Serving the Heart of Central Alberta for 106 years
VOLUME ONE-HUNDRED EIGHT
PM40011853 R08546
NUMBER THREE
STETTLER, ALBERTA
January 15, 2014
PRICE — $1.09 Plus GST
ROBIN TARNOWETZKI/Independent reporter
Rob Stoutenberg, the Town of Stettler’s cheif administrative officer for 27 years, announced Tuesday that he plans to step down in June to travel and take another job.
Town’s CAO to end long run Stoutenberg has seen ‘a lot of neat things’ in Stettler ROBIN TARNOWETZKI Independent reporter
Longtime Town of Stettler CAO Rob Stoutenberg is stepping down after 27 years at his post. After June 2 of this year, he plans to go on to experience new adventures. “It wasn’t easy to make the decision, but you have to take a look at your own circumstances and say, ‘At what point in your life do you want to switch gears?,’ ” Stoutenberg said Tuesday in announcing his decision. “My wife and I are both in our fifties, and it’s time to do so for us.” Stoutenberg has been in local government for 31 years, some of which were spent in towns such as High River. He initially became interested in local government when a college professor recommended it to him. “He said it was a very rewarding career,” said
Stoutenberg, an avid runner. “You may not get rich, but you’ll certainly be able to do a lot of neat things.” And some of those things include watching people enjoy parts of the town that he had a hand in creating. “I can now see my grandkids swim in the pool, and I’ve had a little part in having it come to Stettler.” People that he’s worked with have positive things to say about Stoutenbeg’s work with the town. “Rob has dedicated his career to improving our community and building a strong team,” said Mayor Dick Richards. “I have incorporated many of the strategic planning, leadership and business processes that Rob has developed in my own business.” After he leaves the town, Stoutenberg plans to take it easy for a while and travel with his wife, Sherrie, and, in his words, cross some things off their bucket list. “And then we’re going to come back to Stettler and figure out what we want to do with the rest of our lives,” he said.
For now, the plan includes getting a new job in the future. Stoutenberg anticipates that he will keep doing some work in local government, but is also eager to try new endeavours that he enjoys, such as landscaping or carpentry. After 27 years, he’s seen many changes in Stettler, such as its population growth and the new infrastructure and programs like the Stettler Recreation Centre and the recycling routine. Stoutenberg doesn’t have a specific favourite memory of his tenure with the town, but he does have good things to say about his time in Alberta’ heartland. “A lot of them (his favourite memories) deal with the staff or people that I’ve worked with over the years and the tremendous things that they’ve done and the growth that I’ve seen,” Stoutenberg said. “It’s been fantastic. It’s been a very rewarding and challenging career and I recommend local government to anybody.”
Surviving son says he ‘knows what happened’ ROBIN TARNOWETZKI Independent reporter A man who lost his parents and sister in a horrific fire last month told the Stettler Independent that he knows what happened. “I’m the one who knows what happened,” said Jason Klaus, 38. But he wouldn’t elaborate, only saying he was having a “bad day” and that Calgary Major Crimes was at his home. The Calgary Medical Examiner’s Office has identified the remains of Gordon Klaus, 61, and his daughter, Monica Klaus, 40, from the rubble of a house fire Dec. 8. Gordon’s wife, Sandra, 62, however, is still unaccounted for, said Staff Sgt. Ross Campbell of Edmonton K Division. The deadly fire has shattered the tranquil Castor countryside and left a community on edge. Neighbours are uneasy. “You scared me,” said a neighbour of the Klaus family, an elderly farmer tinkering with his tractor. “I almost jumped out of my skin,” he added, refusing to give his name or talk about the deaths that have shaken the tiny town.
LISA JOY/Independent reporter
Layers of snow cover the twisted burned-out remains of the Klaus home in their farmyard east of Castor last Friday. The Dec. 8 fire claimed two lives and left one more Klaus family member unaccounted for, but believed to also be deceased. In town, however, Castor resident Brian Robertson said there’s a “profound sense of loss” in the community, but said it’s highly doubtful there’s “a crazed killer on the loose.” Although Staff Sgt. Ross Campbell of Edmonton K Division said police don’t know whether the incident was random, he said the
public isn’t in any danger. “If the investigation team felt there was any danger to the residents in the area, they would have said so,” Staff Sgt. Campbell said. “Public safety is paramount to us, regardless of investigations.” RCMP ruled the deaths as suspicious and their investigation is ongoing.
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Coronation RCMP were called to a farmyard at about 7:30 a.m. on Sunday, Dec. 8, where both Castor and Coronation fire departments were battling the blaze. The fire smouldered for days, preventing investigators, including Calgary Major Crimes, from accessing the fire scene for almost a
week. The cause of the fire is still under investigation by the provincial fire investigator, said Sgt. Josee Valiquette from Edmonton K Division. “This is not the usual fire investigation as we can tell,” she said Tuesday. “There’s been some time and some effort, but hopefully we will have
more information at some point, but not right now.” Jason Klaus, who farmed with his father and lives near his parents’ farmyard, isn’t a suspect, say police. “Not that I know of,” said Staff Sgt. Campbell. “It has not been suggested to me.” Continued on Page A3
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