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covid19

Buildings Committee Update

Submitted by Heidi Mithaug-Cook on behalf of Buildings Committee

Hi Everyone,

A brief note from buildings this month.

Due to current COVID19 restrictions, only emergency-maintenance will be done in the units until further notice.

Andrea will be on holiday December 21st - December 28th.

Should you have any urgent concerns arise during that time, please refer to the emergency contacts:

i. Aurica Bondoc 403-401-4437

ii. Sabine Schlichting 403-862-7533

The buildings committee will reconvene in January.

Take care Sunnyhill.

-Your Buildings Committee

-Cancelled- Goat herding

Submitted by Cindy Schnee

UPDATE July 6

Unfortunately, the City has requested that volunteers not participate in goat herding this season due to COVID-19 restrictions.

We will have to watch and admire the goats from a distance.

WE WANT YOU!

The Vahana goats are coming! July 13-21, 2020

You can volunteer to hang out with 265 goats on 4 different shifts/day. We can accommodate just a few volunteers/day, so if you are interested, please send in your request as soon as possible. Due to COVID 19, visitors are not allowed in camp and goats may not be touched, so this is your chance to get close to them!

Shift 1:  9:00am-12:00 pm walk from home camp by Centre Street Bridge across McHugh Bluff to grazing areas in the west. Must be able to walk/climb on uneven surfaces, stand for entire shift and tolerate sun and heat.

Shift 2: 12:00 pm - 3 pm afternoon resting camp (West side of Bluff) – will be shady, can sit if desired, bring your lunch and chew your cud with the goats!

Shift 3: 3pm - 6 pm - could be a combination of sitting, walking and climbing. Sun or shade. Must be prepared for conditions such as shift 1 and 4.  It depends on the goats! 

Shift 4:  6 pm – 9 pm - evening grazing and walk back across McHugh Bluff to home camp at Centre Street. Must be able to walk/climb on uneven surfaces, stand for entire shift and tolerate sun and heat.

Please note: Shift times are approximate. It all depends on the goats!

Age 18 and up

Suitable footwear is necessary (good tread, high top) as well as a hat and water bottle that you can store to have hands free.

You will be asked to sign a waiver and there will be a short mandatory volunteer orientation sometime in early July.

Please contact Cindy at welovegoats3@gmail.com if you are interested, with date(s) and shift(s) you prefer, how many shifts you want to do total,  as well as your t-shirt size. 

What we are learning during our first pandemic

Submitted by Belle Auld by the Education Committee

  • That we can still get together to eat and/or meet via Zoom

  • How to make pancakes without a recipe

  • That a person can spend approximately three hours watching videos on how to sew a mask

  • That a sewing machine repair shop is not considered an essential service

  • That it IS possible to garden yourself into exhaustion

  • That the 19 in Covid19 stands for the 19 pounds we gain

  • That wearing a mask at home prevents constant eating

  • That community is important

What we did not learn:

  • Why toilet paper??

Zoom Meeting Preparations

Submitted by Mia Rushton on behalf of Communications Committee

Our first virtual co-op meeting is fast approaching. The meeting will be hosted on Zoom- an online video conferencing service. Zoom also supports phone-in participation for anyone who doesn’t have access to the internet. If you’d prefer to call in to the meeting, contact Andrea for the phone number. 

If you haven’t used Zoom before, there are a few steps to take in order to join a meeting for the first time. We recommend getting set up a few days before the meeting to make sure that everything works. 

To join a meeting for the first time, open the meeting link. Zoom will open in a new browser window and you’ll be prompted to download Zoom. The meeting link is in the Budget Vote Meeting Package email sent by the office on April 16th. You can click on this link at any time before the meeting to get set up. 

There are lots of tutorials on YouTube with instructions for using Zoom for the first time. Search for ‘Zoom tutorial for beginners’. I found one called ‘Joining a Zoom Call for the First Time; Fun and Easy Online Connection’ that is short, clear and concise. See it here: https://youtu.be/9isp3qPeQ0E

On the day of the meeting, we suggest joining the meeting 15 minutes early to avoid/mitigate any technical problems.

Board Bytes- April 2, 2020

Submitted by Sarah Reimer on behalf fo the Board of Directors

No April Fool’s joke!  The Board held an emergency meeting via ZOOM to address the maelstrom that is COVID-19 and its effect on our community.  

  Here is a synopsis of the work undertaken at our meeting on April 1, 2020.

  • The Board has re-worked budget projections using 0% and 2% increase options, and will be recommending that as a community, we prioritise our social needs for the upcoming budget year.  The Board will be recommending a 0% increase to our operating costs for 2020. 

