By any standard SA国际影视传媒� except the Northern standard SA国际影视传媒� Hay River is a small town.

It has about 3,800 people, which is undoubtedly a small town in Canada

In the NWT, that many people makes Hay River a booming metropolis.

However, for the purposes of this editorial, letSA国际影视传媒檚 just go by the national standard and agree that Hay River is a small community.

But unlike many SA国际影视传媒� or even most SA国际影视传媒� small towns in Canada, Hay River thinks big.

There are many examples to support that belief.

Most recently, the Town of Hay River entered a contest called the Community Better Challenge, which is being sponsored by ParticipACTION to search for CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 Most Active Community.

In brief, the competition involves residents of a community tracking their physical activity during June. After June 30, 50 finalist communities SA国际影视传媒� determined on a per capita basis SA国际影视传媒� will be invited to submit an application explaining why they deserve to be CanadaSA国际影视传媒檚 Most Active Community.

While a small Northern town might be forgiven for setting its eyes on the territorial/provincial prizes in the contest, Nicole Mitchell does not have that in mind.

Mitchell, the recreation programming supervisor with the Town of Hay River, is aiming for the grand prize of $100,000.

SA国际影视传媒淚 think we could win the top prize,SA国际影视传媒� she recently told The Hub. SA国际影视传媒淲e have a lot of very active, engaging and wonderful people in this community.SA国际影视传媒�

YouSA国际影视传媒檝e got to love that way of thinking.

If youSA国际影视传媒檙e going to do something, donSA国际影视传媒檛 aim for the consolation prize. Go for the championship.

That is just one example of Hay River punching above its weight, and there are many more.

Before Covid-19, Hay River used to host the NWT Track and Field Championships, which each year attracted about 1,000 competitors. You donSA国际影视传媒檛 need to be a math whiz to figure out that a town of 3,800 hosting an event with a thousand people is no mean feat.

No doubt when the pandemic is over, Hay River will once again host the NWT Track and Field Championships.

Even more impressive, Hay River, along with Fort Smith, hosted the 2018 Arctic Winter Games, an international event.

The combined number of people in the two towns made this area one of the smallest by population to ever host the Arctic Winter Games.

When the idea of hosting the Arctic Winter Games was first floated, there were some doubters about whether Hay River and Fort Smith could handle the event, but it happened anyway.

For Hay River, thatSA国际影视传媒檚 just par for the course.

It is a small town, but it doesnSA国际影视传媒檛 look at itself that way. Instead, it is a small town that thinks of doing things in a big way.

That is an incredible attitude to have.

You have to wonder what awaits Hay River in the future. As the town grows SA国际影视传媒� and all signs are that it will grow SA国际影视传媒� what will it set its sights on doing?

It seems that nothing is too big to envision for Hay River. More impressively, it appears that nothing is too big to actually attempt.

That attitude will serve the community well.