Cochrane

A British Columbia community's "out-of-the-box" plan to ease its family doctor shortage by hiring physicians as city employees is sparking interest from across Canada, says Colwood Mayor Doug Kobayashi.

The mayor said the community has hired its first family doctor for a city-operated medical clinic, and the Victoria-area city is looking to hire seven more under the first-in-Canada pilot project.

The family doctors will be paid as community employees, receiving full medical benefits, vacation and a pension, he said.

An "overheated" immigration system that admitted record numbers of newcomers to the country has harmed Canada's decades-old consensus on the benefits of immigration, Immigration Minister Marc Miller said, as he reflected on the changes in his department in a year-end interview.

The system, he said, needed some discipline to get the country back on track.

Are you hoping to unwarp a new remote-controlled car or drone this Christmas? 

The Cochrane Lions Event Centre is launching Remote Control Day on Boxing Day (December 26) from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

The event welcomes RC enthusiasts of all ages to race, challenge, and showcase their skills with RC cars, trucks, planes, and drones.

Admission is free and popcorn and pop will also be served at no cost.

Five graduating Cochrane Cobras football players have been selected for the south all-star team that will battle the north in the Senior Bowl.

Defensive backs Emery Stevenson and Jacob Mcpike, linebacker Bennett Fauth, defensive lineman Benjamin Inglis, and running back Jacob Conaboy will wear their Cobras helmets with pride in the Jan. 5 game at the Encana Dome in Shouldice Park, Calgary.

With the town so brightly decorated, Bighill Lodge residents had some tough choices to make during their annual tour and judging of the multitude of incredible Christmas displays. 

In the end, they selected their top three that you may want to check out on your family tour through Cochrane's Winter Wonderland.

This weekend on the Canadian Country Showcase, we have a special holiday edition of the show! Courtney Fielder catches up with many of your favourite artists this holiday season to talk about all things Christmas, from their favourite holiday movies to how many trees they have in their homes—and so much more.

Tune in to the Canadian Country Showcase every Saturday at 12 p.m. and Sunday at 4 p.m., exclusively on the Golden West Country Network.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is adding eight fresh faces to his cabinet in a shuffle today, though they may not have much time in those new roles after all.

Just before Trudeau moved to shore up his front bench Friday, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh declared he is finally ready to vote down the government and attempt to trigger a snap election in the new year -- though Parliament won't return for a month and he may not get that chance until March.

The New Democrats will bring forward a non-confidence motion to bring down the Liberals in the next sitting of the House of Commons, NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh said Friday.

In the latest blow to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's struggling Liberal government, Singh wrote a letter address to Canadians in which he doubled down on his call for Trudeau to resign but also said the NDP will vote to bring down the government, regardless of who is at its helm. 

Another huge food drive by the Cochrane Indoor Pickleball Association has helped to stock the shelves of the Cochrane Food Bank.

As well, their members have donated almost $800 in cash since the beginning of December.

Chair Bill Cooper says they regularly donate to the food bank and in the last three months alone filled two full bins of nonperishables.

"For a small group to donate and be as gracious as they were is mind-boggling," says Cooper. "We also had $540 in cash and today we're doing a 50-50 draw."

When I first signed up for the Cochrane Curling Club's development league at the SLS Centre, I envisioned a cozy evening sport where I'd gracefully glide across the ice like some kind of majestic penguin. Spoiler alert: it was more like Bambi on roller skates.

The first night, I stepped onto the ice with confidence. “How hard can it be?” I thought, moments before my feet decided to take a scenic route to the ceiling. The ice greeted me with a cold, hard slap to my dignity.