When Frank Ricard started working for the New Town of St. Albert, Seven Hills sloped straight down. The terracing that’s there today is because of the hours he spent contouring it with a little John Deere tractor.
“Originally all it was was just a slope down. We terraced it because the grass wouldn’t stay on there,” he said.
Ricard was one of about 250 people who gathered last Friday for a reunion of former and current city staff. His tenure dates back to 1957, the earliest of anyone gathered.
Now 84, Ricard lives at Youville Home, just steps from the hill he helped shape.
His 30-year career with the town/city started in the public works department. He did a bit of everything — sewer, water, garbage, even dog catching.
“I caught the mayor’s dog. I caught the councillors’ dog, the fire chief’s dog. You name it, if it was on the loose, it got caught,” he said.
The idea for a staff reunion began two years ago during the 25th anniversary of St. Albert Place, said city manager Bill Holtby.
He spearheaded the effort along with former city managers Don Corrigan and Norbert Van Wyk. They decided the logical time to hold it was in 2011, the year of St. Albert’s 150th anniversary.
The event drew about 250 staff, both current and former, some of whom drove from as far as Vancouver Island to attend.
Meeting former employees will have a lasting effect on current ones, Holtby said.
“It builds pride. You see somebody that worked here 20 years ago and is still really proud of what they did …. it gives people some excitement about what they’re doing and how they can leave a legacy,” he said.
It’s also interesting to hear oldtimers talk about the issues they used to deal with, he said.
“They’re laughing about how things just don’t change. There’s still complaints about the garbage system the way it was in the 1960s,” he said. “Some stuff just never changes.”
The day included a pancake breakfast at the public works office, a barbecue lunch at St. Albert Place, bus tours of the city and a soirée at the curling club.
Former town engineer Jan Maandag, 78, drove from Duncan, B.C. to attend.
“St. Albert has been a special place for us because we lived there for 28 years,” he said. “It’s great to see the city developed as it has.”
He describes his time as a city employee as rewarding.
“It’s rewarding because you’re a part of making it happen,” he said.
His former employee Marcel De Champlain, 79, still lives in St. Albert. The former development supervisor fondly remembers spearheading the building of the old Ducky Dome downtown and a feeling of family that existed between city employees and residents.
“I enjoyed the people. We knew everybody. Everybody knew each other,” he said. “I just loved it.”
Sharon Lee started as a secretary in engineering services in 1972 and then became the first-ever woman to work for public works in 1974.
“My first office was in the Sturgeon pumphouse,” she said.
Now a resident of Spruce Grove, she attended the reunion to reconnect with former co-workers and see the city again. What she remembers from her time with the city are the people.
“It was just a sense of camaraderie, everybody worked together for the good of St. Albert,” she said.
“The city when I worked there had an absolutely amazing camaraderie,” agreed former human resources employee Jan Alexander. “I wanted to renew those acquaintances.”
