Can you believe I’ve sat in my little office cubicle for twelve months? Once, the cubicle was bare, but now I’m surrounded by photographs, press releases, calendars and other tid-bits of information about Jasper.

If I take a moment to stop and look around the pin-up board that surrounds my desk, I certainly can tell you a few tales.

The RCMP press release about Devon Moldowan’s disappearance stares me glaringly in the eye. I still wonder what happened to that young man, who ventured out alone one day and is yet to contact his family. I check his Facebook group regularly in hope of him making contact.

When Parks told me about their Mount Edith Cavell rescue – where they plucked a couple of people from the ridge, after they were caught in an unexpected snow storm – they sent me a photo to go with the story. The people were so hard to find, I printed off the photograph to play ‘Where’s Wally’. I kept the image and pinned it to my cubicle. It’s still there today. It boggles my mind that people even climb up there, never mind getting stuck in an unexpected snow storm.

I won’t lie, there’s no piece of paper or photograph, but there certainly is an interesting memory of George Joachim. The man I call Jasper’s survivor-man, who in some crazy ad-hoc adventure decided walking on Athabasca Glacier in running shoes was a good idea. I’m still a little confused. Either way, he’s certainly one of the most interesting interviews I’ve done in the last year.

Then there are the promotional posters – for the various Jasper Artist Guild’s exhibits, the musical events and fairs. The bands brought to you by dedicated people, like the Jasper Heritage Folk and Blues Society to the various bars around town. My feet have tapped and my eyes have been opened wide as I’ve experienced the cultural aspects of Jasper over the last year.

There is the story, told so often but not always to the public, of the poor evictees of Bonhomme Street. Kicked out in the summer, when housing is harder to come by than a piece of pavement on Patricia Street. The letter evicting them hangs to my right reminding me that it’s not all rosy in this mountain town.

Pinned up high is a photocopy of Judy McPhee’s famous drop shortbread recipe. That one I remember, because we made a little boo boo and put the wrong amount of ingredients in the paper. It was nice to see that someone was reading the Fitzhugh that week though, ‘cause we got a phone call when the shortbread didn’t quite work for one keen baker in town.

A photograph from atop the Jasper tramway, a panoramic view of Wilcox Pass and a butterfly from Berg Lake beautify a somewhat paper-filled board. All marking a moment, a story, an adventure I was taken on – just like my rock climbing adventure, when JACK welcomed me to try and wander down a mountain. Unreal.

It’s too big to be pinned up on my board, but I certainly have a copy of the Jasper Community Sustainability Plan. For all the Pecha Kucha’s, the long late meetings and the heated community discussions about the future of this town, it’s an interesting document to say the least. It’ll be fascinating to see what pans out.

I have last year’s 16 Days of Activism poster, which reminds me of my interview with Donnelly Hart about her work in Guatemala. A true inspiration, of people heading off to help the less fortunate – sometimes I feel like I’ve travelled the globe going on adventures with the various people and their plights.
The images and words surrounding my desk are just miniscule examples of how I’ve spent the last year. Some of the moments, like sitting with the Death Race winners, or watching the 2007/08 class graduate, will never be put into words on my pin up board – just words in the Fitzhugh – but will serve as memories in my mind.

As I venture into year number two, I wonder what Jasper has in store? Will Cory Wallace be the most written about Jasperite once again? Will the underpass ever actually be built? When will Edith Cavell Road be closed permanently, to keep the caribou safe? Will residents like the new totem pole? Who will be the next Mayor? So many questions... guess I’ll just have to wait and find out.