Episode Transcript
Speaker 0 00:00:01 Good morning, Fort McMurray, wood, Buffalo, and the rest of the world. You've tuned into the Mac CD morning show. I am your host Elliot Pierre, and we're going to start this show off the same way we start every episode off with a moment of gratitude. I know you could be doing a million other things with your time, and the fact that you spend it with us truly does mean the world to me. So thank you on that note, Tanner hidden with the intro,
Speaker 1 00:00:20 Dave, where your two to like homes where you're at or tune in again to the Mac city,
Speaker 3 00:00:29 Everybody Keith Simpson here from NARAL Toyota. Uh, just quick chat about, uh, the wonderful community we live in here. As you guys know, we support the El veterans. We've joined the drive-in movie theater. We're involved in the marathon here in Fort McMurray and make sure we're taking care of the kids and all the local businesses, all the local charities and all the local foundations guys. That's what makes this community such an amazing place to live.
Speaker 0 00:00:54 All right. We're back from that. Awesome intro. Want to give a big shout out to the title sponsor neuronal Toyota, Keith fad. Nehmer all the boys and girls, ladies and gentlemen down at Northwell Toyota. Thank you for being a sponsor and the title sponsor of the Mac CD morning. Show me and Tanner really do appreciate it. It keeps the lights on. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Now on that note, it's time to talk to our guests. I don't know who our guest is today, so I'm very excited to have a chat. Um, as you also know, I don't introduce my guests because they can do a better job than myself. So on that note, can you please tell everybody at home who you are and what you're about?
Speaker 4 00:01:28 Yes. Thank you for having me yet. My name is . Um, I am a mom. Uh, I am a teacher here, uh, uh, in Fort McMurray and I'm the founder and executive director of Mount glass foundation.
Speaker 0 00:01:44 Okay. Well, let's just get started off with, uh, what is this foundation about? What do you do or what, what's the main objective let's let's hear about that?
Speaker 4 00:01:53 Uh, the foundation is about my late daughter, um, was names was Mandela. She was a student at a call sample and, uh, she passed away two years and a half ago.
Speaker 0 00:02:06 Okay.
Speaker 4 00:02:07 Yeah. And I created these, uh, foundation to honor him on Marie.
Speaker 0 00:02:12 Okay. And so what does the foundation do your honor and our memory through,
Speaker 4 00:02:16 Uh, we are honoring her memory to doing, uh, uh, different, uh, uh, uh, action is in the community. We, uh, making donations. Um, last year we had a day, uh, proclaim in her honor, uh, here in the Woodburn fellow. Um, and, uh, we, uh, yeah, we are making donation and this year we would like to launch him program. Okay. The community program? Yes.
Speaker 0 00:02:42 Okay. So now, if people want it to get involved with this foundation that you started, how do they get in contact with you? Or are you looking for volunteers? Are you looking for funds? Like how can people support and where can they find it?
Speaker 4 00:02:53 We do absolutely looking for we're looking for volunteers. Um, they can reach out to me for the website of the foundation, um, all through my, uh, uh, my, uh, phone number, email, and, um, we are looking for funding to if people are willing to pitch in, but okay.
Speaker 0 00:03:14 Very cool. Now you said you're a teacher. Where are your teacher
Speaker 4 00:03:17 At? I think call some sample.
Speaker 0 00:03:18 Oh, I have a little boy who goes to that school. I don't know if you've ever met him before.
Speaker 4 00:03:23 Maybe
Speaker 0 00:03:24 Not. Okay. Well, I'll tell you, I don't want it people at home cause they'll figure it out very quickly. But uh, yeah, he goes to the school. He's a little boy. He loves it there. And he loves the, your guys' mascot,
Speaker 4 00:03:36 The Panther, the
Speaker 0 00:03:37 Panther, because he says data, the Panther has my last name and I said, oh, he's like, it's Pierre, the Panther. And I am blank. Pierre, are we related to the Panther is
Speaker 4 00:03:51 When
Speaker 5 00:03:54 They're black or pink and
Speaker 0 00:03:55 The Panther is black. Yes. So yeah, when he went there, he started, he didn't go to eat there. He started gray ECS or kinder. And so now he's moving.
Speaker 4 00:04:06 It's an amazing school, amazing school. How many
Speaker 0 00:04:09 He's in the French immersion program and it just,
Speaker 4 00:04:11 I teach in French.
