City Notebook: So many Hatters are in need at this festive time of year

By COLLIN GALLANT on December 10, 2022.

cgallant@medicinehatnews.com@CollinGallant

This year the Medicine Hat News building became headquarters of the Santa Claus Fund, started some 40-ish years ago by this paper.

Until late November, that mainly meant piles of toys in closets or the odd stack next to a desk.

It was part annoying, part nostalgic, like churning out columns in a converted nursery/workspace for all of 2020.

But that changed a couple weeks ago.

Streams of Hatters facing hard times now arrive each weekday. They are looking for help to get by and still have a Merry Christmas. You wouldn’t believe how many.

They fill the lunchroom, fill out forms, rock baby carriers, warm themselves after walking who-knows-how-far. Cocoa, coffee and cookies baked by your friendly neighbourhood grandmother, now volunteering because she’s never ever sat still.

Then they pick out a few toys for little ones (sometimes a teeny snowsuit as well), plus get a food basket voucher. It all comes from donations and a bounty of fundraising and volunteer work all year round.

They leave in beat-up shoes and thin coats, and leave you thinking about how lucky you are, wondering what you’ve done all year and what more you could do.

And the Santa Fund is hardly alone in helping our fellow citizens.

The Mustard Seed, the Root Cellar, the Salvation Army Kettle Campaign, toy drives, food drives, local church, school, union and service club efforts- big, small, flashy or not, it’s all needed, believe me. I’ve seen in first hand.

Quick ones

– The Redcliff Legion has launched a campaign to raise a buck from each resident in the region to help preserve the near century-old institution after a former employee was charged with fraud. C’mon folks, surely a fiver sounds more appropriate?

– The Chamber of Commerce has signed on as the major sponsor of the 2023 Alberta Food and Beverage Expo, which again leads to the question if there’s anything it doesn’t do? It holds political debates (something the media once considered a duty) and provides jobs ads (ditto), offers insurance plans, stepped in to handle lobbying duties when the City Centre Development Agency wound up, represented the urban development community in off-set talks with the city, and handles its usual slate of events. It even has local school boards and charities as members.

– Tracking Queen Jubilee Medal winners is a full-time job, and apologies for omissions. Two new notable award recipients announced recently by the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame are the News’s own CFL columnist Graham Kelly and Stan Schwartz, a one-time Hatter who’s been pestered for years by Kelly as a top exec with the Calgary Stampeders.

A look ahead

A warm weekend gives one last chance to put up the Christmas lights (or to put away the hose). The city budget debate resumes Dec. 19. What are you doing for New Year’s?

100 years ago

Walter Huckvale was re-elected mayor in annual city elections held Dec. 12, 1922, the News of the day reported, with a second win in as many years over challenger Isaac Bullivant.

At an all-candidates meeting at city council chambers earlier in the week, Huckvale defended his administration as financially astute. He also said his plan had been to keep the city from “dickering about” with negotiations about acquiring the Redcliff gas field until the province had approved a purchase. That field had been secured by Calgary Power and Light Co., which did not stand on such illusions of ceremony.

Bullivant said the two men were the best of friends but differed greatly on matters of civic administration.

Also elected were alderman Baker, Boyd, Brown and Davidson. Among the defeated was antagonistic incumbent Ald. Jimmie Hole.

The sporting press in Toronto were churning the rumour mill of a real potential that American League baseball could come to the city in the form of a relocated Boston Red Sox franchise.

The State of New York declared that any marriage ceremonies conducted via wireless radio would be nullified on the principle participants should be in full view of each other while making vows.

A News editorial: “The advent of cold weather brings to mind that Christmas is drawing near. All agree that shopping early is good, but few carry it into effect.

“Making purchases now at local shops will improve moods as well as help home industry.”

Collin Gallant covers city politics and a variety of topics for the News. Reach him at 403-528-5664 or via email at cgallant@medicinehatnews.com