Regional News-Optimist January 9, 2020

T H E B AT T L E F O R D S

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FURNITURE St. Vital deadline extended “Where the the difference difference is is worth worth the the drive” drive” “Where “Wherethe thedifference differenceis isworth worththe thedrive” drive” “Where the difference is worth the drive” “Where

Wet and Cold at House Fire Scene

March 2 new date

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

The old St. Vital Church in Battleford has been granted a reprieve from the wrecker’s ball, at least for the next couple of months.

The Town of Battleford had asked for fundraising submissions by noon on Jan. 3. Some interest has been shown, however, and council has made the decision to extend the deadline to March 2, to allow a local group time to come up with a plan to rehabilitate the Church.

The future of the old St. Vital Church has been in question for several months. The church, located next to the Fred Light Museum, was built in 1883 and is listed by the National Trust for Canada among its top 10 endangered places list.

Council passed a resolution Aug. 20, authorizing administration to “take the necessary steps to remove the Old St. Vital Church” if no group or persons came forward and no viable plan had been put in place by Jan. 3.

Since then a local group, called the St. Vital

Committee, has come forward with interest in saving the old church. Council received correspondence from Gene Aulinger on behalf of that group, who stated they had met on Dec. 27 to “discuss renovations and possible use of the original St. Vital Church.”

The group has agreed to get the necessary permissions to move Father Hert, who is buried at the church, as well as a possible second priest who might also be buried at the church.

“This is the first time we were made aware that there may be a second body there,” said town CAO John Enns-Wind at the meeting.

The group also has goals of repairing the roof and areas where the stucco and footing have separated at the building, reseaching prices for repairs, and creating a list of possible financial supporters. Aulinger’s letter also requested the town not move ahead with demolition.

Separate to that effort, a GoFundMe page was launched on Aug. 20 with a goal of raising $50,000 Continued on Page 3

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A fire at a house on Abbott Avenue Tuesday in North Battleford had the city’s fire department heading out at approximately 4:30 p.m. to battle a blaze whose smoke was seen for miles. The weather was cold, making conditions icy for the firefighters. Neighbours said three engines attended. At press time, an official statement by the North Battleford Fire Department had not yet been issued. See www. newsoptimist.ca for more photos. Photo by Averil Hall

Laverdiere case

Date set for murder trial

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

Trial dates are set for one of the individuals facing a first-degree murder charge in the death of Tiki Laverdiere.

It has been confirmed

by Queen’s Bench Court in Battleford that the murder trial for Nikita Cook has been scheduled for Jan. 11 to March 5, 2021.

The news comes after Cook’s latest court date in Queen’s Bench cham-

bers Dec. 20. Cook faces first-degree murder and kidnapping charges in connection to the death of Laverdiere on May 1, 2019.

Cook is one of eight individuals charged in the case, and one of six facing first-degree murder.

Of those individuals Cook is the first to have Queen’s Bench trial dates set.

Another accused, Brent Checkosis, recently pled guilty to a charge of

accessory to murder and is scheduled for sentencing at Battleford Queen’s Bench Court on Feb. 10.

The matters for the other six individuals remain in provincial court, with five of them scheduled to appear at the next court date Jan. 17 in North Battleford. Cook is also scheduled to appear that day on her other lessserious provincial court charges. That appearance is to be by closed-circuit TV.

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COUNCIL MEETING

Monday, January 13. Starting at 6:15 pm Open to the public to attend at Council Chambers in City Hall

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Trial set for shootings, weapons suspect

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

The man accused of several weapons counts in connection to incidents in North Battleford and Battleford on Nov. 1 is going to trial.

Kane Nicotine is scheduled to go to trial on March 31 and April 9 in North Battleford Provincial Court on a multitude of weaponsrelated charges.

Nicotine faces two counts of dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing bodily harm, possession of stolen property,

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North Battleford that same day.

The indication from the Crown was that nine witnesses will be called – five police and four civilians.

The Crown had sought to schedule the trial after March to provide time for weapons testing to be completed. The second trial date of April 9 is likely to accommodate that request.

A pretrial is scheduled for Feb. 3. Nicotine is in custody and is scheduled to appear in provincial court again on Jan. 14 by CCTV for a disclosure application.

Injuries and loss of pet in fire on Centennial Cr. Staff

Saturday January 18th at 9:30 am

operating a motor vehicle knowing it contained a firearm, two counts of possessing a weapon while prohibited, two counts of possession of a prohibited weapon, one count of possession of a weapon dangerous to public peace, two counts mischief under $5,000, possession of a firearm without a licence, possessing a firearm while prohibited and flight from police.

