Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
It was almost fitting, on a soggy Tuesday morning, the Town of Esterhazy celebrated its recent start in constructing a $29.9 million regional water system. The rain didn’t damper the spirits of those in attendance, which included local dignitaries from both the municipal and provincial levels of government. The new water system got the boost it needed with funding from both provincial and federal levels within the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program.
