Well after all the negative press that the economy, both from a worldwide and a national perspective has received, it appears that Canadian Financial Institutions are still viewed as leaders amongst the industry and in a very strong position for rebound.

This article, from Globe & Mail on Saturday, March 6 shows how Canadian financial institutions are now being viewed with much envy as many other countries struggle to cope with the financial disaster that has developed across the globe.

Canada's banks are finally getting some respect.

Derided for years as meek and mild while banks around the world expanded wildly, suddenly the reputation of Canada's big lenders as prudent and sometimes downright boring has become an asset instead of a liability.

U.S. President Barack Obama has heaped praise on the management of this country's financial system. Ireland is considering overhauling its system to look more like Canada's. Financial papers around the world are running headlines such as "Canada banks prove envy of the world."

 Since the credit crunch began in the summer of 2007, the Big Five banks have booked a total of $18.9-billion in profits.

Whether measured by market value, balance sheet strength or profitability, Canada's banks are rising to the top. Since the credit crunch began in the summer of 2007, the Big Five banks have booked a total of $18.9-billion in profits.

In roughly the same period, the five biggest U.S. banks have lost more than $37-billion (U.S.). One, Wachovia Corp., was forced to sell out to avoid failing. Another, Citigroup Inc., long the world's largest bank, may have to be nationalized and this week became a penny stock. The picture is similar in Britain.

The U.S. has spent most of the $700-billion the government earmarked for bank bailouts, and there are estimates that the final tally could be more in the trillions of dollars. The head of the Bank of England said last month that it's "impossible" to know how much money it will take to fix his country's banks.

Canada, by contrast, has not had to inject capital directly into banks, other than starting a program to buy from banks $125-billion (Canadian) of insured mortgages - any losses from which the government was already on the hook for anyway.

The reason comes down to a fundamental conservatism. From lending practices to bets on trading to financial reserves and takeovers, the Big Five banks have long tended to be more careful than their global peers. And when they did want to get aggressive, government and regulators held them in check.

"The Canadian banks were under a significant amount of pressure from both the analysts and the marketplace in general to be more aggressive in expanding into international markets, particularly the United States, and I think to some degree resisted partially because of a more conservative approach," says RBC chief executive officer Gordon Nixon.

Still, the industry has had stumbles, most notably Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce's misadventure in derivatives, which led to a $2.1-billion loss for 2008.

And shareholders in Canadian banks have been battered. As a group, the banks' shares are down almost 50 per cent since Aug. 1, 2007, with most of the decline in the past six months as the economy worsened.

The concern weighing on these bank shares, for starters, is that profit growth in general is a thing of the past until the economy picks up. Most analysts say the banks' profits will shrink in coming quarters as more loans go sour and margins on lending tighten up. There's also nagging doubts that dividend payments are unsustainable and that something bad is still lurking on balance sheets.

More writedowns are likely in store for banks such as Toronto-Dominion Bank and Royal Bank of Canada, both of which made big acquisitions in recent years that now look overpriced.

Still, bank bosses such as Rick Waugh, CEO of Bank of Nova Scotia, say the banks are insulated from lingering problems because they have profits rolling in from many sources.

"We have made mistakes," he says, "but we made sure that we were well diversified."

That's a result of a conservatism not just among executives. That same approach extends to consumers, helping the banks sail along on the strength of their domestic lending businesses.

"You've got a more balanced cultural approach towards consumption and savings than we do in this country," says Charles Dallara, head of the Washington-based Institute of International Finance, and a former managing director at JPMorgan Chase & Co.

Much of that stems from the pain of the last recession. While the downturn of the early 1990s was short and sharp in the U.S., it was drawn out in Canada, leading to more of a social evolution, says CIBC chief executive officer Gerry McCaughey.

Former central bank governor David Dodge agrees. Canadian bank executives keenly remember that period, "and there was therefore perhaps a degree of prudence, a lack of aggressiveness, in comparison with major banks around the world," he said.

And he gives top marks to the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions, Canada's banking regulator, for being more conservative than those in the U.S. or Britain. "I think that, from a regulatory point of view, you can say that the Canadian banks were more appropriately regulated."

The final key is the structure of the mortgage market.

While U.S. banks sold a large proportion of their mortgages, Canadian banks held the bulk of theirs on their balance sheets, giving them an incentive to make sure they were good loans. Riskier ones are backed by government insurance. And the law here makes it tough for consumers to walk away from a mortgage because banks can go after other assets.

