NOV 2014
The official newsletter of the Evanston Creekside Community Association
Home Based
Business Fair
November 23
Details Inside
Request for
Volunteers
Our next ECCA meeting is November 3 at 7:00 p.m.
at the Servus Credit Union.
NOVEMBER 2014
EVANSTON-CREEKSIDE CURRENT
3
In Our Community
Evanston-Creekside
Community Association
PO Box 47059
20 – 12192 Symons Valley Road NW
Calgary, Alberta T3P 0B9
eccacalgary.com
Board of Directors
President:............................ Asif Rahemtulla
[email protected]
Vice President:............................. Joerg John
..................................... [email protected]
Treasurer:........................... Dennis Estacion
........................... [email protected]
Secretary and Newsletter:...... Tianna Melnyk
[email protected]
Past President:.......................... Doug Blazer
............................ [email protected]
Sports:......................................Ryan Lipowy
[email protected]
Communications:......... Evangelos Kordakis
[email protected]
Safety:..........................................Darcy Blair
[email protected]
Planning and Development:.....Robbie Morton
........................... [email protected]
Memberships and Bus. Development:........
.............................................................Vacant
Director at Large:...................Martin Foster
Elected Officials
Councillor: Joe Magliocca......403-268-3280
MLA: Neil Brown...................403-215-7710
....... [email protected]
Community Liason Officer:.........................
Constable Jeff Suderman.........403-567-6700
YYC Noise Concern Hotline: ....403-735-1408
Suburban Journals Publishing
Editor & Article Submissions:
Karla: [email protected]
Advertising Sales:
Pam, 403-880-1819, [email protected]
Ad booking deadlines for this monthly publication are
the 14th of the month, prior to the distribution month.
This publication is published 12 times a year by
Suburban Journals Publishing and delivered to
residents by Canada Post. This publication is also
available for pickup from local retail outlets.
Please note: the information and opinions in
this newsletter are subject to change, and do not
necessarily represent the opinions of the publisher
or editor. Content contained in this publication may
not be reproduced without the written consent of
Suburban Journals Publishing. The information
herein is believed accurate but not warranted so.
Any advertisements, home businesses, babysitters
& nannies, or other parties listed in the
Evanston Suburban Journal should not
be interpreted as recommendations or
endorsements by the editor or the publisher.
Letter from the Editor
To newsletter editor,
I’d like to bring up a huge safety concern for our community
I’d like to implore all community
residents to make a concerted effort
to have flashing pedestrian lights put
in at the various crosswalks along
Symons Valley Parkway. They needn’t
be the overhead ones but potentially
similar to the solar powered ones they
have throughout Airdrie with flashers along the side. Other streets in
Calgary, like Beddington Boulevard,
where there are 4 lanes of traffic, and
speed limits of only 50km/hr, have
pedestrian flashers!
There are a number of factors that
make this road so dangerous for
pedestrians including, 4 lanes of 60
km traffic (many of whom exceed this
by 10 or more km/hr), trees along the
boulevards reducing site lines, a steep
hill which obstructs the view, school
buses and transit letting off children
who don’t always watch as closely as
they should and limited street lighting
after dark.
Some one IS going to be killed on
this road unless we all do everything
we can to prevent it. Flashing lights
will help to alert motorists and give
pedestrians a fighting chance of being
seen. As both a driver and a pedestrian, because of the factors listed above,
pedestrians are often not seen crossing
until they are half way across and have
witness near misses both in my car and
on foot.
Please please please call 311, write
to our city councillor and keep the
conversation going until we have the
proper safety measures in place.
We can prevent a terrible incident.
Kimberley Vircoe
Thank you for your letter Kimberly. I
agree with you on this and ECCA (as
well as local residents) have told the
councillor our concerns.