Nicotine was accused in connection to shooting incidents in Battleford. He was later involved in a police chase and collision in

North Battleford Fire Department was busy on New Year’s Day dealing with a structure fire on the 1700 block of Centennial Crescent in the city.

One person sustained minor injuries and firefighters report the family’s dog was unable to escape.

The fire department responded at around 4:01 p.m. with one engine,

three firefighters and one command vehicle with a chief officer on the initial alarm.

According to the fire department, on arrival they found heavy smoke from the rear of the structure.

Fire crews attempted to enter three times but were driven out due to the heat levels.

They then took a defensive attack to the fire,

until conditions allowed for entry and firefighters were finally able to bring the blaze under control.

In total 13 firefighters were on the scene, with the department responding with two engines, one aerial apparatus, one command vehicle and one utility vehicle. The cause is still under investigation as of Thursday morning last week.

The Laverdiere case: as it stands Staff Here is a rundown of where all the suspects in the Tiki Laverdiere murder case sit in the court process at the moment (all are in custody): Brent Checkosis Guilty plea to accessory for murder.

Sentencing in Queen’s Bench court Battleford, Feb. 10.

No pleas entered for improper interference with a human body or theft of motor vehicle.

Other provincial court matters return on Jan. 17 in North Battleford.

Nikita Cook - Notguilty plea to first-degree murder and kidnapping.

Has elected Queen’s Bench judge and jury trial, committed to Queen’s Bench by consent, trial scheduled for Jan .11 to March 5, 2021 in Battleford.

Provincial court matters

return Jan. 17 for election and plea in North Battleford.

Jesse Sangster - No plea yet to first-degree murder, kidnapping, improper interference with a human body or theft of motor vehicle.

Due back in North Battleford Provincial Court Jan. 17.

Nicole Cook - No plea yet to first-degree murder, kidnapping, improper interference with a human body or theft of motor vehicle.

Due back in North Battleford Provincial Court, Jan. 17.

Shayla Orthner - No plea yet to first-degree murder, kidnapping, improper interference with a human body or theft of motor vehicle.

Due back in North Battleford Provincial Court Jan. 31.

Soaring Eagle Whitstone - No plea yet to first-degree murder,

kidnapping, improper interference with a human body or theft of motor vehicle.

Due back in North Battleford Provincial Court Jan. 17.

Danita Thomas - No plea yet to first-degree murder, kidnapping, improper interference with a human body or theft of motor vehicle.

Due back in North Battleford Provincial Court Jan. 17.

Mavis Takakenew No plea yet to accessory to murder.

Due back in North Battleford Provincial Court Jan. 17.

Background: Tiki Laverdiere was reported missing to Battlefords RCMP on May 12.

On June 10, Saskatchewan RCMP announced that her disappearance was the result of foul play and would be investigated as a homicide.

On July 11, North Battleford RCMP and the RCMP Major Crime Unit were conducting a ground search in a rural area outside of North Battleford when a police dog with the North Battleford RCMP Police Dog Services Unit discovered human remains.

July 17, RCMP announced the remains were determined to be those of Laverdiere.

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 3

Downtown incentives coming to Battleford

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

The Town of Battleford is launching an incentive program for its downtown core.

Council gave its approval to the incentives at their meeting Monday.

Mayor Ames Leslie told reporters this is the first time a dedicated incentive program has been initiated for the downtown.

The incentives would run for most of 22nd Street

and portions of some adjoining streets. Three categories of incentives are proposed.

One category is for building upgrades and renovations, which would include facade improvements, signage, landscaping, building maintenance, alteration, other improvements and additions. A second is a vacant building incentive, to assist with upgrades to vacant properties.

Incentives for the first

two categories are a oneyear abatement of 100 per cent of the municipal portion of property tax for projects between $50,000 and $100,000.

Improvements between $100,000 to $150,000 would qualify for two years, and those over $150,000, for three years.

The original recommendation from administration was a 50 per cent abatement for the one-year abatement. After discussion from council

it was decided to make it 100 per cent for all three incentives.

A third category covers vacant lots. Right now, an existing commercial industrial building program applies only to new buildings through municipal tax abatements for two years. Under this new incentive, it is extended to three years for businesses located on 22nd Street.

The new incentives are subject to conditions.

Applicants must obtain a

building permit, must begin construction within six months and the building must be occupied by an operating business for the duration of the abatement or the exemption must be repaid.

These incentives are being applied in conjunction with other revitalization initiatives in Battleford including ongoing beautification efforts.