Still, the banks are wary of getting cocky when a careful approach has worked well.

"It's a good thing for us to recognize the things we do very well, but maybe do it in what is appropriately a Canadian way - with modesty," said Bank of Montreal CEO Bill Downe.

______

Royal Bank of Canada

First quarter profit: $1.05-billion, down from $1.25-billion.

What's working: The bank's securities arm makes big bucks, and its huge retail bank in Canada generates steady earnings. RBC benefits from strong loan growth and expense control, notes UBS analyst Peter Rozenberg.

What's worrying: A foray into the U.S. leaves it exposed to the sagging American economy. Investors never like to see too much of a bank's earnings come from capital markets, because it's a volatile business. And while the securities division is doing well, it's also booking big writedowns. "RBC's Achilles heel, in Moody's view, is its U.S. operation," the rating agency says.

What the CEO says: "As a Canadian bank with global operations, RBC does have a competitive advantage relative to many of our global peers. The fundamentals of our domestic economy, while stressed, appear stronger than in Europe and the United States, having benefited from a public policy agenda that for many years valued prudent fiscal management."

Total assets: $713-billion

Tier 1 capital ratio (Jan. 31): 10.6 per cent

Provision for credit losses: $747-million, up from $293-million

______

Toronto-Dominion Bank

First-quarter profit: $712-million, down from $970-million.

What's working: Retail arm TD Canada Trust is a dominant force across the country. "The bank's sizable capital cushion, combined with the recurring earnings from its Canadian franchise, leave it well positioned to manage through a period of economic headwinds," says Moody's Investors Service.

What's worrying: TD expanded in the U.S. just as things were getting really bad. Now, the bank has the biggest U.S. retail banking presence of any Canadian bank - half of all the bank's branches are in the U.S. Plus, TD owns a big U.S. wealth management operation that may suffer as markets plunge. The consensus among analysts is that the bank's securities and trading side isn't big enough to make up for declining performance in other areas of the bank.

What the CEO says: "We are living in unprecedented times. So what we consider solid performance in the current environment is certainly not what we would be happy with in the long term. ... We are going to take some bruises if the situation gets worse, but we're still going to be able to deliver solid earnings."

Total assets: $585-billion

Tier 1 capital ratio (Jan. 31): 10.1 per cent

Provision for credit losses: $537-million, up from $255-million

______

Bank of Nova Scotia

First-quarter profit: $842-million, up from $835-million.

What's working: The bank's international business - the largest of the Canadian banks - posted a record quarter, and Scotiabank's reputation for risk management remains intact. The bank's securities and trading arm, Scotia Capital, had a near-record quarter.

What's worrying: Investors are leery of exposure to car loans and the auto industry. They are also keeping an eye on the bank's corporate loan book, the biggest of any Canadian bank.The bank's large international division, with a big presence in Latin America, was much more profitable than anticipated in the latest quarter, but the macro environment in Latin America has deteriorated in recent months, notes RBC Dominion Securities analyst André-Philippe Hardy.

What the CEO says: "The banking sector in Canada is still in good shape. Some say the best in the world. As a group, we are all very well capitalized by global standards. And Scotiabank clearly demonstrated this by the fact that we were able to raise more capital this quarter, all of it from the market, from private sources."

Total assets : $510-billion

Tier 1 capital ratio at Jan. 31: 9.5 per cent

Provision for credit losses: $281-million, up from $111-million

______

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce

First-quarter profit: $147-million, up from a loss of $1.46-billion.

What's working: Most of the big problems relating to exposure to subprime-linked investments are behind the bank, and its balance sheet is rock solid after raising another $1.6-billion of capital this week. Analysts and investors like the fact that its Canadian-focused business means bad U.S. loans aren't a big issue.

What's worrying: The bank is getting out of or cutting back in so many business lines to avoid problems that it's unclear where growth will come from. Investors worry that the bank is becoming so risk-averse that it won't be able to compete.

Its core consumer lending segment saw earnings decline 14 per cent in the latest quarter, due in large part to rising provisions for bad credit card, manufacturing and real estate loans, notes Blackmont Capital analyst Brad Smith.