Last I heard on this, the councillor, Joe
Magliocca, did a study of the road at
that spot and somehow the study demonstrated that the crosswalk wasn’t
needed. I’m not sure how that happened because I know from experience
that pushing a stroller across that road
is near impossible. Perhaps with some
Continued on next page
NOVEMBER 2014
EVANSTON-CREEKSIDE CURRENT
5
In Our Community
Letter from the Editor Continued
Community Issues
prodding he will reopen the issue.
It is also worth noting that the councillor is given a monthly listing of all issues that are called into 311. The issues
are tracked, and the more often an issue
is called about, the more likely the city
is to take action. That being said, If
other communities call 311 more often
than the people of Evanston, the city
assumes that their issue is of greater
concern. So, call 311 and encourage
everyone around you to do the same.
Thank you for the letter!
Tianna Melnyk
ECCA is often contacted with issues
of snow removal or the length of the
grass along the parkway. Some parts
of Evanston fall under the authority
of the city while other parts are still
maintained by the local developers.
Since parts of Evanston are being
built over a long stretch of time,
different parts of the community are
being turned over to the city at different times. Developers are responsible
for the maintenance of a community
for five years and then become the
responsibility of the city.
Want to stay current with changes
and developments in Evanston?
Check out our website and Facebook page!
Evanston-Creekside
Community Association
Membership Application
PO Box 47059, 20 – 12192 Symons Valley Road N.W.
Calgary, AB T3P 0B9
Cheques made payable to: Evanston-Creekside Community Association
$
(Membership Fee: $20 Family/Year)
Several community amenities such as
the Geese and many local gazeboes
have in the past been funded by the
builders of the community (such as
Qualico).
ECCA would appreciate your feedback. There are several options, such
as having the community association
pay for the maintenance, removing
the amenities, or perhaps gaining
charitable donations or sponsorships
to cover their upkeep. Please provide
your feedback to [email protected].
What is ECCA
Working on?
The priority of the community association is on building a rink for community use. Currently, there is land designated for potential community use at
Symons Valley Parkway and Evanston
Way NW (directly South of the commercial development). The ECCA has
a vision to create an outdoor hockey
rink and pleasure skating rink similar
to the one in nearby Hidden Valley.
We have the support from several
area including the City of Calgary and
Qualico. But we don’t have enough
people to do the work that needs to
get done. If you are able to help in
any way from writing business plans
to hammering nails please contact our
volunteer coordinator Maria Berntzen
at [email protected].
Want to support the creation of a rink
even if you are too busy to turn the
dirt? Buy a membership at
www.eccacalgary.com
NOVEMBER 2014
EVANSTON-CREEKSIDE CURRENT
7
In Our Community
Stay Connected
to Your
Community
The ECCA invites all residents to be
active, engaged, and up to date on
community initiatives and affairs.
There are a variety of mediums of
communication utilized by the ECCA
to disseminate information and encourage dialogue. The most common
forms of information distribution (in
order of quickest release to slowest
release) are presented below:
Facebook Page: Please
“like” our “Evanston-Creekside Community Association
– Official Site” Facebook
page. By doing so, communication
releases will show up in your news
feeds on a real time basis. You may
either search for our page on Facebook
or go to our ECCA webpage and click
on “Join us on Facebook”
ECCA Webpage: Please bookmark
our official community website:
www.eccacalgary.com and check back
often. We are in the process of making
further enhancements, some of which
will include advertising options and
business directories.
Being an ECCA Member: Included
in your ECCA membership is inclusion
to our database of residents. From time
to time, we disseminate relevant information directly to your mail inbox.
Community Newsletter: This is the
monthly publication you see in your
mailbox and are reading right now.
As this is only a monthly publication,
content and discussion is forward
looking versus real time.
Family Memberships
The ECCA would like to remind residents that all 2013 residential ECCA
memberships expired on January 31,
2014. Our new membership year is
February 1, 2014 to January 31, 2015.
