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Catholic Social Services raises over $3.1 million to help refugees settling in Edmonton, Red Deer and Central Alberta

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2022 Sign of Hope campaign raises $3.1 million
For the second year in a row, Catholic Social Services surpasses its fundraising goal 

Catholic Social Services (CSS) today announced its 2022 Sign of Hope fundraising campaign surpassed its $2.6 million goal and raised $3.1 million for programs and services supporting vulnerable Albertans. This is the second year in a row that CSS has exceeded its goal. In 2021 CSS aimed to raise $2.1 million and brought in $3.3 million. Prior to that, the last time CSS raised more than $3 million in a single year was in 2014.

“We are absolutely overwhelmed and humbled by the support we continue to receive from Albertans,” says Dr. Troy Davies, CEO. “We know times are tough for many. We see it every day, in the work we do. That makes the ongoing success of our fundraising efforts all the more meaningful; it tells us Albertans support our work, and believe in CSS’s ability to help those who need it most during these hard times.”

Sign of Hope, the charitable fundraising arm for CSS, provides funding for more than a dozen programs, including shelters and homes for victims of domestic violence, programs for seniors experiencing isolation and abuse, supports for recently and vulnerably housed Albertans, and refugees fleeing war, conflict, and persecution.

Catholic Social Services is one of the largest providers of social services to vulnerable people in western Canada, serving as many as 20,000 each year. Donations to CSS’ Sign of Hope campaign fund programs which are unable to rely on sufficient government funding to meet the demand in the community.

“We have seen an increase in demand for nearly every service we provide,” says Dr. Davies. “At the same time, the needs of the clients we serve have grown increasingly complex.”

In 2022, donations to Sign of Hope allowed Catholic Social Services to:

  • Provide emergency relief to 2,300 refugees and 2,500 Ukrainian Nationals arriving in Edmonton, Red Deer, and other communities across central Alberta.
  • Offer safety and support to 430 women and their children escaping domestic violence, at two shelters and one transitional housing program.
  • Help 56 formerly homeless individuals remain housed.
  • Provide mental health support and counselling services to 1,200 individuals and families in Edmonton.
  • And, offer supplemental funding to countless other programs, touching nearly every area in which the agency operates.

“While this is a ‘good news story,’ it is not the end of the story,” says Dr. Davies, of the Sign of Hope campaign’s success. “This is our calling to work harder, and keep pushing to raise more, because we know how many people are counting on us to do so.”

Sign of Hope accepts donations throughout the year and runs a dedicated fundraising campaign each fall, from September to December. Anyone interested in donating can do so online at cssalberta.ca or by calling 780-439-HOPE(4673).

Background:

The Sign of Hope campaign funds multiple Catholic Social Services’ programs each year including shelters and supported housing for vulnerable women and children, subsidized counselling services, supports for seniors experiencing abuse, supports for new immigrants and refugees, and supports for the recently housed.

For 60 years, CSS has been providing help to the most vulnerable. Today, CSS works in three priority areas, serving newcomers to Canada, serving individuals with disabilities, and serving individuals, children, and families. Each year, more than 21,000 Albertans in 12 communities across central Alberta, are uplifted and empowered through CSS.

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Poilievre on 2025 Election Interference – Carney sill hasn’t fired Liberal MP in Chinese election interference scandal

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From Conservative Party Communications

Yes. He must be disqualified. I find it incredible that Mark Carney would allow someone to run for his party that called for a Canadian citizen to be handed over to a foreign government on a bounty, a foreign government that would almost certainly execute that Canadian citizen.

 

“Think about that for a second. We have a Liberal MP saying that a Canadian citizen should be handed over to a foreign dictatorship to get a bounty so that that citizen could be murdered. And Mark Carney says he should stay on as a candidate. What does that say about whether Mark Carney would protect Canadians?

“Mark Carney is deeply conflicted. Just in November, he went to Beijing and secured a quarter-billion-dollar loan for his company from a state-owned Chinese bank. He’s deeply compromised, and he will never stand up for Canada against any foreign regime. It is another reason why Mr. Carney must show us all his assets, all the money he owes, all the money that his companies owe to foreign hostile regimes. And this story might not be entirely the story of the bounty, and a Liberal MP calling for a Canadian to be handed over for execution to a foreign government might not be something that the everyday Canadian can relate to because it’s so outrageous. But I ask you this, if Mark Carney would allow his Liberal MP to make a comment like this, when would he ever protect Canada or Canadians against foreign hostility?

“He has never put Canada first, and that’s why we cannot have a fourth Liberal term. After the Lost Liberal Decade, our country is a playground for foreign interference. Our economy is weaker than ever before. Our people more divided. We need a change to put Canada first with a new government that will stand up for the security and economy of our citizens and take back control of our destiny. Let’s bring it home.”