What the CEO says: "Market conditions worldwide for banks remain difficult. Yet arguably one of the better places to be right now is in Canada. At CIBC, the majority of our revenue is derived from retail markets, where we enjoy strong market positions in a broad range of products and services."

Total assets: $354-billion

Tier 1 capital ratio at Jan. 31: 9.8 per cent (it's now a whopping 11.5 per cent)

Provision for credit losses: $284-million, up from $172-million

______

Bank of Montreal

First-quarter profit: $225-million, down from $255-million.

What's working: The bank's trading operations are buoying profit, and its retail operations are rebounding after lagging for years. A switch toward more profitable products, such as lines of credit, is helping the core operations churn out strong earnings.

What's worrying: Investors are concerned that trading profits can disappear fast, and the bank has a U.S. loan portfolio by virtue of its presence in the U.S. Midwest. There's also a nagging worry that the bank will cut its dividend that won't go away no matter how many times CEO Bill Downe says the payout is safe.

Credit Suisse analyst James Bantis is watching for rising credit losses in the $42-billion (U.S.) U.S. loan portfolio. He sees a large drop-off in the quality of the U.S. portfolio, which accounts for 27 per cent of BMO's loan book, compared to the Canadian portfolio.

What the CEO says: "Financial institutions everywhere continue to face headwinds in credit markets and the capital markets environment. BMO is well positioned to meet these challenges, having accessed markets to bolster our capital position and having further strengthened our strong liquidity in the period, albeit at a higher cost."

Tier 1 capital ratio at Jan. 31: 10.21 per cent

Total assets: $443-billion

Provisions for credit losses: $428-million, up from $230-million

Shaun Serafini is the Mortgage Development Manager (Mortgage Specialist) for All Source Mortgages, a mortgage brokerage serving Lethbridge and Southern Alberta. Please contact info@mygreatrate.ca if you have found this post useful or should you have any additional questions in regards to mortgage financing.

www.mygreatrate.ca

403-328-1564

If you happen to hold an unsecure line of credit with a Canadian financial institution, you may be receiving some troublesome news - payments and interest could be on the rise. This increase is not due to the Bank of Canada raising the Prime rate however. Several of the major financial institutions in Canada are concerned that their earnings may be affected by the historically low interest rates that exist in the marketplace at present and are taking it upon themselves to change things, by increasing their own rates.

TD Canada Trust sent out a wave of letters to customers that hold personal credit lines last week. These letters informed customers that the fixed portion of their revolving credit line would be increasing. This means that even though a customer may have signed up for an unsecured line of credit at Prime + 2.0%, effective March 23 the interest rate will be moved to Prime = 3% or higher.

It's quite disturbing that in a time where we are seeing rising unemployment rates across Canada investment & retirement income seriously eroded that the banks would put an extra squeeze on their credit customers for the sake of the bottom line. Let's get something straight here, TD is not in a position where it is going to lose massive amounts of money because of the low level of the Bank of Canada rate. While TD might not be earning the same level of interest on the Prime rate sensitive products as it was before the credit crisis started, the truth is that the reason for the increase in interest rates is a means to put the company in a position to meet shareholders expectations. In a business that is all about the spread (what a lending institution pays for borrowing money versus what it charges for lending), TD creating a larger spread on these products by squeezing its existing customer base. And it appears that some of the other banks are considering doing the same.

There have also been rumbling in the financial world that suggest a few of the other major Canadian FI's are considering options including increasing their own Prime rate's in order to bolster profits. So while the Bank of Canada Prime rate appears to be staying at 3%, there is no guarantee that the banks will continue to honor this benchmark indefinitely. One thing that can be assured is that if one of the "Big 5" increases their prime rate, it's only a matter of time before the other banks look to do the same. You can bet that the first move will be monitored very closely by the others in the industry and barring a MAJOR wave of public outcry and backlash against the company that makes the first move, that others will follow suit.

What can you do?

There are a few options that you may want to consider should you have a personal line of credit.

#1) Pay down outstanding balance if possible

#2) Consider setting up a Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) rather than an unsecured line if you have significant equity in your home (Typically more than 20% or more). HELOC's normally offer much better interest rates as they are secured by a property.

#3) If you'd prefer something less risky than a line of credit that is affected by changes in the prime rate, you could refinance your existing mortgage and lock in a fixed rate. **Fixed rates are incredibly low at the present time. You can lock in an interest rate as low as 4.29% on a 5 year fixed term mortgage. This completely eliminates the risk of interest rate fluctuations for at least 5 years.

