When Andy Michaelson was one of four people to show up at the second-ever Braeside working group meeting in 2008, he and two others were ready to throw in the towel. They were convinced they could not get enough support to change problems with youth drinking and partying in the Red Willow Park next to the neighbourhood.
But Michaelson said that if it hadn’t been for one person there that night, the group’s status and work to date never would have started.
“Collin [Steffes] kept us together,” Michaelson said. “He was very patient and it paid off.”
Steffes was recognized for his patience and work with the Braeside working group on Friday when he received a crime prevention award from the Ministry of the Solicitor General and Public Security at Government House. Steffes was nominated by Michaelson, fellow committee members Vern Soroka and Dave Morden as well as Family and Community Support Services (FCSS) community development co-ordinator Colleen Lamble.
Steffes was one of several Braeside residents who approached council about the issues in their neighbourhood in 2008, saying he was ready to move his young family out of the area to be safe. Council recommended the creation of the Braeside working group, which came together to tackle the problems in their backyards.
Lamble said that when she first met Steffes in October 2008, he was willing to do what was needed to help improve his neighbourhood. Although many in the neighbourhood requested a larger RCMP presence in the area, Lamble said Steffes recognized that the solution would have to come from residents.
“We can all ask for change, but he is part of that change,” said Lamble. “He gets the right people at the right place and he also has an appreciation for how municipal government works.”
Steffes, who works for Strathcona County’s planning department, helped organize a “take back the park” barbecue for the neighbourhood, using a common gathering spot in Red Willow for youth known as “stoner’s paradise.” There, he and other residents engaged the young people who spent time in the area in discussions about what was happening and how it was affecting Braeside residents.
He also created a video for city council at the time that showed the youth in the park drinking, fighting and consuming drugs under the cover of the park’s trees. The video shocked city council at the time and drove home the message that something needed to be done.
For RCMP Insp. Warren Dosko, working with Steffes was a chance for him to see a member of the community evolve from someone who wasn’t sure what was needed to leading the way to a better solution and helping other St. Albert neighbourhoods lead a grassroots campaign to take back their own neighbourhoods.
“It’s great to see that transformation from feeling helpless to being empowered in your community,” he said. “I would say it’s come full circle now.”
Nominating Steffes for the award was, for Michaelson, an easy decision. He said he felt there was no one more deserving of such recognition than Steffes, considering how much better conditions are in the neighbourhood and a reduction in service calls to the area.
“When you’ve got somebody that takes on that kind of leadership, they should be recognized,” he said. “Why wouldn’t you nominate him?”
