- Pope Francis delivered an open-air mass at Commonwealth Stadium to a crowd of about 40,000 people on the morning of July 26 — rather 65,000 as expected — before continuing to Lac Ste. Anne to take part in the annual pilgrimage. His homily focused on honouring parents and elders and ensuring "a future in which the history of violence and marginalization suffered by our Indigenous brothers and sisters is never repeated." Murray Sinclair, former chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, criticized shortcomings in the Pope's apology the day before, which he sees as blaming "bad actors" rather than recognizing "a concerted institutional effort to remove children from their families and cultures, all in the name of Christian supremacy."
- Sections of the QEII Highway will be under rolling closures on the morning of July 27 as the Pope's motorcade departs to the Edmonton International Airport for a 9am flight to Quebec City.
- TransPod, the Toronto-based company that wants to build a high-speed cargo and passenger line between Edmonton and Calgary, unveiled a new hybrid vehicle called the FluxJet that it will operate on the proposed line in Alberta. Last March, the company secured US$550 million to finance infrastructure for the project, which a feasibility study said will be in the test-track construction phase from 2023-2027.
- On the morning of July 25, the Monday Morning Magic event at K-Days provided special needs children access to the festival without the crowds. The inclusive event has been running for more than 40 years and drew around 500 kids this time around.
- The Edmonton Oilers have re-signed Jesse Puljujarvi for a one-year $3-million contract. The 24-year-old forward scored 36 points over 65 games this past season, a career-high.
- The Health Sciences Association of Alberta said that 85% of its members have approved a deal with Alberta Health Services that could see pay increases of 4.25% over four years. The AHS board will vote on the deal on July 28.
Headlines
By Kevin Holowack and Mack Male