October is the month during which, over dinner together with family, we traditionally express our gratitude for a good harvest, food on our tables and the good fortune to live in a land where, for the most part, peace reigns, and work and food are available. This year, though many of us are struggling with even the basics, the cohort around our Thanksgiving tables may be smaller, and some of us have suffered losses, we know that we still have much for which we can be grateful. In our community of Deer Ridge, we would like to express thanks for the
- volunteers who keep things running,
- community that supports one another,
- friends who come out to help when we need them, sometimes fully unexpectedly,
- family who love and comfort us,
- neighbours who look out for us and give us a hand with things from time to time,
- strength to keep going, or sustained, and maybe even regained, health,
- complete strangers with helping hands that reach out to give assistance, and
- frontline workers who keep us safe.
Thank you to all of you who make this a wonderful place to live. Your hard work and thoughtfulness is valued and appreciated.
Annual General Meeting
The Deer Ridge Community Association Annual General Meeting was held on September 15 at Deer Park United Church. Thank you to all who attended, whether virtually or in person. Your interest and support in making our community a great place to live goes a long way toward encouraging our hard-working volunteers.
Community Gardens
The Deer Ridge Community Garden is winding up after a great growing season. Garden members grew crops for donation to the Calgary Food Bank, in addition to tending the lushly growing produce in their individually rented plots. Thank you to Bob Hall for all his hard work on the gardens and surrounds, for his tireless work on repairs and maintenance, for watering on hot days when gardeners hadn’t got to it yet, for cleanup and keeping the sanitation supplies stocked, and for making and posting the signs to let the community know how the gardens were being managed through COVID-19. Thank you to our wonderful community members for respecting the restrictions put in place at the gardens this year. We appreciate your understanding, and all the extra efforts made to keep everyone safe.
Off-Leash Area
Please remember to keep dogs leashed in the Don Bosco school grounds and the community garden area. There is a large off-leash area just a couple of blocks east of Don Bosco School, where your dogs may run and play, just as long as they are under your control. And of course, as always, please remember to pick up after your furry friend and either take the waste back home with you, or drop it in one of the on-site city waste bins.
City of Calgary Waste Collection
Speaking of waste, are you aware that the City of Calgary is now charging $3 a bag for extra garbage put out for collection? From the City’s website: “Starting October 1, 2020, if your black cart is full and you have extra bags of garbage that will not fit, you will need to buy tags to put on extra garbage bags for pickup. You can buy tags at participating convenience and grocery stores or online.” This is a good time to have another look at what can go in the green and blue bins, instead of the black bin. Need a review of what can be recycled or composted? The City has a Quick Reference Guide and a What Goes Where recycling and disposal search tool on their website at https://www.calgary.ca/uep/wrs/what-goes-where/default.html.
Hallowe’en – Keep ‘em safe!
Will the little witches, zombies, and goblins take to the streets in search of treats this year? Pease make sure to take extra care on the roads and streets, and watch out for our little, and maybe not so little, neighborhood spooks, monsters, princesses, and witches on Hallowe’en night. At time of writing, Halloween is still a go, but whether it’s officially canceled or not, please be extra careful on the streets that evening.
Daylight Saving Time
This year’s Daylight Saving Time comes to an end at 2:00 am on Sunday, November 1, giving us all an hour of extra sleep, conveniently immediately after Halloween. Don’t forget to roll back your clocks and enjoy the extra time.
That’s all for now. Keep safe, keep well, and keep your spirits up.
