The last time the team at Everything Olds gathered at the office in Uptowne, we asked ourselves… how can we best serve the community? The general consensus was that the best thing we could do was “keep the porch light on”, for the community as a whole. One place we know we can be of […]

Here we are! Only 30 days remain! Have you been able to keep a positive mindset about life these past two months despite the obstacles? Now that summer feels like it is finally here, the last third of this exercise should be a BREEZE! Day 30: Reward Yourself. It’s the last month of this positivity […]

Alberta has started to re-open. This is good news for many. Others are still fearful. Having spoken to several members of our business community, it is important for you to understand: EVERYONE is concerned, and has full intention to adhere to recommendations from their regulatory bodies, Alberta Health Services and government to put practices in […]

One month down. Two to go. Hopefully by the time this little countdown ends, we will all be able to move about more freely than we are at the moment. I will admit to you… I have to dig some days to find that positive mindset. I too am prone to anxiety, fear, depression. But […]

The last three weeks of our positivity posts are upon us. There have definitely been times – especially in recent days – when it has been a challenge to look up and maintain this positive mindset trend. But when we left the office in March, we vowed to continue “leaving the lights on for the […]

Tourism Week is May 24-31 across Canada. Travel Alberta is offering five virtual events to connect industry to the work that is being done around the province and in Canada to help navigate the way forward. FOUR CONNECTIONS LIVE WEBINARS Our weekly webinars deliver topics to help you tackle the business challenges resulting from COVID-19. This Tourism Week we are excited […]

The Alberta government is providing new supports for hotels and other lodging providers that allow them to keep tourism levy amounts collected between March 1 and December 31, 2020. This measure will free up between $16 million and $27 million in additional cash flow for the hospitality sector, which employs 30,000 Albertans. It will also […]

NEWS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE May 12, 2020 Community represented by a strong team of talent and experience (Olds, AB – May 12, 2020) As the province prepares to ease into a re-opening of activities and business, more good news is announced for five local ladies. Last week the Red Deer & District Community Foundation announced […]

To support businesses reopening during stage one of Alberta’s phased relaunch, government is launching a new resource to help them keep their staff and customers safer. The new alberta.ca/bizconnect webpage will provide business owners with information on health and safety guidelines for general workplaces and sector-specific guidelines for those able to open in stage one […]

To help our local businesses provide peace of mind to their customers and clients, we’re offering up some print and social support materials with our initiative called “Open, With Care”. We recognized that many people may still have concerns over things opening up again after two months of isolation. Businesses have expressed a desire to […]

Hello! Is anybody out there? It’s interesting when you stand back and observe things going on around you. Within days – sometimes hours – of my posting or preparing a post on a subject, it shows up in a Facebook feed, on a You Tube video, or someone sends me a web link. Weird? No. […]

This morning Travel Alberta hosted the first in a series of webinars to support small business and tourism operators through the COVID-19 restrictions. The topic of this week’s webinar was “Communicating with Your Customers Through a Crisis”. If you follow Everything Olds on Twitter (@everythingolds) you will have seen us tweeting key points made during […]

Local contributions recognized on international webinar (Olds, AB – April 15, 2020) In the midst of the COVID-19 dynamics globally, on the local level the residents and business operators in Olds and area have a top-notch resource at their fingertips, according to Destination Development Association founder, Roger Brooks. Olds Institute, its business and community directory […]

We are approaching the end of the first 30 days of our 90-day positivity experiment. We all hope this is helping you get through the collective muck of this drama in our lives. (Oh and in case you are losing track, Day 70 is April 8, 2020.) ONWARD! Day 70: Follow — And BE — […]

Ten days down! And we are starting off the next 10 with something a little radical: Day 80: Do… Nothing. This is my third re-write of this post. I had two other ideas which for different reasons were topics I chose to move forward. This rewrite – at the last minute I might add – […]

Automobile access is temporarily suspended at access points to all provincial parks as well as provincial recreation areas. The restrictions, which came into effect March 27 at 1 p.m. through two ministerial orders, are in place to help stop the spread of the COVID-19 virus and are the same restrictions currently in place at national […]

March 27, 2020 Hotels and other lodging providers can delay paying the tourism levy until Aug. 31 for amounts that become due to government on or after today. This will free up more than $5 million in additional cash flow for employers – money that can be used to retain staff, maintain operations and continue […]

We kept the office open this week to keep a light on for the community. In conversation this morning though, we think it is prudent to close and work virtually starting next week. We want to help, and wondered these past few days how we could do that best. Sharing information as it comes in […]

Due to the unprecedented outbreak of Covid-19, the coronavirus now sweeping countries around the world, we are re-scheduling this Wednesday’s webinar “The Five Fastest Growing Tourism Trends,” to Wednesday, April 8th at 8:30 Pacific Time, and instead we are offering a special presentation this Wednesday, March 18th: “Dealing With the Coronavirus: What to do immediately […]

UPDATE: MARCH 23, 2020 Our offices are now closed and we are following isolation protocols. We can still be reached through email and phone. Response times may be intermittent; please be patient as we make our adjustments. Thank you for your continuing support.

UPDATE: March 25, 2020 – Due to COVID-19 all programs are cancelled. Roger Brooks webinars are recorded and once we are able to return to business as normal, replays will be made available. To see the replay on his special webinar, “Dealing with the Corona Virus: What to do Immediately to Help Save Your Tourism […]

10TH ANNIVERSARY CONTINUES AT NATIONAL CONFERENCE IN 2020 (OLDS, Alberta – December 20, 2019) When Olds Institute formed the Fair Trade Olds committee, it likely didn’t imagine the visibility it would have gained for the community a decade later.

