Kevin Hilgers

Left to right, rear: My lovely wife Jan, Karly, Catherine me. Then Grandma and my Ma.

We had a nice BBQ party at my Mom’s house in Blaine Lake, Saskatchewan.  In part it was a going away party for Karly – who leaves for Japan for a year August 14.  Lots of relatives,  dad was there, and my Grandma.  Grandma Stasiuk lives in the middle of the Old Country, in Melfort.  She came with my Aunt Carrie and her husband Henry.  Grandma, who is 90 this fall, was in good spirits.  She stayed for 3 hours or so before they headed back for the 90 minute drive home.  Sure was special to have her.  We had the usual sausage and burgers and salads.  Mom did a great job hosting, ol Dad was a fine BBQ’er.  The relatives were great, the going away cake was special, but one of the nicest parts – was having Grandma there.

The cake was pretty special, though.  See below.  Click on the image to enlarge.

Karly's special cake!

For a full family pic…  Continue reading →

One hour outside of Saskatoon. This is where my great-grandparents immigrated to from Germany and Ukraine areas. Here we are in a famers field. Tractor in the background.

We are enjoying a long weekend in the next province, Saskatchewan, or as we lovingly refer to it – the “Old Country”.  We drove 1000 KM’s yesterday to Saskatoon.  Had supper with relatives and stayed at Dad’s (Elmer’s).  Had a great breakfast with Elmer and Roseanne.  Today it’s Melfort, Jan’s mom and my Grandma live there. It’s about 24 degrees at 10 AM which is very very warm for our family.  The high is 30 degrees!  Wow!  Here in Saskatchewan its farms as far as the eye can see. The weather is very hot.  They have had a wet summer so lots of water in the fields.  This is the last time Karly can visit everyone before she leaves for Japan for a year.  Catherine is also enjoying her days before she heads back to Montreal for Uni in August.   Tomorrow we go to my mom’s for a family get together, then back home Monday.  Typical Canadian long weekend.  Driving.  Fun though to see and visit with everyone.

This trail marked Rotary's 100 year anniversary in 2005. Great work Fairview!

Jan and I are in Fairview for the day, an hour north of Grande Prairie. We loaded up the bikes for the day. In Fairview it looks like the local Rotary Club is very active in the community. Here we are biking on a Rotary trail. Afterwards we stopped into Grassroots Bistro.  A great restaurant other than it needs a sign out front so you can find it!

We also saw Rotary signage on a big beautiful clock downtown, and at a local campground.

A great July afternoon in Fairview. A Rotary town!

Packed up, bikes on the roof. Ready to roll!

Canada Day on Parliament grounds, in Victoria. 2010 people made a red and white "living flag". And we all got a free t-shirt!

No summer is complete without the family vacation,  and with kids at aged 17 and 20 this fall, how many more can  there be?   We loaded up the bikes on the Mazda and took off to Victoria, BC.   It’s 1400 km’s, so we stayed overnight in Kamloops, BC.  We stopped on the way and cycled in Jasper, Alberta while the kids had coffee.   Here in Vic we are enjoying the cycling and walking as well.  Well, mom and dad are.  The kids are coffee-ing, Catherine is studying,  Karly is sleeping and shopping.  Canada Day July 1 was huge, being the provincial capital.  We enjoyed entertainment, food, and a load of people.   Jan and I have been cycling a  lot, while I tend to a bit of business in between.  Ahh the family vacation,  1400 km’s in a Mazda 3

The Pride Parade was Sunday. Quite colourful, then a park celebration. We had fun!

.  Does it get any better?

Coffee in China Town in Victoria. A nice bike ride.

At Bell Centre Rotary International President John Kenny reminds us the "Future of Rotary is in your hands".

We are in Montreal for the annual International Rotary Convention.   20,000 Rotarians from around the world are here in downtown Montreal.

Here, we attend sessions, hear inspiring speakers, and of course have some fun!  There are over 20 from Grande Prairie clubs including spouses.

