Nouvelle staffer makes perfect Fiona

She's green and gorgeous, wears a little crown and is a perfect live double for Shrek's wife Fiona. Our own Lillian who supervises the mail room decided to get in the Halloween spirit and this is how it turned out. She's definitely our green queen! And aren't those ears cute? Of course she spoiled all that when we found her in the old Dark Room looking for bats and rats and other tasty tidbits to nosh on. Fortunately we were able to pry her away from that with a couple hundred bags of chocolate covered M & Ms. (Just click on her pic to view full size then use the back arrow to go back to the blog.)Thanks Lillian for making our day a little brighter.

Holy Crap Batman I jumped!

The Missus and I dropped into the local haunted house in the old Albrico building on 51st avenue next to the old laundromat just to check it out.  Did we ever get a surprise. Of course, I was a gent and let the missus go first and of course she called me chicken. I said I wasn't chicken, just being chivalrous and she headed off into the dark muttering Pok Pok Pok or something like that. The Ag Society warned that it wasn't suitable for anyone under 8 so I steeled myself to the adventure. The place is huge with an unbelieveable number of props and effects. There is room upon room with creepy figures and surprises and its dimly lit, along with a bit of fog and eery noises. Oh and I jumped a couple of times. I wasn't scared, I was just protecting my male ego.  You've got to go whether you're a kid or an adult, it's great fun.
It's open from 6 to 9 Friday (tonight) and Saturday and there's a special matinee on Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m. for the little ones. Admission is just $3 or $10 for a family.  The committee is to be commended for a great job.

Are you Scared yet?

Don't forget to drop into the Bonnyville Ag Society's Haunted House tonight, Friday and Saturday evening from 6 to 9 each night. Just $3 admission will scare the daylights out of you. For Families, there's a matinee opening from 1 p.m. until 4 p.m. on Saturday. Admission is $10 for families or $3 for individuals. The matinee is not quite so scary.

NEW CONTEST!

Here's your chance to see a couple of Juno winners up close and personal and its all FREE!

The Bonnyville Nouvelle is giving away a pair of tickets to see George Canyon and special guest Charlie Major on Sunday, November 8 starting at 7:30 p.m. at the Bonnyville Centennial Centre. 


All you have to do is tell us the name of the song that George sang to kick off the one year countdown to the Olympics in China. HINT: It was a duet in a foreign language.

Just email your answer to contest@bonnyville.greatwest.ca and we'll make a random draw from all entries received on Thursday, November 5th and you'll win the tickets. If you're entry also has the correct answer, you'll win $50 Cash to spend at the show. 

Good Luck and enter often. 

To order tickets go to www.centennialcentre.ca


Sorry, you must be 18 or over to enter. 
No substitutions. Prize must be accepted as awarded.

Contest not open to employees or their immediate family of the Bonnyville Nouvelle.

Victor is the Popcorn King

Vic Ringuette owner of B& R Eckel's is renowned for his community support and has hundreds of plaques and awards to show that. Recently he was recognized for his long-time support of the Boy Scouts Popcorn program for the past 15 years. Over that 15 year period B&R has warehoused, sorted and delivered millions of cases of popcorn - as a service to the youth members of Scouts Canada.
Victor is seen here with presenter John Woodcock - the Council Commissioner of Northern Lights Council (which includes all of Northern Alberta) to John's right is Bill Latchuk - the Area Commissioner for Whispering Lakes Area and to Victor's left is Ken Lausen - a Field Executive with Northern Lights Region.

The second photo is Vic and his Active Supporter Award from the World Professional Chuckwagon Association.

Bonnyville Wins Again

At the recent awards ceremonies of the World Professional Chuckwagon Association in Calgary, Bonnyville’s organizing committee took home Committee of the year honors for the second consecutive time. This is a significant achievement as they compete against every race committee on the circuit including the big shows at Calgary, Ponoka and Edmonton. In addition to that, B & R Eckel’s Transport picked up an award for Active Supporter because of their long-time commitment and numerous sponsorships. Congratulations to all the hard working volunteer committee members and to Victor Ringuette and his team at B & R.

All Right Pontiacs!!!

The Boys were back home in Bville last night and took it to the Canmore Eagles by a score of 5 to 3 with the 4th one coming on an empty netter when Canmore tried to break a 3-3 tie. The fifth one came with their goal tender back between the pipes with just under a minute left in the game. YESSSSS.

We're off to the Pontiacs Pub Night tonight and we'll be helping sell a few players by auction with my friend and auctioneer Marc Jubinville. Last year was a real hoot with players waiting on the tables and then going up for auction. I bought a pair of players last year - Dru Cotterill and Matt Register. I haven't had time to put them to work anywhere yet but maybe we'll get that done this year. I've got some printing equipment to move around. The big trouble is that these guys have been on the road too much this year. It was good to see them all back home cause the missus and I were having hockey withdrawal. The lads are off to Fort Mac for a game Tuesday night and then back home for back to back games against Grande Prairie on the 29th and 30th and then another at home against Fort Mac on November 3. Go Pontiacs!

Buddy's Coming

CONTEST! CONTEST!

What? Buddy's coming! Buddy What?
Ya that's right, Buddy Wassisname. What?
No, Wasisname!  Ach you don't even know who he is either? Do ya?

No No bye, thasisname! Really?  Yup its Buddy Wasisname and the other fellers!
Oh and you don't know their names either right?

Naw its the name of a group of great entertainers from back home boy!

Oh, that Buddy. Where can I get to see them?
They're at the C2 with their two-five tour.  You mean two-four don't cha?

Naw boy its two-five like 25 years they bin doing this.

