User Story

By Lena Fernandes

Who would have thought that someone born in Dar-Es-Salaam, Tanzania, raised in Nairobi, Kenya, with Goan, Indian heritage would be such a diehard Edmontonian?

I came to Edmonton on July 11, 1969 with my mother Dorothy and brother Seb. We were sponsored by my brother Maurice to come to our new home after the sudden passing of our father Manuel. Maurice taught us all the right things to know about adapting to the new way of life, like cheering for football (Eskimos) and hockey (Oil Kings then and later the Oilers)...etc.

I later represented Alberta in 1973 at the Canada Summer Games as a field hockey player. But my greatest achievement was not until 1993 when I spearheaded a successful grassroots movement to get better air services into our Capital region.

Being in the Travel Industry, I listened to a lot of complaints about our shoddy air service into and out of Edmonton. Instead of it getting better, it started going south in the spring of 1993 because of our two airport operations.

I verbalized my concerns about this issue to my brother Maurice who advised me that it was the citizens of Edmonton who should be listening to my concerns.

I got in touch with one alderperson who advised me I would get the biggest heartache if I pursued this issue. It seemed like no one wanted to take the ball from their own goal line.

I arranged a meeting by sending out faxes to hoteliers, car rental agencies, tourism and event offices, travel agents, and anyone who cared about our city—Edmonton.

We formed a committee and our mandate: “To get better air services into the capital region.” After we’d spent 4 months taking to the media in voice and print, the citizens of Edmonton realized the seriousness of the issue of our air services and the airlines not treating us like the world class city that we are.

Finally in June 1996 all passenger traffic was moved to one airport and the increase of traffic from 2 million passengers per year in 1993 to 6 million passengers per year in 2008 at the International Airport is a credit to all Edmontonians voting in 1995 to make it that way.

I feel that Edmonton deserves a lot more credit for all the world class events that we have staged with our fantastic volunteers who are second to none.

Three Cheers for Edmonton!! Hip Hip Hurray!