As American politicians fumble around in an effort to bring health care to those who don’t have it, Canada’s system is being looked upon as an example.

Depending on which side of the issue you stand, the example varies from positive to negative, but the fact that remains that Canada’s unversial health care system, impefections or not, speaks volumes for its citizens’ willingness to care for one another.

This week’s Heritage Minute takes us back to 1937 and the small village of Myrnam, Alberta, where a young girl couldn’t be saved because the three beds in the local “service station” that acted as a hospital were all full. This led to an agreement within the town for its people to build and maintain a hospital that would be open to everyone.

Robert Baldwin would later convince LaFontaine to take public office in Toronto, planting the seed for French-British cooperation that carries on to this day — despite some hiccups along the way.

“Canada’s existence owes much to the partnership of two moderate reformers: Louis Hippolyte LaFontaine and Robert Baldwin,” Historica Dominion writes. “By the end of the 1840s, Baldwin and LaFontaine had succeeded in convincing the British government that legislative power should rest in the hands of the elected assembly of the colony. Moreover, their historical compromise showed that French and English Canadians could work together to solve their political problems.”

Modest contributions poured in and people gave all they could afford, Historica writes. “Others volunteered to work for free. At the end of the meeting, the community had $8000, enough to begin building the hospital.

“On July 28, 1938 the hospital was completed. Four years later, the community decided to provide all medical services, except hospitalization, for free, Hospitalization cost $2.00/day.”

Myrnam is one of the handful of local versions of community supported health care that eventually created Canada’s Medicare system in 1966.

Heritage Minutes are 60-second short films that are shown in between some TV shows in Canada — and they’re amazing. We’re planning to bring you a “Heritage Minute” every Thursday on COTW.

Enjoy.