Speaker 0 00:04:13 You teach, what grade do you
Speaker 4 00:04:14 Teach? Grade one this year. Yeah. Taught grade two and five.
Speaker 0 00:04:19 Okay. Okay. Interesting. All right. We'll talk off camera. I don't like to blow up my little kid's life. So we'll talk about off-camera who he is. And
Speaker 5 00:04:26 If you've seen him as much as he loved that,
Speaker 0 00:04:29 I would love nothing more for, cause my kid is just, I love him so much. I'm addicted. I'm addicted to him, but I recognize like the pitfalls of like the internet. So I keep him as far away from it as I
Speaker 4 00:04:43 Possibly
Speaker 0 00:04:43 Can.
Speaker 4 00:04:43 So.
Speaker 0 00:04:44 All right. So when did you come to Fort McMurray?
Speaker 4 00:04:47 Oh, I came here in 2009. So I've been here for a long, long time.
Speaker 0 00:04:52 Okay. And have you been teaching in the Catholic school district the whole
Speaker 4 00:04:56 Time? The whole time.
Speaker 0 00:04:58 And have you always been at St? Paul's
Speaker 4 00:05:00 Always. Yeah. That's my school family. Yeah. That's my BS. That's family to me. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:05:04 That's awesome. That's phenomenal. No, it's a great school. Like I don't live in a I live in Timberly like we send key my son there because
Speaker 4 00:05:17 Yeah, because it's French,
Speaker 0 00:05:18 It's French immersion. And so that was one of the only options outside of, I guess, if we wanted to sound into public school, Which would have made more sense because it's closer. And I, my parents live in Dickinson field, but
Speaker 5 00:05:31 My wife, friends school up here too.
Speaker 0 00:05:33 No, there's a free, a free
Speaker 4 00:05:36 School.
Speaker 0 00:05:37 100%. And because dad doesn't speak any English or French. Sorry. Neither does mom. Like you gotta be fully committed to French if you send to the Francophone.
Speaker 5 00:05:47 Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:05:48 Yeah. But yeah, my wife is a vice principal in the Catholic district. So sending our kid to a public school probably went to look looks too, too favorable, but I love St. Paul's it's a great school.
Speaker 4 00:06:03 Great school. You're
Speaker 0 00:06:03 Really, yeah. Big shout out to all the teachers, principals
Speaker 4 00:06:08 And the principal.
Speaker 0 00:06:09 Yeah. I'm a damn Claude,
Speaker 4 00:06:10 But I'm Claudette Fiedler.
Speaker 0 00:06:12 And like, I only know everybody by their first names,
Speaker 4 00:06:14 So because the kids call us, like, all of that.
Speaker 0 00:06:19 So when you moved to Canada, I'm assuming you were already teacher then, so, Nope. Okay. We'll explain how you got into the teaching profession for me.
Speaker 4 00:06:27 Um, I was born in Africa, in Cameroon. Okay. Um, yeah, we are very famous with the soccer
Speaker 0 00:06:34 And I was going to say that's exactly what
Speaker 4 00:06:36 . And then, uh, I went, uh, to Europe to do my university studies. So I lived in France for a couple of years. And from there I immigrated here in Canada, but I landed like everybody in Montreal.
Speaker 0 00:06:51 Right.
Speaker 4 00:06:52 And then, yeah.
Speaker 0 00:06:53 Okay. So French was something that you followed through?
Speaker 4 00:06:57 Yeah, by home we do speak French. You know, my wife, I will say my first language will have been French, but I have my African language. Right. So I did all of my studies from elementary to, um, to a university in French, but we have a duo, uh, by going like here, we have an Anglophone part and the Francophone part, but the biggest part is Francophone. Right,
Speaker 0 00:07:22 Right. So I've got to ask it's one of my favorite questions has immigrants. And I, like, I asked my parents this when I was younger too. Is there enough from Canada? Um, why, why did you pick Canada? Like obviously you coming from, uh, you coming from Africa, then you're in Paris or France. Sorry. I don't know if you were in Paris necessarily.
Speaker 4 00:07:39 I would say.
Speaker 0 00:07:40 And so like, you're adventurous.
Speaker 4 00:07:42 So you don't like, um,
Speaker 0 00:07:43 Like what was the hook to come to Canada? I love Canada. I'm not bashing it. I just, I
Speaker 4 00:07:48 Love Canada.
