The federal and provincial governments are teaming up to expand the Royal Tyrrell Museum.
Kent Hehr, Minister of Veterans Affairs and Associate Minister of Defense, on behalf of Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage was in Drumheller. He announced a commitment of $3.595 million of infrastructure funding for the Royal Tyrrell Museum's expansion.

"When we look at cultural spaces and what they mean to this country, this is an opportunity to invest in a flagship operation," said Hehr. "We see the Tyrrell as a great place where kids of all ages come to care, share, and play together."
This investment is complemented by$5.705 million from the provincial government for a total $9.3 million investment.
This is the first time the federal government has contributed to the Royal Tyrrell Museum.
"We find our relationship with the Government of Alberta an example of cooperative federalism. It is a place where we can come together, exchange ideas, look at projects and try to build a better province and a better Canada. It doesn't mean we agree on every single issue, but it means we sit down like adults and discuss things of importance to Alberta and important to the national government and try to come to a consensus."
Shannon Phillips, Alberta Minister of the Environment was in attendance for Minister of Culture and Tourism Ricardo Miranda. She underscored the economic importance of the project.
"Construction will begin as soon as we can, and there are a number of short term jobs associated with that and long term jobs as the museum expands. Our capital plan as a province and the federal government has taken the same view. It is really designed to put people to work as soon as we can, particularly here in Alberta where we have seen job losses due to the downturn in the price of oil."
The expansion will add about 1,300 square metres to the facility for activities that encourage exploration, as well as multi-use rooms for meetings and school groups, and additional outreach areas.

    Charities that have been supporting children and families in the Roatan took an important step, and have established the Morgan Jayne Children’s Foundation.
    Just over 10 years ago, Fred Makowecki and dedicated volunteers created the Morgan Jayne Project to support families served at the Familias Saludables Clinic in Roatan. Its primary purpose was to provide infant formula to curb the transmission of HIV from mother to child. Since then, support for Familias Saludables has grown and the Charmont Bilingual Academy was established to provide schooling for many of the children served by the project.
    As of January 1, 2017, the Morgan Jayne Foundation was established to continue the support of the Morgan Jayne Project, the Charmont Bilingual Academy and Familias Saludables.
    “We are really excited, we have all worked really hard on it,” Makowecki told inSide Drumheller.
    He explains that over the years, these charities worked with the Dawn Land Foundation out of Edmonton to assist with its fundraising. The Dawn Land Foundation has decided to narrow their focus back to their original charitable goals.  
    “This makes a lot of sense, we have grown so big. Our goal is to streamline operations in a way that makes us efficient, accountable and able to manage future growth,” it states in its announcement.
    It has established its first board with Makowecki as chair, Shelley Rymal as vice chair, Terra Charmont as treasurer, Paula Peak as secretary and Dan Dannhauer as board member.
    “This has been a group effort from the beginning,” he said.
    While it has incorporated as a foundation under government regulation, it has also applied for CRA for charitable foundation status in order to give tax receipts for donations.  It likely will not have approval yet. Any donations made to Dawn Land Foundation before December 31, 2016 will receive the usual tax receipt. As always, 100% of your donation will go directly to assisting charitable goals. Some new updates for donors will include the ability to set up recurring donations and receive email updates.
    “Ten years ago we talked about saving kids and would have to start thinking about how to prevent them from following that same path. The school came about, and now we have kids graduating,” he said. “To be where we are today, I am so happy.”
    How to donate after January 1: Full donation info can be found anytime on our updated website.
• Credit card – click the donate button on the site, you will be routed to PayPal, no account required. You may click on recurring donation to easily set up monthly donations. Website www.tmjcf.ca or www.themorganjaynechildrensfoundation.ca
• E-transfers can be sent to donate@tmjcf.ca
• If you would like to auto debit from your account an agreement can be made with the bank.
• Cheques can be mailed to: The Morgan Jayne Children’s Foundation, 80 Ammeter Close, Red Deer, Alberta, T4R 2Y5
    Please don’t hesitate to call or email with any questions or feedback to Fred Makowecki at 403-823-8082.