text: Year In Review: Quarter 4: December | Sherwood Park News
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  Year In Review: Quarter 4: December
  Book lovers flocked to the Strathcona County Library on Tuesday, Dec. 8 to stock ahead of the second provincial shut down, which came into effect on Dec. 13. Lindsay Morey/News Staff
  • Local teacher Kristian Basaraba was awarded the Governor General's History Award for Excellence in Teaching for raising reconciliation awareness by getting his students to design skateboards.
  Year In Review: Quarter 4: December Back to video
  • Creating a seniors hub was a top priority for council's Seniors Advisory Committee.
  • Charges were laid against Christopher D. Rempel, 45 of Saskatchewan, in relation to the Sept. 17 head-on collision on Highway 21 that claimed the lives of Sherwood Park teens Keithan Peters and Alexandra Ollington. An RCMP investigation found Rempel drove intoxicated, allegedly, northbound in the southbound lane. Morgan Maltby, 15, who survived with severe injuries, was finally released from hospital.
  • A Stuff-A-Bunk event in the Nottingham neighbourhood helped collect children's bedding to support Sleep in Heavenly Peace.
  • Local Cub Scout, Connor Topilko and his brother collected more than $15,000 in donated toys for Santa's Anonymous.
  • The federal Liberal's fiscal update provided $100-billion in additional economic stimulus spending to help the country recover economically from the pandemic, but it projected a $381B deficit. Local MP Garnett Genuis was concerned by that ballooning deficit.
  • Festival Place was forced to shut down again following the latest round of provincial restrictions.
  • ABJ students launched an online protest over UCP curriculum changes, such as the recommendation to remove all lessons in early grades about the colonization of Indigenous peoples in Canada, which included the residential school system.
  Vadara Salon Spa kept up with the rush of appointments following the province's latest announcement on the second round of shutdowns, which came into effect on Sunday, Dec. 13. Photo Supplied
  • The county prepared for a second shutdown. Effective Dec. 13, the province brought down a slew of new restrictions, including the closures of recreation facilities (including gyms, fitness studios, arenas, and pools), personal services (hair salons, barbershops, massage therapy, nail and esthetic salons, piercing and tattoo parlors), and entertainment venues (such as casinos, bowling alleys, galleries, museums, libraries, theatres, and private clubs). Restaurants, pubs, cafes and lounges had to stop in-person service and provide curbside pickup or delivery. A 15 per cent occupancy was also applied to retail shops, malls, places of worship, and farmers' markets. A masking bylaw also blanketed the whole province for indoor spaces, with exceptions given to working with barriers or on farm operations. Indoor and outdoor gatherings were also banned with the risk of facing a $1,000 fine.
  • As of Dec. 10, AHS reported 465 active COVID-19 cases in Strathcona County, with 360 of those in the Park. Provincially, there were more than 20,000 active cases, with 653 deaths. 685 Albertans were hospitalized due to the virus, with 121 in ICU.
  • Local council unanimously passed the creation of the Industrial Heartland Incentive Tax Exemption Bylaw, which expected to make Alberta's Industrial Heartland more competitive on the world stage for new investment.
  • Pets to Remember Cremations set up shop in Ardrossan.
  • Health Canada approved the use of Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine.
  • Strathcona Christian Academy raised $24,000 to build homes in El Salvador.
  • Inter Pipeline's 2021 capital plan included $800,000 to finish the $4-billion Heartland Petrochemical Complex in northern Strathcona County.
  Former local MLA Iris Evans organized a successful donation event for A Safe Place on Saturday, Dec. 5, to support the shelter's New Beginnings Program. Plenty of home goods and personal necessities, along with almost $20,000 in cash, was donated. Photo Supplied
  • Former local MLA Iris Evans helped organize a donation event for A Safe Place's New Beginnings Program, which raised $20,000 in cash, in addition to plenty of home goods and personal necessities.
  • Strathcona County was readying for the 2021 Municipal Election as it announced nominations for mayor and councillor will be accepted starting Jan. 4, 2021. Election Day will be Oct. 19, 2021.
  • Strathcona County council unanimously supported Coun. Ward 1 Robert Park's motion for administration to work with the Heartland Housing Foundation to come up with options to the old Clover Bar Lodge.
  • Pembina Pipeline indefinitely suspended, a.k.a. cancelled, its $4.5 billion petrochemical joint-venture project in the Heartland. The company cited economic uncertainty due to the pandemic as its reasoning.
  • The Celebration of Lights festival was converted to a drive-thru event to be COVID-19 safe. In addition, the county offered two Santa Convoys to lift residents' spirits.
  Santa Claus and the Grinch wave to residents of Josephburg during a Santa Convoy through rural Strathcona County on Sunday Dec. 20. David Bloom/Postmedia
  • Alberta RCMP once again limited access to its detachments. In addition, courthouse access was also impacted due to the virus.
  • Gregg Mediterranean, Kobachi, New Asian Village, and Swiss Chalet teamed up to provide free meals to those in need for Christmas.
  • More than $120,000 was raised to support the Strathcona Christmas Bureau campaign, which helped almost 1,400 residents (an increase of 20 families compared to 2019).
  • The Strathcona Food Bank was humbled by the outpouring of support from local businesses, residents, schools, sports groups, and organizations. It provided 216 hampers in December, which fed 584 people.
  • As a result of recreation and culture facilities closures due to the second provincial shutdown, the county laid off 363 workers.
  • As of Dec. 20, there were 374 active COVID-19 cases in Strathcona County, with 284 reported in the Park. Since the start of the pandemic, 1,014 residents in the Park recovered from the virus, as well as 325 in the rural county. There were 11 deaths in the Park and one death in the rural county. Provincially, there were 19,201 active COVID-19 cases. There were 760 people hospitalized due to the virus, with 149 in ICU. Since March, a total of 90,219 Albertans tested positive for the virus.
  • More than 2,000 health-care workers received their first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech's COVID-19 vaccine. With more doses on the way, the province expected 29,000 health-care workers would be vaccinated by the end of the month.