    • We will still be holding a virtual budget meeting via ZOOM to allow members an opportunity to voice concerns, and to vote on this recommendation.  

      • New budget meeting scheduled for April 26 from 2-4

    •    We request that questions, concerns and general feedback be provided to the office email prior to the meeting to allow for clear presentation of issues and speakers.

  • In regards to emergency Covid-19- related subsidy relief, the Board has moved that financial need be the only stipulation for support; best fit and non- member adult requirements will be suspended for emergency relief.  

    • All members will be provided with information on government relief and support programs, and we encourage members in need to make use of these resources.

  • We are able to schedule ad hoc garbage collections as needed through BluPlanet.

    • If the nearest dumpster is full, please attempt another one and/ or pace your large clear-out dumps

    • If overflowing garbages persist, please email the office providing the location of the problematic dumpster.  

  • The Board passed a motion to authorise grounds to utilise their remaining budget funds to ensure that communal pathways and garbage enclosures are cleared of ice and therefore safe for members to use.

    • We also requested that grit be supplied beside the 3 St N garbage enclosure; if the area is icy, please spread grit prior to using it to ensure your safety. 

  • Normally, we would need to hold an AGM by June, but the Office of Co-ops has informed us that AGM deadlines have been extended.   

    • Previously scheduled AGM (April 18) has been cancelled.

    • The Board will look into setting a new AGM date at a later time.  

  • SACHA’s AGM (April 25) has been cancelled. 

  • CHF AGM (June 11-13) has been cancelled.  We thank all members who expressed interest in attending. 

  • The Board accepted Member Selection’s recommendation for unit 762 (apologies for the previous type-o). 

  • We still have one Board vacancy which we are currently seeking to fill.  Please communicate your interest in serving on the board to the office. 

  • Our next scheduled Board meeting is April 14.  

We appreciate the outpouring of concern for individual members and for our community; the creative and varied means of maintaining socially distant contact is what we are all about!  Thank you, Sunnyhill, for showing up in caring ways for your neighbours across the co-op!    

Cooperatively yours,

Sarah Reimer

On behalf of the Board of Directors

Sunnyhill Community Dinner

Submitted by Yvonne Sabraw

Sunnyhill Community Dinner
Sunday March 29 5:30 pm

(Or.... “never have we been LESS in need of a gathering space!!!”)
(and.... “NEIGHBOURS IN NEED EAT FREE”)

Let’s bring our Sunnyhill neighbours together, virtually, and support a local restaurant!
We are placing a group order from the Vietnamese Restaurant “Pho HouZ” on 10th street, for delivery Sunday 5:30. ORDERS SHOULD BE IN BY 5:00pm Saturday, please!

How to proceed for ordering supper:

1.  Check out the menu online: phohouz.com

2. Phone the owner of Pho HouZ, Catherine, at 403-619-2248 (her personal line) with your order. Make sure you tell her your name and unit number. Tell her you are part of Sunnyhill Co-op’s group order.

3. If you plan to cover the cost of your own meal, find out your total. (Don’t calculate delivery or tips, we will cover that).

4. If you can’t cover the cost of your meal - it’s on us!!!  Enjoy a treat in these stressful times!! 

5. If you plan to pay for your meal, drop an envelope with cash (we’ll wear latex gloves!!) in the mailbox #22 sometime Sunday. Or, send an e-transfer to the following email address:
jman22shl@gmail.com. Security question prompt should be: “the day we are eating” and put March29 as answer.

6. Be ready to receive your dinner, delivered to your door, around 5:30 Sunday.

Then comes the community part. You can join the virtual dinner in several ways- whether or not you were part of the group order.

1.  Low-tech : it’s supposed to be a lovely day. Let’s get out on our balconies at some point, especially for the 7:00pm city-wide daily
event.

2. On computer by Zoom: Send your email address to Philip by Sunday noon:
Phil.cox@mac.com
He will send you an invitation link by email on Sunday. Click on the link at the appointed time and we’ll all connect virtually!

3. Connect with one other neighbour by phone or Skype, if it feels like too much to eat dinner with everyone on computer. The idea is for no one to eat alone. If you want to connect directly with the Cox-Sabraw family by FaceTime, Messenger, Skype, or telephone call, just let us know by Sunday noon and we’ll figure something out (home phone is on the phone list. Call us!)

Look forward to seeing you all in one way or another on Sunday!

Playground Closure Recommendation

Submitted by Cindy Schnee on behalf of Grounds Committee

The Grounds Committee respectfully disagrees with the board's decision to allow our members to play on our playground structure at their discretion. It is IMPOSSIBLE TO KEEP EQUIPMENT SANITIZED, THIS VIRUS PERSISTS ON HARD SURFACES FOR AS LONG AS A DAY.. And how about other kids passing by who see our kids on the playground structure? We feel it is just safer all around if we close it to all and are willing and able to take the necessary steps this evening (March 23) to do so.  