We have such a great selection of restaurants, markets and cafés in Olds, and when we have people from near and far stop in to ask about the community, they will often ask, “Where’s a good place to eat?” So we decided to capture the Best Eats in Olds into a small booklet – complete […]

With Olds Fashioned Christmas and the Kiwanis Village Olds creates a wonderful Christmas season with so much to do.

Calling all ghouls, goblins, ghosts and witches! The long-awaited event Halloween Howl (Harry Potter Themed) is coming up on October 26th! Watch as Uptowne Olds transforms into Diagon Alley! This is an event you surely don’t want to miss! Keep an eye out for orange and black balloons for trick or treating! 10-4 PM ~ […]

ArtWaves West is a creative haven on the prairies! The ArtWaves workshops are held annually in London, Ontario and Olds, Alberta.

The third weekend of September in Olds has the community putting on their Bavarian Best with the annual Oldstoberfest Rodeo & Biergarten!

On Thursday September 5 the Olds Sportsplex will be a-buzz with activity as Olds Institute once again hosts the annual Community Showcase! With some requests that came in, we decided to set up a small demonstration area on the floor, as well as making a space available in “The Fishbowl” overlooking the Auxiliary Ice surface.  […]

Everything Olds is offering FREE lunch & learns in the board room. These are great opportunities to learn some great skills in entrepreneurship and running a small business. There is one session in September, October, November and December. All sessions start at noon and are FREE.

Oldstoberfest Rodeo and Concerts are occurring on September 13th and 14th! With Rodeo action both days and headliners April Wine, Dan Davidson and Eric Ethridge.

The Community Showcase returns to the Sportsplex on Thursday, September 5, 2019. Come see what Olds and area has to offer for programs, volunteer opportunities, activities and events!

Come to The Brick parking lot on July 28th from 11:30 am-6:30 pm for the Food Truck Wednesday!!

Congratulations to Doreen Bergum on winning the Lifetime Achievement Award!

Come celebrate National indigenous Day at Centennial Park Olds! June 18, 2019, will be packed full of learning, celebration, performances, food, culture and more! Schedule for the day 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM – Children’s Crafts – Open Forum with Craft Sessions every 30 minutes (schedule will be emailed to Eventbrite registrants) 9:00 AM – […]

Come join the fun in Uptowne Olds on June 15th to the Summer Oldstice Festival! Tons of fun for the full family all day long! This is one event you definitely do not want to miss!

You are invited to come participate, either by joining the walk, through prayer, or joining in the Talking Circle the evening of June 10. On June 10, Walk for Common Ground will leave Bowden at 9 am and continue their journey to Olds. Evening activities and a Talking Circle with the walkers will take place […]

CALLING ALL FOODIES!!! Everything Olds has partnered with Food off the Grid to introduce Food Truck Wednesday.  Starting on May 22nd, followed by every 3rd Wednesday, food trucks will be gathering in The Brick parking lot starting at 11 am till 7 pm! This is a great chance to get together with friends and family […]

Election day is Tuesday April 16, 2019 The Advance Poll Days are: Tuesday, April 9 Wednesday, April 10 Thursday, April 11 Friday, April 12 Saturday, April 13 MORE INFORMATION CAN BE FOUND AT: https://www.elections.ab.ca/current-election-information/ AB Elections phone number is:   1-877-422-8683 To be eligible to vote, you must be: a Canadian citizen at least 18 years […]

Answer three short questions and you can enter to win $100 Uptowne Olds Bucks to spend at selected retailers in Olds! Draw to be made March 12.  

Regularly held every September, this event is an annual Information and Registration Night, giving newcomers an introduction into the community. All local area residents have the opportunity to sign up for classes, lessons, workshops and find volunteer opportunities in the community. For 2019, Olds Institute / Everything Olds is hosting a showcase on February 12 […]

Community information portal site has a fresh look One of the challenges with information and technology is keeping up with ever-evolving changes and dynamics. Olds Institute embraced that challenge as it gave its community directory and information platform website, EverythingOlds.ca, a modern new look. “It’s more than just appearance, although that is an attractive feature […]

Summer brings great weather and with it, the promise of fantastic adventures spent in the great outdoors. It’s time to leave your worries behind and take in the majestic wonders of Central Alberta. There’s plenty of thrills to find, but the first step is getting out of the house and into the wild. So with […]

On January 31, a number of people from the community gathered to discuss what they envision for the future of Olds, and how we can leverage our technological advantage to propel us into a future that creates a community in which we all thrive and prosper. We’re not done yet. We want YOUR input on […]

I consider myself a real writer and real writers don’t write social media or use buzz words like “organic”, “drill down”, and “synergy”.  For me, anything trendy is akin to ipecac—vomit inducing.  I worked hard in University; I studied the classics and the canonized.  Real writers conform to literary devices and genre formulas.  I taught […]

Jennifer Rabchak: “The reason we moved to Olds was because we were interested in the opportunities that the high school offered, but we still wanted to live in a small town. I was nervous making the decision to move to Olds. The school seemed awesome and shiny and new and looked great on paper, but […]

Ashley Parker Clarke “Unless you knew me then, I doubt you’d guess it now. I felt like I was sinking. I was tired all the time. I frequently had a headache, or a sore throat, or some other minor ailment. It might have been in my head. It might not have been. It still made […]

Get your college education in your own community! Olds College Programs Online Delivery with local support • Accommodation Guest Services Certificate • Accommodation Management Certificate • Agricultural & Heavy Equipment Technician Certificate • Pre-apprenticeship Exam Training • Rural Finance & Entrepreneurship Certificate • Tourism Business & Services Management Certificate • Veterinary Medical Receptionist Certificate For […]