January
The New Year of 2005 dawned with one thing on everyone’s mind – the unfolding post-tsunami disaster in Southeast Asia and the East Indies. In a front page story in the first Leader issue of the year, former mayor Gerry Allarie speculated about how hard Slave Lake’s sister town of Phang Nga Thailand might have been hit.
At the start of 2005, Slave Lake’s Senior hockey team, the Winterhawks, were in third place in their league, trailing Hinton and Drayton Valley with a so-so record of 7 – 4.
Slave Lake’s first baby of the year was born to Bertha Giroux of Kinuso. Keegan Marcus Theodore Giroux came into the world at the Slave Lake health complex at 8:45 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 4. As the New Year’s baby, Keegan received all sorts of gifts from Slave Lake merchants.
The owners of a Slave Lake institution – Boisvert’s Super A store – announced in January that after 50 years in business they were closing the store. Co-owner Steve Jones told The Leader it was more trouble than it was worth for the small independent to try competing with big chain stores.

February
One of the front page stories in the first issue of The Leader in February was the announcement of a new commanding officer for the Slave Lake RCMP detachment. William Karl Wittig, or ‘Willy’ as he prefers to be called, was transferred from Boyle after serving three years there. The 27-year veteran is a native of Kitchener, Ontario.
News presented at a Town council meeting in February on the Arena #1 roof was not good. According to an engineer’s report, the Town must immediately fix structural problems in the roof caused by water. That would cost upwards of $125,000, but that was just the beginning. The repairs would only buy the arena two years, after which the Town would be faced with a choice between a $3 million upgrade and a $5 million replacement of the 32-year-old building.
Local forest products companies Tolko and West Fraser both had their eye on a block of unallocated timber north of Slave Lake, The Leader reported in February. The S10 management unit became available when Daishowa defaulted on a condition of its FMA.
Several Slave Lakers got together in February to form an animal rescue society. One of its goals was to lobby for a change in the Town by-law that called for ‘putting down’ stray dogs after 72 hours. The society also said it was interested in ‘reforming’ the municipal dog pound.
Local businessman Joey Mouallem confirmed in February that construction on two lots south of Hwy. 2 would soon be commencing. One was the new Honda dealership and the other would be a Best Western hotel, he said.

March
The first Leader issue of March featured a train car derailment right on the edge of town. Cars carrying canola seed jumped the tracks when an axle broke on one of the cars.
Roland Twinn won his second term as Chief of the Sawridge First Nation. He defeated his challenger Elizabeth Poitras of Elk Point – a Bill C-31 Indian who said she was running ‘to send a message.”
As of early March, Wal-Mart had still not announced publicly that it was planning to build a store in Slave Lake. But Canadian Tire did, making it official in the first week of the month.
Keith Mielke’s Option Machine team won the 41st annual Oilmen’s Bonspiel at the Slave Lake Curling Club, beating the Cadastral Group 1 team. Slave Lake Hotshot 2, Silverline Power Tools, Quinn Pumps and EGN Transportation were the other event winners.
The Slave Lake Kodiaks surprised a lot of people and maybe themselves when they won the provincial ‘B’ championships in Black Diamond in mid-March. It took a goal in triple overtime by Ashley Kerr to seal the deal, as the Slave Lake women’s team beat league rival Peace River Sharks.
Two people died in a trailer fire in Slave Lake in March. According to fire officials, it was an unattended cooking pot that started the fire. Killed were Ronald St. Jean, 46, and Tess James, 40.
Town council got around to passing its no-smoking by-law in March. It banned smoking in all public places that are accessible to minors. The by-law was regarded as inevitable, following a plebiscite the previous autumn in which 75 per cent of voters expressed support for just such a move.
The Slave Lake Winterhawks added a provincial Senior ‘A’ championship to their portfolio on the last weekend in March, defeating the Spirit River Rangers 9 – 5 in the final in Beaumont.

