Grab your cowboy boots and strap in for some pro rodeo action coming to Red Deer May 21-23 at Westerner Park. On this week's episode, hear from Red Deer Pro Rodeo organizers David Harvey and Dianne Finstad, who joined host Josh Hall in-studio for a conversation about how you can get tickets and what to expect, but also why rodeo is important to central Alberta, and how much it means to the community to add this event to the calendar (12:34). And of course, we have In Case You Missed It, plus some birthday and Star Wars talk.

The Everything Red Deer Podcast is available on rdnewsNOW.com, Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, iHeart, and Radioplayer Canada.

Happy retirement to our guest on this bonus episode... longtime Red Deer resident Todd Labranche, who announced his retirement this week from the National Lacrosse League after 25 years and 491 games.

Rebounding from a couple weeks off due to illness, the show returns in a big way with a pair of interviews, on top of our weekly segment 'In Case You Missed It,' where host Josh Hall highlights the top five local stories of the week at rdnewsNOW.com!

(7:57) Lori Shatto, executive director, The Lending Cupboard -- talking about the upcoming 15th annual Ladies' Luncheon event, and how her organization continues to provide a critical service to central Alberta.

(19:57) Corey Hogan, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, and Liberal MP for Calgary-Confederation, speaks on affordability measures in the face of the war in Iran, oil prices, what Canada can do and is doing to alleviate pressure on Canadians, as well as fertilizer costs and the impacts on producers, separatism, tension between Alberta and Ottawa, and his reassurance to Albertans that the current majority government won't forget about Alberta.

The Everything Red Deer Podcast is available on rdnewsNOW.com, Spotify, Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, iHeart, and Radioplayer Canada.

On this very special episode, Pattison Media reporters Ashley Lavallee-Koenig and Ian Gustafson, plus Pattison Media Alberta news director Sheldon Spackman join the conversation, running down all the April Fools hijinks you missed from around Red Deer and central Alberta. Plus, some exceptionally good ones from around the internet. This was fun!

In addition to ICYMI and the top stories of the week at rdnewsNOW.com, hear from Citizenship Judge James Clover, who welcomed 122 new Canadians during a ceremony this week at Red Deer Polytechnic, and hosted by Red Deer Local Immigration Parternship. Plus, some thoughts on the ceremony, and about bad news, with podcast host Josh Hall.

Joining the podcast this week are two panel members for the upcoming 19th annual World Religions Conference at Red Deer Polytechnic, which goes March 25 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. on the mainstage at the RDP Arts Centre.

Hear host Josh Hall's conversation with panelist Imam Atta-ul Wahab, who runs the Baitan Nur Mosque in Calgary (9:38), and co-moderator Dr. Dan Haas, who is a philosophy instructor at RDP (29:35).

World Religions Conference information

Also, ICYMI and the top 5 local news stories of the week at rdnewsNOW,com; plus, we talk for a moment about Community: Power of One, and the Central Alberta Top 40 Under 40.

Members of the cast of Lindsay Thurber's production of 'Newsies' join the podcast to talk about their upcoming performances, March 19-21. Hear that interview at the (11:40) mark.

Plus, we have Friday the 13th talk, In Case You Missed It, and our community events rundown to kick off the episode.

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The return of the show from a mini-vacation means we had to make Episode 61 jam-packed. Here's the agenda:

In Case You Missed It (0:00)

Community Events (8:55)

Update on Lacombe Research and Development Centre - online story

Lacombe Mayor Thalia Hibbs speaks to House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food (11:02)

Lacombe County Reeve John Ireland speaks to House of Commons Standing Committee on Agriculture and Agri-Food (16:45)

AAFC response (21:13)

The Madden Daneault Hoopla

Red Deer Rebels U15AAA Head Coach Justin Jarmolicz (24:35)

Madden Daneault -- he of 149 points in 34 games (34:01)