changes over time,” Tessier said. “I think Martin has to be very smart about what he does to minimize the risks of developing these stress fractures.”

Eager to return to his mission, Parnell headed back out on March 1 for marathon No. 31, this time walking 50 lengths of a trail in the Cochrane community of West Pointe.

“I can’t just go out and start running, that would create the same issue which is probably not a smart thing to do,” Parnell said. “I am just going to have to figure out how to manage this issue . . . it’s going to be sort of week-to-week at the moment.”

While waiting for test results Parnell missed 11 marathon days.

“I have given myself 12 spare days when planning this whole thing. I guess I still have one day left,” Parnell said, chuckling.

Nevertheless, the determined athlete remains convinced he can reach his goal and raise $250,000 for Right To Play, an international humanitarian organization supported by athletes around the world. So far, Parnell has raised $9,600 and has $22,000 committed by sponsors of future marathons.

“The support from the community has been absolutely fantastic,” he said.

And his brave endeavour has also earned a great deal of international attention. Parnell was interviewed over the phone by CNN, asked to write an article for a running magazine in the Czech Republic and even received a get-well video message from Slovakian NHL star Zdeno Chara, who is a Right To Play ambassador himself.

More information about Martin Parnell’s marathon campaign can be found at marathonquest250.com.

Grace Priest

Even though she recently celebrated her 102nd birthday, Grace Priest can still tell one heck of a story.

One would never expect this elderly woman, with all the prim manners of a born-and-raised Londoner, to be filled with energy. But her mind is strong; her laugh is hearty; her voice is clear and filled with the oratorical flourishes that can only come from a lifetime of storytelling.

Her stories come from nearly a century of service to the Lord; as she describes it, a relationship of mutual dedication and trust that has carried her through life, including 27 years as a missionary in some of the most remote aboriginal communities in Canada.

Taken in

Since 2000, Priest has lived a quiet life in a West Valley home, taken in by former British Columbia residents Wendy and Claude Hoekstra.

Always striving to do God’s work, Grace, then 93, started an evening Bible study in Kaslo, B.C., where she had moved after decades of missionary work.

Wendy was recruited by Priest to join the Bible study, and Wendy was soon bringing Claude along too. It wasn’t long before they all became friends.

Priest’s husband had recently died, and while she lived in a beautiful log house on Mirror Lake, the property was large, and she wasn’t getting the care anyone in their 90s needs. Wendy, a home care nurse, was awed by Priest’s life story, and wanted to help her settle somewhere.

Priest tells a story during her 102nd birthday celebration. Although her health is waning, she is still energetic for her age, and tells one heck of a story. Photo by Alan Mattson

“I had only just been praying,” Priest recalled. “Saying, ‘Lord, what am I going to do? Will you open up the way I should go?’”

There was a knock on the door — it was the mail, containing a thank you card that happened to have a scripture reading at the bottom: “The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land and will strengthen your frame.” (Isaiah 58:11)

Then, minutes later, a second knock — it was Wendy.

“I’ve come to ask you something,” Priest recalled her saying. “Will you come live with us?”

Her prayers were answered. She said she’d love to go, and packed her things.

But the Hoekstras’ one-bedroom summer cottage on Kootenay Lake wasn’t enough for the three of them.

Claude, a teacher, recalled working in Cochrane once, and how much he enjoyed the town. So they started searching for a place.

It wasn’t long before the Hoekstras found their three-level West Valley home.

For Priest, after spending two World Wars holed up in the tube of London, and 27 years of missionary work — no running water; no heat — this was paradise.

Wendy had some convincing to do first. “I said to my husband, ‘it could be six years (or) six months (before she passes away).’”

She admits there’s “been a few moments,” including Priest’s diagnosis of colon cancer the first year living in Cochrane.

She fought it off, and “bounced back like crazy.”

After surgery, the cancer never returned.

“She’s exceptional, so that makes it easy,” Wendy said. “And she’s 102. Who would have thought?”

‘The way opened up’

Priest’s connection to God started when she was a misbehaved little girl growing up in London.

One night, after a punishment from mum, “I heard His voice say, ‘Don’t be a bad girl, be a good girl — I want you to follow me.’” Priest said. “That’s how it started.”

During World War II, she became a Sunday school teacher and leader of youth, guiding them through Germany’s terrifying siege of Britain.