The hope, said Mayor Leslie to reporters, is to

Battleford cracking down on nuisance yards

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

The Town of Battleford is cracking down on nuisance yards.

These are yards with neglected alleys and laneways, as well as an accumulation of junked vehi-

cles. Administration made clear they want to take a more aggressive approach to the problem beyond their existing resources.

The issue came up for discussion at Monday’s council meeting, at which time a decision was made to go with a third-party

Staff Reporter

Battleford town council got the ball rolling Monday towards a major rehabilitation project happening on 23rd Street in 2020.

The project is a local improvement for the rebuilding of the roadway on 23rd Street between 2nd and 3rd Avenues.

At town council Monday, council voted in favour of a resolution directing administration to prepare

a report with respect to the proposed local improvement. The project, estimated at $404,000, would take place during the summer.

According to a summary from Chief Administrative Officer John Enns-Wind that circulated at council, this portion of 23rd Street “is one of the worst in town due to the condition of the asphalt and the condition of the base. The base does not comply with construction standards.”

The Freedom to Skate

contractor.

The town has appointed K & D Partnership to remediate nuisance yards for two years, ending Dec. 31 2021. The cost of nuisance yard remediation is charged back to the landowner. The appointment was approved unanimously.

First steps towards 23rd Street rehabilitation

By John Cairns

encourage business owners downtown to improve the look of their buildings. The town is also looking to stay competitive in attracting businesses to downtown.

“This is just one more tool in the box to try and make sure we’re competitive in the marketplace,” said Leslie.

Details about the incentive program, as well as the map showing the incentive area, are to be posted on the town’s website.

This street was listed as the highest-priority in the 2020 budget that was approved in December. “We had identified our 10-year priority list and this is the top one,” said Enns-Wind at the meeting.

The proposal calls for rebuilding of the base, designing the road for safety given the large number of elementary students and vehicles on the street and placing new asphalt, curbs and gutters on the street.

Continued on Page 6

The City of North Battleford and the Leisure Services Department thanked a number of service clubs for supporting the city’s Free Public Skating Program in 2019. Coming through as sponsors are Bonaventure Lions Club, North Battleford Lions Club, Kiwanis Club of the Battlefords, North Battleford Kinsmen Club, Royal Canadian Legion Branch No. 70, North West Hockey Development, Rotary Club of the Battlefords, North Battleford Elks Club and St. Joseph’s Knights of Columbus No. 7336. Seen here are John Gamble (North Battleford Elks), Zonie Krawchuk (North Battleford Elks), Mayor Ryan Bater, Wayne Ray (Battlefords Rotary), Hugh Martin (North West Hockey), Don Hydukewich (North West Hockey), David Bacon (Legion Branch No. 70), Ellie Mae Bishop (Bonaventure Lions), Darren Merkowsky (Knights of Columbus), Joyce Ruzesky (Bonaventure Lions), Elwood Fuchs (Knights of Columbus), Cheryl DeNeire (director Leisure Services), Nester Grunwald (Kiwanis Club), Siobhan Gormley (Don Ross Centre Central Booking manager) and Gord Whitton (Parks and Arena manager). Through these sponsorships, Leisure Services provides free public skating throughout the year to approximately 2,900 participants. They include: public skating at the Civic Centre Saturdays 12:15 to 1:45 p.m.; three sessions a week of preschool and senior skating; Wednesdays 1:15 to 2:15 p.m. at the Civic Centre; Thursdays 10 to 11:30 a.m. at the Don Ross Arena; and Thursdays 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. at the Don Ross Arena.

Photo by John Cairns

St. Vital Church deadline extended to March 2 Continued from Page 1 to cover the costs of maintaining the building.

So far, only $850 has been raised.

The hope expressed by administration and council is that by granting the extension, all those interested in saving the church might be able to meet and work together on a more

comprehensive plan to put forward.

The resolution agreed to by council Monday calls for those interested to come back March 2 with a fundraising plan that raises the full amount to rehabilitate the Church (referring to the $50,000), to meet with the town’s structural engineer to develop a rehabilitation

plan (which would include a tour of the Church to see the scope of work required); to work with the Oblates on removal of the priests, and arrange a general contractor to provide coaching regarding the type of work needed.

Those around the council table were glad to see someone show some inter-

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right now anyway with the ground being frozen.”

“I think it’s very appropriate to give this group the benefit of time to see what they can come forth with to preserve the St. Vital Church,” said Mayor Ames Leslie to reporters. Leslie also stressed it was up to the community to come up with a plan.

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“It takes a whole community to do it and it can’t rely just on the town to preserve this church. If people want to see it survive and be around for another 80 years, we need people to step forward and bring forth some ideas on how we can (a) preserve it and (b) how we’re going to raise the money to do it.”

