Grade 11 students at St. Anthony’s School had the opportunity to learn more about job hunting through the You’re Hired! interview contest.
The program has been going for four years and it is a partnership among the school, the Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce and local businesses.
The program took place in Mr. Easter’s Grade 11  Career and Life Management (CALM ) class. The students were tasked with going through a complete job hunting exercise. They each crafted a cover letter and résumé, and each applied to the participating business.
Partners from the Chamber, Chinook Credit Union, Canadian Tire,  Canalta, and the Drumheller Institution then came to the class and conducted interviews with the students. Each student was scored on their performance and the top three went into a final interview.
Executive director of the Drumheller and District Chamber of Commerce, Heather Bitz, says the program began in 2015 and typically takes place in the fall semester. Not only is its a great experience for the pupils, but there have been times that the students e have left such an impression, it has lead to employment.
This year’s winner was Ian Pedregosa, he says was a valuable experience and helped him with his interview skills. It helped him learn what to say and areas he could improve.

Christmas day is normally a time to celebrate with family and close friends and the annual Santa Claus Christmas Dinner gives that opportunity to almost everyone in the community.

The Yavis Prop Room and Lounge will be hosting a Christmas Day dinner for anyone who wishes to attend. This has been a long-standing tradition in the Valley dating back more than three and a half decades.

“It started because nobody was open on Christmas day and now it’s evolved to a nice place where people enjoy the company of others,” said Bob Sheddy.

The restaurant will be open from noon until 3:00 p.m. with volunteers arriving a half hour early to prep.

“We’ll pick people up to bring them there,” said Sheddy. “They can come by themselves or request to sit with other people.”

Deliveries will happen between 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. The event is made possible through six anonymous business owners within Drumheller. There are also 20 other donations from various people in the community. The first free Christmas day dinner hosted a dozen people.

Today over 400 meals are served whether in the form of take-out or sit-down.

“Mike and Amy Yavis are amazing co-hosts of the event and without them, it would take 10 people to accomplish what they do each year,” said Sheddy. “They have such a beautiful venue to host the meal in.”

“I really want to thank Kim Suntjens who does such a great job of organizing before the event and is such a great community supporter in so many events and the Yavis family for allowing us to go there for the last number of years,” Sheddy said.

To pre-register, call Century 21 at 403-823-2121.

“We want the Christmas Dinner to be a place that individuals and families look forward to. Something that brightens their day,” said Amy Yavis.