In 1948, Priest’s sister, a war bride, moved to Nova Scotia with her new Canadian husband, and asked Priest to come along and study in Canada.

After Priest arrived, she learned the college in Halifax had been closed and consolidated with one in Toronto — but that didn’t deter her.

She spent three years at the Toronto school, finishing her studies and meeting friends that would lead her to a life of missionary work.

“The way opened up,” Priest said.

In 1949, during a summer break from college, Priest and a friend, Barbara Warren, decided to pay their own way and do missionary work with 200 Cree natives in Fort Severn, near Hudson Bay, in the far reaches of northern Manitoba.

They were the only white people there, and they lived in an old wheelhouse with no plumbing, no running water, no oil for the furnace, and no shortage of mice.

The mail came just four times a year.

“We didn’t care. We called for the Lord to do his work,” Priest said.

Finding love on the Mackenzie

After six years in Fort Severn, the Pentecostal church asked her to work with the Slavey aboriginal tribe, along the Mackenzie River, where she would stay for eight years — and find love.

Grace rides a boat down the Mackenzie River, circa 1955.

The leader of the northern Pentecostal missions was so pleased with Grace and the other missionaries along the Mackenzie, they decided to build a church.

One day, Dan Priest stepped off a plane. Standing six-foot-two with broad shoulders, the farm-boy-turned-missionary was ready to build the church.

Dan and Grace had met the summer before doing volunteer work, and a special connection — a spark — was certainly there.

But Grace was concerned about marriage — she wanted to serve God, and was six years older than Dan, an odd setup for marriage at the time.

She said he “didn’t care,” and asked Grace for her hand in marriage three weeks after arriving. They were together until Dan passed away in 2001, at the age of 89.

When others went south, she went north

After her time with the Slavey tribe, Grace was called to work with the Inuit in Coppermine (now called Kugluktuk in Nunavut), one of the most remote missions for the Pentecostal church.

It was 1967, Canada’s centennial year. Most Canadians were thinking of celebration, not a years-long mission in the harsh and isolated North.

But she agreed, and brought Dan with her. When others went south, Grace kept going north — despite opposition from Coppermine’s commissioner, the leader of the community.

“He said, ‘We’ve got the Catholic church, we’ve got the Anglican church. We don’t want you Pentecostals. The plane’s still here — get on it and get out,’ ” Grace recalled.

But like many times in Grace’s life, a path opened before her. A local teacher offered his floor as a place to sleep until a boat arrived with materials to build the church.

The sun was setting, ready for its winter slumber, and Coppermine prepared for perpetual darkness.

The river ice broke with the coming of spring, and the boat came with its annual load of supplies, including building materials for the church.

_______________________

“When most people would run in the situation, she’s willing to stay. That is the type of character I surmised — one that is willing to sacrifice her life. She’s kind of a Mother Teresa of the North”
— Author Tim Day, whose upcoming book A Real Fine Cookie features a fictional character based on Priest and her experiences

_______________________

Dan, who was a carpenter, started building just the outer walls, “so we could live in that until we could do the rest.”

Grace and Dan lived in a tent on the church site while it was being built around them — quite a feat in the constant cold and wind of the North.

“We put a sofa in the tent,” she said, laughing. “And I became a carpenter too.”

“You learn these things, and you know you have to do them. You’re called upon to do things you’ve never done in your life before. Even asking me to bring a baby into the world.”

One night, Grace was cooking at a uranium mine, in the hopes of getting one of their old trucks for the church. A foreman approached and told her of a woman — floating in a canoe, in labour, ready to have a baby at any moment.

“(She) didn’t want to go up to Inuvik (the closest hospital) to have it,” Grace recalled, “and they knew there was going to be trouble (with the birth).”

“Would you bring it into the world?” he asked her.

Grace was shocked and afraid — two floating canoes, and the pitch darkness of the North at -40C.

“I said, ‘I’ve only seen how to do it once,’” Grace recalled, “and he said ‘well, you’ll have to do it, because there’s nobody else.’”

It was a hard birth. The first thing Grace saw was a hand. “It wasn’t right,” she said — even she knew the head was supposed to come first.

She prayed and pushed the hand back in, only to see a foot come out next.

It was a breech birth — meaning the baby was being born feet-first, a serious complication that could lead to the infant’s death.

After hours of prayer and worry, the little girl finally came out. “She was only four pounds,” Grace said.

