Kirby, and Stephansson House

Stephan Stephansson was known as “the poet of the Rocky Mountains.” Immigrating to North America in 1873, he and his family eventually relocated to the Markerville district of Alberta in 1889. He was a hard-working farmer and community leader who provided for his wife and eight children, and still found the time to write over 2300 pages of poetry and more than 1700 pages of letters, essays, articles, and short stories.

Stephansson House Provincial Historic Site is a wonderful afternoon adventure that everyone can enjoy. A path from the Interpretive Center leads you through a park-like setting to his home, restored to a snapshot of 1927, including original furnishings.

During the visit I not only received an informative tour from interpreter Emma Belich, but also was greeted by none other than the infamous Jólakötturinn. Also known to the locals as “Kirby”.

The historic site is located at 2230 Twp Rd 371, Red Deer County, Alberta (get directions), with paved roads all the way to the site’s entrance. I hope you enjoy the photos, but this is just a fraction of what you can experience by dropping in for your own visit.

Kirby would love to see you at Stephansson House. He takes his greeting duties seriously!

Continue reading Kirby, and Stephansson House

Allen Christie & Riley Tubbs

The August 18, 2022 Supper and Song was another splendid evening of outdoor musical entertainment at the Markerville Creamery courtyard. Al Gamble welcomed Allen Christie and Riley Tubbs to the stage and the duo took it from there; giving the audience a brilliant blend of original songs and old favourites! Visit the Historic Markerville Facebook page for the original post.

Following are more photos from the evening and video of some original tunes and covers.

Amber Williams & Riley Tubbs

Thursday was overcast but otherwise perfect for the August 11, 2022 Supper and Song at the Markerville Creamery courtyard. Al Gamble introduced Amber Williams and Riley Tubbs, both from Rocky Mountain House, and the duo took it from there; giving the audience lively performances song after song! Visit the Historic Markerville Facebook page for the original post.

Following are more photos from the evening and video of some of the songs.

Amber and Riley started the Supper and Song evening with Small Town Saturday Night.
Continue reading Amber Williams & Riley Tubbs

River Walk

Members of the Markerville community have imagined the appeal of a closer view of the Medicine River near the Creamery, and this summer a new walking trail is finally available, dubbed River Walk.

Starting from a gently sloped access point just off Riverside Street near Johnson Avenue, the path has been cleared and extended along the river’s edge towards the Walking Bridge. Stairs down the embankment from the memorial garden located on the east end of the bridge have been completed, for safe and easy access to the trail from the Creamery. A hand rail for the stairs is planned, but for now good balance and sturdy shoes are suggested when exploring the path.

Walking along the River Walk path you will soon come across a bench and chairs that have been donated. It’s a wonderful spot to enjoy the river view, watch and listen for birds, or just take a quiet moment for yourself.

The artist in you may find inspiration here or at other spots along the path for photography, sketching, or En plein air!

Here are photos and video of River Walk path taken at various times this summer, before and after the completion of the stairs by the walking bridge.

Continue reading River Walk

Mary Anne Message

Mary Anne Message was ready to go, rain or shine, and everyone who showed up for the August 4th “Supper & Song” were glad they did. The weather may have scared a few people away, but definitely not Jack and Dot who showed up in their rain gear. I’m pretty sure they would have been out there dancing even if the rain hadn’t let up. Here are some more photos and video from the evening event at the Markerville Creamery stage.

See the original post on the Historic Markerville Facebook Page.

Jack and Dot doin’ the right thing!
Three of the songs performed by Mary Anne Message on the August 4th Creamery Stage: 455 Rocket, Every Little Thing, and Big Bad Handsome Man.


Historic Markerville Supper and Song Thursday Roster
Supper 5:00 pm / Songs 6:30 pm


* UPCOMING *

August 11 – Amber Williams
August 18 – Allen Christie
August 25 – Larry Kjearsgaard

Frank Durocher

Marie Sveinson introduced Frank Durocher, from Rocky Mountain House, at the start of his set and then teased that she didn’t need to say much since he wouldn’t be too shy about telling us about himself. Then he took over the microphone and enthusiastically shared stories, jokes and wonderful songs for the next hour-and-a-half!

Frank opened with “Y’all Come”, “You and Your Sweet Love”, “Mansion Over the Hilltop”, “Kaw-Liga” and “Mansion on the Hill” … songs made popular by Porter Wagnoner, Conway Twitty, George Jones, Hank Williams and Charlie Pride.

After a couple more favourites, Frank had the ladies stand and sing a verse from “Jesus Loves Me” and then had the men stand and do likewise. The impromptu “contest” resulted in a tie, although Frank mentioned that the men seemed a little shy to start with! After some persuading from the audience, Frank continued with a Buck Owens classic, “Act Naturally.”

The encore included “Why Me Lord?”, “I’ll Fly Away”, “How Great Thou Art”, and “I saw the Light.”

Following are some photos and video from the July 28th Supper and Song evening with Frank Durocher. Visit the Historic Markerville Facebook page to see the original post with more photos.

Clip from “Act Naturally” performed by Frank Durocher
Three of the songs performed by Frank Durocher at the July 28th “Supper and Song”

Historic Markerville Supper and Song Thursday Roster
Supper 5:00 pm / Songs 6:30 pm

* UPCOMING *

August 04 – Mary Anne Message
August 11 – Amber Williams
August 18 – Allen Christie
August 25 – Larry Kjearsgaard

Raeleen & Jason McCutcheon

Raeleen & Jason McCutcheon entertained an enthusiastic crowd at the third instalment of Supper and Song on July 21, 2022. [See the Historic Markerville Facebook page]

Here are photos and a few video clips from the event.

