HILARY DUFF EXPLORES BREAKUP ON NEW ALBUM
CANADA ADVANCES AT WORLD CUP PAGE B1
PAGE C4
Red Deer Advocate MONDAY, JUNE 22, 2015
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FOAM SWEET FOAM
BARK AT THE BEND
An emotional reunion BY MURRAY CRAWFORD ADVOCATE STAFF Despite an underlying somber tone, excited four legged furry friends tore through Red Deer’s river side off-leash dog park. Soaking up the sun at Three Mile Bend, the annual Bark at the Bend event took over the park Saturday morning with pancakes, photo shoots, games and strolls around the park. All in support of programming offered by the Red Deer and District SPCA. Adjacent to the registration table was a memorial for Maya, a Milk River rescue dog adopted by Kyle Wallis and Kaitlyn Ball. Maya died on June 11 after being run over by a truck at Three Mile Bend while she and Kyle were out for a walk. “It was gruesome,” said Wallis. “Having your best friend and dog die in your arms.” The couple adopted Maya when she was just eight weeks old from the Red Deer SPCA. “We saw a bunch of other dogs and Kaitlyn asked about the black one (Maya),” said Wallis. “We looked at it and all the other dogs seemed interested in everything else around us and Maya wanted to see us.” In the five months they had with Maya they traveled a bit visiting Kelowna and went to Three Mile Bend practically every day. Wallis and Maya were out for a walk when a truck tore through the park. “Next thing I know the front tire and back tire hit her,” said Wallis. “They kept driving. “I held Maya and was screaming.” Wallis said charges are pending against the driver of the truck at the time. The annual event, which has been in existence in some form for the past 15 years, is a fundraiser for programs run by the Red Deer and District SPCA. Tara Hellewell, SPCA executive director, said this year’s event is in support of their canine companion outreach program, where dogs go into long term care facilities as a form of pet therapy. It is also in support of the emergency shelter program, a place for pets to go of people facing life crises such as stays at Women’s Emergency Shelter or drug/alcohol detoxification or rehabilitation programming. About 40 teams of dog and companion, and one cat and companion team, go into various care facilities offering the therapeutic benefits of animal companionship. The program is also growing to include children going through a healing process or with developmental disabilities such as autism spectrum disorder. The adoption reunion, a first for the SPCA, brought back many adopted dogs and not just those who were rescued from Milk River. “The Milk River ones have really bounced back from being really shy, quiet and not brave animals,” said Hellewell. “Now being in a normal environment they look better, happier and they have confidence. It’s good for them to be able to show off and share that with everyone.” A total of 40 Milk River rescue dogs were taken in by the local SPCA. Of those 34 have been adopted out. “We still have about six dogs right now waiting for adoption,” said Hellewell. “They’re the ones with more challenging behavioural issues.” Some still lack confidence with people while others have some neurological issues.
Please see DOGS on Page A2
Photo by ASHLI BARRETT/Advocate staff
Participants of the 5K Foam Fest Canada run, the first ever foam run in the city, race out of a foamy start line on Saturday morning. The run featured over 20 obstacles, including mud pits, bouncy castles and the world’s largest inflatable waterslide. See more photos from the event on page C1.
Back in the classroom, 19 years later BY MURRAY CRAWFORD ADVOCATE STAFF It may be a first step, but it is a big one for a Bethany CollegeSide resident who is working towards completing her degree some 19 years after she had to stop. Now 57, Lois Aarhus had been toying with the idea of finishing her psychology degree for a few years when her social worker Joanne McCready and a summer social work student looked into an option for her through Red Deer College. Just two or three classes short of her bachelors degree in psychology, Aarhus made the tough decision to put her studies. “It always really bothered me, it was something that never got finished,” said Aarhus. “There were circumstances that made it impossible for me to go on.” Diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis at 19 and with three children at the time it became too difficult for her to continue her studies. McCready and the student went over Aarhus’ marks and saw she had done very well in school almost two decades ago. So they suggested Aarhus audit a course at Red Deer College. While not receiving credit for the course, auditing allowed Aarhus to be a full participant in class but as a smaller step to getting back into the rhythm of
Photo by JEFF STOKOE/Advocate staff
Bethany College Side resident Lois Aarhus is auditing a psychology 261 class at Red Deer College. Her last class was this week and she will write the final exam on Saturday. being in college. A partnership agreement with RDC allows residents at Bethany CollegeSide to audit any class the college offers for a minimal fee.
Please see CLASSROOM on Page A2
‘We can tell that people are using it’ FIRST FOUR WEEKS OF PROGRAM DIVERTS 57 TONNES OF WASTE BY CRYSTAL RHYNO ADVOCATE STAFF
GREEN CART PILOT PROJECT
Red Deerians diverted 57 tonnes of waste from the landfill in the first four weeks of the Green Cart Pilot. Keran Braich, a city waste diversion specialist, said the city did not know what to expect for volumes when the project was rolled out on April 27. Organic waste such as branches, coffee grounds, tables scraps and dryer lint is collected every week from 2,000 selected households across the city. “We were pretty impressed with that amount,” she said. “Even with our spot checks, we can tell that people are using it.” As they become more comfortable with the pro-
gram, more participants are expected to use the carts, said Braich. But she anticipates the volumes may go down in the winter months because there will be no yard waste. The pilot is the latest city initiative in the plans to reduce the per capita waste disposal rate to 600 kg per capita from the current 812 kg by 2020. Residential homes generate about 30 per cent of the waste ending up in the landfill. Up to 40 per cent of the household waste are organics. The city ships the organic waste to a site near Penhold to be composted for agricultural land. The city recently conducted a waste composition
WEATHER Mix of sun and cloud. High 23. Low 9.
FORECAST ON A2
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study or audit and plan to conduct one very season. This will help determine what people are putting in the carts. Braich said once the city has completed a few more audits, they will have more concrete information to share with the public. If the program is successful, it may go citywide in 2017. The city is collecting feedback from participants in the two-year program. On average, the city landfilled 300 tonnes of waste per day in 2013 at its regional landfill. A whopping 91,313 tonnes of waste of all kinds went into the landfill in 2013, compared to 90,266 in 2012 and 86,277 in 2011. In Red Deer alone, nearly 75,000 tonnes of trash was thrown out. crhyno@reddeeradvocate.com
Turning their lives around Troubled teens get back on the right path with program in Surrey, B.C. Story on PAGE A5
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RECYCLE