Thunderchild Wellness Centre readies for soft opening

Chief operations officer with SBL Contractors Ltd., Josh Kulbaba, said from the start of the project, the goal was to make a multi-purpose facility to benefit both the physical and mental well-being of the community.

“When we put the program together, we actually called it a Wellness Centre because it encapsulates both the mental and the physical wellness of the community,” Kulbaba said.

“I go back to chief and council and some of our initial meetings with the community, it’s been a dream of theirs to give their people an opportunity and give them something to look forward to and [in particular] the youth. Obviously, the entire community forms a major impact on the program, but there was really a huge focus on the youth.”

A look back at the construction process building the new Wellness Centre. (Submitted photos/SBL Contractors Ltd.)

A long-time project in the making that first began close to five years ago, the journey from conceptualizing and drawing up plans, to raising funds at both the provincial and federal level, and then beginning the construction process approximately two years ago, the already large-scale project was also drawn out when the pandemic hit, adding a nearly one-and-a-half year pause in the midst of it all.

Kulbaba said having overcome all obstacles to see the process all coming to fruition now, has been an extremely rewarding experience for all involved.

“It sounds cliche, but honestly, it’s been just incredible,” he said. “It’s going to be such a gathering spot for the community and something that really brings the community together. There’s been a lot of challenges between COVID and funding and weather – you name it we’ve kind of seen it – so to get to this point where we’re at the finish line is pretty awesome.”

While the bulk of the Wellness Centre has been completed, there does remain a bit of work to finish the Medical and Mental Health wing of the complex, which Kulbaba said will begin construction in the late summer into the early fall this year, following the finalizing of the design engineering and pricing.

While SBL Contractors is a Calgary-based firm, Kulbaba said the past couple of years working on the Thunderchild Wellness Centre project has really brought them close with the community.

“We’ve been working with the community for several years and while we’re a contracting firm, we’ve played so many other roles in this process,” he said. “We wrote community engagement plans to include many of the local residents and members of the community in the actual build, and lots of community members have actually retained their employment which has just created more new opportunities for them.”

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Martin.Martinson@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @MartyMartyPxP1

by Martin Martinson

Thunderchild Wellness Centre readies for soft opening

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