Video clips from July 21 “Supper and Song” with Raeleen & Jason McCutcheon

Historic Markerville Supper and Song Thursday Roster
Supper 5:00 pm / Songs 6:30 pm

* UPCOMING *
July 28 – Frank Durocher
August 04 – Mary Anne Message
August 11 – Amber Williams
August 18 – Allen Christie
August 25 – Larry Kjearsgaard

Roberta Lynn Fetch

Roberta recently appeared at the July 14, 2022 Supper and Song event in Markerville, Alberta for another splendid evening of wonderful songs. [View the post on the Historic Markerville Facebook page] Following are some photos and video of the evening.

Partial playlist of Roberta Lynn Fetch’s Supper and Song performance.

I love her artist bio I found on the ReverbNation site:
Bobby-Lynn was born and raised on a farm in rural Alberta. First sitting at a piano at the age of six, she began life steeped in the appreciation of music. She spent 11 years completing Royal Conservatory. But it was nearly twenty years later when a guitar made her passion come alive. Today she writes songs delivered in raspy tones made to touch the heart, strummed to a gentle acoustic guitar. Having been compared to sounding like Stevie Nicks and Tracy Chapman, she mixes it with a soft acoustic sound.

Historic Markerville Supper and Song Thursday Roster
Supper 5:00 pm / Songs 6:30 pm

* UPCOMING *
July 21 – Raeleen McCutcheon
July 28 – Frank Durocher
August 04 – Mary Anne Message
August 11 – Amber Williams
August 18 – Allen Christie
August 25 – Larry Kjearsgaard

Outlaw Music Supper & Song

July 7 saw the return of Outlaw Music to the Creamery Courtyard stage for the start of Thursday evening Supper & Song. The Markerville Creamery has extended hours for eight free performances during the summer on Thursdays. The staff invite everyone to drop in for supper starting 5 pm, with songs starting at 6:30 pm for an hour’s worth of music to appeal to all ages, with different artists each Thursday. This event is courtesy of Historic Markerville Creamery.

Gerry and JoLynn pulled off an almost flawless performance, including taking requests and ending the evening with an encore of two more songs.

Historic Markerville Supper and Song Thursday Roster
Supper 5:00 pm / Songs 6:30 pm

July 07 – Gerry & JoLynn
July 14 – Roberta Lynn Fetch
July 21 – Raeleen McCutcheon
July 28 – Frank Durocher

August 04 – Mary Anne Message
August 11 – Amber Williams
August 18 – Allen Christie
August 25 – Larry Kjearsgaard

Outlaw Music live at Supper and Song in Markerville, Alberta
Gerry and JoLynn of Outlaw Music
Gerry and JoLynn perform one of their favourites, “Long Time Gone”

Photos from July 3, 2022

We’d like to thank all the artists and bidders that participated in the Artists on the Avenue outdoor art show and sale held July 2nd and 3rd in Markerville. New this year was a Silent Auction, which was a great success! Over $1,000 was raised, with all proceeds going to the Buttermaker’s House Restoration project.

We appreciate all the donations of items and artwork, including the live painting items that were created during the two-day event.

15 items received bids, and there are four more items donated for a follow-up auction event later this summer. Thank you to everyone for helping us support the Markerville historic society and their ongoing renovation projects.

Here are photos from the second day!

Photos from July 2, 2022

The weather begrudgingly co-operated for our 3rd Annual Outdoor Art Show and Sale. Once everyone was set up it didn’t take long for artists to begin donating artwork to our Silent Auction table, and several also began live painting their contributions! All proceeds from the Silent Auction are going to support the Buttermaker House renovation efforts, one of the historic buildings located in Markerville.

Larry and Russ joined in and entertained everyone with live music. All in all, a good first day of the show. Join us again on Sunday, July 3 for more glorious artwork! And sunshine!

Simone Le Sann

My name is Simone Le Sann and I have been an artist all my life. I started drawing as a kid and had many sketch books growing up on the farm in Theodore, Saskatchewan.

Up until 5 years ago I had never picked up a paint brush, but when I suffered a broken elbow injury I decided to give painting a try. Just three months later I found myself entered into an art battle: I was asked to fill the spot when an artist cancelled, and so I did. I got to paint live and be in the company of talented artists, and from there I couldn’t stop painting.

It has always been a dream of mine to be an artist and now I paint everywhere, including across the world, and have paintings in Cuba and many other places. My dream is to paint in Europe with the artists there, and I will follow that passion with my partner, Tani, who is a writer. I plan to do the illustrations for his next book.

Tani Shallari, Author

Tani Shallari worked as a French and English teacher for twelve years. His first book, Gomo, was inspired by his students.

Tani was born on October 24, 1982 in Grevë, Albania. He attended Pandeli Sotiri High School (2003) in Gjirokastër, and Aleksandër Xhuvani University (2007) in Elbasan.

From the Author Q&A: Tell me something not in the synopsis.
“This book is inspired by kids and is made for them. Children can be what they want to be in the future; to achieve their dreams they must believe in themselves, they must believe in their dreams. I hope my book can inspire them and help them. Every kid deserves to be happy.”


SLS Artwork | slesann@telus.net | 403-704-9310
Tani Shallari | tanishallari@live.com | 403-397-5677