Candidates are lining up to race for the Battle River-Crowfoot constituency seat, and last week the Liberal Party of Canada announced that petroleum engineer Darcy Spady will be their candidate in the August 18 by-election.
Spady is familiar with the riding, growing up in the Three Hills area, and his family farmed west of Acme.
“I know the hard work and values that define our communities and I’m ready to be a strong voice for people across Battle River—Crowfoot as your next Member of Parliament, ” said Darcy Spady. “It’s time to build, to be bold and ambitious, and I've seen firsthand how our region can lead the way. That’s why I’m running to fight for your priorities and build a stronger Alberta and Canada.”
Professionally, he went on to earn a Bachelor of Science in Petroleum Engineering from the University of Alberta. According to a release, as a professional engineer, he led and advised companies in the energy sector across Alberta and around the world, including serving as the 2018 International President of the Society of Petroleum Engineers for a three-year mandate.
Today, he is a partner in a Canadian emissions reduction company that he co-founded, and serves on several boards advancing cleantech, energy poverty awareness, and more.
He is supportive of students pursuing engineering and is a member of the Petroleum Industry Advisory Board for the University of Alberta Faculty of Engineering. He has also established the Spady Family Scholarship, aimed at helping rural Alberta students pursuing arts, humanities, and religious studies.
“Darcy has deep roots in Battle River—Crowfoot, a successful career in Alberta’s energy sector, and a lifelong commitment to creating opportunities across the province,” said Sachit Mehra, President of the Liberal Party of Canada. “While Pierre Poilievre looks out for himself in this by-election, Darcy is ready to work with Mark Carney and our Liberal team to bring down costs, create good-paying jobs, and build an economy that serves everyone.”

It may seem like gasoline runs in the veins of the Benzon family as another generation has caught the vehicle-building bug.
Ty Benson, who is going into Grade 12 at DVSS, won the Young Gun Award at this year’s Boogie in the Badlands for the work he put into his 1962 GMC half-ton. The name might be familiar as father Greg Benzon is well known in the valley as an engine and car builder. The Mail has featured some of his creations, including his Hemisaurus dragster. Often, in those photos, he would have his young son.
Today, Ty has shown that he picked up a thing or two hanging around the garage.
He picked up the 1962 after his boss showed him the ad. He already had a motor built. A six-litre LS that has been built up with a carburetor meshed to a three-speed automatic and a Ford 9-inch rear end. It has no problem getting down the road, dynoing at 492 horsepower.
“I just wanted to make something fun to drive,” said Ty, adding one day he would like to take it to the dragstrip. “I wanted a truck, and I got an ad, I liked this one.”
It presents itself with a rat rod look. There are not many modifications to the suspension, using the rear coil springs and front torsion bars, but the brakes have been modernized and upgraded. He has done some framework on the back side.
While it seems natural for Ty to be into cars, Greg tells the Mail, he only wanted to impart enough information to make sure he was knowledgeable about vehicles. Ty took the initiative on this build. In fact, a lot of what he wanted to go against his father’s initial assessment, and it has worked, truly making it his own vehicle.
“I can’t count the number of times I said ‘This is how it should be,’ and he said, ‘I want it this way,’” said Greg.
He also put in the extra hours to make sure it was ready in time for the Boogie in the Badlands this year.
While he has put the finishing touches on his truck, he already has an idea of what his next project might be, and it might be less about cruising and more about getting around the track.
In the future, he is thinking about going into mechanical engineering. Even if he does, there’s a good chance he'll still have some sort of project in the garage.