Peter Shokeir | [email protected]
Jasperites can be a Snow Angel this year by shovelling their neighbour’s walk whenever they see a Snow Angels sign on a front yard.
Nichole Cambridge, outreach worker with the municipality’s Community Outreach Services, said the program wasn’t just for volunteers.
“It’s for anybody in the community to know,” she said.
“If you see a sign, lend a hand, help a neighbour, and then, you know, if you need a sign, you can just call us, and we’d be happy to give you a sign. It’s more of an indicator so that people know that someone needs a little bit of extra help.”
The Snow Angels program encourages people to shovel snow for community members who are unable to clear their own sidewalks.
The program relies on the good will of neighbourhood volunteers seeing the sign and taking the time to shovel the snow for their neighbours.
The program begins after the first snowfall of the year and typically runs until April.
Last year, the Community Ninja program was conceived to encompass snow shovelling and other volunteer areas, but when this did not pan out, the Snow Angels program was brought back.
Cambridge explained how the goal of the Snow Angels was to create “a more caring, engaged community.”
“The volunteer list is just putting out any kind of opportunity to people as well as training opportunities,” she said.
“The aim of the Snow Angels program is that if you see a sign it’s your indicator to help, and then that way we’re building that community connection, lending a hand and helping each other, getting to know your neighbours.”
Although Jasper recently got an unusually high amount of snowfall, the uptake on the program has been lower than in previous years.
Cambridge reported how the program usually had five-to-10 people requesting signs, but only a few signs have been handed out so far this year.
“But I think it’s also just about getting the word out,” she said.
“I think some people don’t know that this service is available, and it’s not like we directly provide the service, but we kind of facilitate the service.”
For more information on volunteering or to receive a Snow Angels sign, contact Cambridge at 780-852-6542 or [email protected]