Speaker 0 00:07:49 I'm so interested on why people pick candidates. Like, why did you choose Canada?
Speaker 4 00:07:52 But for me it was mostly economic reasons. Uh, when I, uh, like I said, I went to, uh, to, uh, to Europe, to France, to do my university studies. When I finished my university, this, I couldn't get a proper job. You know, the job that was fitting, you know, with my studies. And I know I was thinking like, am I going back? Am I going anywhere else? And um, I have families in other countries in Europe, but I don't know. I have families have family here too in Montreal. So I decided to come here Because I told him it will be better.
Speaker 0 00:08:27 Right. How, how do you deal with the cold when you first got here?
Speaker 4 00:08:30 Oh my goodness. Uh, you know, where it's you just fucking up and you think, you know what, you know, what you left behind and you have to make it Happen. Yeah. You have to, you know, cold, whatever it is, I have to make it. Right. So,
Speaker 0 00:08:50 So you're going, you, you, you arrive in Montreal. It's a, uh, temperature shock,
Speaker 4 00:08:57 Cultural shock, cultural
Speaker 0 00:08:58 Shock too. So how do you decide to go from Montreal to be like, you know what, I'm going to go even further north and I'm going to go to a community. Like, how did you hear about us?
Speaker 4 00:09:10 Well, I didn't, I knew nothing about Fort McMurray, but when I landed in Montreal, I met my husband and, uh, he, he had in mind to come to Alberta because he graduated in the, we, you know, with, uh, something regarding the, or the oil rates, then he decided to, he will come here. And what do women do?
Speaker 0 00:09:32 Follow? Yeah, that's right. That's right.
Speaker 4 00:09:34 All right. So, uh, we, uh, we, uh, we went to Calgary first and then I, at that time, boom, they couldn't make up boom was here. So he decided to come over here.
Speaker 0 00:09:47 Right, right. Nice.
Speaker 4 00:09:49 How we discouraged.
Speaker 0 00:09:52 Yeah. Yeah. Everybody finds it in a, in their own different way. Like more often than not, it is because of like job opportunity. Right. Um, but it's not always like when you come to Canada, like, or even when you come to the province, it's not like the first, no, isn't the least people think of going. Cause you don't, we're literally in the middle of nowhere. Yeah. And so it's not something that you're like, oh yeah. You know, I stumbled across it. I was, I was out for a Sunday drive. So when it comes to travel, have you ever had an opportunity to go back home and visit or have you been like stuck? Not stuck. Yeah,
Speaker 4 00:10:25 Because I'm a, I'm a traveler. That's what I like to do. So. Okay. Um, I went back to the east coast a couple of times to Europe and to Africa a couple of times as well.
Speaker 0 00:10:39 So you're a traveler. So the last two years must have been pretty challenging for you.
Speaker 4 00:10:43 He has been. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:10:45 No child, no, no traveling allowed.
Speaker 4 00:10:47 Oh, I did some traveling lately.
Speaker 0 00:10:50 Yeah. Oh, okay. Nice. It's been like, for me, I love traveling too. I love it. It's my F one of my favorite things to do. So since international travel was so challenging, I went and I did a bunch of traveling within the country,
Speaker 4 00:11:04 In the country.
Speaker 0 00:11:05 It was still challenging, but I was able to go and do it like a big shout out to Winnipeg. I went to Winnipeg. I like when to pack a lot. So
Speaker 4 00:11:16 I did love Winnipeg because I visited a couple of years ago.
Speaker 0 00:11:19 Yeah. Winnipeg was one place that we went and yeah, there's a few different. Even in Alberta, we traveled to places in Alberta that I've never been to before. So yeah. You got to travel. It doesn't matter. Like if it's extravagant or luxurious, just like travel,
Speaker 4 00:11:33 Just travel. That's my philosophy. Just travel. Yeah.