 

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Canada Needs A Real Plan To Compete Globally

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From the Frontier Centre for Public Policy

By Marco Navarro-Génie 

Ottawa’s ideological policies have left Canada vulnerable. Strategic action is needed now

As Canada navigates an increasingly complex geopolitical landscape, the next federal government must move beyond reflexive anti—Americanism regardless of its political leanings. Instead, Canada should prioritize national interests while avoiding unnecessary conflict and subservience.

The notion that Canada can stand alone is as misguided as the idea that it is only an economic appendage of the United States. Both perspectives have influenced policy in Ottawa at different times, leading to mistakes.

Rather than engaging in futile name-calling or trade disputes, Canada must take strategic steps to reinforce its autonomy. This approach requires a pragmatic view rooted in Realpolitik—recognizing global realities, mitigating risks, governing for the whole country, and seizing opportunities while abandoning failed ideologies.

However, if Washington continues to pursue protectionist measures, Canada must find effective ways to counteract the weakened position Ottawa has placed the country in over the past decade.

One key strategy is diversifying trade relationships, notably by expanding economic ties with emerging markets such as India and Southeast Asia. This will require repairing Canada’s strained relationship with India and regaining political respect in China.

Unlike past Liberal trade missions, which often prioritized ideological talking points over substance, Canada must negotiate deals that protect domestic industries rather than turning summits into platforms for moral posturing.

A more effective approach would be strengthening partnerships with countries that value Canadian resources instead of vilifying them under misguided environmental policies. Expand LNG exports to Europe and Asia and leverage Canada’s critical minerals sector to establish reciprocal supply chains with non-Western economies, reducing economic reliance on the U.S.

Decades of complacency have left Canada vulnerable to American influence over its resource sector. Foreign-funded environmental groups have weakened domestic energy production, handing U.S. industries a strategic advantage. Ottawa must counter this by ensuring Canadian energy is developed at home rather than allowing suppressed domestic production to benefit foreign competitors.

Likewise, a robust industrial policy—prioritizing mining, manufacturing, and agricultural resilience—could reduce dependence on U.S. and Chinese imports. This does not mean adopting European-style subsidies but rather eliminating excessive regulations that make Canadian businesses uncompetitive, including costly domestic carbon tariffs.

Another key vulnerability is Canada’s growing military dependence on the U.S. through NORAD and NATO. While alliances are essential, decades of underfunding and neglect have turned the Canadian Armed Forces into little more than a symbolic force. Canada must learn self-reliance and commit to serious investment in defence.

Increasing defence spending—not to meet NATO targets but to build deterrence—is essential. Ottawa must reform its outdated procurement processes and develop a domestic defence manufacturing base, reducing reliance on foreign arms deals.

Canada’s vast Arctic is also at risk. Without continued investment in northern sovereignty, Ottawa may find itself locked out of its own backyard by more assertive global powers.

For too long, Canada has relied on an economic model that prioritizes federal redistribution over wealth creation and productivity. A competitive tax regime—one that attracts investment instead of punishing success—is essential.

A capital gains tax hike might satisfy activists in Toronto, but it does little to attract investments and encourage economic growth. Likewise, Ottawa must abandon ideological green policies that threaten agri-food production, whether by overregulating farmers or ranchers. At the same time, it must address inefficiencies in supply management once and for all. Canada must be able to feed a growing world without unnecessary bureaucratic obstacles.

Ottawa must also create an environment where businesses can innovate and grow without excessive regulatory burdens. This includes eliminating interprovincial trade barriers that stifle commerce.

Similarly, Canada’s tech sector, long hindered by predatory regulations, should be freed from excessive government interference. Instead of suffocating innovation with compliance mandates, Ottawa should focus on deregulation while implementing stronger security measures for foreign tech firms operating in Canada.

Perhaps Ottawa’s greatest mistake is its knee-jerk reactions to American policies, made without a coherent long-term strategy. Performative trade disputes with Washington and symbolic grandstanding in multilateral organizations do little to advance Canada’s interests.

Instead of reacting emotionally, Canada must take proactive steps to secure its economic, resource, and defence future. That is the role of a responsible government.

History’s best strategists understood that one should never fight an opponent’s war but instead dictate the terms of engagement. Canada’s future does not depend on reacting to Washington’s policies—these are calculated strategies, not whims. Instead, Canada’s success will be determined by its ability to act in the interests of citizens in all regions of the country, and seeing the world as it is rather than how ideological narratives wish it to be.

Marco Navarro-Génie is the vice president of research at the Frontier Centre for Public Policy. With Barry Cooper, he is co-author of Canada’s COVID: The Story of a Pandemic Moral Panic (2023).

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