April 2012

I have lived in Lethbridge for almost 55 years now and, as I get older, my appreciation for this community continues to grow. In a recent article, a national publication examined 190 towns and cities based on 22 criteria and Lethbridge ranked 25th in terms of liveability when compared to these communities. This was a slight dip from the prior year but it does show that our City scores well when compared to other communities.

But I don’t need an article to tell me what a great place this is to live. All I have to do is look around at the citizens who contribute so much of their time and energy in volunteering for a myriad of events that take place in Lethbridge. Most recently, we hosted the 2012 Ford World Women’s Curling Championships and that could only have happened because there were 400 plus volunteers who gave freely of their time to make the event such a success. Our City was host to 12 teams from 3 different continents. Many of these teams will be appearing in the next Winter Olympics. Canada has hosted this event 12 times over the history of the event and, in terms of attendance, it was second only to Grande Prairie (approximately 61,000 versus 56,000 for Lethbridge). In speaking with the World Curling Federation president, I was informed that their organization was impressed with all aspects of the event including attendance, the venue, the volunteer base, the hospitality, to name just a few. These thoughts were echoed by Canadian Curling officials as well as the teams that I had a chance to speak with. In short, an unqualified success! And volunteers made it happen!

The week after the curling event, I attended a reception showcasing the cultural aspect of the upcoming 2012 Alberta Summer Games to be held in our city. The organizers indicated that they expected that approximately 3,000 volunteers will be needed for this event and I expect that they will have no difficulty in reaching this goal. This event could only be held because of the premier sporting venues that our community has to offer whether they are on City owned land or on venues that were built in partnership with other community members such as the University of Lethbridge. 

But not all events are sporting in nature as I was privileged to attend the recent announcement that the 2013 Canada-Wide Science Fair will be held in Lethbridge. This national event will feature over 400 outstanding science projects with students from grades seven through twelve selected from more than 100 regional competitions. It is expected that somewhere in the order of 1,100 students, parents, judges and sponsors will be in attendance for this week long event which will spotlight Canada’s future scientists.

And in the same week I attended the Annual General Meeting of Volunteer Lethbridge whose core services include promoting the value of volunteerism in Lethbridge and connecting people with opportunities to volunteer. Each year they also quantify the number of volunteer hours that volunteers in Lethbridge contribute to our community and in 2011, approximately 660,000 volunteer hours were recorded. Recently this incredible organization celebrated their 25th Anniversary in Lethbridge and, this past Monday, they made a presentation to City Council which coincided with National Volunteer Week taking place April 15-21, 2012.

The City of Lethbridge also celebrates the volunteers that are involved on the various City appointed committees and Boards such as the Lethbridge Regional Police Commission, the Lethbridge Public Library Board, Galt Museum and Archives Board,  Municipal  Planning Commission, to name but  a few. And, like all volunteers, they do not receive any remuneration for their hard work but we do recognize them for their efforts in an appreciation night held once a year.

I have only touched on some events and organizations that are volunteer driven. There are, of course, numerous service organizations, charities and other events such as the International Air Show, the Dragon Boat Festival and the Street Wheelers’ Weekend, the many events offered by the Lethbridge and District Exhibition to name just a few events and organizations that rely upon volunteers to sustain their ongoing contributions to our community. Furthermore, businesses in our community often organize public service events relying upon the contributions of their employees to further contribute positively to our community.

So, please join me in applauding the efforts of all of the volunteers who work in a positive and constructive manner to make our city a great place to live. And to those that have not yet had the pleasure and satisfaction of being a volunteer, please consider becoming one as the benefits are highly rewarding. 

To all volunteers out there......you rule!

Mayor Rajko Dodic, April 20, 2012