Month: March 2025

Book Launch for “Churning Butter”

CHURNING BUTTER, Christian Marker and the Rise of the Alberta Dairy Industry, is 342 pages in length, and contains just over 100 illustrations. Please join us for the book launch on Friday, May 23rd, 2025.

This book by historian Rolf Buschardt Christensen is a partial history of the birth and early development of the dairy industry in Alberta. In the process we will follow Marker’s career as Dairy Commissioner and we will be introduced to some of the dairymen he met along the way.

Mark Friday, May 23 on your calendar, and come out to meet with author Rolf Buschardt Christensen at the Creamery Parlour Café (basement of the Historic Markerville Creamery) for this exciting book launch!

Markerville Picnic, 1921

In 1891, Helga Stephansson, along with Sigurlaug Kristinnson (Stephan’s sister), established Vonin (or “Hope”), a ladies’ aid society.

In the early years, the members met in each other’s homes to plan social events through which they could raise money for community projects. Their projects were wide-ranging. For example, if a woman living in the area, whether of Icelandic descent or not, was ill, Vonin was there with personal items such as a nightgown or slippers, or perhaps a box of oranges. Other fundraising targeted specific projects. Perhaps the library needed money to subscribe to Icelandic newspapers or perhaps a family lost its home to fire or was in dire straits.

As today is Random Acts of Kindness Day, how will you show kindness to someone today?

Image courtesy Provincial Archives of Alberta, “Picnic at Markerville, Alberta”, 1921, A2236.
— Facebook post from February 17, 2024 by Stephanson House Provincial Historic Site

Ryan McMahon at Fensala Hall

Above: Photo of Ryan McMahon provided by the artist for promotional material.

The March 8th, 2025 Fensala Hall concert with Ryan McMahon had ENERGY: with stories, Dad jokes, and of course GREAT music that made the evening soar! He brought his old lamp and comfy kitchen chair and welcomed us all to join him for an evening of heartfelt music and laughter!

Ryan played a couple of covers including “Old Man” by Neil Young. During his performance we were treated to original songs; many from his latest album “Live Now”, plus his just released “Used to be You”.

Ryan “lost an hour” in Markerville, staying overnight in the Buttermaker’s House. He joined the Kaffistofa coffee gang on Sunday for a few more stories and laughs to start the day, and had a photo taken with Marie Sveinson and Frank Sigurdson for good measure!

Ryan is a third of the way through his LEARNING TO SHINE: 25 Years in Music tour. He plays Ponoka on March 10th, and then it’s on to Saskatoon and Wynyard. His tour takes him to Manitoba and Ontario; hitting Alberta again for several shows, and finally BC for even more during the last week of March and onward!

Check out the itinerary on his website at https://ryanmcmahon.com/

Photos by Byron Nilsson

After spending 2023 recording & releasing his seventh studio album and touring as Burton Cummings’ & Tom Cochrane’s support act, Ryan McMahon is spending his 2024/2025 on the run once more. No stranger to Canadian highways, Ryan will be embarking on several months of tour dates between Sept 2024 & April of 2025.

A 25-year veteran of Canada’s musical landscape, Ryan has long been a genre fence-sitter, blending the boundaries of folk, rock, roots & country. He’s shared the stage with everyone from Mother Mother to Lisa Loeb to Aaron Pritchett, and at the age of 44 has just begun writing music for his next album. Equally at home fronting a full band or playing solo like so many folk troubadours before him, Ryan’s sincere songwriting & dynamic delivery resonates with any audience.

Sponsored in part by Red Deer County and Alberta Foundation for the Arts!