Speaker 0 00:11:37 So listen, I just got a, a signal from Tanner and the signal is that it's time for the Mac city minute. I don't know if you know what the CT man it is, but it's Tanner segment where he's going to ask you some questions. Five to be exact. I don't know what exactly the questions are that he's going to ask you, but I know healthy teeth and or teeth in general, make this segment easier to answer. And we have a sponsor for this segment, McMurry denture center. And so listen, if you need some good looking teeth,
Speaker 4 00:12:09 I know where to
Speaker 0 00:12:09 Go. You know where to go. So they're a sponsor for this segment. So we want to give them a big shout out there may or may not, but definitely may be a clip of them later on in the show, but we got to shout him out. Thank you, cram. And all the crew down there for sponsoring the segment. We do appreciate it. Tanner hit it with the max 80 minute.
Speaker 5 00:12:27 All right. A quick mention. My new favorite thing in this show is watching you on the spot. Come up with some ways to roll it into the sponsor plug.
Speaker 0 00:12:36 Yeah. There's a lot of fun. I'm enjoying
Speaker 5 00:12:37 Myself. Those are not pre road or anything.
Speaker 0 00:12:40 And I liked the guest's face to be like, what is this crazy man talking about?
Speaker 5 00:12:43 They can see my face. I wish I had those same expression. It's fine. Anyways, your first question, what is your favorite part of running your own foundation within Fort McMurray?
Speaker 4 00:12:56 It's meeting new people and people that knew my daughter. Oh, all were impacted by her
Speaker 5 00:13:03 Question. Number two. What is your favorite part of teaching children within Fort McMurray?
Speaker 4 00:13:10 Oh, the hugs and them, you know, discovering something or running something. Oh, taking them from one point. And by the end of the year, you're just amazed by all of the learnings. Yeah.
Speaker 5 00:13:23 Question number three. What is the biggest difference you noticed when speaking French in three different French speaking countries?
Speaker 4 00:13:32 Uh, lots of different vocabulary and meaning.
Speaker 5 00:13:37 Okay. Question number four. What is the most exciting thing you tried when you first got to Canada?
Speaker 4 00:13:46 What's it?
Speaker 0 00:13:49 I love that answer. I literally was like, please say poutine.
Speaker 5 00:13:51 I've asked that question multiple times and that is the first right answer. That
Speaker 0 00:13:55 Is the first right answer.
Speaker 5 00:13:58 And your final question. What is your favorite moment you've had within Fort MacMurray so far?
Speaker 4 00:14:04 Mm, when I lost my daughter, the amount of love and support I received was just mind-boggling he was mesmerizing. It was unheard of like, yes, I am an immigrant. I'm at Fort McMurray is home to me. I don't, I don't even think that I would feel as much as home if I was in Cameron.
Speaker 0 00:14:33 There you go.
Speaker 5 00:14:35 And those have been your five questions. There
Speaker 0 00:14:37 We go. Thanks Tanner. I wish that there was a camera on Tanner's sometimes, because when you said poutine, I clapped. Yes. And Tanner got excited too, because we have asked that question before, because it's a good question for like, if somebody who's coming from the countries here and you, we say there's no such thing as a right answer, but listen, you nailed it. That was the right answer. That was a good one. So let's just fit, like fixate on that. When you tried poutine, what were your thoughts?
Speaker 4 00:15:07 I was like, first of all, no meat.
Speaker 0 00:15:10 Right?
Speaker 4 00:15:10 It's not going to evolve fries and
Speaker 0 00:15:14 Greens. Yeah.
Speaker 4 00:15:16 Yeah. But it's good.
Speaker 0 00:15:19 That's really good. That's awesome.
Speaker 5 00:15:22 Yeah. That was a I think it needs to be on the citizenship test of like what a poutine is sequential to Canada. Like how do you get out of the airport without smelling it?
Speaker 0 00:15:33 Yeah, that's right. That's awesome. So how long did you live in Montreal for?
Speaker 4 00:15:38 I, uh, I lived in Monterey for two years.
Speaker 0 00:15:41 Okay. Two years. Yeah. It's a beautiful city.
Speaker 4 00:15:43 Oh yeah.
Speaker 0 00:15:44 Yeah. And they have the comedy festival down there that just for laughs. I've always wanted to participate. I never Awesome. Yes. So like outside of just the comedy that goes on, is there any other events or things that are transpiring when that happens or is it just the comedy shows that you can go to?
Speaker 4 00:16:03 No. You have the jazz festival sometimes too amazing as well. Um, what else do you have?
