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Headlines: June 5, 2025

· The Pulse
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  • Healthier Together, a collaboration between the City of Edmonton, Alberta Health Services, and social agencies, is running a pop-up health and wellness clinic every Tuesday at Butler Park in the Jasper Place neighbourhood, weather permitting. Services offered include wound care, blood pressure and sugar monitoring, STI testing, referrals, and access to preventative supplies. From May 2024 to May 2025, the clinic saw 2,378 total visits, and community feedback has been "overwhelmingly positive," the City said.
  • The City of Edmonton issued a release pointing to the success of its Chinatown Vibrancy Fund, launched in 2024, which has invested $960,000 into community projects in Chinatown. This year, 14 projects will get funding, including the annual Togather Chinatown Arts Festival, which drew more than 2,000 people in 2024. A further $480,000 will be invested through the fund in 2026. The City's website has information about the fund and recipients.
  • The Alberta Conservation Association is actively monitoring several peregrine falcon nests in the Edmonton area. A live feed was set up for chicks at the Bell Tower site, where viewers can watch the birds during nesting season. The animal was endangered in Alberta until 1999 due to pesticides, but was reclassified as threatened in 2000.
  • The Alberta Worker, a labour news outlet run by Kim Siever, examined a settlement reached between Lafarge and a union representing about 10 workers at its asphalt division in Edmonton. The workers are set to receive an average increase of 2.8% per year for the next three years, which will bring base pay for all of them to $30 an hour or more. They'll also get a new training fund and improvements to pension contributions, Siever wrote.
  • YMCA of Northern Alberta is offering free access to health, fitness, and aquatic centres for wildfire evacuees who have fled to Edmonton. Individuals and families can use the Castle Downs Family YMCA, Don Wheaton Family YMCA, Jamie Platz Family YMCA, and William Lutsky Family YMCA for recreation, showering, and drop-in programming during standard operating hours by presenting a photo ID.
  • Mobile Solutions Fleet Services, an Edmonton company, is manufacturing "Fire Skid" firefighting kits in partnership with the charity Global-Medic. Each unit contains a 1,000-litre tank, a pump, and a hose that can be mounted on a pickup truck to fight fires in areas inaccessible to full-size fire trucks. The company has sold 104 units for use in Canada and California, said owner Paul Turczyk.
  • Two religion scholars republished a piece in The Conversation about how the oil industry helps fuel "religious fervor" around the Edmonton Oilers. "Some fans are not only cheering for the home team, but also cheering for themselves – affirming that their industry and their labor matter," they wrote.
  • Hockey fans across Canada are rooting for the Edmonton Oilers in their playoffs series against the Florida Panthers, CBC News reported. Toronto's CN tower was lit orange and blue during Game 1 to support Canada's only remaining team. Some observers say it could be the most important Stanley Cup final series in years for Canadians, especially in light of international tensions with the United States.
  • Edmonton curling star Kevin Martin is among the athletes who will be inducted into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame in October. Martin won an Olympic gold medal in 2010, was a 2008 world champion, and earned four Brier titles as a skip, among other accolades. He was named to the Order of Canada last summer.
  • The Edmonton Elks have extended a contract with American linebacker Nick Anderson by one year. Anderson was the CFL's top rookie last season, recording the most total tackles and tying with teammate Nyles Morgan for most defensive tackles.