There is room for conversations
When did standing up for what you believe make you a pariah? When did disagreeing with someone become a reason to question their intelligence, their character or their love for the place they call home?
Do better, David
If you want to convince me that someone has failed, show me where they failed. A sneering nickname and a list of career moves will not do it.
A message Canadians need to hear
When my great-grandfather Albert stepped off a train in Coleman in 1905, he could not possibly have imagined that his great-granddaughter would one day stand before a room full of coal executives from across Canada and tell them why their industry matters.
Proud to be Canadian
I’ve seen the Canadian flag countless times at home. Seeing it in Belgium felt different.
The referendum is confusing
On Oct. 19, Albertans will be asked to answer 10 referendum questions.
We need to remain the Crowsnest Pass
Years ago, while serving on council, we discussed what should be written on the sign welcoming people to our community.
It is quite a job to put out a newspaper.
When you read this week’s paper, I will be away on a work trip that has taken me to France and Belgium.
That’s part of the job
There are some moments in life so ingrained in your memory that decades later you can still tell someone exactly where you were and what you were doing.
Time is a thief
Yesterday marked 12 years since my dad died.
Twelve years.
Sometimes that feels impossible, because grief has a strange relationship with time. A memory can make someone feel as though they were here yesterday, while the calendar quietly reminds you how many years have slipped away.
I know which Crowsnest Pass I want
I had a wonderful two weeks off. And when I say off, I mean off.
I read books. I went for runs. I sat outside. I had a glass or two of wine. I spent time with the people I love and, for perhaps the first time in a very long time, I didn’t do much of anything.
It’s time to unplug for a little while
For the next two weeks, the Pass Herald office will be quiet. The phones won’t be ringing, there won’t be another Wednesday deadline staring me in the face and, for the first time in months, I’ll be able to slow down just a little.
No council will ever make everyone happy.
Every council says it wants public input. They hold surveys. They organize town halls. They encourage residents to share their thoughts on everything from taxes to recreation to economic development.
Canada should demand better
Before you complain about Alberta’s health care, spend a week in Saskatchewan. Albertans spend a lot of time complaining about our health-care system. We criticize emergency room waits, physician shortages and overcrowded hospitals. Much of that criticism is justified.
We aren’t asking Alberta to build our future.
All we ever asked for was a chance.
There are days when a community can feel hope again and last Friday was one of those days.
When Elections Alberta announced the Water Not Coal citizen initiative petition had failed to meet the legal requirements to proceed, I wasn’t celebrating because a mine had been approved.
When Did Learning Become Controversial?
I read the social media exchange about Crowsnest Pass and the proposed Grassy Mountain project between two Alberta MLAs several times before I decided to write this.
Do opponents trust the process, or only the outcome?
Do some people actually believe in the process, or do they only believe in the outcome they want?
Over the past several weeks, I have listened to the reaction surrounding Corb Lund’s anti-coal petition, watched the media coverage and tried to understand exactly what opponents of Grassy Mountain are asking for.
This is where things change.
In more than two decades of publishing the Crowsnest Pass Herald, I am not sure I have written an editorial that demands more of us than this one.
The biggest dreams begin in the smallest places
Last Thursday, while I was in Edmonton attending the Alberta Weekly Newspapers Association AGM, something pretty special was happening back home in the Crowsnest Pass.
A Beautiful Celebration of Life
On Sunday, I attended the Celebration of Life for Madison Harrison, daughter of Vern and Teri Harrison and sister to her brother Austin.
I have known the Harrison family for years. Our babies practically grew up together. I can still remember going to Indoor Playground with Teri when our kids were little, chasing toddlers around while trying to have conversations between juice boxes, toys and snack breaks. Time has a way of slipping by quietly, and suddenly those babies are adults.