Summer Connections

By Serena Lapointe
 
Over the summer, for the past several years, the municipality has held a monthly
community get-together in one of the many smaller parks around town. Originally called
“park parties,” the event began in 2022 to help get neighbourhoods together, reacquaint
residents and bring back the community spark.
This year’s events were planned for Blueberry Park on June 17, Athabasca Park on July
15, and Wedow Park on August 19. Thanks to some unruly weather, including a tornado
alert, the July night was cancelled. However, the weather could not have been more
perfect for last week’s event at Wedow Park, which drew a large crowd.
The Rotary Club of Whitecourt is a big sponsor of the events, with volunteers cooking
up hot dogs and handing out cold drinks. Past president Mike Stark was one of the
several Rotarians on hand for the 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm event and said the sunshine was
a great reprieve from past weather. He added that being part of the Park Parties, now
called Summer Connections, is about fellowship.
“This is community involvement at the ground level. We can all build something that
people go and visit, but here, we get to hand somebody something, right to their hand.
We get to say thank you for coming, and they thank us for doing this. That overwhelms
us. It’s fellowship not only because we get to be together as friends doing this but also
because we meet people.”
Stark said handing a kid a hot dog and getting a big smile in return makes everything
better and makes his day. “It’s about what we can do to make society better, in person.
That’s the connection. As Rotary, yes, we can build monuments, put up parks and
gazebos (like at Festival Park), and people will enjoy them for years, and that’s
awesome. But this is true, one-on-one connection that we get to do, and that’s why
we’re here.”
He said that seeing the neighbourhood descend on the park to eat, play games, visit
with the fire department members and enjoy the sunshine was a reminder of why the
events are important. “It’s community. Every neighbourhood is community, and this
really drives that point home.”
For Rotary, volunteerism is a pillar. Stark pointed to the Rotary Club motto, service
above self. “I didn’t fully understand what that meant until I joined Rotary. I got to see
this simple act of cooking hot dogs and serving people and making them smile. I’m
going to be enriched when I get home tonight. I’m going to think of the day and think,

hey, that was pretty cool,” he smiled. “Anyone who wants to get involved with Rotary,
give me a call at 780-778-1517,” he added with a grin.
Joining Rotary last week at Wedow Park was a large contingent of firefighters from the
Whitecourt Department, along with one of their big, beautiful red engines that had
children and adults alike eager to get up close for a peek. The engine’s powerful ladder
stretched high above the park and was visible from afar.
Will Stack was one of the firefighters on site. “I think it’s awesome to display courage
and confidence in the public and show up to these events, so they know that we’re here
for them.” He said that working with the RCMP, Alberta Wildfire and the Town of
Whitecourt, all of whom also had booths at the event, was important because it brought
different services together as one big community circle.
“I think it’s also important, especially for kids, to know what we have and what we wear
and what we show up to a call in, so they’re not scared when something’s happening.
So that they know we can help,” explained Stack. “We have our tower truck with us, and
it’s a really tall one. It’s a big ladder, and the kids love it. They can get in the truck and
check it out. It’s great.”
For Stack, joining the fire department was about wanting to help his community, a
message he shared with the kids coming to check out the rig. “I enjoy volunteering my
time and helping out where I can. It makes me happy that I get to be there for
somebody on potentially their worst day, and it makes me even happier when I see
smiles on people’s faces. It’s very rewarding.”
Fay Arcand, FCSS Program Coordinator for the Town of Whitecourt, joined a few other
staff members to help provide resources to attendees. She said attendance at Wedow
Park was really good. “We estimated about 75 folks coming, so that’s exciting for us.
The sun is out, which is also exciting. We’ve had lots of great feedback and lots of folks
stopping in to talk, grab some resources, and ask questions about what we do.”
The reason the events changed names, from Park Parties to Summer Connections, was
to coincide with funding parameters. “With our new Family and Community Support
Services (FCSS) framework, we had to specifically identify what we are planning to
achieve with our events that are funded through FCSS.” Since the events are meant to
provide connection, the new name was born.
Arcand said she and the staff were sharing various resources, including upcoming
events like the Women’s Conference on October 17 and the Latino Culture event on
November 7, but also resources that someone might feel uncomfortable seeking out
otherwise. “They could grab some resources without actually going directly to that
resource that they might need,” said Arcand, such as the Family Violence Initiative.