March 23 Unofficial Board Update

Submitted by Sarah Reimer and Richard Harrison, Unofficial Board Reporters

Hello everyone,

Now that we’re all settling in to the longer-term effects of COVID-19 and the country’s response to it, we want to keep as many members as informed and as current as possible. So, you may get messages twice since we will be posting on Facebook as well as sending emails.

Until further notice, or in case of emergency, Andrea will be working from home. Board members will be her hands in the office- sending required documents etc in order to facilitate successful remote working arrangements.   Phone calls to the office will be forwarded to her during business hours, and she’ll respond to messages left outside business hours at her earliest convenience. Emails are still a great way to communicate with her and the board. 

For now, and in the near future, only emergency maintenance requests will be fulfilled upon request; they will be forwarded to Dale to protect both him and you from exposure to multiple service providers.  When requesting emergency maintenance, please indicate whether you or any family members are ill.  Obviously, if you are ill, further measures to ensure everyone's safety will need to be enforced, but repairs can still be completed.  Non- emergency requests can still be made and will be collected for handling later.  

Lastly, we know everyone is hurting financially. As has been spoken of in the news and already posted on Facebook, there are several programs being rolled out by various levels of government to offset the consequences of quarantine, but the future remains uncertain.

If you are in need because of a change of circumstances and you need immediate support, please note that members can apply for a short-term (3- month) housing charge subsidy at any time under current policies; if it turns out that people’s needs extend beyond that time, we will revisit the our subsidy policy and procedure in response.

We are continuing to explore alternatives to face-to-face meetings. We’ve been advised that votes taken online are considered valid. Originally, the board had postponed the budget meeting until March 29, but beg your understanding if further extensions are required.  We will do our utmost to ensure that proper 10 days' notice is still given.

As of today, the City has closed all playgrounds to the public. Our playground has been open to the public as well, so we will post a sign indicating that it, too, is closed in the same way. However, it is the Co-op’s, so it remains open to be used at your discretion and with the need for physical distancing in mind.

We will update you as things develop. Stay well, and stay safe.

Sarah Reimer and Richard Harrison

Unofficial Board Reporters

Keeping clean and safe

Submitted by Belle Auld on behalf of the Education Committee

Disclaimer – we tried to get information from the internet using the most reliable sources such as Alberta Health and the World Health Organization 

Bleach

Make your own bleach disinfectant cleaning solution for surfaces (not hands)

Info from Alberta Health Services:  https://www.albertahealthservices.ca/assets/info/ppih/if-ppih-covid-19-environmental-cleaning-public-facilities.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2E3iYmF_bpGNEOIfzz8L4-dtuvm54sKeFoCzav_lLShQektCa_uMGYFwo

“You can prepare a bleach water solution with 100 ml of unscented household bleach per 900 ml of water.”

Also, do NOT combine bleach with any of these (they form toxic fumes)

  • Ammonia

  • Acidic compounds such as vinegar or window cleaner

  • Alcohol

Note – once mixed, the solution loses its effectiveness after 24 hours.

Hand Sanitizer

Recipe 1 – using rubbing alcohol and hydrogen peroxide and glycerol (recommended by the WHO)

  • 1 2/3 cups alcohol

  • 2 tsp glycerol

  • 1 Tblsp hydrogen peroxide

  • ¼ cup water

Mix 1 ⅔ cups alcohol with 2 teaspoons of glycerol. If you can't find glycerol, proceed with the rest of the recipe anyway and just remember to moisturize your hands after applying the sanitizer.

Mix in 1 tablespoon of hydrogen peroxide, then another ¼ cup of distilled or boiled (then cooled) water. (If you're working with a lower-concentration solution of rubbing alcohol, use far less water; remember, at least ⅔ of your final mixture has to be alcohol.)

Recipe 2 – using alcohol and aloe vera

From https://www.thespruce.com/make-your-own-homemade-hand-sanitizer-606145

  • 2/3 cup 99 percent rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) or ethanol

  • 1/3 cup aloe vera gel

  • 8 to 10 drops essential oil, optional

Recipe 3 -using just hydrogen peroxide:

From https://www.using-hydrogen-peroxide.com/hydrogen-peroxide-uses.html

  • spray 3% on your hands after washing, or dip hands into a container of 3%

And don’t forget Soap

According to National Geographic, soap is one of the best disinfectants:

“Soap works so effectively because its chemistry prys open the coronavirus’s exterior envelope and cause it to degrade. These soap molecules then trap tiny fragments of the virus, which are washed away in water. Hand sanitizers work similarly by busting apart the proteins contained in a virus.”