One of the highlights so far was Greg Mortenson, who wrote the book “Three Cups of Tea”. Continue reading →

There is some cool art on the hat. A viking ship. Click on the foto to enlarge

I visited Roberta’s Hats today in Victoria, BC. This is my favorite hat store. I found a cool hat there that the staff said was a “limited edition”.  Quite Funky.  It’s a Goorin Bros 1333 Minna.    Roberta’s Hats (On Government Street, just north of Parliament about 4 blocks) is a very nifty hat shop.  I have bought many hats here over the years.  One of the niftiest things they do when you buy a dressier men’s hat – is match up a feather for your hat. The hat could be $100, but when they go through their selection of feathers and match up JUST THE RIGHT COLORED FEATHER for your hat – that fifty cent feather seems to be the coolest thing ever.

My new Goorin Bros. hat is apparently a “limited edition”.  I don’t know what that means but it sure beats your average ball cap.

We hosted the Youth Exchange Outbound BBQ for 6 outbounds from our area.  (The other BBQ was in Edmonton)  Here the outbounds told us about their country, what they have learned about it so far, and their thoughts on their upcoming journey.   They also had a bit of an assignment they reported on as well.  We had a nice BBQ and then the outbounds were presented with their blazers.

The Youth Exchange blazer is what they wear when they travel, and attend events.   It was pretty exciting to see them all receive them.  Through their year the tradition is to collect and trade pins and dress them up.  Whether they are going to Japan, Thailand, Mexico, Germany, Slovakia or Belgium – they will certainly stand out.  The Canadian blazer of course is red.

We hosted because Karly is an outbound and of course we are a Rotary family.

Karly gives the thumbs up after receiving her blazer

The Youth exchange students depart in August for the school year, returning next July.

Here is Karly with her sister Catherine with HER red blazer from her exchange in Brazil last year.

Early Saturday morning at Two Lakes

We could only go one night for the annual Father Son Daughter Campout.  The kids have been going since Catherine was 3!  The campground is in the mountains 2 hours from Grande Prairie at Two Lakes.   We had 2 tents. Once again there was around 80 kids and 50 dads or so.  We just went from Friday evening to Saturday AM as Karly had a BBQ to host at our house   for outgoing Rotary Youth Exchange Students from our region. Continue reading →

Kev's New Trek

Jan and I are just loving the new Trek bikes.  These are the 2010 Trek FX models.  They advertise “Ride Longer” . They are designed for pavement, recreation, and excercise.  Compared to the old Giant mountain bikes, they are much smoother on pavement and an easier gliding machine.  They do however have skinnier tires and hence that means you feel the bumps more, and a little less secure on gravel.  But we love how more efficient they are, and how much smoother they operate.  The gears are easier to change, more variety of gears, and an aggressive braking system.  Jan and I love loading them on the roof and going somewhere different for a ride.  There is a cool video here.    This summer Jan and I plan to take them to Victoria!  Wahoooooooooo!

Brazilians with their new hats they received!

Every year the Rotary District 5370 does a Group Study Exchange with another District in the world.  This year it was Brazil.  They are touring our District learning about their vocation in various towns and cities.  They of course also learn about the culture.   Here in Grande Prairie we treated them to an Aboriginal themed evening complete with a wonderful meal.  After bannock, salmon and more our hosts told us a bit about their culture, ancestory and local history.  They did about 4 songs.  The Brazilians then did a quick talk about their experience here in Canada.     The evening was about 2 hours long.  A proud moment for me was  hearing my daughter Catherine speak fluent Portuguese with our guests, this after Catherine spent a year in Brazil on Rotary Exchange.  Quite amazing to hear your child speak a foreign language.  The Brazilians are here for a month.  All non Rotarians but their leader, they will go home much wiser about the world, their vocation and probably themselves.  What an honour to host them, and so lucky to have a proud group like our local Aboriginals.  They really made us proud!