Moving Mom

 

Mom telling family everything is OK

We arrived home from Canada to the realization that my dear Mom, almost 102, can no longer live independently in her 2-room unit at South Port Square.  Her ability to walk, take her medications, shower, sleep in her large bed, etc. is compromised by her arthritis and advanced age.  With the help of the South Port Square Independent Living Coordinator and family members, she was convinced that it was time to relocate to another building at South Port - the Assisted Living floor.

My sister, Mary, and family, and our daughter, Michele, came for a visit and helped purchase a new bed that was easier for her to negotiate.  Richard and I packed up her belongings and donated many items to St Vincent de Paul that will help the poor and underprivileged.  We hired a company to move some of the bigger items and we took care of the rest.  

Her new one bedroom place looks beautiful with her art work and decorations.  She has a comfortable lift chair and a new spiffy transport chair.  She also moved her scooter and is hopeful she will be able to use it soon.

View of Mom's new room

It is quite a period of adjustment for her and we hope she will be happy in her new surroundings. Change is difficult at any age.  As for us, we are relieved that she will get the care she needs and deserves.  

With Medicine Hat Friendship Force

 The name of the city, Medicine Hat, is intriguing, is it not?  The name originates in a Blackfoot legend. In a time of great famine, a young man exchanged the life of his wife for a magic bonnet, a Saamis,  that endowed him with great hunting prowess and thus saved the tribe from starvation. The exchange occurred along the South Saskatchewan River at a "breathing hole", place now known as Medicine Hat. 

Medicine Hat lies 178 miles southeast of Calgary and 250 miles north of Great Falls, Montana. From Edmonton, we rode a Red Arrow bus 178 miles to Calgary and then a Prairie Sprinter Shuttle onto Medicine Hat. All along the way, the flat land prairie was green with irrigated crops and yellow with fields of canola as far as the eye could see in any direction. With  a layover in Calgary, this was an all day trip. 

 

Beautiful City Hall

After a tour of James Marshall brick sculptures, we had lunch at Medicine Hat's beautiful City Hall.  Our club's name was added to a plaque listing all the journeys Friendship Force clubs hosted by the Medicine Hat Club over the years.

James Marshall, a well respected artist and Medicine Hat native, met with us at the Stations of the Cross in Garden Park. Each of the seventeen murals was created by James.  Over two hundred of his murals can be found around the world. 

Finely Bridge

Flood waters almost reached the bottom of the Finley Bridge in 1995.  James created this mural to commemorate the citizens of community who volunteered to work together in response to the rising flood waters. 

We cut-up potatoes at Prairie Gleaners one morning. Farmers in Southeast Alberta donate produce that volunteers at Prairie Gleaners process into packages of dehydrated vegetables that are shipped to hungry people all over the world.   It was great to help them!

The Saamis Teepee rises in Medicine Hat to a height of 210 feet. Each of the tens masts features a story board depicting native culture. 

We enjoyed close-up views of owls and other birds at Birds of Prey Centre in Coaldale before lunch at Broxburn Vegetables and Cafe near Lethbridge. 

After lunch, we had a guided tour of Fort Whoop-Up near Lethbridge. It's nickname was given to a whisky trading post.  During the late 19th century the sale of whisky was outlawed, but due to lack of law enforcement in the region, many whisky traders flourished there.

Scenes of Fort Whoop-Up

Medalta Potteries once manufactured everything from dinner ware for hotels to very large urns.  It is now a museum and a ceramic arts facility. 

Out on the prairie, we had lunch at the Muffin Shop in Irvine before wandering around the Prairie Memories Museum, a cute local place full of historic buildings and furnishings.

Main Street in Irvine

We had a great time in Southeast Alberta thanks to our hosts Dianne and Herb Durda and the wonderful Medicine Hat Friendship Force. This was our 16th Friendship Force Club visited throughout the world since we joined Friendship Force 11 years ago.  It has proved to be a wonderful way to meet people of the world and be introduced to their cultures and viewpoints.  

Edmonton Friendship Force Journey

With Hosts and Officer Tran 

Following our time along the Ice Fields Parkway, we turned in our rental car at the Edmonton airport where our hosts , Grace and Richard Whitehouse picked us up for a stay at their beautiful condo overlooking the Sturgeon River in St. Albert, a beautiful city in the Edmonton metropolitan area. Officer Tran of the Royal Canadian Mounties attended the Edmonton Friendship Force Welcome Brunch at the St. Albert Botanic Garden just a short drive from the condo.  I asked Officer Tran if he knew Dudley Do-Right. He did not. Only a few in attendance knew Dudley!

Gorgeous Double Rainbow Over Sturgeon River ended our first day here!

Dinner and Breakfast at Our Host's Home - Grace is an exceptional cook!

At the St Albert Grain Elevator Park, we toured two historic grain elevators and also learned about the Metis, a people formed from the marriages of early French and Scottish fur traders with Ingenious Peoples. We learned that many Ukranians settled Alberta in the 1890's when the government offered free land grants. The railroad also encouraged immigration to the prairies from Ukraine and other European countries. 

St Albert Wheat Pool

At the Ukrainian Village, re-enactors take one back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries at the time many Ukrainians immigrated to Alberta.  We also had dinner at an Ukrainian café in a nearby town and visited a Ukrainian church museum.  The perogu was delicious!

Watch Joanne Wring Out Clothes

   Watch Wagon Come  Up Road

St Albert Farmer's Market is no ordinary market.  There are vendors with all kinds of products and food items.  It was an amazing place to spend the morning.

Edmonton Mall  is the largest in North America.  We enjoyed checking out the famous Hudson's Bay department store, the ice hockey rink, amusement park and a replica of Columbus' sailing vessel.  This mall has something for everyone.

Fort Edmonton Park is a big place with lots to see.  We loved the newly opened Indigenous People's Center, a ride on the old railroad, the fort and authentic recreated streets from the 1890's, 1905 and 1920's eras!

Fort Edmonton Park 

Train at Fort Edmonton Park

See a musket in action. 

Edmonton Library was truly amazing!  It is a hands on experience and offers much more than an "ordinary" library, e.g., sewing classes, printing in 3-D to name just a few. 

The Wall and 3D Printer

See the Dinosaurs move.