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Buck Kaleta – LARGER THAN LIFE

Canmore Museum Collection

John ‘Buck’ Kaleta was born here in Canmore in 1917; and his career truly mirrored the town’s mining past. As a strapping teenager, Buck picked rock from coal and installed underground track for mine cars. After passing his miner’s exam, he shovelled coal into those cars for 30 years.

In 1950, after toiling for more than three decades in Canmore’s subterranean mine shafts, Buck moved above ground to work as a prospector studying outcrops for telltale signs of coal seams. He left mining in 1976 – just three years before Canmore’s last mine closed.

Buck earned his nickname by befriending a lame buckskin horse. One day someone hollered “Hey Buckskin!” and the name stuck to the man rather than the nag.

Down in the mines, everyone had a nickname…’Crackers’, ‘Sticky’ (who knew how to handle a hockey stick), ‘Potato Pete’, ‘Seven Kid Louie’ (who probably enjoyed his time underground more than most)…a long list that’s both amusing and perplexing.

When they weren’t shovelling coal, Buck and his pals caught and broke wild horses, and then they’d ride ’em up to Spray Lakes and White Man Pass to go fishing. “They’d head out late in the afternoon, camp halfway up and arrive early the next morning. Some had fly rods and some had bamboo rods, but they’d catch as many grayling as they could carry. If they had too many to eat themselves, they’d trade them with the town’s Chinese merchants for tea and herbs.

In his own understated way, Buck’s son Kerry describes his father as ‘a big guy’ – a burly, often intimidating but ultimately gentle giant renowned locally as a tree feller, and a tireless worker whose record for shovelling coal still stands.

Kerry tells of the time he was clearing trees with his dad. When the truck they were using as a ‘motorized logging horse’ overturned, Buck fetched another old truck – one whose licence plates had long since expired. As they eventually emerged from the forest blackened with sweat and grit from a full day’s labour, people started pointing and making a fuss “as if we were two old hillbillies rolling out of the woods after so many years.”

Buck loved to play hockey. As young fellows they had no fancy hockey equipment though; for pads, they used catalogues strapped to their shins! In his later life, Buck put his passion for horses and his love of the Rocky Mountain wilderness to great use as an outfitter and guide for Canmore Ranch.

At Spring Creek’s annual skating parties, Buck would man the team for the horse and carriage rides every year – a role that now falls to Kerry’s business partner and son – a heritage passed down that continues in Canmore today.

Many thanks to those that contributed to this article, with considerable appreciation to the Canmore Museum for sharing their image and the many wonderful stories about Canmore.

 

As Mentioned In

Spring Creek is the heart and soul of Canmore.

We will continue to uphold our high, uncompromising standards in everything we do, now and in the future. We maintain our standards and spirited community atmosphere by building high-quality homes, never cutting corners, curating our community businesses, creating genuine connections with our staff and businesses, hosting community events and more.

Our amenities unite the need of our residents and business owners with the excitement of the Canadian Rockies they seek. We want to nourish our genuine connections with our residents and business owners to uphold lasting relationships within our neighbourhood. We want our community members to answer their calls of adventure but be able to establish roots in their mountain homes.

We want Spring Creek to be the guiding roadmap for Canmore’s growing future.


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We see…

  • Ourselves continuing to exceed expectations as the recognized and respected community development in Canmore.
  • Ourselves leading the way for a more sustainably-built future, and setting the standard to make a greener future in development a reality.
  • Ourselves achieving recognition for our community beyond Canmore and the Rocky Mountains.
  • Our future, established by history, as long-lasting and integral to the growth of Canmore.
  • Our community becoming a true destination for homeowners, vacationers and future employees seeking the thrill of mountain life with the security of a home and close community.
  • Ourselves as a master neighbourhood, completing our community development within the next 10 years.
  • Spring Creek as a place where ownership means far more than owning a home with a mountain view, but rather as being a part of something bigger.
  • Each individual that lives, works and plays in Spring Creek connecting with one another as a part of an enduring, inclusive and adventurous community.
  • Ourselves staying true to the core values that are at the heart of our brand, leaving a lasting impression within our community for years to come.

Spring Creek is built to last, maintaining our standards for quality long into the future and upholding our legacy. We are a community that is welcoming to all and honours our connection to the people and land that make us who we are. As timeless as the mountains, Spring Creek will stand the test of time.


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Integrity

Our integrity is what keeps us authentic to what makes Spring Creek so unique and special. We want to stand by our values and what makes us “Spring Creek”. Our integrity means never compromising on quality, standing by our values, and being honest with who we are, what we represent, and where we come from, always.

Regenerative Sustainability

Traditional sustainability is not enough; regenerative is our future. We take care of our environment and aim to set regenerative sustainability standards as a leading example in our industry. As the first Built Green®-certified development in Canada, we surpass benchmarks set before us and always look to raise our own green standards. From recycling building materials to implementing geothermal heating before it was common practice, Spring Creek focuses on innovative ways to lead in sustainability. We don’t just meet environmental standards, we aim to exceed them. We value the natural world that surrounds us, and we want to preserve its unparalleled beauty for our future and for those to come.


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