Hey Romeo, it seems you have been busy.
    The trio, which includes Stacie Roper Darren Gusnowski and Rob Shapiro of Drumheller, dropped by The Drumheller Mail/inSide Drumheller office Thursday afternoon. They were on their way to a performance at the Old Grouch Restaurant.
    They provided The Mail with an update on their busy year, which includes accolades at the CCMA Music Awards, a new album, a new video and many days and nights on the road.
    Less than two days after their CCMA wins, they were off to Vancouver to shoot a new video for their single Maybe You Remember Me Now, which is at 34 and climbing on CMT.
    They headed to the east coast to spread their music to more Canadians. Currently they are on a promotional tour of communities served by Newcap Radio for small venue concerts.
    ‘There are five stations in Alberta that have been really good about playing our music, and it is the 40th anniversary of the chain,” explains Shapiro. “It is to celebrate the longevity of the chain.”
    The band has been plugging away for the last 11 years and while it appears they are on the cusp of taking it to another level, the band remains grounded.
    “It is such a gradual progression. I think for some people, it happens overnight with a song or something like that,” said Roper. “For us, we played five years on the road and we made a CD.  We wrote each CD, so it was gradual with our writing and radio coming around…It’s not like there is a big hump to get over, but we still have a lot of work.”
    The band does take pride in writing their own material. While they are not adverse to playing and recording another writer’s song, so far they have continued to wok on their craft and are proud of the results. Often they come as a surprise.
    “Sometime you will listen to the stuff and think it is ‘okay,’ and then you record it and it winds up exceeding your expectations,” said Gusnowski.
    Their most recent single Maybe You Remember Me Now is one of those songs. Roper explains it was on the bubble when they were assembling their newest album.
    “When it went from an acoustic guitar and singing on a demo, and then it turns into this gigantic song in front of you. There was something about that song that just turned it for me,” said Roper. “This was the song I thought was most amazing for us.”
    Figuring out what song has potential to be a hit is not an exact science. It is difficult to guess which songs will resonate with the audience or the radio. There is a balance between making music they are proud of and radio friendly. While radio doesn’t dictate to the band what kind of music they make, they are cognizant of the importance of getting their music played.
    “You need those songs so you get the recognition and people know who you are so when you go to book a tour they have heard your songs and know who you are,” said Gusnowski.
    The band has a unique experience coming up this winter when they will be out on the high seas on the 2013 Winter Western Cruise. This coming February they will on in the Caribbean, launching from New Orleans and hitting points in Belize, Roatan and Cozumel.
    “It’s new for us, we have had travel agents pitch it before, but this time we said we’d do it,” said Shapiro.
    There may be a little more excitement for Roper as the band has dubbed it the “Walk the Plank with Stacie Roper” cruise referring to her impending nuptials in Roatan.
    “We are super excited it is going to be a really good time,” said Roper.
    Keep up to date with Hey Romeo by going to www.heyromeo.com or checking out their Facebook page.

    Prairie Land Regional Division (PLRD) is tightening its belt a little more after finalizing its enrollment numbers at the end of September.
    Enrollment was finalized at 1415 students in PLRD, a net loss of 20.5 full time equivalent students from projections made in the spring. The result is that revenue for the school division will decrease by roughly $149,932.
    Each student equates to roughly $7,252 of funding.
    PLRD has adapted to the funding shortfall by cutting back in areas that don’t directly contribute to the immediate needs of the students or classrooms.
    “We’re trying to balance that to make a balanced operating budget for the year. We’ve made some cuts, reducing resources and spending at the district level. We will work on a deficit on operations and management, but in instruction we are working on balancing the budget,” said Wes Neumeier, superintendent for PLRD.
    Prior to the revenue shortfall, PLRD was operating with a balanced budget.
    The news comes at a time when the division was already anticipating a considerable drop in funding next year.
    “We’re cut pretty slim right now and we’re facing another reduction of about $490,000 at the end of this year, because of the removal of the rural stabilization fund. We’re still asking for reconsideration of that reduction,” said Neumeier.
    Should the rural stabilization fund not return, the division is considering other options. Neumeier explained that they would consider cutting back on staffing in areas that don’t directly impact the students.
    However, Neumeier favoured another approach.
    “We’re looking at starting an Albertan Open Learning Consortium. Prairie Land is working with Prairie Rose and Livingstone Range [School Divisions] to see how the three divisions can share their teaching expertise through video conferencing and make it seamless. If they have extra space, Prairie Land can make use of it,” said Neumeier.
    The hope is video conference technology will still allow the same quality of education, but help save money through partnerships.
    “The achievement rates in regards to video conference classes are maintained or improved,” said Neumeier. “With the technology today, it really brings people together.”