“Hope is not just the future, but also the present.”

Canada’s Governor General was in Jasper this week, bringing a message of hope, admiration and empathy to the community after it was devastated by fire in July.

Her Excellency the Right Honourable Mary Simon said the people she met during her October 26 visit gives her hope for the country at large. 

“Our country is made up of very resilient people, and at times like this, it comes out even further. It just shows more that people can get past all these difficult situations and create better lives for themselves,” she said.

Simon’s stop in Jasper was part of an official visit across Alberta, where she was focusing on reconciliation, digital respect, mental health, diversity and inclusion. Canada’s commander-in-chief spent her time in Jasper at the Municipal Library reading stories to local children; she had tea at the Alpine Summit Seniors Lodge with residents; and she spent happy hour at the Jasper Royal Canadian Legion Branch 31, speaking with first responders and volunteers and paying her respects at the nearby Cenotaph.

She mentioned that it was “the sense of community” that really stood out to her in her time with locals.

“At the elders’ home, all the elders that were there were talking about how they had to move and, and now that things are normalizing again there’s a sense that they are going to be doing okay,” she said.

“And to me, that’s important, because I always tell people that they need to look after themselves first and foremost, and then you can help others.”

Simon described the devastation around Jasper as an “incredible” and “stark” situation. 

“It inspires me to to see that people do come out of these situations that create a lot of trauma for them, but they also need to remember that they need to address that trauma that they experience,” Simon said.

At the Alpine Summit Seniors Lodge, Jasper artist Sandy Robinson, presented the Governor General with one of his paintings: a scene of the Ewan and Madeline Moberly Homestead, which is located east of the townsite. 

Robinson included on the back of the painting information about the Moberlys and their history as it relates to Jasper. He also included a few blank postcards of his artwork, “in case she wants to send a thank you note,” he laughed.

At the Legion, Her Excellency commended the “outstanding work of the firefighters and first responders who took action from the very first moments the fire started.”

“You looked well beyond personal safety in order to rescue others,” she said.

She noted that Jasperites inspired admiration throughout the entire country.

“The strength of the community is prevailing. I know you still have challenges ahead of you but the fact that you are working together and coming together is the most important part of what you’re doing and the future that you hold in your beloved community,” she said.

Cameron Jackson // info@thejasperlocal.com