Speaker 0 00:16:13 Like during that timeframe? Like I know they, there are so many things throughout the year. Montreal has like, you have the tennis tournaments,
Speaker 5 00:16:21 Like, uh, uh, the F1 race,
Speaker 0 00:16:24 F1 races there. Yeah. That's another good one, but yeah, just for laughs. I wondered, is it just the comedy during that week or is there potentially other,
Speaker 4 00:16:32 Uh, you have other, you always have other activities, right? When they are doing that, they like, they have like a big scene where you will see the comedy, but I run that there are other entertainers and
Speaker 5 00:16:44 Elliot, you just put on your coveralls and you could definitely throw on a set there.
Speaker 0 00:16:48 Yeah. No doubt. Listen, one of these days I'm going to wear those coveralls on the
Speaker 5 00:16:51 Show. I'm very excited,
Speaker 0 00:16:53 But you know what I might have to wear on the show. Eventually Dentures,
Speaker 5 00:16:58 You think,
Speaker 0 00:16:59 I don't know. I got a beautiful white smile, but who knows? But you know what? We should probably look at that. Look at that ad
Speaker 5 00:17:04 Though. Yeah. You want to cram?
Speaker 0 00:17:06 How's a beautiful smile. Let's check it out.
Speaker 6 00:17:09 Hey guys, cram here with Rick Barry Dandrew center. A lot of people are surprised to hear this, but I'm born and raised here. So as this company, we're local, just like you come on in, we'll help you out.
Speaker 0 00:17:20 I'm liking the randomness of this, uh, these phones.
Speaker 5 00:17:23 You like, I feel like you just like that power to look at me and get me to hit you with something other than the intro.
Speaker 0 00:17:29 That's exactly it. So, um, listen, we're coming to the end of our 20 minutes, but before we let anybody go, you get a shameless shout-out or plug. So we have the mic to camera and lights. How fun.
Speaker 4 00:17:43 So what am I supposed to
Speaker 0 00:17:44 Do? Anything on anybody you want to shout out anything you want to plug? It's all you,
Speaker 4 00:17:49 I would like to shout out my eco simple family, um, the principal, but also the whole staff, because they have been, I always say if I'm still standing, today's, you know, they have played a big part of me being here, being able to come back to work because I stayed away for two years. Um, I wasn't strong enough to come back and um, like I said, there's no better school.
Speaker 0 00:18:20 There you go. Love it. That's a good shadow
Speaker 4 00:18:22 Better school.
Speaker 0 00:18:23 Now, before I let you go, one more thing. Let's talk about it. One day you have a foundation. How can people get in contact to support, get involved through volunteering or donation? How can the community help with that foundation?
Speaker 4 00:18:35 Uh, well there are different ways, right? We're launching a program and uh, we hope people will be able to, uh, to donate. But the best way is to go on our website, which is Mandela foundation.org. Okay. And also they can, uh, reach out to us on Facebook and, uh, Instagram. And, uh, from there we can, you know, tell exactly what to do if they want to have regarding, uh, depending on what time they have and what they want to do. Okay.
Speaker 0 00:19:09 I know. There we go. Well, listen, thank you so much for coming on the show. Thank
Speaker 4 00:19:12 You for having no
Speaker 0 00:19:13 Worries. Anytime you want to come back, you can come back again and again and again. We'd love to have you next time you come back. I want to talk to you about all the travels that you've done, because you probably have lots of great stories from traveling.
Speaker 4 00:19:24 I D I do, and I've traveled pretty much every way in Canada. I know the only place that is left for me is to know what or Northwest territory they married teams, but
Speaker 0 00:19:36 You never, well, listen,
Speaker 4 00:19:37 I've done. Yeah. Yeah. You got
Speaker 0 00:19:40 To go. All
Speaker 4 00:19:41 Right, I'll go.
Speaker 0 00:19:44 And go for McMurray wood, Buffalo, and the rest of the world. That's been another episode of the maxi morning show. Thank you for tuning in and another big, thank you to our sponsors with Marie denture center and the mains for the Mac CT minute, we did a good job of shouting them out today, but also the title sponsor nor all Toyota, Keith fad, Nemer and everybody. That's part of that team down at neurol Toyota. Thank you to the sponsors for helping us out. We really do appreciate it. I hope everybody's having a great day and we'll see you tomorrow. Pace
Speaker 1 00:20:15 Dalio Wade, and another morning show later by us.
Speaker 8 00:20:32 Talk about quenching your ugly thirst.