April
The log haul season in and around Slave Lake was one of the worst ever, The Leader reported in the first issue of April. Thanks to unseasonably warm weather in mid-winter, local mills were as much as a third short of their log yard inventory targets at break-up.
Construction on the new cornerstone retail development south of Hwy. 2 commenced in April, picking up speed as the month progressed.
Meanwhile, April brought another announcement about a major retail development downtown. The Brick furniture store, Slave Lakers learned, would be located in the Slave Lake Plaza, dislocating several ground floor tenants of that building.
Good news for Slave Lake came in the provincial budget announced in mid-April. New grants for infrastructure included in the budget amounted to $6.2 million for Slave Lake.
‘Super volunteer’ George Brown was named Slave Lake’s Citizen of the Year at a ceremony at the Slave Lake Native Friendship Centre on Apr. 21. Brown’s nominators cited the hundreds of hours he devoted to various volunteer projects over the past years, as well as calling him, “A heck of a nice guy.”

May
The theft of a mounted bison head from the Sawridge Inn & Conference Centre caused a bit of excitement in Slave Lake. The man who stole it walked out of the hotel lobby in plain sight of staff, saying ‘I had to do it.’ He refused to stop for police who pursued his vehicle to the end of a rural road near Chisholm.
Some residents of the southshore area raised vociferous objections to the imposition of a sewage system by the municipal district. They raised a petition that demanded councillors come to the communities to answer questions about the project.
A delegation from the Chamber of Commerce made a presentation to Town council in May about the perceived lack of progress in housing development approvals. Reminding councillors of the urgent need for new housing, Chamber rep Gerry Allarie advised them, ‘Don’t be afraid to make mistakes.’
Wal-Mart finally ‘fessed up to what everybody already knew, announcing in May that it was building a 70,000 square foot store in Slave Lake. The Arkansas-based retail giant told The Leader that the store would have everything it’s St. Albert location did except the automotive department.

June
Lyle Oberg, the provincial minister of infrastructure was in town in early June to look at local roads and what he saw was not inspiring. After a winter of freezing and thawing, many roads were in the worst shape they’d ever been in, and municipalities were desperate for provincial help in fixing them. “He got first hand experience of how our roads are failing,” said Slave Lake Mayor Karina Pillay-Kinnee.
Mackenzie Northern Railway announced in June that its train speeds through Slave Lake would be increasing, from 16 kilometres per hour up to as high as 40, following a series of improvements to the track. The company also said that it planned further upgrades to the line that would allow it to up speeds to 65 kph and run heavier cars.
Slave Lake resident Sister Mary Felt passed away in June after a lengthy illness at age 79. She was a long-time teacher of Home Economics and after her retirement a passionate advocate for seniors’ needs in Slave Lake.
Tolko Industries announced in June that it would build a $200 million engineered wood products mill near Slave Lake, beginning in the spring of 2006. The company, which already operates an oriented strandboard mill in the Mitsue Industrial Park, said the first order of business was to choose a suitable location.
The Town of Slave Lake hired a new chief administrative officer in June. Betty Osmond, the Director of Community Services for the Town of Hinton, came highly recommended by Hinton Town Manager Bernie Kreiner, himself a former Slave Lake CAO. “I think you guys will be very pleased,” Kreiner said.

