Calgary Briefs - October 2012

Prime Minister Stephen Harper offers his condolences to widow Jeanne Lougheed at Peter Lougheed’s memorial service in Calgary.

Lougheed recognized for “unwavering commitment”

Former Premier Peter Lougheed, who passed away at the age of 84 on Sept. 13, was the first Alberta premier of Métis ancestry. Born on July 26, 1928, Lougheed was the son of Edgar Donald Lougheed and Edna Alexandria Bauld. His grandmother Isabella Clark Hardisty, daughter of Métis parents, William Lucas Hardisty and Mary Ann Allen, was married to his grandfather Senator James Alexander Lougheed on Sept. 16, 1884, in Calgary. Her husband, a lawyer, was appointed to the senate in 1889 as a result of her uncle, Senator Richard Hardisty’s death. During his tenure as premier, Lougheed addressed the issue of provincial versus federal jurisdiction for Métis Albertans. At that time, Lougheed affirmed provincial responsibility for Alberta’s Métis despite the view of Métis representatives that they fell under federal jurisdiction. His concern was the difficulty in defining who was Métis and he feared that land settlement negotiations would be affected. In June 1985, Lougheed received unanimous support for a resolution to revise the 1938 Métis Population Betterment Act to grant settlement lands to the Métis. In his tribute to Lougheed at a public memorial at the Jubilee Auditorium in Calgary on Sept. 21, Prime Minister Stephen Harper described Lougheed as a great man, a statesman, and the kind of leader that defined an era. “He brought to the job intelligence, integrity, energy, a clear and practical sense of direction, and an unwavering commitment to what he believe to be the wider public interest,” said Harper.

Talisman Energy supports Mount Royal University with donation

Leagh Vermeylen, a general science major, is the first recipient of the Talisman Energy Centennial Scholarship. Talisman Energy recently donated $1.25 million to Mount Royal University. Of that amount, $250,000 will be used for the Centennial scholarship, a faculty nominated award, recognizing academic achievement in second, third or fourth year Aboriginal students pursuing a bachelor of science degree. The balance, $1 million, will support a Chair of Sustainability and the Environment. Dr. Michael Quinn, associate professor in the Faculty of Environmental Design at the University of Calgary, has been named as the new chair. His role will be to engage the community, faculty and students in renewable resources and environmental issues while continuing his research in these areas. “Supporting the Chair of Sustainability and the Environment will inspire new ideas, prompt innovation and take student learning and faculty expertise to even higher levels,” Bob Rooney, executive vice president, legal and general counsel, Talisman Energy, said in a news release.

NWAC’s Helen Bassett Commemorative Student Award winner

Julia McGraw, an Alberta Métis student, beginning Law school at the University of Calgary,  is one of four recipients of the Native Women’s Association of Canada’s Helen Bassett Commemorative Student Award.  The award, which is for $1,000, is an initiative that helps Aboriginal women attending post-secondary. Helen Bassett, a strong supporter of rights and equality for Aboriginal people, particularly Aboriginal women, named NWAC as a beneficiary of her estate, supporting its student award program since 2003. The selection committee received 100 applications from Aboriginal women across the country. Also getting awards were Elizabeth Zarpa, an Inuit woman, beginning a law degree at the University of Victoria; Claire Anderson of the Taku River First Nation, studying law at the University of British Columbia; and Chrystal Desilets, an Algonquin Soman from the Pikwakanagan First Nation and pursuing Aboriginal studies and introduction to law at Algonquin College in Ottawa.

We Day attracts big names
Chief George Stanley, Regional Chief for Alberta for the Assembly of First Nations, and former Calgary Flames hockey player Theo Fleury will be part of We Day Alberta, which will take place Oct. 24. Free the Children’s We Day in Calgary brings together thousands of students and educators in a stadium setting to engage youth in global issues. More than 18,000 students from 500 schools will hear the invited guests, which will also include former president of the Soviet Union and Nobel Peace Laureate Mikhail Gorbachev and Amanda Lindhout, the Canadian humanitarian and former journalist who was kidnapped in 2008 by Islamist insurgents in Somalia. “Over the past five years, we’ve seen a fundamental transformation in the students that attend We Day,” Craig Kielburger, founder of Free The Children, said in a release. “Not only have they gained greater confidence in forming their personal identities, but the impact they’ve had on society is incredible.”