There are few sure signs of spring in the valley; crocuses, the Town Clean-up and beautiful music resonating from East Coulee.
    The East Coulee SpringFest has been bringing music to the valley since 1994. The little festival that could has grown into a Drumheller icon and is an important fundraiser for the East Coulee School Museum.
    “The money from SpringFest goes to maintaining and operating the museum through the winter,” said executive director Barb Steeves. “It basically keeps us operating.”
    The festival promises a weekend of great music with stellar artists from near and far. They have a line-up of more than 40 groups on four stages.
    Steeves explains this year they do not have the East Coulee Hotel as a venue, but they are making it work.
    “We’ve opened up the classroom in the school, another small venue, it doesn’t quite make up for the hotel, but it will be good,” she said.
    Some of the local acts include stalwarts Dooley Noted, Joe Vickers and the Sharecroppers, Layne Syvertsen, Roadside Attraction and Wayfaring Fiddlers, to name a few.
    Headlining the show this year is the Kirby Sewell Band, who will be closing out Friday night at 9:30 p.m. at the Community Hall and is back on stage Saturday at 4 p.m. Also retuning for another year is Celtic Fusion Illusion,  Joal Kamps and Shadoplay.
    Steeves said there were over 110 applications from artists to play at the show.
    “This was the most applications we’ve ever had… and everybody is donating their time, it’s what makes it sit unique.”
    Performances begin at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, May 8 and run until 11 p.m.  The show cranks up again at noon on Saturday, May 9 and continues into the night.
    Tickets are available at www.ecsmuseum.ca and locally at Riverside Value Drug Mart and Shoppers Drug Mart.

It was a week of good news for the Drumheller Association of Skateboarding Enthusiasts (DASE).
    Last week crews broke ground beside the Drumheller Aquaplex for its new skatepark. New Line Skateboard Parks were out to chart the project as town crews began removing the old asphalt of the tennis courts.
    While there is no specific timeframe for the project, they are confident that this summer skaters will be in the park.
    This was not the only good news for the club.  DASE, in conjunction with the Drumheller Rotary Club, undertook an online crowd sourcing campaign where the Rotary Club would match donations up to $15,000. On Monday, the www.youcaring.com fundraiser concluded with $30,638 earmarked to go to the skatepark project.
    “We are about 75 per cent of the way to our fundraising goal,” said Crystal Sereda of DASE. “We are very grateful for the support.”
    There was even more great news for DASE as its fruitful partnership with the Rotary Club continued with its annual White Elephant Sale. The Rotary Club is dedicating the funds raised to DASE. While there is not a total from the sale at this point, Rotarians and shoppers alike have commented this was one of the most successful sales yet.
    There is more good news for DASE as support from the community continues to grow.  On Saturday, May 16, scissors will be blazing at Kool Kutz in downtown Drumheller. Owner Tracy Gendron has opened the door to a unique fundraiser. From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. they will be cutting hair and dedicating the funds to the Drumheller skatepark project.  Sue Waye of the Healing Waye will also be there selling gift certificates for massages, for $1 per minute, with funds going to the project. There will also be a silent auction in the from May 11 leading up to Saturday.
     To learn more on supporting the project contact Landon Bosch at 403-823-0788 or Tyler Eddy at 403-821-1306.