#4) If you don't presently own a home with more than 20% equity, you could consider switching from a line of credit to a monthly installment loan. You are giving up the flexibility of being able to adjust your payments, but ensuring that you know exactly what your interest and payment will be.

It should be noted that any credit product that is tied to prime could be quite risky to hold in the future. You can bet that once the markets begin to stabilize that the governments will look to recoup the money that has been used to stimulate the economy. One of the most logical ways to do this is likely going to be through significant increases in the bank rate and therefore prime rate. Lines of credit look very good now with a Prime rate of 3.0% but may not be as attractive should prime double or head even higher. While even the best economists struggle to forecast what types of prime rate movements will occur in the upcoming months, one thing is certain for this type of economic marketplace-it's better to know exactly what you have rather than speculate over where things could get to. As the saying goes, "A bird in hand is better than two in the bush!" It is recommended that unless you are in a position to adapt to potential fluctuations in interest rates over the next several months that you consider moving away from or hedge against products that are tied to Prime.

By no means am I advocating that folks close all lines of credit completely, in fact I strongly recommend that you maintain a line of credit as a "just in case" plan. It may be in a person's best interest right now however, to consider paying these down if you are in a position to do so or look at ‘safer' options until the waves of the recession that we are experiencing subside.

Please contact me at 403-328-1564 or email info@mygreatrate.ca if you have any questions in regards to the information contained in this article. I am always happy to look into individual situations in order to determine what the best situation is.

*Please note: The credit product in question in the preceding document are unsecured lines of credit offered by Canadian financial institutions. These differ from Home equity lines of credit which are secured by a charge on title of a property and therefore carry lower interest obligations (typically Prime or Prime +1.0%). To date, I have only witnessed adjustments to unsecured line of credit.

Unsecured Line of Credit - a line of credit that is not secured against a property or asset .

According to globeandmail.com, Bank of Canada is preparing to decrease its key interest rate this week in order to provide stimulus to the economy. With unemployment on the rise and inflation quickly diminishing, economists widely expect the Bank of Canada to cut its key rate by half a percentage point tomorrow. Market analysts will then pore over the central bank's new economic outlook, to be released Thursday, for clues about whether the B of C will take rates even lower, perhaps even to zero.

Note: An adjustment to the Bank of Canada key interest rate will affect variable /adjustable rate mortgage products which are tied to this rate.* Fixed rate mortgages are not immediately impacted by adjustments to the B of C rate as mortgages of this type are tied to bond rates.

*Although many Canadian financial institutions base their own individual rate of prime on the B of C rate, it has become common over the past few months for most to delay passing on rate reductions to their customers.

Interesting news today that the Harper government has been floating the idea of a tax credit for home renovations. The thinking is this type of incentive could provide a significant stimulus for Canada's floundering residential construction industry. The idea also could serve as a significant boost to the much needed lumber and forestry sectors that have experienced major declines in demand since the US housing crisis and worldwide economy downturn over past 2 years. 

From todays Report on Business (globeandmail.com)

Deliberations continue as Canada's premiers meet today in Ottawa to put the final touches on a budget request for Prime Minister Stephen Harper - one that sources say will include more cash for employment training, more benefits for the jobless and extra funding for infrastructure.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, meanwhile, has been conducting his own consultation on the looming budget, expected to deliver up to $30-billion in stimulus to soften an economic downturn.

During a closed-door session in Montreal last week, Mr. Flaherty asked participants' opinion on a partly refundable tax credit for renovations. Some economists among the more than 20 attendees criticized the proposal while representatives of the building-trades sector lauded it. Tax credits can be used to reduce the amount of taxes a person owes to the government, but refundable tax credits can benefit filers even if they have no taxes to be paid; in that case, they could get a refund based on the credit.

The federal Finance Department looks favourably on stimulus spending that helps builders, in part because so many of their materials are made in Canada. This ensures more benefits of stimulus spending remain in this country than if the money goes to taxpayers in the form of rebates to spur consumption. There's a good chance that consumer spending would leak the benefits of stimulus to foreigners: 50 per cent of durable goods bought in Canada are imported.

"[By] contrast, only 20 per cent of investment in residential and non-residential buildings is imported through such inputs as building materials," the Finance Department said in its recent paper on stimulus.