We invite you to go on-line to www.
eccacalgary.com and renew your membership for the upcoming year. Please
ensure your household information is
up to date as we will require this information for soccer registrations.
Benefits of Membership:
• Support the community you live
in: The ECCA is a voluntary not
for profit organization and 100% of
membership fees go directly to community programming and resources
funding
• Stay informed and have a larger
voice: Membership keeps you in the
loop and gives you the opportunity to
join the dialogue on what’s happening in our community
• Access to programs and events:
Memberships provides access to programs and events such as the soccer
program, community cleanup, local
events and more
• Help grow resources: The greater
our membership base, the greater
the funds available for community
programs and initiatives
• Members Discounts: We have recently introduced our members discounts
with a growing list of participating
businesses.
• ECCA Community Memberships are
a requirement for registration in our
2014 Soccer Program.
Community Business Memberships
The ECCA is pleased to announce
we now have business memberships
available. Benefits of business
memberships include but are
not limited to: supporting your
community and being visibly
recognized; inclusion into our on
line business directory; ability to
participate in our members discount
program; sponsorship opportunities
and more. We also have a special
category for home based business.
For more information, please email
[email protected]
Acknowledgement of
Business Members
The ECCA would like to acknowledge
and thank the following businesses for
their partnership and participation in
our Business Membership Program.
Any business (including Home Based)
interested in more information can contact [email protected]
• All Rush Copies and Print
• Gillette’s Fabricare - Evanston
Towne Centre
• Little Caesar’s Pizza - Evanston
Towne Centre
• Make A Book - Home Based Business
• Servus Credit Union - Creekside
• The Chamberlain Group - Real
Estate
• The Mou Studios
• Queseda Burritos and Tacos
• RBC Royal Bank
• Time Music Studios
NOVEMBER 2014
EVANSTON-CREEKSIDE CURRENT
9
In Our Community
Request for Volunteers
The ECCA has the following volunteer positions available. If interested,
please email Maria at volunteer@
eccacalgary.com
a passion for creating an approach
to marketing and communications
that promotes the position of ECCA
within the community.
Director of Communications:
As a member of ECCA Board of
Directors, the Director of Communications will be responsible for
overseeing all messages from ECCA.
This person should have a working
knowledge of website maintenance,
Facebook and Twitter. Ideally the Director of Communications will have
Secretary:
The primary role of secretary is to
maintain an accurate account of board
matters including minutes, list of
directors and correspondence. As the
secretary, most board business will be
organized and advertised through the
efforts of the secretary such as securing meeting space, updating by-laws,
Local Babysitters
Ann:
Age 52, contact-403-569-0237,
Course: Yes
It seems to be so difficult to find babysitters. In the local newsletter we will
publish the contact information and
age of local people who are willing
to babysit. If you are interested in
posting your information as a local
babysitter please e-mail [email protected]. Please note
ECCA does not endorse any babysitters and has done no screening of the
individuals posted. Determining the
appropriateness of a babysitter is the
responsibility of the parents.
Community
Calendar
•November 23, 2014: Home-Based
Business Fair
Evanston-Creekside
Board Meetings
At Servus Credit Union
at 7:00 p.m.
• November 3, 2014
• December 8, 2014
Have an Issue in
Your Area?
Evanston is still a growing
community. When an area is first built
it is the responsibility of the developer
to maintain flower beds, sweep streets,
replace dead trees, remove snow
etc. After an area is established,
those responsibilities return to the
city. If you are unsure about who is
responsible for the maintenance in
your area, call 3-1-1.
orienting new members and general
administration. The secretary should
have working knowledge of word
processing and e-mail as well as the
ability to attend most board meetings.
Lawyer:
ECCA is looking for a volunteer with
a background as a lawyer to help
advise on issues that arrive as needed.
This position could include a seat on
the board or can be done through email at times that are convenient.
Local
Development
Do you wonder what the new building will house in the area around the
Servus Credit Union? Right now
they are building a Tim Hortons.