Cleaning electronic devices

From Alberta Health Services https://www.alberta.ca/infection-prevention-and-control.aspx

“Follow manufacturer’s instructions for use for specific recommendations. 

  • Use a disposable soft, non-abrasive, lint- free damp cloth or wipe, pre-moistened with a cleaner/disinfectant. 

  • Squeeze out excess liquid before use. 

  • Never spray products directly onto electronic devices 

Examples of disinfectants that may be indicated in the manufacturer’s instructions for use: 

  • Alcohol swabs and wipes (often used for phones, mouse, pagers) 

  • Combination products such as alcohol/quaternary ammonium e.g. CaviWipes® 

  • Hydrogen peroxide products such as accelerated hydrogen peroxide (AHP) products e.g. Virox RTU®, Accel®, Oxivir®, Percept Wipe®”

Do not use bleach on electronic devices


Make your own face mask

Check out websites if you are interested and able to sew your own face mask.  For example: 

And, this is just rumour – but a student at Calgary Immigrant Women’s Association who was a Dr in her home country, recommends using a woman’s sanitary napkin.  If you do this, we want photos….

Myths:

And finally here is a link to debunk some of the myths about Covid19 going around:

https://www.thesun.ie/news/5107049/world-health-organization-blasts-13-dangerous-coronavirus-myths-about-how-to-beat-virus/

March 20 Unofficial Board Update

Submitted by Sarah Reimer and Richard Harrison, Unofficial Board Reporters

Hello Sunnyhill, 

The Board is currently discussing a lot of things while we get ready to continue this quarantine for a fairly long stretch.  And while the Co-op is, relatively speaking, running OK we would like to propose that we resume some practices successfully kept the community informed and together during the Flood.

The board will publish a short and to the point “ongoing and unofficial” newsletter through Facebook and member emails— just some quick updates and comments that we hope will add to our sense of community. 

This would be unofficial board reporting, but it will serve a purpose.  While all directors are encouraged to contribute, Sarah and Richard will take on the the administration of this project, mostly to increase information flow and reduce turnaround times. 

We sense the worry, and even if the Board can’t give immediate answers, we want you to know that we are considering and working on all your questions. We’re in this for the long haul. 

With hopes for continued health to you all, 

Board Daily Report

Below is are Board updates that were posted on Facebook earlier this week for your convenience; apologies that they weren't also email out.

March 17

Given the current and rapidly changing global and local landscape, the Board is preparing for upcoming meetings where a large group event will not be possible. We all know that everyone’s personal and professional lives have been burdened with what it takes to cope with the crisis, including staying informed about what the most up-to-date strategies and recommendations are. In keeping with the latest government of Alberta information and the approaches of other public institutions, we are exploring options which would allow us to have a live meeting without the physical compromise of a group event. We will keep you posted about our progress and timelines. We hope you are all faring well. If there is anything that Sunnyhill can do for you during this time, please do not hesitate to call the office. We may be isolated, but we are not alone. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

The Board of Directors

March 19 

The board has decided to request that Andrea work from home until further notice. Directors have agreed to be her hands in the office- sending required documents (not an exhaustive list ...) etc in order to facilitate successful remote working arrangements.

The details of how this will work are developing, and a more formal notice of this decision will be published on our website later today.

With thanks for your understanding and concern for our whole community.

Block 801-813 prepares for COVID-19

Submitted by Cindy Schnee

Block 801-803 has implemented a block-rep system for checking in on each other.

Eric is visiting door to door on Monday, Cindy on Wednesday and Laura on Friday, just to make sure everyone is okay. We have also started an email group of everyone on the block to communicate any needs or just to chat. 

We invite others to adopt/ adapt this to your blocks to make sure we all get through this safely and well supported.

COVID-19- Board Update

Submitted by Sarah Reimer on behalf of the Board

Given the current and rapidly changing global and local landscape, the Board is preparing for upcoming meetings where a large group event will not be possible. We all know that everyone’s personal and professional lives have been burdened with what it takes to cope with the crisis, including staying informed about what the most up-to-date strategies and recommendations are. In keeping with the latest government of Alberta information and the approaches of other public institutions, we are exploring options which would allow us to have a live meeting without the physical compromise of a group event. We will keep you posted about our progress and timelines. We hope you are all faring well. If there is anything that Sunnyhill can do for you during this time, please do not hesitate to call the office. We may be isolated, but we are not alone. Thank you for your patience and understanding.

The Board of Directors


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