VULCAN — Palliser Regional Schools will set the tone for a new school year at Wednesday’s Opening Day Celebration for staff by sharing some encouraging words about the coming school year, while recognizing outstanding achievements by both past students and current staff.
With the addition this year of Horizon Elementary School in Calgary, the Palliser family numbers nearly 1,000 counting teachers, administrators and support staff. The division will welcome back some 8,300 students on the first day of class Tuesday, Sept. 5.
All staff are invited to the Opening Day Celebration at the Cultural Recreational Centre at 504 4 Avenue South, Vulcan, from 9 a.m. to noon. The event is a celebration of long service awards and other special recognition of Palliser employees.
The event will include the introduction of this year’s recipient of the Palliser Ambassador Award for a staff member who has gone "above and beyond" in making a difference for staff and students or the larger community.
Following that presentation at 10:40 a.m. will be the division’s Wall of Fame induction ceremony. This year two individuals will be added to the Wall of Fame, honouring former students and staff, including Palliser’s first award presented posthumously.
Inductees are Doug Overes, who attended Sunnyside School and Kate Andrews High School in Coaldale, and Perry Luchia, who attended Noble Central School in Nobleford.
Overes is an accomplished chef, who graduated from the Professional Cooking Program at Lethbridge College in 1987 and was named a Distinguished Alumni in 1992 and program chair in 2013. He has also earned gold medals in world culinary competitions with both Team Alberta and Team Canada.
Luchia, who passed away in 2016, is being honoured for outstanding achievements in aviation. After attending Noble Central School from Grades 1 through 12, he went on to roles as a ground crewman for the Snowbird aerobatic team, an Air Force pilot and a production test pilot for Bombardier Aerospace.
Palliser Regional Schools is a public school system serving students from Coaldale to Calgary.