Alberta 55 plus

Lifelong Fitness Through Active Living

2019 Summer Games

**PRESIDENTS MESSAGE**

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Good morning fellow members,
I am very excited to be the bearer of good news…according to the latest announcement from the government and AHS, we (Alberta) are going to be “open for business” by late June or early July. This is great news indeed and on many fronts.
Your Board of Directors have been quite busy behind the scenes meeting, planning and organizing in anticipation of this announcement. Your Membership and Activity Directors are now ramping up their efforts to ensure that all qualifying events for the Provincial Games are in order.
However, the best planning and staging of events won’t amount to much if we, collectively, don’t support those efforts through our active participation. Each and every one of us have a role to play in the overall success of both the winter games in Edmonton, and the summer games in Peace River.
A few reminders and updates…
You must be a fully paid, active member of Alberta55 plus in order to play in any qualifying event.
You will still be required to sign a medical and Covid waiver release form in order to participate in any qualifying event.
There will still be Covid protocols in place where mandated and where necessary, all according to AHS and the guidelines being used at that time.
You need to requalify in your event or sport in order to get to the Canada Games in Kamloops, BC. There are no hold overs from the last set of games that were held.
We are actively seeking members to be provincial judges for all events, so if you believe you are qualified, please contact your respective Activity Directors and make them aware of your interest.
Both host locations are excited at the prospect of the provincial games coming to their communities and are working hard to ensure their readiness.
Watch your Zone websites and our Provincial website as well for news, dates, locations, events, and future announcements.
I am hoping that the worst of this Covid pandemic is behind us and we can start to get excited about where we are headed. Its time to reacquaint with old friends, its time to fire up both your competitive spirit and your want of fellowship. We have been penned up for much too long, its time to get out of the house and celebrate the news….the great news.
In closing, please continue to beat the drum…now more than ever, it is important we let everyone know Alberta55 plus is alive, well and very excited about the upcoming games.
Dave

President’s Message

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Hello fellow members,

It’s been a while since my last message and there are things happening at the provincial Board level that I would like to share with all of you.

Your Provincial Board is hard at work and I might add, happy to be doing some planning for the upcoming games. There seems to be lots of excitement and anticipation of things to come. There will be a flurry of activities and no doubt, our resources will be tested. With your patience and understanding, we will most certainly rise to the challenge.

The Covid pandemic has been with us for more than a year now and we can only hope that it will be gone one day soon. I hope you’re all managing to keep well and remain vigilant. No doubt there is a collective sigh of relief that seniors can finally start to book and receive their vaccination shots (if so inclined) starting immediately. There is an appreciation that it will take time for the vaccination program to reach our entire membership but, it will happen.

In anticipation of that news, we have revised and amended our Covid 19 medical waiver to include a “vaccination awareness” piece that addresses concerns about large gatherings. This waiver will be mandatory at all our Zone and provincial events.

We are all watching and digesting AHS news releases that come out weekly from the government, and are anxiously awaiting for the good news that we can once again meet, compete and enjoy fellowship with others from across the province. What a wonderful thought…

I am happy and very pleased to announce that Zone 6 (EDMONTON) has been awarded the opportunity to host the Provincial Winter Games and are currently working on fine tuning all the details. The specific dates are April 7-10, 2022. Stay tuned for more details as they become available. Finally we can start looking forward to catching up with old friends, engaging in competition, and venturing outside our own homes.

A reminder to everyone that the Provincial Summer Games are still currently slated for Peace River in June, 2022. They are busy, excited and ready to welcome us up to the Peace Region area.

Both of these major events will require the province to lift the medical guidelines that as of right now, prohibit large gatherings such as these. Lets hope that this news happens soon, as we are moving forward with the planning and organizing of these games.

Don’t forget that the Canada 55 games are still planned for August, 2022 in Kamloops, BC. Of course, they are needing government and city approvals to do so.

I must say that will be a very busy time for our Activity Directors and we will be looking for many volunteers to assist with our preparation for those Kamloops games. Your help would be greatly appreciated.

There are a couple of new Board members that were recently elected to a few vacant positions and I would like to welcome them into their new roles. Caroline Anker is the new Technical Director North and Gary Paukert is the new Vice President South. Welcome and congratulations to both of you.

A gentle reminder that we have our spring AGM coming up on May 3, 2021 in Red Deer (if in person) otherwise it will be a virtual meeting held by Zoom format. Please mark the date on your calendars.

In closing, please continue to beat the drum. Continue to support Alberta55 plus, continue to tell family and friends about us, continue to stay active, stay involved and stay vigilant.

Dave Finn
President

Alberta 55 plus Zones