July
The Leader covered a story alleging the existence of Bigfoot to start the summer season. Reporter James Boston met with a man (who wishes to remain anonymous) and examined pictures of what could be interpreted as Bigfoot’s footprint. The mythos surrounding Bigfoot, or Sasquatch, if you prefer, goes back more than 70 years. To date, no hard evidence has been brought forward to validate the hominid’s existence.
Justice James Russell rejected allegations of judicial bias in a 1995 decision by Justice Muldoon. Muldoon had ruled that the Sawridge Band had to grant membership to certain people that had lost their membership. Federal Bill-31 restored Treaty Indian status for some women who had married non-status. A 26-year-old man was stabbed in the chest in Desmarais at the Bigstone Cree Nation’s ‘A’ Reserve on July 2. Police found the victim walking away from the scene around 2:30 a.m. A 15-year-old boy was later arrested and charged with attempted murder, assault with a weapon, uttering threats, and possessing a weapon dangerous to the public.
Housing starts were triple the average as the 2005 construction boom unfolded. In what was reported as Slave Lake’s busiest year for construction, new buildings were slated across Hwy #2 and construction or renovation began on new buildings in town. Distractions was eyeing an August occupancy date in their new building and the Brick was busy transforming Slave Lake Plaza.
Six from Slave Lake joined 13,700 others as Telus employees took to the picket line in July. Employees had been working without a contract for 4½ years and had not seen a raise in 5½ according to union rep Kim Spencer. The union gave the walk out order after Telus tried to impose an un-negotiated contract.
Construction started on the Boreal Centre for Bird Conservation. The building will take advantage of geothermal heat and rainfall for potable water. The $2-million facility is slated for a June-06 opening.

August
Berry pickers were asked to be alert as they foraged for saskatoons in August. Bear sightings were up in around Devonshire and Marten beaches. Bear scat littered roads in the area and a bear was seen stripping a saskatoon bush next to a beach home.
Tolko Industries finalized the decision to build its new oriented strand board mill – just five kilometres east of the current mill. The location is approximately 117-hectares, just shy of Slave Lake Pulp. The location needed to meet such criteria as proximity to good roads, a rail line, wood supply, and work force.
RCMP Staff Sergeant Wittig told Town Council that his detachment and the force staffing it were too small. Members were responding to around 195 calls each for the year, up from 131 in 1999. This inequity stretches officers so thin that they cannot respond to minor complaints.
The Town agreed to install T-Bars at strategic locations around Slave Lake’s network of bear trails. The device permits a bicycle pulling a baby wagon to pass through but not quads and snowmobiles.
Flags flew at half-mast in August to mark the passing of two-time MD councilor Ken Olson. He served from 1998-2001 and from 2004 until his death. Outside the political arena, Olsen was well known for his love minor league baseball. His career on the pitching mound spanned nearly 50 years. After an emotional service in Wagner, friends and teammates carried his casket for one last trip around the bases at his home ball diamond.

September
Sept. 1 was the day the Town of Slave Lake enacted the no smoking by-law. Having just lost its only by-law enforcement officer, the Town was not in a good position to enforce the rule but some businesses came on side right away. The Northwest Inn posted signs that forbade minors from the coffee shop and dining room within.
BP Energy stepped up and built a bridge on the Marten Hills Road designed to improve the fish population in upper Muskeg Creek. The bridge replaced a hanging culvert that was effectively cutting off fish migration. The price tag on this venture was around half a million dollars.
The incumbents easily won a Sept. 6 vote to elect leaders of the provincial and regional councils of the Metis Nation of Alberta. Some of the winners included Bev New, Region 5 president, Peter Campion, Region 5 vice-president, and Trevor Gladue, provincial vice-president.
Fawcett Lake was opened to commercial fishing for the first time in five years. For one day, nets were in the water for whitefish, something not done since commercial fishing was banned five years prior due to low whitefish density. There was some controversy as to whether commercial fishing should ever fully return to Fawcett Lake.
Marilyn Partington-Richer retired from The Lakeside Leader after 19 years. Richer served as editor of The Leader with short stints as a reporter on either end. Arriving in Slave Lake on a grey, autumn day was no comfort considering she had relocated from Gabon, Africa. However, she fell in love with Slave Lake and is making no plans to leave.