One important decision Mr. Flaherty will have to make should the Tories proceed with this idea is whether to offer a tax credit for home renovation in general, or merely for retrofits and upgrades that increase energy efficiency.

Toronto Dominion Bank chief economist Don Drummond said stimulus for home renovations would be helpful because there's a limit to how many public works projects Ottawa can kick start soon.

"There's only so much of the big infrastructure stuff you can get going in 2009 and 2010," Mr. Drummond said.

"We are past the peak of employment in the construction industry, and those people are going to be getting laid off."

One drawback of programs such as subsidies for retrofitting and house refurbishment is that they are typically difficult to administer, hard to monitor and susceptible to fraud.

In Ottawa, the premiers plan to ask Mr. Harper when they meet with him tonight and tomorrow for more infrastructure money and increased flexibility in spending it.

The Harper government has committed itself to $33-billion over seven years, and is pledging to accelerate that spending. But premiers want the government to add to the overall global total.

Governments also appear close to an agreement to streamline environmental requirements for infrastructure projects. Ontario is particularly concerned for Ottawa to find a way to increase benefits for the unemployed and not just money for worker training. Toronto wants more workers to be able to access benefits.

Premiers will not put a price tag on their requests. "Most premiers are not looking to jam up the feds and put an astronomical number they can't meet," the source said.

Canada's municipal governments yesterday released a list of more than 1,000 infrastructure projects that they say could start this spring if federal funds become available.

Combined, the projects would create more than 150,000 jobs, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities said in a release.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20090115.wcredit15/BNStory/politics/home

Why use a Mortgage Broker?

•·   Power of professional negotiating expertise.

•·   One stop convenience for access to numerous mortgage products.

•·   Unbiased knowledgeable advice.

•·   Access to unadvertised rates.

•·   Work for you, not the Bank.

What is the Homebuyers Plan?

•·   Home Buyers Plan is a federal government program that allows homebuyers to use $20,000.00 for each purchaser from his/her own RRSP.

•·   You must not have owned a principal residence within the last 5 years.

•·   You must intend to occupy the home as a principal residence.

•·   Minimum repayment is 15 equal annual installments. This schedule can be accelerated.

•·   The funds to be withdrawn must have been invested into the RRSP for a minimum of 90 days prior to withdrawal.

•·   You must complete a Form T1036 .

What should I expect for closing costs?

Closing costs are approximately 1.5% of the Purchase Price. .They may include the following depending

•·   Appraisal Fee: $300

•·   Survey Certificate (if applicable): $250

•·   Home Inspection (if requested by you) $250

•·   Legal Fees (approx): $750 - 1000

•·   Tax Adjustment

•·   Interest Adjustment

•·   Property Transfer Tax (not in Alberta)

What type of income proof do I have to provide?

In most situations lenders require a comfort level that the borrower has sufficient income and cash flow to service the mortgage as well as any other obligations that they may have. The higher the Loan to Value (ie. mortgage amount vs. purchase price) the more important this becomes as the lender is placing less reliance on the value and equity in the property and more on the earning power of the borrower. The following is a summary of what Lenders require depending on what type of job you have:

Salaried Employees

•·   Job Letter - Lenders use 100% of the income. Verification is made on company letterhead, signed by appropriate individual. If you are a recent hire, the letter should confirm that probation period has been passed. Bonuses, car allowances and other forms of remuneration should be mentioned if applicable.

•·   Pay Stubs - Many Lenders will also require your most recent pay stubs.

Hourly Employees

•·   Pay Stubs - showing year-to-date income verification.

•·   T4's and/or Personal Tax Returns (T1 Generals)- 3 years to take an average.

•·   Notice of Assessment - (NOA) - most recent to confirm no taxes owed.

Commission Income

•·   T4's and/or Personal Tax Returns - 3 years to take an average.

•·   Job Letter - confirming position.

•·   Notice of Assessment (NOA) - optional depending on Lender.

Self-Employed

•·   Financial Statements of Company - 3 years average of net income used. Depending on Lenders policies, The add-back of various personal expenses run through the company may or may not be allowed (eg.'s of allowable addbacks - Depreciation, Amortization, CCA (Capital Cost Allowance).

•·   NOA's (Personal Notice of Assessments).

•·   Personal Tax Returns ( T1 Generals showing personal net income).

