Top News - January - 2002 Published January 10, 2002 Bobby Hunter prepares to compete in the Canadian National Powwow competition in Edmonton. Photo by Brad Crowfoot Samson trial adjourned until April Student is a winner Father and daughter inducted into hall of fame This is only a partial listing of the stories featured in the January 2002 issue of Alberta Sweetgrass. If you are not receiving your own copy of Sweetgrass, then you have missed out on a lot. Samson trial adjourned until April Challenge of Crown witness delayed by judge's illness Paul Barnsley, Sweetgrass Writer, Calgary Three scheduled weeks of hearings in the Samson Cree First Nation's $1.5 billion claim against the federal government were cancelled on Jan. 9 after Federal Court of Canada Judge Max Teitelbaum was diagnosed with cancer. Judge Teitelbaum has presided over 149 days of hearings so far with the trial expected to last at least two more years. At the beginning of what was to have been the third day of cross-examination of Dr. Thomas Flanagan, a University of Calgary political science professor, the announcement was made that the trial had been adjourned until April. The Crown had wished to persuade the court to accept Flanagan as an expert in the history of Aboriginal-federal government relations. Samson Cree lawyer Ed Molstad made the announcement about the adjournment to a courtroom half full of Native observers who were there to see him argue that Flanagan was not qualified to be an expert witness in the case. The dozen or more people who made the hour-and-a-half trip south from Hobbema to downtown Calgary were looking forward to seeing the cross-examination of Flanagan completed. More than one observer said the scheduled events of Jan. 9 promised to be the most interesting day of the trial so far. Flanagan, a former policy advisor to former Reform Party leader Preston Manning and author of First Nations, Second Thoughts, the Donner Prize winning book that is critical of what the author calls "Aboriginal orthodoxy," is seen by most First Nations leaders as an arch political foe. He is currently the campaign manager for Stephen Harper, an Albertan who will seek to replace Stockwell Day as the leader of the Canadian Alliance. Molstad spent six hours of court time narrowing down the areas where Flanagan can claim to have expertise in Native issues, getting him to admit that he has never done research on reserve and has never spent any time working directly with Native people. Flanagan, who holds a PhD in political science from Duke University in North Carolina, also admitted he has never taken a single course in Canadian history or Canadian Aboriginal history. One more full day of court time is expected to be required before the judge will be asked to decide if Flanagan's testimony will be admitted as evidence. Judge Teitelbaum, 69, is expected to make a full recovery, sources say, although he faces surgery in late January. He was appointed judge of the Federal Court of Canada on Oct. 29, 1985. Top

Student is a winner Sweetgrass Staff Tyler Maurice Beaulac is a 13-year-old Grade 8 student who is "good in everything," his aunt Verna Wittigo says. Not only is he an excellent all-round student at the Alexander Forbes school in Grande Prairie, but he is "an eloquent speaker" and gets very involved in school activities. Wittigo figures that is why he was selected to receive one of the first awards presented by the Grande Prairie Public School District Education Foundation to recognize dedication and hard work in pursuit of academic excellence. The awards, started last fall, are inclusive of grades 4 to 12 in each of 11 schools in the district, and go to one student from each class. Their teachers recommend them. Tyler was one of 14 students in his school so honored. The "Striving for Excellence Dinner" was held Oct. 10 in Grande Prairie. Although his aunt insists that Tyler "participates to the max," she said that Tyler himself believes he can do better in school and is aiming for higher honors this year. He has aspirations to become a teacher. "He is already doing a good job of this. He gave his aunty a Harry Potter book for Christmas to put some magic into her life. You see, Tyler is also a wizard of the heart. Tyler is always joking with all." He also "loves his Cree ancestry, especially when it comes to the old stories and spiritual ways, " Wittigo concluded. Top Father and daughter inducted into hall of fame Sweetgrass Staff, Calahoo Emile Berube, softball player, coach, sponsor and above all, promoter, has raised the sports profile of the community of Calahoo with his exemplary achievements over the past 40 years. Now his daughter Shelley (Berube) Gadoury has made her own mark as a champion softball player. The Alberta Amateur Softball Association Hall of Fame has recognized them both. Emile was inducted into the hall of fame in the sport builder category, while Shelley was inducted into the athlete category on Oct. 13 last year. The provincial association subsequently nominated Shelley to the Canadian Softball Hall of Fame where she was inducted on Dec. 1, 2001. Shelley grew up in Calahoo where she learned softball under the expert tutelage of her father. She came into prominence in 1985, winning the junior women's provincial championships. She went on to win numerous provincial and Canadian top player and pitcher awards. Shelley played for the Canadian national women's fast pitch team in the world softball championships in Normal, Illinois in 1990. In addition, teams on which she played won 12 straight provincial championships. Known as a "tough as nails" pitcher, she won eight top pitcher awards at Canadian championships in those 12 years and four most valuable player awards. Her teams won two gold medals in 1988 and 1990, along with five silver medals between 1985 and 1992 and a bronze medal in 1996. "Sports for me has been preparation for life in general," she said. "You've got to learn to work with people; you've got to learn to take orders; you've got to all work together for a goal, and that's kind of sometimes what work's about." She said if youth can pursue the game "it is the best thing that can happen to them. And it is a very rewarding experience." Shelley, now 36, officially retired from the sport in 1998, as she is busy with her young family and with teaching special education at Broxton Park School in Spruce Grove. But she is still involved in softball in Calahoo, teaching the game to her three sons, ages eight, six and four. She also assists her father with coaching and she does pitching clinics. The older Berube coached Shelley, her sister Terri and brother Kenny up through the ranks and to many Canadian championships. He also coached teams that went to Western Canadian championships in Kamloops, B.C. and Portage La Prairie, Man., and on to many Canadian championships. Emile was rewarded for his efforts in promoting softball by taking home the 1990 Softball Canada Coach of the Year Award. In some people's minds, however, his biggest contribution to the game has occurred in the last six years, as it is during this time that he has helped the once floundering Calahoo Mite boys' team to reach the provincial championships. All across Alberta his teams have come to be known for their base running, pitching and discipline. Calahoo teams have won two gold and two silver medals, and in 2000, Calahoo sent Mite A and Mite B boys' teams to the provincials in Consort, Alta. The Mite A team captured the silver medal and the Mite B team took home the gold. Emile has resisted the urge to move up with the boys as they develop, instead remaining at home to teach Mite-level players the fundamentals of the game. He not only continues to coach the Mite boys but he also volunteers his time with the Calahoo Juniors. Top