They sent for the nurse, and Grace’s husband brought them in from the canoes.

“They called it Grace, after me. Because they were so thankful.”

The church still stands

Despite warnings from the church about working with northern aboriginals, the relationship between Grace and the Coppermine Inuit started well and only grew during the nine years she spent there.

“They took to us and loved us right away. (They) were so good to us . . . they brought us this lovely arctic char, the best fish in the world.”

Priest as a missionary with Inuit children in Coppermine, now known as Kugluktuk.

Particularly, her connection with the children of Coppermine was special.

“I taught them how to knit and crochet. I showed them how to cook, and they loved that.”

That love became obvious when a couple showed up at the door in Cochrane this summer, asking for Grace.

At first, Grace had no idea who they were.

The man said, “Do you remember Benny Doctor?”

It all came flooding back. She had last seen Benny when he was 10 years old, 43 years ago, at the Mackenzie River mission.

After hearing Grace had turned 100, Benny and his wife decided they had to see her, no matter what. They came as far as they could by canoe, and then hitchhiked rides until they found her.

“Now I’m looking at him, married,” Grace said, close to tears as she told the story of Benny’s return.

“These kids were from troubled areas,” explained Wendy Hoekstra, “but all of them just remember being loved by her.”

Benny and his wife were one of four couples that came to see Grace this year, after learning she had turned 100.

Benny told Grace that many folks still attended the church she built, and were following God.

“I (asked) my husband many times, do you think we’re doing any good?” Grace said. “You wonder what you’ve done . . . I’ll tell you, it’s wonderful.”

Inspiration

Tim Day, a writer living now living in Montana, met Grace and became so fascinated by her character and her stories that he travelled to Coppermine with her in 2003 — on his own dime — to learn about her experience.

He said he spent days interviewing Grace and the Inuit, and has just finished a fictional book with a character based on her, including some of her real-life stories.

A Real Fine Cookie is currently in the editing process, and Day hopes it’ll be out by the end of the year.

“When most people would run in the situation, she’s willing to stay,” Day said in an interview from Montana.

“That is the type of character I surmised from Grace Priest — one that is willing to sacrifice her life. She’s kind of a Mother Teresa of the North.”

‘He’s always been with me’

Even today, Grace is still active in local churches, even speaking at engagements.

Grace regularly visits friends in the hospital and goes to the Bethany Care Centre twice a week for outpatient checkups and socialization — predictably, she attracts a pretty large crowd with her stories.

More than 100 people from all over came to her 102nd birthday — dozens more sent cards and telegrams — which she celebrated Jan. 16.

More than 100 friends, family and well-wishers attended the 102nd birthday celebration for Grace Priest, a former missionary who has come to live in Cochrane for her final years. Photo by Alan Mattson

“It’s just wonderful to know that I can meet all these people again, and I’m in my right mind,” Grace said. “I do thank God for the health and strength he gives me, and a good memory.”

But like any centenarian, Grace’s health is slowly deteriorating. Any major trips require a wheelchair, and her sight and hearing are steadily declining.

“When you get to a certain point, a year can be a long time,” Claude said.

When asked what advice she would give after 102 years of life, Grace paused for a moment — and said turn to the word of God.

“He’s the only one you can trust. Put your trust in him and he’ll never leave you or forsake you. And he’s always been with me.”

International Women's Day

International Women’s Week 2010 begins March 7 and wraps up March 13, with International Women’s Day March 8.

To celebrate the week, a few local Cochranites are getting together for a panel discussion on gender equality.

The topic is “Re-examining our practical commitment to the equality of women and men” and will be held March 7 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Java Jamboree.

“We have just celebrated the 80th anniversary of the settlement of the ‘Persons Case,’ a feat accomplished by five Alberta women on Oct. 18, 1929,” said event organizer Pat Verge. “At that time, Canadian women were recognized as ‘persons’ and became eligible for a seat in the Senate. It was a big step for the establishment of equality between women and men in Canada.

“As well, it is now 15 years since the fourth world conference on women in Beijing, China. We’d like to re-examine gender equality, not only to see how far we have come, but the many steps left and how we can practically take them.”

