Alberta 55 plus

Lifelong Fitness Through Active Living

News

Medical Waiver CovId 19

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We have a new medical waiver now required for participation in any future Alberta 55 plus events. Event coordinators will always have the medical waiver on hand for participants to complete at Alberta 55 plus events.

 

We strive to keep our members and volunteers healthy and safe as we navigate a new normal during this pandemic. Thank-you for helping us to keep our community safe and strong.

 

You can read a copy of the new medical waiver below:

Alberta 55 Plus Medical Waiver

 

alberta-55-plus-medical-waiver

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

President’s Message

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Good day fellow members,

It’s been a while since my last message, and not surprisingly, there’s much to share with you and the news is mostly consisting of the Provincial Games updates.

With regards to the Summer Games slated for August 2021 in Peace River, I can share the following:

The folks in Peace River are still very interested in hosting the Games but they, as we all, have an appreciation for the level of difficulty we might encounter as a result of the current pandemic. There has been talk about canceling the Games altogether and there has been talk about postponing the Games until 2022. As of the writing of this letter, the difficult, but wise decision has been made by both the Alberta55 Board and the Peace River Games Committee to postpone the Summer Games and reschedule them for June of 2022. There will be an official announcement coming out soon so watch your emails and our own website for that.

With regards to the Winter Games potentially being hosted by Cochrane, and in around Zone 2, I can share this news:

The respective councils have decried that under the current pandemic situation, they do not have the proper funding in place nor will they have time to raise the capital necessary to host the Games. The folks from Zone 2 are still investigating other possibilities for a host community but there are currently no expressions of interest on the table. Your Provincial Board is in discussion to see if one of the larger zones (3 or 6) would be in a position to host the winter games. Stay tuned for more information as it becomes available.

Please know that we are searching and vetting every option that we can to ensure that the Provincial Games get played. It will take an immense amount of creativity and dedication to make it so, and we will be trying our best for you.

As you all are aware, we chose to postpone our AGM several times and it is now planned as a virtual AGM on Monday, January 18th at 10:00 am. All paid up members from 2020/2021 will receive an email invite to this meeting. Don’t forget that elections for the Board will be taking place during this meeting, and only paid members can attend and vote on any motions or the elections.

Our new database and website are up and running, and from all reports are working very well. As expected with new technology, we are experiencing a few glitches but thankfully nothing too serious. Our new Provincial Coordinator, Kevin Worth, has got things running quite smoothly and we are certainly appreciative of his efforts with implementing this new system.

This pandemic has caused numerous if not most of our planned activities to be cancelled or postponed across the entire province. It is to be sure, a very difficult and trying time right now. I understand that many of you are feeling alone, locked down, and isolated from your friends and family. We can only hope for an end to this pandemic before too long. Perhaps with a soon-to-be readily available vaccine, we can return to some sense of normalcy.

During this Christmas season, take the time to reach out (virtually) and spend some face time with family and friends. Do your best to fight back against this situation and ensure you’re staying vigilant.

Christmas will not look or feel the same this year, or as it has in the past. But that doesn’t mean it’s not going to happen. Make the best of this time to let people know you care about them and that they have not been forgotten. Share new and old stories, share a coffee or a glass of eggnog (rum optional) most importantly, share your time.

From my house to yours, myself and Wendy are wishing you a Merry Christmas and a healthy, Happy New Year…

Dave

2020 Annual General Meeting

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The 2020 Annual General Meeting will be held on

MONDAY, JANUARY 18TH, 2021

virtually through a Zoom meeting call

at 10:00 am.

Pre-registration is required

2020 or 2021 Membership is required to register

To register for the AGM please contact

Kevin Worth, Provincial Coordinator

info@alberta55plus.ca

403-700-0454

Agenda will be available in early January

Office Hours

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Office Hours are changing with the current Cov-ID 19 restrictions

Percy Page Center Hours

11759 Groat Road NW, Edmonton

Tuesday 9 AM – 1 PM

 

By phone (403-700-0454) or email (info@alberta55plus.ca)

Monday – Friday 9 AM – 1 PM

Alberta 55 plus Zones