.png)
Mayor Cindy Jefferies shared her story with members. Cindy came to Red Deer in 1978 and attended LTHS where she met her future husband, Dan. While still in high school they created a profitable small painting company where the best purchase was a paint sprayer. Dan became an accountant and Cindy pursued a BA in communications, a degree that has stood her in good stead.
Cindy has always placed a high priority on advocacy, building relationships, and examining ways in which to meet the future demands of organizations and communities. She continues to use her knowledge of community development to guide decisions, building strength through community.
Dr. Debbie Thompson, President of Olds College, provided updates about Olds College continuing to be a leader in agriculture across the province and country. The college is one of the very few post secondary institutions that is focused solely on agriculture and is creating the next generation of agriculture leaders by developing talent, advancing knowledge and championing stewardship and sustainability. It is focused on development technological innovation and development of workplace skills. Founded in 1913, Olds Colleges continues to adapt to meet the changing needs of the agricultural industry. The college strives to educate, advance research, train, and be an advocate for agricultural advances. 
We welcome Tonya Wolfe, Red Deer Polytechnic Associate Vice President, Applied Research. Red Deer Polytechnic (RDP) is helping to build central Alberta through innovation and research. Findings from the 2025 Business Retention, Expansion and Workforce Development (BREWD) study by the central Alberta First Partnership show that central Albert businesses have identified that skilled labor shortages directly impact their ability to grow sales or production. Training and integrating new technologies takes time. Adoption of technology such as AII is progressing faster than businesses can adapt. Workforce data showed a need to gather data regarding skill needs across the region would assist in forecasting future employer demands. RDP is poised to assist businesses to solve these challenges, adopt new technologies, train people and help them grow. The Division of Applied Research helps partners explore, test, and validate real-world solutions.
Melinda shared information about The National Conversation, a major UK-wide public listening initiative, inviting people right across the country to share views on community life and the kind of communities they want to build together. It is an opportunity for members of the UK to have their say on what they would like their country to be. This study hopes to reveal what factors tear apart a community and what brings them together. Preliminary findings and general trends were also presented. This is timely as there may be many similarities between trends in both the UK and Canada, particularly as Alberta approaches the Oct 19, 2026 referendum vote.
Service Above Self
Upstairs
Red Deer, AB T4N 6Z3
Canada