With the flood disaster still ongoing mostly in High River it has put a lot of extra people on the streets of Okotoks.
Residents of High River continue to pick up their mail in Okotoks and often you will see long lineups stretching down the street.
There really is a rush hour in town as extra folks are staying in the area and after 5 p.m. There are times when it is a two light wait to get through an intersection.
Out at the Foothills Regional Landfill on the Dump Road there are times when the traffic is lined up for more than an hour as truck after truck arrives with destroyed wet basement contents. This disaster will cut the life of the landfill back a few years for sure.
Overall, the vast majority of people are taking it in stride and the mood of most people remains calm and even pleasant.
Definitely something like we are going through brings a community together and we now realize our community is much larger than just Okotoks.
We all know people who are affected by this flood. Whether they be from north, east, south or west the good news stories continue to flourish.
Last night at the Calgary Stampede chuckwagon races Jason Glass put on a Okotoks GM/Okotoks Nissan tarp and said he would donate his winnings for the night to the flood relief efforts. Jason took first place and donated the $6,000 purse which was matched by Okotoks Nissan for a $12,000 donation.
It is these type of stories that make a disaster a little easier to get through. Jason is in first place overall after the first four nights of racing and I am sure his cheering section is getting larger by the minute.
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I just received an email about a charity poker tournament that is being organized for the Okotoks Food Bank.
The tournament will be held on Thursday, July 18, 7 p.m. at the Deerfoot Inn and Casino. Fifty per cent of the money raised will be donated to help the flood victims through the Okotoks Food Bank. They have a charity number.
The food bank has been working non stop to support many communities including High River, Nanton, Blackie, Black Diamond, Turner Valley and the Siksika Nation.
The other 50 per cent will be used for prize money. Entry fee for The Golden Heart Classic will be $120 and includes a supper.
The event is being organized by Jason Olynyk, a teacher in Okotoks and his wife who is a teacher in one of the submerged schools in High River.
Jason already has numerous great silent auction items, but is looking for more. There is also an opportunity for corporate sponsors to sponsor a table at $300 or more. The tables will have your logo on it.
If you can help out in anyway please send donations to: Alberta Flood Relief, Jason Olynyk, 131 Crystal Green Drive Okotoks AB. T1S 0C7. Please make cheques payable to the Okotoks Food Bank.
For more information contact Jason at: [email protected] or call 403-982-9393.
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You know what is really crazy? We are living through all the heartbreak of a disaster and every time I turn the radio on I hear of another NHL hockey player signing for millions of dollars!
Seems their average salary must be about $3 million a year. How ridiculous is that? The only way we can ever get professional sports salaries back in line would be to stay away from the arenas in droves and you know that will not happen so I guess the next best thing is to marry one or at least become a good friend so you may get the odd gift.
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Sadly, the Bragg Creek fun run has been cancelled but the community prevails and Bragg Creek Days next weekend will go ahead as scheduled. Shows the perserverance of our communities despite the damage caused by the floods.
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I have a couple of seven-year-old granddaughters and they told me the other day they had discovered my column in the paper and looked back at a few editions.
Their feeling was that my jokes don’t seem funny to them! My gosh, do they know how hard I look for those jokes? I don’t have one for this week but will pull out the joke books and see what I can come up with for next week.
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Enjoy the summer this week, who knows when it may be over?
