Community PartnershipAssociation of Alberta Registry Agents and War Amps Key Tag ServiceWhen you renew your licence, Say YES to The War Amps Key Tag Service - returning lost keys and supporting local child amputees! With the help of the Association of Alberta Registry Agents, the Alberta Government has updated the procedure for providing the names and addresses of drivers to The War Amps so key tags can continue to be mailed to Albertans. Watch the short clip to learn how you can continue to receive this important service. Registry Agents Support Alberta's Food BanksIn the fall 2009 the Government of Alberta made changes to environmental recycling deposits on milk containers. Up to then, milk containers did not have deposits attached to them. While this may be a small thing for many people, it became a big problem for food banks that provide fresh milk in their food hampers. While individual purchasers buy milk, pay the deposit and then return the carton for the refund, the process is not so straight forward for food banks. Food banks purchase the milk, pay the deposit, distribute the milk to the customer and it is the customer, not the food bank, that returns the carton for the deposit. In the case of the Calgary Interfaith Food Bank, the additional expense of the deposit resulted in an unforeseen annual expense of $45,000. Once this became known to Calgary registry agent, Dennis Howie, a strategy hatched on how to help the Calgary Food Bank offset the new burden by fundraising at the registry counter. In the first year, Calgary agents managed to surpass their target and there has been no stopping them since. Edmonton agents have been just as busy. With Steve Cutting of Westend Registries leading the charge, Edmonton agents have raised funds to help the Edmonton Food Bank. Although the Edmonton Food Bank did not face the same challenge in relation to milk carton deposits because it includes powdered, not fresh, milk in its hampers, there was no shortage of places where additional funds could help. It won't be long until this initiative spreads province wide. Why? Because registry agents live and work in communities and care about the well-being of those communities. You can help by donating when you stop by to renew your driver's licence, pick up new vehicle plates or access any number of other services that registry agents offer. Homeless ConnectFor the past few years, a number of social service agencies serving the homeless in Edmonton organized an event called Homeless Connect. Homeless Connect Edmonton is a broad-based community-inspired initiative, providing free appropriate services to people experiencing homelessness and those at risk of becoming homeless, on one day and at one location. Its mission is to provide services that open doors out of homelessness, build lasting partnerships, raise public awareness of homelessness in the community, and provide a vehicle for community involvement in addressing the issue of homelessness. Homeless Connect events happen twice a year at the Shaw Conference Centre in Edmonton. Past services have included mental health assessments, library services, foot care, haircuts, immunizations, pre-natal support, dental care, tax preparation, laundry, housing information, employment and training services and much more. The event is organized and directed by a Steering Committee made up of members from a variety of organizations, serviced by different community agencies around the city of Edmonton, and staffed by enthusiastic and passionate volunteers. (Source: http://www.homewardtrust.ca/homeless-connect-edmonton/ ) Registry agents under the leadership of Dave McNeill at Accu-Search Inc., a registry with outlets in both Edmonton and Calgary, became involved in the Edmonton event in May, 2010. The purpose of involving registry agents was to address a fundamental barrier that the homeless population has to access services; that is, the need for identification. By volunteering their time at the event, registry agents helped attendees understand what's needed to verify identity and how to navigate the system to apply for identification. The goal of all concerned is to make it as easy as possible to break the cycle of homelessness by equipping people with the tools necessary to move forward with their lives. A similar project has been launched in Calgary and Calgary agents expect to participate in 2011. For more information on Homeless Connect contact: For information on how to obtain an identification card, a driver's licence or Alberta Health Care Insurance Plan registration, contact any member of AARA .
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