There will not be a drive through at
the new Tim Hortons due to an issue
with the lack of space in the parking
lot. Also soon to be built in the same
are is an A&W and a daycare. The
former Rona space has been approved
to be developed into a Target.
The CBE Capital Plan for 2015-2018
includes the request for the development of a middle school that would
provide space for grades five to nine.
Although the recommendation has
been made to the Alberta Government, no funding for a public middle
school has been announced.
To keep up to date on local developments please see the Evanston
Creekside Official Facebook page or
the community website at www.eccacalgary.ca.
NOVEMBER 2014
EVANSTON-CREEKSIDE CURRENT
11
In Our Community
Pick up, Pitch in & Pull Together –
Recovering from Early September
Snow
City crews and citizens are pulling
together to deal with the aftermath of
the recent storm.
We would like to thank our community associations for working with us
to respond to the needs of Calgarians
who are dealing with tree debris.
The City continues to have jumbo
crews cleaning up priority debris in
communities across Calgary. The
City’s focus remains on taking care
of critical safety issues and ensuring
public spaces are safe and accessible.
The City Links program, in conjunction with CEMA, will be able
to assist seniors and those who are
physically challenged in Calgary
with extensive tree damage on their
properties due to the recent storm.
Citizens can call 311 and ask for the
“Seniors Home Maintenance” Service
Request to process their requests.
Requests for service will be taken
starting the weekend of September 13
and work will commence the following week.
The City is also providing the following options to assist Calgarians with
their clean up efforts:
• All three City Landfills are operating under extended hours from 7:30
a.m. to 7:30 p.m. until further notice
to accommodate tree debris. Tipping fees continue to be waived for
all tree debris that is not mixed with
other garbage.
• Beginning Saturday, September 13,
citizens can access all 33 of The
City’s leaf & pumpkin drop-off
locations to dispose of damaged tree
limbs.
Calgary’s community spirit has continued to shine through, and citizens
are encouraged to help neighbours
by picking up, pitching in and pulling together. Help those who are
unable to clear small tree debris like
small branches and leaves from their
properties with what you can safely
manage. If you can help with the
small debris, we can get to the big
stuff faster.
The City would like to thank all Calgarians for their patience as cleanup
efforts continue throughout the coming days and weeks. This effort will
take time. We encourage everyone to
stay safe. Please don’t put yourself
at risk.
If you are not the correct contact
for your group, please forward this
information to the appropriate board
member.
If you have any questions, please contact The City of Calgary, Community
& Neighbourhood Services – Lead,
Community Recreation Coordinators,
Tina Brillantes at 403-807-1401.
City of Calgary
Community and Neighbourhood
Services
Home-Based
Business Fair
Date: Sunday, November 23
Time: 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Location: Servus Credit Union,
Creekside, 12662 Symons Valley RD
NW
In partnership with Servus Credit
Union, Symons Valley Community
Associations are hosting a business
fair that showcases the many homebased businesses that offer services
and products right in your neighbourhood.
There will be many service related
businesses, as well as gift-oriented
products just in time for Christmas!
Some examples of businesses:
• Jamberry Nails
• Stella and Dot
• Tupperware
• Scentsy
• Financial Services
• Skincare products/ services
• Fitness coaching
• Handmade gift items
And many original services that you
probably never knew you needed!
A final listing of all vendors will be
published on www.kincora.org and
www.eccacalgary.com.
We hope that our efforts allow you to
save time and transportation costs.
Servus Creekside, KCA and ECCA
look forward to putting residents in
touch with local businesses.
"It's always too early to quit."
Norman Vincent Peale
NOVEMBER 2014
EVANSTON-CREEKSIDE CURRENT
13
In Our Community
James Fowler High School
The staff of James Fowler High
School has planned an exciting, productive and engaging school year, both
in and out of the classroom, with the
wish that all students will take advantage of all the wonderful academic and
social opportunities that our school
community has to offer.
