Square Butte Community – Aug 2022

September 24th, 2022 mark your calendars for our first of the season Country / Western Dance that Sandi Lightfoot is organizing. This is guaranteed to be a great dance with the live band “Spur Crazy” at a price you can’t pass up. $15.00 each for members, and $20.00 each for non- members, including a evening lunch. A licensed event with door prizes and a 50/50 draw!

Would anyone be interested in having another pie making class at the Square Butte Hall this fall? Last time we had a very fun event with 15 people participating. Give me a call if you are interested:
Mary Ann Watson 403-931-2098

Square Butte Ladies Group

The SBLG will be having 2 more market dates : Aug. 6th and Sept. 10. Great selection of baking at reasonable prices and all proceeds go to our local charities. Quilt raffle tickets are available on market dates and at the Millarville Fair on Aug. 20 and 21. The annual Potluck and family games will be held on 18th of Sept. at 4:00 pm at the Square Butte Hall. Quilt raffle draw will take place that day.

History Moment ( Sorry I am talking about my Mom but last resort)

Norma Lyall (Stewart, Wildman) 1920 – 1999 Born in 1920 to Colin & Etta Stewart, of Byemoor, but Colin was a roamer so they lived at various places. In 1927 Colin contracted polio and spent close to 1 year in Edmonton hospital, but when returning home he still could not walk without help. Etta went to work as cook for the Ben Hronek Coal Mines north of Helkirk for $25.00 per month just to keep food on the table. In 1928/29 there was no rain so there were no gardens or crops. In 1930 they moved to Rimbey , where Crystal Springs school was only 1 mile away. At 12 Norma became janitor at the school, responsible for firewood and water (carried the 1 mile from home). As kids they trapped gophers, collected magpie and crow eggs for which the municipality paid 1 cent each.

In 1940 Norma married Tom Wildman who had a farm 7 miles north of Gull Lake. They had 2 children, David and Mary Ann. They farmed there until 1947 but due to no school close by moved to Square Butte in May 1947. It was a great change but they soon fit in to the community.

In 1960 life changed for Norma. It was Farmers Day, June 12, Martha & Bud Pallister, Tom and Allan Gouy brought lunch up to the Canyon as the other family members and neighbors were moving the cattle on horseback up to the Muskeg to summer pasture. On the way back to the North Fork Ranger Station, Bud’s Jeep went out of control on a steep hill, hitting a tree and throwing Tom and Martha to their deaths.

Norma was left with 2 teenagers, and a ranch to run. She could not drive a vehicle, never written a cheque or done any of the farm business and there was $16.00 in the bank. Through the help of John Kendall and Dick Lyall they managed to give her the help she needed. Ranch life continued with David and Fred managing the haying, milk cows and commercial cow herd. For ten years Norma took in rig workers, sometimes there were 5 men working 3 different shifts.

Norma was a firm disciplinarian. She had bought a car and learnt how to drive. So David asked to borrow the car for a big date, as he only had a pickup truck. About a week later she went to use the car and on opening the door, she was overwhelmed with the stench of beer and the windshield had been sprayed inside with possibly some type of liquor. She never said a word to David but the next time he asked to use the car she said, “You put the stock racks on your truck and take your pigs to town in that”.

In 1971 Norma married Alex Lyall and life for her become easier. They spent the rest of their lives volunteering and enjoying the Motorhome Club, 500 Card Club, Millarville Horticulture Club, CB club, SBCA and SB Ladies Group. Norma had a love of House Plants so she set out to raise money for Stars Ambulance by selling house plants, making pies and baking. Alex and her would load up the motor home and off they would go to the Millarville market. This continued for many years, raising close to $20,000 for the organization. A couple years before her passing, Stars honored her with a ride in the helicopter.

She lived a life helping others but never did she complain about hardships that she endured.