Right. When?   What?  When is it?
This Tuesday next - October 27.
Jayz boy Wednesday morning's gonna be tough!  Aye but worth it.
Have ya got any tickets? Yup for me and the missus.
Where can I get some?  Call the C2 at 780-812-3400 right away.
How much are they? If ya has to ask you shouldn't be going but
I think they're $28 bucks up front or 33 at the door. So save yourself a fiver and get 'em now.

Or, Dave over at the Nouvelle is giving away a couple of tics for free. FREE? Yup, free! All you has to do is email contest@bonnyville.greatwest.ca and tell 'em the name of the town back home where their latest Dirty Big DVD was shot and yer name goes into the draw. Deadline is this Monday at 4 p.m.
GET er Done!

Looking for a Christmas Party? - Try the Snow Ball

For those companies out there who haven't booked a party place for their staff this season, there is still hope. As you know, the Bonnyville Chamber of Commerce has cancelled their community Christmas party for this year but a new opportunity has popped up. The organizing committee for the Lakeland 2010 Winter Games is planning a fun gala event and they are calling it Snow Ball. The date has been set for Saturday, December 12 and will be held in the Flint Field House at the Bonnyville Centennial Centre. They are planning a dinner and dance plus a whiz bang speaker and a different twist on the auction portion of the evening.  The event serves a number of purposes in addition to the entertainment value by helping to raise funds to offset costs of operating the 2010 Winter Games and raising community awareness and spirit. The theme will of course be around snow, winter sports and good clean fun. Tickets are expected to run from $50 per person and up and you'll be able to buy tables of eight as well. It would be a great way for you and your staff to celebrate the Christmas season and help out a terrific community project at the same time. Keep watching here and in my column in the Bonnyville Nouvelle for more details as they become available.

More Fort Kent fire pics

Here's a few more pics of the fire. These feature close ups of the equipment inside.

Its time for Breakfast in Fort Kent

The Fort Kent seniors will be resuming their monthly breakfasts starting this coming Sunday, October 18 starting about 9 a.m. The meal will take place in the Seniors hall which now serves that community. I believe its $10 a plate but the price is right. Its a great place to come and eat and catch up on community happenings. They will have a breakfast a month usually around the middle. Keep checking back here for updates.

Fort Kent hall burns

The old Fort Kent hall caught fire and burned to the ground on Thanksgiving weekend. The building was being used as a storage area and light service shop for the MD of Bonnyville parks and recreation department. Quite a few pieces of equipment were destroyed in the blaze that took several hours to bring under control. The hall had been replaced as a community centre a few years ago when upkeep costs became prohibitive for the local community to meet. The MD took it on and converted the building to the shop for their use.  The parks and recreation department will now likely move to the new MD shop being built on the corner of secondary highway 660 and what is 46 street north of Bonnyville.

2010 Winter Games

There hasn't been a lot of hoopla since this area won the games bid over a year ago. There's been a few pictures in the paper about donors but no real calls to action and this event is going to come at us faster than we think. The date is February 4 to 7th and an estimated 3,000 athletes aged 13 to 17 will descend on the Lakeland region of Northeastern Alberta looking to compete and have fun. Most will bring parents along with them and its up to us as citizens to help them enjoy their visit. There's still lots to do to make that happen and you can be a part of it. You can volunteer, sponsor, help build, be an ambassador or what ever your heart desires. Organizers will need almost as many volunteers as there are participants so don't worry about not having something to do.  If you are interested, stop in at the Bonnyville Town Hall and put your name on the list. If you want more information, contact Lorri Goudie at the games office in the H E Bourgoin school.
Overall games chairman, Phil Kushnir told me that their initial goal was to raise $1.5 million in cash or kind. They have about $800,000 of that in place but will need a little push to get over the top. A new committee has been formed in Bonnyville to canvas the business community and along with efforts in Cold Lake the combined totals should reach the target shortly. What might it take to become a sponsor? Kushnir told me that Husky Energy just donated $10,000 worth of fuel to the event. That will take carry of keeping the transportation buses running. ATCO is bringing all their staff together to provide registration as a team building opportunity. You just have to get creative and think about what you might have that may be of value to the games.
Remember, these games are more about regionality, not just for each individual town, village or city. Events will take place in the two main centres of Bonnyville and Cold Lake but this shouldn't stop anyone from planning other events around the games to provide additional things for visitors to do.

Keep checking back for more updates on a regular basis.

Local ATV dealer helps law enforcement on the trail

Local ATV dealer X Power and Performance owner Jake White participated in a program by his supplier Kymco Canada to give back to Canada. Each dealer (55 in Canada) could nominate individuals or organizations that stand out in the community. If one of these were chosen, they would receive a new ATV for their programs or use. One of Jakes nominations,the MD of Bonnyville's Public Safety Department was chosen by KYMCO Canada to receive a new MXU 500. The department will utilize the machine to offer training in the safe and lawful operation of ATVs to school age children through their School Resource Officers. The department also patrols approximately 70 KM  of the Iron Horse Trail that spans the entire municipality. With a large ATV community in the area the machine will come in handy indeed. Thanks to X Power & Performance, Jake and Tammy White and KYMCO Canada for this valuable donation. Oh, and X Power and Performance was also recently named Canadian Dealer of the year with the Kymco line.

Wild Rose party needs a map or a calendar

I just heard that the Wild Rose party in Alberta is having an election to find a leader. Unfortunately, they mailed out the ballots to signed up members to fill out and mail back in. Oops, they didn't leave enough time for voters to get them into convention headquarters. Now they'll accept them in person at the conference or others can carry them there for you. The question I have to ask is whats secure about that? Can you spell ballot stuffing.

I'm not sure these folks are quite ready to take over the province yet.

Your feed back is welcomed but keep it clean or it will go in the trash.