The Badlands Community Facility got a sizeable boost on Monday. Thanks to the continued support of the Dinosaur Valley Half Marathon, the facility is $15,000 closer to its fundraising goal.
    “We have to thank them very much for their continued support, it’s awesome,” said Mayor Terry Yemen, who accepted the cheque on behalf of the Town of Drumheller.
    In the three years the Half Marathon has run, a total of $33,000 has been donated to the Badlands Community Facility.
    The donation was raised through registration fees for the run. It is estimated nearly 600 runners signed up for the 5k, 10k, and half marathon events this year.
    Colin Kloot, an organizer with the Half Marathon, credited the success of the marathon to its many sponsors and volunteers.
    “Our big sponsor is Community Futures Big Country. They’re the main reason we have been able to do this and continue to. We have great volunteers. We had over 135 volunteers this year. Rotary alone had 31 and they did a wonderful job,” said Kloot.
    The date for the next Dinosaur Valley Half Marathon has already been set for September 8, 2013. The 5k, 10k, and half marathon events will return.
    There will also be a 5k costume run as well. The costume run had been proposed for this year, but organizers will be promoting it heavily for the 2013 run.
    Also, all of the 5k participants will receive tee shirts and medals.
    The biggest change, however, is in the routes for the 5k and 10k, which will be run backwards compared to this year. The advantage is the hills which are typically near the end of the route, will now be run first.
    Organizers are already excited for the next half marathon.
    “Everyone did a wonderful job and we’re looking forward to next year,” said Kloot.
    For more information about the Dinosaur Valley Half Marathon, visit www.dinosaurhalf.com.

Dinosaur Valley Half Marathon organizers donated $15,000 to the Badlands Community Facility this past Monday, bringing their total contribution to $33,000 over the last three years. Pictured are Community Futures Big County general manager Wayne Hove, half marathon organizer Becky Kowalchuk, race manager Jens Madsen, Mayor Terry Yemen, and half marathon organizers Colin Kloot and Bob Sheddy.

    Mayor Terry Yemen has returned home from an eye opening experience in the Ukraine where he served as an independent observer for the country’s election.
    Yemen was part of a group of about 500 from Canada who went to the eastern European country during their election.
    He trained in Ottawa before heading overseas for about 10 days. The group was greeted and applauded by Prime Minister Steven Harper before they left on the mission.
    “The bonds of friendship between Canada and Ukraine are strong and deep, and we are proud to support Ukrainians in their aspirations for a peaceful, democratic and prosperous society,” said the Prime Minister. “On behalf of all Canadians, I would like to commend participants in this electoral observer mission and thank Senator Andreychuk for accepting this important role.”
     It was an eye opening experience for Yemen. He has not travelled much and most often it was to holiday destinations. His time in the Ukraine was not in such an area.
    “There were some beautiful areas in the Ukraine, but the areas we were sent to were not,” said Yemen.
    The area he was deployed to was a community on the eastern border near Russia where coal mining was once the industry during the time of the Soviet Union. Today there is hardly any work for the residents and many live in simple precast concrete block housing that was put in place for the workers.
    “Economically there was nothing there for the people,” he said.
    On the ground he was part of a four-person team, which included a second observer, who is a school teacher from Edmonton, and their guide and interpreter. Their role was as independent observers of the election. Often they were mistaken for international observers, who had a little more sway, but their role was to simply watch the process.
    They would go from polling station to poling station and would complete surveys before, during and after the election, asking if workers understood the process. During the election they would observe the process and watch for possible irregularities. At the end of the election they were to go to a polling station and observe its closing.
    During his time in the country he did spend some time in Kiev and says it was a beautiful city. He also saw first hand the breadbasket of Europe, however where he acted as observer, the accommodations were basic. When their election responsibilities were finished they travelled by train back to the capital, and it was uncomfortable to say the least.
     While he was on the ground he found the experience out of his comfort zone, but in hindsight he recognizes the importance of his role in assuring democracy in a county that has been independent for just over two decades.
    He said in some cases the electorate felt their vote didn’t matter, and in other cases he saw people bringing their children to the polls to show the importance of voting. About 60 per cent of the electorate voted.
    “The groundwork is there, but it is going to take some time,” he said.