The panelists include Dr. Anne Moore, a professor of religious studies at the University of Calgary; Mary Lou Davis, owner of Bentleys Books and former Cochrane town councillor; Farah Mocquais, a specialist in cultural competency and management training and development; and Dr. Pierre-Yves Mocquais, a professor of French and former Dean of Humanities at the University of Calgary.

The evening is sponsored by the Bahá’í Community of Cochrane.

For information call 403-932-4860.

Alicia Grime

When local pianist Alicia Grime first received an e-mail inviting her to compete in an international competition, she thought it was merely junk mail.

But on closer examination, and in communicating with the director of the American Protégé International and Strings Competition of 2010, she said she decided to “go for it.”

American Protégé is an organization that invites musicians from around the world to compete together by submitting a DVD of a musical performance.

“I thought I’d enter an audition tape and see what happens,” said the Bearspaw-area music teacher, adding, “they won’t tell me how they knew about me.”

Grime said she took an entire year to work on the project at her electronic keyboard in her scenic farmhouse, often adding her own unique interpretation to classic compositions. For the competition she put a personal spin on a piece from the video game Final Fantasy.

Bearspaw-area pianist Alicia Grime recently placed second in an international music competition. Photo by Sarah Junkin

The results finally came in and Grime recently learned she had been placed second in her category, and though she’s thrilled to have done so well, only first-place winners earned the right to play at a spring concert in the famed Carnegie Hall in New York City.

“I thought I’d get the chance to play there, but they changed the rules on us,” she said. “I’ll try again next year, and hopefully be first.”

The American-born musician who practices for approximately four hours each day is actively trying to build up her student base and can be heard online.

Grime is also available for live performances.

Tyler Fyten

All hopes of the Cochrane Generals three-peating as Heritage League champions were ended in a flash as the Airdrie Thunder swept them in the best-of-seven Central Division final series.

The Generals’ showing, which included two disheartening defeats in double-overtime in games one and three, was a far cry from a week prior when the team topped the Three Hills Thrashers three games to none to win their semifinal series.

Generals head coach Dana Boothby said his team had the talent to win but made far too many mistakes down the stretch.

Cochrane Generals netminder Tyle Fyten watches the puck sail into his net during game three of the Heritage League Central Division final best-of-seven series against the Airdrie Thunder. The two-time defending champion Generals were swept in four games. Photo by Patrick Price.

“One thing that we need to learn, we have got a young team, is they need to learn how to win,” Boothby said. “At times when we had our opposition down and they didn’t finish their checks . . . you want to respect your opposition and at times we didn’t. I hope they learn that lesson because sometimes it’s not just about hockey, you have to learn how to win, how to do the little things.”

Cochrane captain Kurt Briggs led the post-season charge with 14 points in seven games. After the game, the veteran defender said holding the lead in the series proved to be a challenge his team simply could not rise to.

“The biggest thing was we let them back in all the time,” said Briggs, who will leave the Generals with two championships to his credit. “We couldn’t hold the lead. We were working hard but we made some mistakes and they took advantage.”

Along with Briggs, blueliners Mike Cann and Sean Erwin have also played their last games in Generals uniforms. Defensive responsibilities next season will likely fall on newcomers like Kashtin Gordon and Gideon Neufeld as well as any new recruits the Generals can bring in, Boothy said.

“We have got to find some good, young D-men coming through the program and they will have lots of opportunity next year to get lots of ice time,” Bootby noted.

Generals forward Kyle Tucker knocks Connor Mein of the Airdrie Thunder to the ice during game one of the Central Division final. Photo by Patrick Price.

On the front end, the Generals will likely retain all 12 of their current forwards, including the potent top-line trio of Danny McSween, Darren Schmautz and Jonny Pictin, who all finished in the top 10 in Heritage League regular-season scoring.
The biggest hole to fill next season may be between the pipes as three-year Generals netminder Tyler Fyten plans to retire. Rookie Garret Fraser did post a 6-3-1 record in relief duties for Fyten during the regular season but may tryout for some Junior A programs before committing to the Generals again.

Boothby, who will keep his spot behind the bench next season, said that while his team’s end result was disappointing he hopes the lessons of defeat aren’t lost on his group of young men.

“Usually you have got to go into a series and lose before you learn how to win,” he said. “Looking back, the guys worked hard, they committed. We had a good season with a bunch of rookies, you know it’s tough to repeat and it’s really tough to three-peat.
“The Generals are in good shape, they battled hard and I’m proud of the whole bunch.”