Editorial

Time, money and volunteers

The sports news in Slave Lake last week was disheartening. Both the curling club and the minor soccer associationwere in danger of collapsing due to lack of volunteers.
People are just too busy.
This is unfortunate, because if you lose the volunteers, what do you have left?
Not much. Only what people are willing to pay for.
Make that willing to pay more, because we’re already paying for our kids to play soccer and to use the curling and hockey facilities. If volunteerism dries up, such programs could only run if we pay somebody to run them.
For many families, this would not be a big problem. Time is the limiting factor, not money. There’s no shortage of generosity in Slave Lake when it comes to helping out a good cause. Take the recent fundraising efforts for a rescue unit for the fire department, for example.
But time – that’s another story. Time to sit on a board, attend meetings, etcetera, etcetera. It’s ironic, because in a rapidly growing community, the recreational and cultural services provided by volunteer organizations are more important than ever. There’s no shortage of work and lots of places to spend money, for sure. But who wants to live in a community where all there is to do is work and shopping?
It’ll never come to that. We’ll muddle through somehow. Or will we?
In fact the minor soccer crisis is resolved, thanks to some parents who came forward. That usually happens where children are involved. The curling club dilemma is more complicated, since the facility is used mainly by adults – adults who are already very busy with their work and their kids.
It’s hard to imagine a town this size losing its curling club. But it could happen.

Gilwood enters the big leagues
This is the year Slave Lake moves into a different category altogether as a tourist destination. Serious golfers, we are told, will travel many miles to play a new 18-hole course – something they will not do for a mere nine.
Not that the Gilwood Golf & Country Club (they should drop the ‘country’ from that name) will compete with the really big league golf resorts. The folks who run Kananaskis and other swanky resorts won’t be quaking in their boots.
But golfers will visit from south, west, east and even north for a chance to check out the newest 18. Will they find it to their liking? We think they will.
Even at nine holes, Gilwood was a prettier course than almost any prairie set of holes you could name, and plenty challenging with its narrow fairways and deep woods. It was always good and now it’ll be 18 holes good. Plus it’s right next to that great big lake full of fish.
What could be better than that?
Back when the planning began for the second nine, Gilwood brass talked about the course being able to host provincial-level tournaments. Bring them on!
The new nine should open sometime in July, barring drought or flood. Is the organization ready for the new business it might attract? Given the labour shortage in Slave Lake these days, it will be quite a challenge – perhaps the biggest one of all.