Overtime - Will be used as long as there is a proven track record - 2 years evidence (T-4's). Bonuses - Once again a 2 yr track record required. Part-time Job - should be in place for a couple of years before using the additional income. Tips - generally not recognized unless declared for tax purposes. Car Allowances - This varies from lender to lender. Alimony and Support - Evidence that payments have been made regularly and a copy of divorce agreement is required. Investment Income - must be received continuously. This source of income is limited to interest, dividends or some type of ongoing revenue. Capital gains, which result from the liquidation of an asset is a 1 time occurrence and can't be used.

If you have any questions concerning a mortgage please contact Shaun Serafini with All Source Mortgages at 1-403-382-7882. I'm alway happy to help!

www.mygreatrate.ca

So after posting my blog yesterday talking about how I had just created my own neighborhood Face book page, I go and forget to post the link. You can trust me when I say that it wasn't for suspense or 'hyping' purposes.

I guess in all my haste to post about my new creation I forgot the most important part. As of right now the page has 6 members, all of whom were personally invited by myself (friends and folks I know in the neighborhood). As time goes on I really hope to see the group grow so we can learn more about our neighbors and enhance the community as a whole.

So I guess without further suspense the link to the much anticipated Copperwood neighborhood Facebook group.

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=8981354843

I took some time today to take some advice from a fellow Activerainer today and created a Facebook group for my community (Copperwood - Lethbridge). This is a very good idea in order to create a network of locals from the same community to discuss neighbourhood news and events, get to know our neighbours a bit more and perhaps even foster a few new leads in the process.

Facebook really is an amazing tool to not only network with friends, colleagues and former school-mates. It is becoming a habit for almost any daily user of the internet. The possibilities are endless. people can chat about safety issues, yard sales, home values and more.  You could create a page for your book club or your bowling league -- the possibilities are endless!

Hopefully you will be able to use this information and create a group that applies to something of interest to you. Kind of like planting a seed and watching it grow.

If you happen to be a resident of Copperwood, by all means join the group and introduce yourself!!

And if you found this article interesting, check out http://activerain.com/blogsview/861618/FACEBOOK-2009-Five-easy-ways-to-maximize-your-visibility-interact-with-others

Cheers,

Today I received an email out of the blue from a client that I helped with a mortgage in the early summer. The email was simply to thank me for the job that I did for her and her boyfriend when they purchased a home in order to relocate to a new city. It sure was a good feeling to know that I was still in mind almost half a year later. I will be adding this email to my testimonial section shortly.

It is situations like this that make the job that I do rewarding every single day. To be able to help folks achieve their home-ownership and financial dreams is not something that I take lightly. I hope all of my customers, past present and future know that I sincerely appreciate them allowing me to help them achieve their home ownership dreams and am always willing to help at any stage.

I love meeting with new individuals and being able to offer professional advice that may allow them to move into a better financial/personal situation than they were in prior to meeting.

My goal is to build lifelong relationships with all of my clients through premier service, integrity and product offering. It is too comman of an occurance in this hectic industry to simply sign paperwork and move on to the next lead.

I think we all can do ourselves a huge favor in taking the time to properly recognize each and every client, no matter situation/time of year etc. Obviously, if you do not do this, you may not be in the industry too long. Nevertheless, it's nice to be able to look back from time to time and know that there are people out there that are very appreciative when they receive extraordinary service.

Treat your clients like the rock stars that they are and the favor will likely be returned tenfold. I know this one simple email made me feel like a king and there is no better feeling in the world!!

Just wanted to take a few minutes to wish everyone a very safe, happy and prosperous new year! 2009 is going to be a great year! All the best gang!!

My resolution is to update my blog a lot more often this year!!

Cheers

Thoughts and prayers to friends and family members of the eight victims of the Avalanche near my hometown of Fernie B.C.. Due to the relatively small population of Fernie and Sparwood, these men were known throughout the valley. Several of my friends and their families have been directly affected by this tragedy.

I happened to know one of the victims personally, having played hockey with him throughout my teen years. It's been several years since I've seen him but I can say that he was a awesome guy and great team-mate. One of the fastest skaters around!

To everyone affected by this act of nature, try to remain strong and rely on your loved ones to help pull you through. It is truly a dark time.

Elk Valley residents unite to help these young families cope through this unimaginable sadness. May God be with you all!