HighRiver

Thursday night kicked off the Battle of the Foothills chuckwagon races at the High River Ag grounds.

Jamie Laboucane came through with the top time of the night, with defending champion Chanse Vigen placing in 5th, and High River's own Jason Glass coming in 6th on the night.

Other local favourites had solid times too, with Jordie Fike from Blackie coming in 11th and DeWinton's Dayton Sutherland coming in 14th.

The top four drivers in the aggregate after Saturday night's heats will qualify for the final championship heat on Sunday.

Tamara Lich and Chris Barber, two leaders of the Freedom Convoy protest, are scheduled to be sentenced for mischief on Oct. 7 in an Ottawa courtroom.

In addition to lengthy prison sentences, the Crown wants to seize Barber's truck, which was used in the protest.

A forfeiture hearing on that matter is scheduled for Sept. 12.

Ontario Court Justice Heather Perkins-McVey said Thursday she wants to rule on the mischief sentence and truck forfeiture at the same time so that she does not deliver "piecemeal" decisions.

Three workers who were trapped in a remote northern British Columbia mine have been rescued after more than 60 hours underground.

Red Chris mine operator Newmont Corp. said the three men were safely bought to the surface at about 10:40 p.m. on Thursday.

It said Kevin Coumbs, Darien Maduke and Jesse Chubaty — contractors for B.C.-based Hy-Tech Drilling — were in good health and spirits after being trapped underground by two rockfalls on Tuesday morning.

"This was a carefully planned and meticulously executed rescue plan," the company said in a statement.

The Executive Director of the Okotoks & District Chamber of Commerce has received provincial recognition for her leadership and impact. Dawn LeMaistre has been named the Alberta Chamber Executive of the Year for 2025.

The award was presented by the Chamber of Commerce Executives of Alberta and recognizes excellence in leadership, innovation, and service across the province's 106 local chambers.

Since taking on the executive director role four years ago, LeMaistre has led the Okotoks Chamber through what the association calls "transformative growth."

A new water feature was unveiled at Okotoks' Arts and Learning Campus on Wednesday (July 24).

The interactive addition to Ethel Tucker Park was welcomed with a grand opening ceremony hosted by the Town of Okotoks, where the family behind the feature was introduced.

The water feature was made possible through a philanthropic donation from the Robert R. Hartley and Lillian P. Hartley Foundation.

Lillian Hartley approached the Town in 2020, offering a $1 million donation to support the Arts and Learning Campus.

The month of July has brought cool, wet weather and smoke from forest fires to the majority of the Prairies.

Rain has been reported in some of the drier areas, but its coming too late for drought stressed crops and forage, with RM's across Manitoba, and Saskatchewan and  Alberta County's now declaring agricultural disaster areas.

Taking a regional look at what's happening:

Manitoba

The Canadian Federation of Agriculture has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the National Circle for Indigenous Agriculture & Food.

The agreement is designed to build stronger collaboration between Indigenous and non-Indigenous agricultural producers.

Keith Currie, President of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture says by working together, we can amplify Indigenous voices, support agricultural entrepreneurs, and promote food production in ways that benefit all Canadians.

The provincial government recently announced two conservation programs: the Private Land Conservation Program and Ecosystems Grant Program 

The government of Alberta is investing $10 million to improve private land conservation, with the launch of two new and improved programs.

The enhanced Private Land Conservation Program and the new Ecosystems Grant Program will enable better protection of natural areas across the province, while allowing landowners to use their land for farming and ranching, the province has said.

A $3.3 million investment from the provincial government will be used to support affordable housing in Okotoks.  

Funding through the Affordable Housing Partnership Program (AHPP) will be allocated for the construction of a 40-unit apartment building in the D’Arcy neighbourhood for AISH recipients and those with modest incomes.