The Westerner for September 19, 2011

Posted by Al Sanderson 
on Sep 19, 2011
 

Meeting:  Chair - Sherry;  Music - Jerome;  Grace - Fred

Attendance / Guests:  34, including Darrel Ripley,  Catherine Wright and Julie Hamilton

Announcements:

  •  Next week we are meeting at Capital Care Grandview instead of at the Petroleum Club.  Jerome will be playing the piano, along with a bass player both before and after lunch.

  • The Board of Directors will be meeting at the Petroleum Club on Wednesday, September 21.  You are welcome to attend.  Or you could go to Judy Schultz's book launch at Greenwoods Bookshoppe!

  • The District Conference and District Assembly will be at the River Cree Resort, October 27 - 29.  Information and registration forms are on the District Website (which you can link to from our website).

  • Read-In Week is October 3rd to 7th.  Club members are invited to read to the students at Lansdowne Elementary School on either Wednesday, Thursday or Friday of that week.  If you missed the sign-up sheet, give Sherry a call to arrange your time.

  • 50/50 Draw - Shane Lafond and Bill Arnold did not match, so $75 moves on to our next draw.

  • Finemaster - Doug Sollows tagged everyone $1 for being too quiet and $1 for not attending the Eskimos game in Hamilton.  He also fined himself (& others) for forgetting to wear his Rotary pin.

Program - Valour Place Military Family Support House

Past District Governor and retired Air Force Pilot Dan Graham introduced Julie Hamilton.  Julie has had a long career as a professional fund raiser, with the United Way, the University of Alberta and Junior Achievement.  She is now the Executive Director for Valour Place, and is involved in the fundraising for that proposed new facility which is located at approximately 111 Street and 111 Avenue on what used to be the flight path for the recently de-commissioned runway at City Centre Airport.

Julie showed some slides and provided the following facts about Valour Place:

  •  It is a 10,000 square foot building containing 12 barrier-free access suites for soldiers, seamen, airmen or RCMP officers and/or their families to stay in while they are receiving medical treatment and/or rehabilitation for injuries suffered while on duty serving our country.  This will be for personnel who are not stationed in Edmonton, so their house and their family would be in some other part of Canada.

  • Construction of the building has just commenced, and the target completion date is June, 2012.

  • There is no other facility like this in Canada.  DND has recognized that Edmonton Medical Facilities are among the best in Canada for treatment of major injuries and rehabilitation therapy after treatment, so they like to send their injured personnel to Edmonton.  There is also a recognition that recovery outcomes are improved when family members are close by.  This facility will serve a need.

  • Fund-raising started in March of 2010, and roughly $7 million of the target $10 million has been raised.  $1 million came from the Province of Alberta and the remainder from private and corporate donations.  The land and construction is expected to cost $7 million and the remaining $3 million will start an endowment fund to support the operation of the facility.

  • DND will provide 2 staff members, a van for the transportation of residents and will lease 6 of the 12 units.

  • Those who wish to help out with this facility can make a charitable donation, or could donate services or materials to be used in the construction of the facility.  Get more information on this at www.valourplace.ca or contact julie@valourplace.ca   If you would like to make a donation by cheque, make it payable to "Valour Place Society" and mail it to:

    • Valour Place Society
      11608 - 145 Street NW
      Edmonton, Alberta
      T5M 1V8

Julie's involvement in this venture came about because her son served in Afganistan in the Combat Engineers, plus her Surgeon husband spent a month there in a military hospital on the base performing four operations a day.  She knows what it is like to have a son or a husband away in a dangerous place while serving our country.  And, she can imagine what it is like for the families of those who have been lost or seriously wounded while on duty. 

Julie was thanked for her presentation by Bert Andrews.