HighRiver

The Okotoks Oilers' first official full season in the BCHL is ready to roll.

Their first exhibition game goes on Saturday night as they host the Sherwood Park Crusaders.

Tickets are still available for the late 8 p.m. start time at the newly named Vikings Rentals Centre.

Some new Oilers will be making their debut, and the team still has to trim its roster before the regular season starts on September 20.

The Heritage Junior Hockey League (HJHL) is all set for another season.

The High River Flyers start the season by hopping on a bus and heading up to Didsbury to tangle with the Mountainview Colts for a Friday night melee.

The Flyers had an amazing playoff run last year and will look to replicate that to start the season.

Flyers President Tim Bradbury says the team's excited to get going.

A 15-year-old girl is in hospital with serious injuries after she was lit on fire at a Saskatoon high school, police said Thursday. 

Sgt. Ken Kane told reporters that a school resource officer, who was at Evan Hardy Collegiate for a different matter, apprehended a 14-year-old girl as a suspect.

He did not say how the victim was lit on fire or the extent of her burn injuries. 

"Our officer that was on scene was at the immediate area of the event within 30 seconds and had someone in custody within 60 seconds," he said.

The Rotary Club of Okotoks and the Town of Okotoks unveiled the new wheelchair-accessible swing at Bill Robertson Park on Thursday (Sept. 5).

It's the latest contribution to the park from the Rotary Club, who provided over $100,000 in funding for the project, with the Town contributing about $10,000.

They previously funded an accessible picnic shelter in 2020.

The swing features a ramp, space for a wheelchair including a wheel stop, fold-down bars to hold onto, and a bench across from the wheelchair space.

An aggressive grizzly bear warning was issued for the Madden area as Alberta Fish and Wildlife Enforcement Services (FWES) continue to investigate a recent bear attack.

The attack happened in Rocky View County near Range Road 34 just north of Township Road 274, on Sunday (Sept. 1) just after 10 a.m.

A 48-year-old Calgary man sustained sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries from a female grizzly, who was accompanied by "sub-adult bears."

The Foothills Country Hospice has big plans for its largest fundraiser of the year.

Their annual Gratitude and Giving Gala is scheduled for Friday, October 18, at the Foothills Centennial Centre.

This year's theme is Hospiceopoly, a take on the classic board game.

They're integrating the theme into nearly every facet of the event, including selling sponsorships titled after properties in the game, including Waterworks and Electric Company.

Earlier this summer, Legal Aid Alberta almost became defunct after a dispute over an updated governance agreement.

On July 2nd, Legal Aid released a statement stating that if a new governance agreement hadn't been reached by July 9th, they would no longer be able to offer their services.

Then, on July 5th, Legal Aid announced that the governance agreement that was originally going to expire on June 30th was extended to September 5th to allow for negotiations to continue so Legal Aid could still exist independently from the government and help disadvantaged Albertans.

A new mural is underway at Okotoks' Arts and Learning Campus.

Gordon Wesley was selected to paint an Indigenous-themed mural on the building's east wall facing east toward the former Okotoks library, and got started this week.

Wesley is a Stoney Nakoda artist from the Bighorn Reserve just east of the Rockies, which often serve as a backdrop for his artwork.

An accomplished canvas painter, Wesley says he's also no stranger to painting murals.

The Okotoks Oilers have listed a few more names to their roster this year, with one of them being new to Okotoks.

18-year-old Brayden Duy is one of the new defencemen with the Green and Gold and hails from St. Louis, Missouri.

Last season, Duy played for the St. Louis AAA Blues 18U, where he got 4 goals and 3 assists in the 14 games he played for them.

Duy will be playing for Lindenwood University in Missouri for the 2025-2026 season.

Forward Jackson Rowland will be returning to don the Okotoks Oilers jersey again this season.

Now that autumn is approaching and the leaves are beginning to yellow and match the school buses, the Alberta RCMP are reminding people to drive safe.

With school back in session, drivers are being reminded that there will be increased traffic and rush-hour commutes, which has prompted the RCMP to offer some driving tips.

They recommend students wear brightly coloured clothes to help them appear more visible to motorists during the dim early-morning hours or whenever the weather conditions limit visibility.