September was an exciting and busy
time at James Fowler High School
as we focused on the start of the first
semester. Teachers offer students a
full range of co-curricular and extracurricular activities through clubs, fine
and performing arts, volunteerism,
athletics and curriculum-based clubs
and activities.
At James Fowler, we continue to offer
students courses to meet their individual learning needs and interests.
We offer Alternative programs such
as Arts-Centred Learning (learning
curriculum through an arts-based
focus) and Advanced Placement. Our
Advanced Placement program continues to attract many students who wish
more academic rigor while completing the core high school curriculum.
We are also pleased to continue to
offer a full range of core and option
Knowledge and Employability courses
for students in all grades. Our English Language Learning courses are
comprehensive and students have the
opportunity to take courses leading
to a high school diploma. Students
can choose courses from a wide array
of academic, Career and Technology
Studies (CTS), Fine Arts and option
courses.
Our learning and teaching focus for
this school year has three main goals:
1.Ongoing Formative Assessment
• Teachers will incorporate into
teaching practices formative assessment strategies where students
will be able to identify and articulate their own strengths and areas
for improvement while having
a better understanding of their
progress and achievement during a
course.
2.Engaging Students through flexible learning opportunities
• Teachers will provide flexible
learning opportunities for students
to engage in learning both in and
outside of the classroom. These
opportunities include: blended
learning, credit recovery classes,
cross-curricular and cross-stream
partnerships, extending timelines
outside of the semester and dual
enrollment.
3. Developing Positive School Culture and Student Leadership
• Students will be more actively
involved as global citizens and
community leaders by participating
in Teacher Advisory, pep rallies,
clubs, athletics, social awareness
initiatives and by participating in
volunteer opportunities.
In addition to these three main goals
for our learning and teaching focus,
we are also intent on providing more
meaningful and relevant tasks for our
students to engage with in their daily
learning.
Our sports teams at James Fowler are
well underway with teams in volleyball, football and soccer competing
across the city. Recently we have had
the good fortune to be the recipient
of the Nissan Canada “Back in the
Game” program with donations to our
school of $10,000 in new uniforms
and football clothing and gear. We are
one of 21 high schools in Canada to
receive this donation with the goal of
building our football program.
This school year we are continuing to
offer services to our community such
as automotive repair, cosmetology
services and commercial cooking and
baking. If you would like to access
any of these services, please contact
our school at 403-230-4743, ext. 0.
As the Principal of James Fowler High
School, I am excited to be a part of a
dynamic staff who care about our students reaching all of their dreams and
goals while achieving success in many
different ways.
If there are ways that our school can
be more involved within our community, please contact me at the school.
Keith Johnson, Principal
A Sampling of
Concerts
•Chubby Checker: November 1,
Deerfoot Inn & Casino
•Fleetwood Mac: November 14,
Scotiabank Saddledome
•Blind Melon: November 15,
Deerfoot Inn & Casino
•Sam Roberts Band: November 16,
Southern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
•Motley Crue: November 19,
Scotiabank Saddledome
•The Trews: November 21,
Flames Central
•John Fogerty: November 24,
Scotiabank Saddledome
•Lights: November 25,
MacEwan Hall
NOVEMBER 2014
EVANSTON-CREEKSIDE CURRENT
15
In Our Community
Country Hills
Library
Programs:
• Colossal Calgary Playdate! Ages up
to 3 with a parent/caregiver Thursday, Nov. 20 from 10:30 a.m. –
12:00 p.m. No registration required.
• Poetically Poetical: Ages 5 to 11,
Thursday, Nov. 13, 4:30 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
• A Very Grumpy Storytime: Ages
3 to 5 independent of a parent/caregiver Wednesday, Nov. 26, 2:15 p.m.
– 2:45 p.m.
• Vital Conversations: Planning
Canada's 150th Birthday: Refreshments will be served. Friday, Nov. 7
from 6:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.
