Volunteerism is one of the cornerstones of the Drumheller community. Resident Eileen Gallagher is no exception.
    Each Tuesday, Gallagher, a semi-retired cashier at Riverside Value Drug Mart, makes the trip to the Alberta Children’s Hospital in Calgary to volunteer. Her job is somewhat a little unusual, but makes a world of difference to those who work at and are patients of the hospital.
    “I am what is known as a Unit Volunteer. We relieve the nurses of having to pacify the young babies, because they don’t have the time to sit and cuddle them when they are fussing or unhappy. We also assist the nurses with bottle feeding and changing the babies,” said Gallagher.
    The Alberta Children’s Hospital has patients as young as newborns. Many of them have conditions that require constant medical supervision. Some are even afflicted with cancer and are in palliative care.
    “I consider it a great opportunity. Some of these babies are anywhere from days old and up. The unit I’m on deals with little ones who have digestive issues, some of which are quite serious. We also take care of babies with respiratory issues, some of them are fitted with a trachea tube,” said Gallagher.
    For some of the children, their parents can’t be around the whole time. The cuddlers help give the children some needed human contact.
    “A lot of times the parents of these little patients are working or they have other young children at home, so it can be difficult for them to find the time to come to the hospital on a regular basis. Most of the parents are extremely thankful, knowing their little one isn’t just in a crib and only checked on when an alarm sounds,” said Gallagher.
    Volunteering as a cuddler has been something Gallagher has wanted to do for some time. Since she semi-retired, she has been able to find the time to help and started in August 2011.
    “It’s something I’ve wanted to do for so many years. There was no call locally….so I pursued it in Calgary. I did the training, RCMP check, got all my vaccines, and away I went,” said Gallagher.
    Before she started, Gallagher had to undergo extensive training. Volunteers must know how to care for the children, different medical conditions, and hospital codes.
     Some volunteers have been there for years. One lady in particular has been a cuddler for 17 years. Anyone interested in getting involved can contact the Alberta Children’s Hospital volunteer resources at 403-955-7997.
    Gallagher hopes to keep volunteering each Tuesday.
    “If you miss a week, like in my case because of weather conditions, you feel like you’ve really missed something,” said Gallagher. “Rewarding doesn’t describe the feeling properly.”

    The Valley received four out of five blooms from the Communities in Bloom judges when they rolled through the valley last summer. For some it is a victory, for some it is not as sweet.
    The Drumheller Communities in Bloom Association entered the non–competitive category. The community earned a score 73 per cent to earn the four blooms.
    “We did really good, actually,” said Councillor Sharel Shoff, who, along with Lisa Hansen-Zacharuk, are board members of Communities in Bloom.
    Shoff was joined by Patricia Parker, who was Communities in Bloom chair at the time and Councillor Doug Stanford when they toured with two adjudicators through the valley on July 31.
    Communities in Bloom judges recognized the challenges the valley faces and offers praise for some of its recent accomplishments including the Badlands Community Facility, that the new Town Hall will be renovated to meet Silver LEED standard, and the upgrades to the water treatment plant and landfill.
    They did see that lack of funding to some areas has put the community behind.
    “Some expected grants were not available which has resulted in budget tightening for some services, especially in parks and grounds maintenance. Unfortunately it is starting to show,” stated the report.
    Heritage conservation received the highest marks, earning about 80 per cent of the possible marks, lauding the preservation of the prehistoric heritage, as well as the coal mining history. Their criticism is that the community is not recognizing the influence of first nation people and agriculture.
    The areas judges felt most in need of help were urban forestry, floral displays and landscaping.
    “Initial impression was that Drumheller had a good tree cover. Upon closer examination many of the trees, especially along the river, were mature aging poplars that are going to need careful observation and pruning to reduce the chance of branch breakage and property damage,” states the report.
    Judges were also understanding to the more than 270 acres of grass that needs mowing in the valley and how much of a drain on resources it is. It notes that the town does not have any floral displays due to tight budgets, however it praised some businesses, especially in the industrial area and along roadways that have attractive displays.
    “Perhaps the Communities in Bloom Committee could initiate a program for downtown businesses to subscribe to hanging baskets or boxes in front of their stores. Maybe a prize could be awarded for the largest, best maintained or most colourful,” states the report.
    Shoff explains the town’s resources are taxed and crews do a great job with what they have.
    “I know the town and the park budget, and it is not really very big and they do what they can,” said Shoff. “One of the problems with Communities in Bloom is the [penitentiary] cut back on what they could do with the inmates and that is why we suffered quite a bit, but I think it will get better because we’ll get more in the budget next year.”
    Since the judging, the chair of Communities in Bloom has stepped down, and indications are the organization may be sighing its last breath.
    Patrice Wolf helped out Communities in Bloom with the presentation and with other projects such as the annual Earth Day Clean up. She feels the community should be grateful for the marks they received.
    “I think the judges were very generous. I know they feel for us… and I am sure just to cut the grass in the ditches is a full-time job,” she said. “We have a long way to go and it is too bad that we may be losing Communities in Bloom.
    Shoff said the group is always looking for volunteers. This doesn’t simply mean laborers but people with ideas on how to make the community vibrant. For more information, contact Shoff at (403) 820-1644.

On Tuesday, July 31, judges on behalf of Communities in Bloom made their way to Drumheller. In the photo (back l-r)  Al Kendrick, Infrastructure Services Director, Paul Salvatore, Director of Community Services,  Carol Stanford, Councillor Doug Stanford. (front l-r) Councillor Sharel Shoff, Trish Parker, President of Drumheller Communities in Bloom, Brendan Casement and Collin Carmichael, Communities in Bloom judges, Mayor Terry Yemen and Councillor Lisa Hansen-Zacharuk.