MITCHELL HEALTH IN DOUBT
LIGHTNING STRIKE TWICE IN THIRD TO ADVANCE
There are conflicting reports about the health of singersongwriter Joni Mitchell
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Red Deer Advocate THURSDAY, APRIL 30, 2015
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RAIDERS RUN WILD
INNISFAIL-SYLVAN LAKE
Urgent care a hot topic BY SUSAN ZIELINSKI ADVOCATE STAFF Voters are holding tight to the Progressive Conservative’s promise of an urgent care centre for Sylvan Lake. It’s one of the issues voters in electoral riding of Innisfail-Sylvan Lake are pondering as the May 5 election draws near. “I think everyone is pessimistically optimistic,” said Sylvan Lake area resident Jennifer Bahler about the urgent care announcement made a week before the provincial election was called. “Even within the PCs, when a new premier has come in, they have changed what they are doing in Sylvan Lake,” she said recalling the pledge of a family care clinic that never happened. Dr. Jordan Larue, medical lead with Wolf Creek Primary Care Network that serves Sylvan Lake, said family doctors in town have been advocating for an urgent care centre for 15 years. He said even though the government announced it was committed to the project, physicians and community members remain concerned it may not come to fruition after the election. “No matter what happens in the provincial election, the people of Sylvan Lake need a local ambulatory care centre where their needs can be addressed in a safe and timely manner — at a more affordable cost to the system than acute care hospital emergency rooms,” Larue said in a written statement.
Please see ELECTION on Page A3
Photo by JOSH ALDRICH/Advocate staff
Hunting Hills wing Alliya Richards (14) tackles a Lindsay Thurber Raiders player during the Central Alberta High School Rugby senior girls season opener at the Red Deer Titans Rugby CLub on Wednesday. Lindsay Thurber won 48-5. Please see related story on page B1.
Swann vows to boost arts funding BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF A Liberal government would double the Alberta Foundation for Arts funding and invest in the First Nations’ art community. Liberal leader David Swann made the announcement during a campaign stop in Red Deer on Wednesday. The Alberta Liberals promised to spend $53 million on the foundation and another $5 million for a First Nations’ arts fund. Swann said none of the other parties have highlighted arts and culture in their platforms. He said the Liberals believe that arts and culture are essential part of living in Alberta. Swann said he has heard about how
arts groups have struggled across the province and this funding would support groups. He said the arts and culture community not only contributes to the wellbeing of people, but creates jobs and makes a tremendous impact on the economy. “They draw tourism,” he said. “They draw the filming community. It’s part of the reason Alberta is such a magnet for the international community.” Swann said the arts generate 10 or 12 times every dollar that is invested in tourism, spinoff industries and employment related to the arts centres and presentations. Swann also said the government has been notorious for failing on proper processes of consultation with First Nations. He said this arts fund would be set up with consultation with First
Nations’ persons. “We have had a troubled relationship with the First Nations,” said Swann. “We have a responsibility to work together for healing, for understanding, for opportunities. This is a small token ... but it is part of a package that we would plan to grow over years.” Swann said people do not come to Alberta simply for the 10 per cent flat tax. They also come for the education and health-care system, the cultural diversity and the arts community. “This government has been very stingy on the arts and have compromised both the quality of life and the opportunity for many of young people to make a living and contribute,” said Swann.
Please see LIBERALS on Page A2
Community newspapers still relevant, says publisher BY HARLEY RICHARDS ADVOCATE BUSINESS EDITOR
Photo by JEFF STOKOE/Advocate staff
Mary Kemmis.
WEATHER Mainly sunny. High 14. Low 3.
FORECAST ON A2
A veteran newspaper publisher is eager to guide the Red Deer Advocate and its sister papers in Central Alberta as the industry evolves. Mary Kemmis has been named publisher of the Advocate and president of the Prairies/East Kootenay division of Black Press. She officially steps into the position on Friday, replacing Fred Gorman, who is retiring. “Community newspapers are still really, really relevant in people’s lives,” said Kemmis. “They give people a way to connect to their community and connect to each other.” Many still rely on newspapers for
INDEX Four sections Alberta . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A3 Business. . . . . . . . . . . . . C5,C6 Canada . . . . . . . . . . . . . . A5,A6 Classified . . . . . . . . . . . . D1-D3 Comics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . D5 Entertainment . . . . . . . . C3,C4 Sports. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . B1-B4
information about their town or city, with other sources of news unable to provide the same comprehensive coverage, she said. That function of “community gathering place” will continue in some form, said Kemmis. “How that’s going to look, I’m not sure. We’ll continue to evolve.” Kemmis’s resumé includes a fivemonth stint as publisher of the Peace Arch News in White Rock, B.C., and nine years in the same position with the Richmond Review. She’s also headed up the Bowen Island Undercurrent, South Delta Leader and Vancouver Metro, and when she was just 23 became publisher of the Ladner-Tsawwassen Review. Kemmis began her newspaper career as a reporter-photographer with
the Cranbrook Daily Townsman, and later worked as a sales rep and sales manager at both newspapers and radio stations. She said this diverse background has given her a better understanding of how newspapers operate, and the importance of the news and those who read it. “I think that broad experience makes you think a little more out of the box; you become a little less linear.” Kemmis and her husband, Mel, have two children: an 18-year-old son named Jackson, who is completing high school in Langley; and a 24-year-old daughter named Jaime, who lives and works in Langley.
Please see PUBLISHER on Page A2
Nepal quake death toll passes 5,000 Nepalese said the death toll from the quake had reached 5,027 as aid began to reach villages near the epicentre. Story on PAGE A7
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