• Introduction to Infant Sign Language: Register online at http://fcrc.
albertahealthservices.ca/ces.php.
Ages up to 18 months with a parent/
caregiver. Tuesday, Nov. 4 from 6:30
p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
• Computer Technology Coaching:
Wednesdays, Sept. 3 to Dec. 17 from
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. No registration
required.
• 50+ Coffee and Conversation:
Ages 50 and up. Thursday, Nov. 6,
2:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Topic: Food as
Fuel After 50 and Thursday, Nov. 20,
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m., Eight Centuries of the Sonnet in an Hour and a
Half. No registration required.
Visit www.calgarypubliclibrary.com
for more information on these programs. Registration is required for all
programs unless otherwise noted.
"I'm sorry, if you
were right, I'd agree
with you."
Robin Williams
Calgary Connection
Women’s English and Social Group:
Improve your spoken English and meet
new women in your community with
the New Friends and Neighbourhood
Groups program. Drop in at one of our
weekly groups throughout the city. No
cost, no immigration requirements and
no minimum English requirement. Free
childcare for kids 6 months to 6 years
old. Visit www.ciwa-online.com for
group locations and times or contact
Rae-Lynn at 403-444-1752 or [email protected].
Make a Difference in the Life of a
Family! Are you looking for a way
to give back to your community? Our
Home-Start program is looking for
volunteers! Our volunteers visit a family's
home once per week, provides support,
friendship and encouragement, Gets the
family involved with the local community
and shares their own experiences of
parenting. For more information, visit
www.boysandgirlsclubsofcalgary.ca or
call 403-660-6809 (North) or
403-660-1136 (South).
St. Andrews Heights Artists' Society
presents its Fall Art Show and Sale on
Saturday, November 22, 2014, from
10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Original works
of art in varied media and styles. Cash
or cheque only. Door prize. Free
admission and free parking. Location:
Rundle College Elementary School,
2634 – 12 Avenue N.W.
Bullying Ends Here: Tad Milmine has
been featured on dozens of television
programs and newspaper articles over
the past year for his passion in helping
others overcome bullying. Using his
own story, Tad has made it his mission
to help others. While Tad doesn't hold
back on his own troubling upbringing, the
message is powerful in that it speaks to
perseverance and determination. Tad will
bring his story, here to us, and we invite
everyone to come and see this award
winning presentation. Please note that
the presentation is not suitable for those
under 11 year olds. Join us Tues. Nov
18, at St Thomas United Church, 100
Hawkwood Blvd. NW, 7:00 p.m. –
8:30 p.m. Donations accepted. Please
register by calling 403-241-0366.
The Calgary Creative Arts Guild
Annual Fall Art Show & Sale:
November 8, Montgomery Community
Centre. The CCAG invites you to their
upcoming exhibition of original artworks
from 20 local artists. Door prize - no
admission fee. Come and find a treasure
for yourself or someone special on your
Christmas list! Hours: 10:00 a.m. – 4:00
p.m. We will be accepting donations for
the Veterans Food Bank.
Guns and Gangs: Please join us
and Sgt. Jason Walker of the Calgary
Police Service Guns and Gangs Unit
for a free informative session on the
current organized crime and gang
landscape in Calgary. Wednesday,
November 19, 2014 at the Bowness
Community Association, 7904 – 43
Avenue N.W., from 7:00 p.m. –
9:00 p.m. For more information and to
register visit calgarycommunites.com/
workshops-events.
952 Westjet Squadron Air Cadets:
952 Westjet Squadron is currently accepting new members! Come to our
meetings Thursday nights at 6:30 p.m.
at the Springbank Middle School Gym
(244234 Range Road 33), directly
south of Calaway Park). Remember
to come with your birth certificate, Alberta Health Care Card and your parent
or guardian. For more information, visit
www.952aircadets.ca.