Welcome to winter

By Leela Sharon Aheer Chestermere-Strathmore MLA

Hello Strathmore! Welcome to winter. From fields full of combines to fields covered in snow for the second September in a row. With trade disputes hammering our export markets, excessive moisture in the north, drought in the south and now a heavy wet snowfall, our farming friends are having a rough year. I hope many of you managed to get your crops off before this latest blow.
I have been travelling the province this weekend for Alberta Culture Days and have had an amazing time meeting and seeing so many of you out and about enjoying the hundreds of activities and sessions that are available all over the province. When it comes to celebrating our culture and communities, Albertans seem immune to the mucky, wet and cold weather. Thank you for inviting me to your wonderful events. I have been very touched by the people, culture and warm receptions across our magnificent province.
While we are on the topic of Culture Days there’s a cultural gem right here in Strathmore: the Strathmore Municipal Library. Every month they have a featured local artist, special events and of course books and digital media. The library is a member of the Marigold Library System, headquartered in Strathmore, which gives patrons access to over three million items, videoconferencing and much more. If you are a patron, you know what a great service they provide and if you aren’t please check them out, you’ll be glad you did.
Support Canadian Energy was the theme of this year’s AUMA in Edmonton. Premier Kenney delivered a forceful speech that was uplifting and truthful about the state of our finances in this province, and how we will solve those problems together, unified, and in a thoughtful and common-sense way. Thank you to our mayors, reeves and councillors who spoke about concerns vital to our province and our municipalities. We will get our finances worked out together. We have overspent in this province for years, and it will take all of us together to turn this around, to make sure we are not mortgaging our children’s futures and to make sure that needed services are provided. We are faced with an environment of low prices for our resources, lack of pipeline capacity and restrictions on natural gas storage. These are key issues that handcuff our province and our country’s prosperity. We are actively working on strategies to overcome these issues, and I would like to thank Associate Minister Nally on his work with the Canadian Energy Regulator facilitating more access to the Trans Canada Pipeline System for gas going into storage during maintenance of the lines, which will help with volatility in the market. It is a short-term solution but will help to stabilize prices. We want to revitalize the sector and attract investment.
We have recently met with the co-chairs of SAIT and NAIT to find ways to meet labour demands in our province. Minister Nicolaides, the Minister of Advanced Education, has created a task force that will look at skilled trades and encouraging more of our youth to pursue employment in these fields. We hope to streamline getting credentials and training to really inspire more people to look to these areas. Skills matter, and we hope to help accelerate successful high paying careers.
We will be holding our Alberta Advantage Immigration Strategy Consultations on Oct. 3 in Langdon at the Firehouse Grill. For more information and to attend, please contact my office at 403-207-9889.
I write to you not as a legislator or minister but as a mother with deep sadness over the loss of two young men, one to opioids and the other to a car crash. We also have two other young men in the hospital due to drug overdoses at a house party. I wish I had some wisdom to offer, some words to help with the pain, but I just have tears and my deepest condolences for those who have lost their precious babies. To the families, we are with you, and you are in our thoughts and prayers. Our communities rally around our families and these families will need all of us in the upcoming weeks and months as they come to terms with the trauma that they have endured. Please hug your children close to you, talk to them about their lives, and we as their village must always be there to help our families in times of need. As always, we love to hear from you.
(Leela Sharon Aheer is the MLA Elect for Chestermere-Strathmore, Minister of Status of Women and Minister of Culture and Multiculturalism)