Gazebo dedicated to Mayor Paul Krauskopf’s memory

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Morinville Deputy Mayor Lisa Holmes, Linda Krauskopf, Paul’s father Art Krauskopf and MLA Maureen Kubinec MLA Barrhead-Morinville-
Westlock standing underneath the plaque in memory of Paul Krauskopf who served the Town of Morinville for 15 years as Councillor and Mayor. – Lucie Roy Photo

by Lucie Roy

Morinville – The gazebo in the St Jean Baptiste Park was surrounded by an
Morinville Fire Department Honour Guard Sunday as Claude Valcourt, Morinville’s Director of Public works played the bagpipes on a morning reserved for the dedication ceremony honouring Mayor Paul Krauskopf, who passed away June 30 after a lengthy battle with cancer.

krauskopf 2-webMayor Krauskop’s niece Shawna Ethier spoke to those who assembled for the ceremony. “On behalf of my aunty Linda and our whole family I just wanted to say thank you all for coming this morning. We are very grateful for all the support we have received during Uncle Paul’s passing,” she said. “It is truly a blessing to have so many wonderful people in our lives to help us through the grief and sadness of losing a true hero in our family and our community. Uncle Paul taught us many things; he lead by example and just had this way of making us want to be better people. He did not seek recognition for anything he did; he just did them because it made him happy.”

Ethier went on to say the late mayor displayed true happiness and was rarely seen without a smile on his face. “I am sure he is smiling down at
us right now,” she said. “Our family is so proud of Uncle Paul and we want to thank you for this beautiful memorial.

The mayor’s widow, Linda Krauskopf was presented with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal from Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock MLA Maureen Kubinec. The Queen’s Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal was created to mark the 2012 celebrations of the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne by recognizing Canadians who have made significant contributions to their province, territory, region or community.

Deputy Mayor Lisa Holmes presented Mrs. Krauskopf with the Mayor’s Keeper Medal. When the Town’s first chain of office was unveiled in June of 2010, six keeper medals were commissioned for the current and past mayors and another 15 were made to continue the tradition well past Morinville’s centennial year. Holmes said the medals are presented at the completion of a mayor’s term. The keeper medal has the symbol of the coat of arms and is a replica from the chain of office.

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