The people of High Prairie have long forgotten what happened June 17, 2007. It was a critical day regarding the future of the new High Prairie Health Complex.
It was the day Peace Country Health trotted out plans for the new High Prairie Hospital. A public meeting was set up at the downtown Elks Hall. It was to be the feel-good story of the year! Everyone was going to celebrate!
Then the “crapola” hit the “fanola”!
I was leaked a letter from Alberta Health and Wellness Minister Dave Hancock to Peace Country Health chair Marvin Moore dated May 11. In it was the following:
“There was no evidence of support from the Alberta Cancer Board for a new cancer clinic in High Prairie, no evidence of support from the Northern Alberta Renal Program for a renal dialysis clinic in High Prairie, and no evidence of a need for a new EMS station,” read part of Hancock’s letter. “Additional funding for these additions to the project could, therefore, not be supported.”
In effect, no space for any of these services at the current time or in the future. Until then, High Prairie citizens were led to believe it had a fighting change for all or part of these services.
Before the meeting, I decided to circulate dozens of copies of the letter to people attending. They were furious and rightly so!
The meeting began and was dominated with discussion over the news of what High Prairie was not getting.
“It’s not over until the first brick is laid,” said George Keay, a public citizen, not a politician at the time, and one of many leading the cause.
And to complete the story, members of the High Prairie Community Health Council were not informed this letter was written by Hancock to Peace Country Health. Government had no intention of telling our local politicians, who were totally kept in the dark, what was going on. Receiving this letter was like being smacked on the side of the head with a brick!
The bottom line: PCH was more than happy to keep High Prairie in the dark.
The million dollar question: why did no one in AHS tell us the truth?
Leaking the letter to me was a major turning point in the hospital’s future. It allowed an angry public to get involved and it allowed local politicians to get to work to reverse the decision(s) in the letter. Before, we were led to expect these services were included.
Many asked, “Who in the heck gave you that letter?”
It is now 19 years later. I can tell you now it was George Keay. I asked him how he got the letter but he just laughed and told me it was none of my business. Fair enough! Keay did not have to reveal his source.
But thank God, Keay had someone in Peace Country Health or the Alberta government on his side. Who knows what would have happened if that letter was not leaked to South Peace News?
Keay was smart. He knew how to get things done. The best way to avoid this potential fiasco was to rally the public. The June 17 meeting was days away. The perfect plan was hatched to leak the letter to the press and let someone else do the dirty work. Since no one knew Keay leaked the letter, he was still in the government’s “good books” and continued to lobby for the hospital. Had it become known he leaked the letter, some people in government may have never spoken to him again.
Keay knew how to use the press effectively. In this case, I was more than happy to help.
Keay did a lot of work on many projects and never worried about how much credit he received. This letter was perfect example. With his passing on May 3, his dedication will be missed.
We owe George thanks we will never be able to repay. He will be missed.
Chris Clegg