Letters to the Editor
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Vol. 20, No. 21, Wednesday, February 26, 2025 www.LamontLeader.com
Caring communities give Family Day another try BY JANA SEMENIUK With temperatures beyond -30 the previous weekend cancelling all outdoor Family Day activities in the county, the Town of Mundare and the Village of Chipman decided to try again with a second outdoor Family Day event Feb 23. The Town of Mundare originally had snowshoeing and cross-country skiing planned for residents on Feb. 17, when the prolonged cold snap forced their cancellation. Although they were still able to hold their annual pancake breakfast, curling at the Mundare Curling Rink in addition to skating in the arena with free hot dogs and hot chocolate, Mundare Mayor Cheryl Calinoiu wanted their residents to have more. She said she was happy to give them another opportunity to get together and enjoy roasted hot dogs over a fire, with hot chocolate and snow shoeing. “It was a good turnout. People were coming,” she said. Meanwhile, the Village of Chipman was hoping for warmer weather and they received more than they bargained for.
At a balmy plus five, the outdoor rink melted enough that skating was no longer possible. However, attendees still wore big smiles as Mayor Morris Langevin used his quad to pull children through the fields on a toboggan, while other children wore black garbage bags for an extra slippery ride down a large snowy hill before pulling up a seat on some hay bales and roasting hot dogs around a fire. Langevin said, although some families braved the cold to attend a smaller indoor Family Day event the previous weekend, he was happy the Village could provide another opportunity for some outdoor Family Day fun. “They kind of got shorted on the first day because it was so cold. We couldn’t do a wiener roast, we couldn’t do nothing,” he said. “We figured it’s supposed to be nice next weekend maybe we’ll do something.” Approximately 40 people turned out in Chipman to enjoy the day which Langevin said he is happy about. “Anybody is better than nobody,” he said. “It keeps the community together when you have parents and kids coming out.”
The Baerends family enjoy snowshoeing in Mundare for the town's second try at outdoor Family Day activities Feb. 23. L-R: Maverick, Gilbert holding Thea and Aren.
Kids don black garbage bags for a rip down a large snowy hill in Chipman Feb. 23 during the village's second try at outdoor Family Day events. Extreme cold weather canceled their scheduled outdoor events for Family Day Feb. 17. Photo: Jana Semeniuk