October
MLA Pearl Calahasen, Tolko president Al Thorlakson, Tolko executive vise-president John Thorlakson, and Alberta Sustainable Resource Minister David Coutts were on hand for the ground-breaking ceremony for Tolko’s new OSB plant in Mitsue. The project will start in the spring and finish by fall of 2007.
MLA Calahasen was again on hand for the ribbon-cutting ceremony at The Brick. Spirits were running high and even an afternoon power outage could not dampen the mood of both staff and customers.
Parcel pickup windows were moved from Tags convenience stores in Slave Lake to Rexall Pharmacy in a mutual decision between Tags owner Jesse Roberts and Canada Post. Roberts said it was no longer financially beneficial to keep the service.
Floyd Charles Alook died of head injuries sustained when the quad he was operating was rear ended by a pickup truck in Trout Lake, Oct. 1. Alook died two days later in University of Alberta hospital. The driver of the truck charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm and failing to remain at the scene of an accident.
Lorne Larson won a municipal by-election by one vote over Marilyn Partington-Richer. This after he lost the last election by two votes.
Many businesses in Slave Lake really started to feel the pinch of too few staff around this time. Wal-Mart and Canadian Tire were hiring like mad and stores like SAAN actually had to close its doors on occasion.

November
The first weekend marked the bullying and harassment conference held at Northern Lakes College. With speakers from all over Canada, the conference focused on ways of identifying and dealing with bullying and harassment in schools. Opening speaker Mike Neuts’s son died at age 10 from bullying.
Mark’s Work Wearhouse, Sobeys, and Wal-Mart all opened their doors in the Cornerstone development in the 11th month. A lot of cars could be seen in the collective parking lots in the days and weeks leading up to Christmas with a significant portion of those customers being out-of-towners according to owners.
Demand for flu shots outweighed supply as people clamored to visit their doctor. Changes in how the medicine is distributed to clinics forced many people to “take a number” as it were. Demand may have been spurred by worries that bird-flu could cross the intra-species barrier.
Homeless man Anthony Fraser was found dead behind Northern Lakes College on the evening of Nov. 4. After the initial investigation, Police deduced that he died because of a beating suffered four days prior. It then became a homicide investigation, one that is still ongoing.
A Slave Lake man was stabbed on Nov. 5. The victim was first transported to Slave Lake Health Centre and then on to a hospital in Edmonton. The attacker was wanted by RCMP on a Canada-wide warrant and was charged with assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm, and possessing a weapon dangerous to the public.
Local pharmacist Dennis Gilmour unveiled his new novel The Unveiling and held a book signing at Book ‘Em during Moonlight Madness, Nov. 25. Gilmour runs the pharmacy at Extra Foods and spent about five years writing the book and trying to publish it. It’s on sale now – check it out.

December
Tim Hortons finally opened to great anticipation on Dec. 4. Line-ups were long and accounts of spending more than half an hour in the drive-thru were many. Management reported a brisk opening as people eagerly awaited the unmistakable taste of Timmies.
A 15-year-old boy fell from the bank under the railroad trestle over Sawridge Creek on Dec. 9, and injured his head. According to police, the young man underwent several hours of surgery in Edmonton. Police are considering criminal charges for the individuals that supplied the youth with alcohol.
A Slave Lake man was arrested and charged with the murder of 34-year-old woman in Grande Prairie. RCMP arrested Darrell Lee Ward the day after the attack. The victim, Marla Maxine Lambert, was stabbed and died of her injuries in QEII hospital in Grande Prairie.
The federal government was toppled as November wrapped up and Prime Minister Martin announced on Dec 1. that a general election would follow on Jan. 23. Candidates were quick to start campaigning, Ian Hopfe for the Greens, Roland Lefort for the NDP, Brian Jean for the Tories, and parachute candidate Mel Buffalo for the Grits.
A story that focused on high gas prices in Slave Lake got people talking. Many were wondering what accounted for the sometimes 14-cent difference between here and the city. Representatives from big oil gave some conflicting statements but prices dropped by a nickel the following week. The Leader accepts no responsibility for that happy turn of events.
On the local sports scene, the Winterhawks finished the year in first place in their league with 13 wins and one loss. The Jr. ‘B’ Wolves showed much improvement over their difficult 04/05 season, having won seven games as of the Christmas break. Otherwise, the Kodiaks and Wildcats were having good seasons, as was the Atom ‘A’ team.

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