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est, and agreed with the March 2 deadline. It was also noted cold weather conditions were going to prevent any work being done at the St. Vital site anyway.

“I’m glad somebody has come forward and have a plan,” was the reaction of Councillor Judy Pruden.

“Nothing can happen

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Page 4 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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Phone: 306-445-7261 Fax: 306-445-3223 Email: newsoptimist.news@sasktel.net

Editorial

Don’t let local government hide

The commentaries offered on this editorial page are intended to provide thought-provoking material for our readers.

Contributors’ articles, cartoons or letters do not necessarily reflect the opinion of any Regional News-Optimist staff.

By Tim Shoults Vice President Content and Audience Development Glacier Media Group

T H E B AT T L E F O R D S

Edgar Allen Poe wrote in The Purloined Letter: “The best place to hide is in plain sight.”

Sadly, Saskatchewan’s municipal governments appear to be taking that to heart – and the province might just let them get away with it.

The provincial government is now studying a bill to change the law that currently requires municipal and regional governments to advertise public notices in a newspaper.

Those public notices can have major impacts on your lives. They let you know if your neighbour will be allowed to open a business on your street that impacts you, or if your town council will be making decisions that cost you tax dollars.

Why is the government considering this? It’s in response to a demand from the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association and the Saskatchewan Association of Regional Municipalities), which represent the province’s local governments.

They claim it’s to “create administrative efficiencies” and to ensure public notices get to areas in the province that are not covered by a newspaper.

There’s one problem with that argument: there are no such areas. Every municipality or regional district in Saskatchewan has access to at least one community or daily newspaper.

The real effect of this law is that municipalities would have the option of publishing public notices in their local newspaper or publishing them on their own municipal websites.

Have you ever looked for a public notice on a municipal website?

What will happen? Public notices the government wants the public to actually know about – ones that put them in a good light – will probably be advertised.

Those they don’t want you to know about will be “advertised” on their websites – hidden, as we said, in plain sight.

Without these public notices appearing in your community newspaper, two things will happen. You will be less informed about things that directly affect you, and community newspapers in Saskatchewan will close.

That’s because public notices are a significant source of revenue for many community newspapers. In some cases, that revenue represents the difference between a paper being a viable business or not.

And with local newspapers closing, you will be less informed than ever before.

Social media and the internet are great for some kinds of news. But when you get to a certain size of community, the only information source is your community newspaper.

Good governance depends on a well-informed public – and a well-informed public needs viable local media.

Please speak to your local MLA and let them know when it comes to being informed by your local government, you want to read it here – not have it hidden.

Regional

Letter

Time to be scared

Dear Editor Brian Zinchuk, in his Dec. 26, 2019, Top of the Pile has concluded, “No matter what Greta tells our kids, the world will not end.” But he does not speak the truth.

I think he may be using humour when he compares the real possibility of nuclear annihilation that faced most of the world during the Cold War with the real possibility of annihilation that we are facing now.

Here is the truth as we know it right now. The World Health Organization is predicting a minimum of 250,000 additional deaths directly related to the climate crises will occur between 2030 and 2050. For these 250,000, the world will, in fact, end. They will die mostly from malnutrition, malaria, diarrhea and heat stress. WHO goes on to say children, particularly children living in poor countries, are the most vulnerable to the health risks.

So the truth is, children should be scared. But much more importantly, adults should be scared, elected officials should be scared, you and I should be scared.

Scared to the point where we are doing something to protect the children of the world. Scared of the legacy that we will leave to our kids and their kids. We have seen it coming, the signs have been there for 30 to 40 years, the truth acknowledged and hidden or minimized by oil companies and governments for this entire time.

We know what we have to do. It has been clearly outlined time and time again.

Brian Zinchuk can joke and belittle all he wants.

What he should be doing is taking responsibility for the situation in which humans find themselves and speak the truth to his children. If someone at school is scaring them, provide them real information, use science, not rhetoric, take the time to explain what organizations like WHO are predicting and why. Leave Greta Thunberg out

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of it if you can’t say anything nice about her. Of course she is pounding the pulpit, and, of course, she is being criticized. All great people who changed the world after suffering harsh pushback are cheering her on from their graves, Martin Luther King Jr., Harriet Tubman, Susan B. Anthony and Tom Paine among them.

In terms of using science, here is a good start: https://academic.oup.com/bioscience/advance-article/ doi/10.1093/biosci/biz088/5610806 The first paragraph reads as follows ...

“Scientists have a moral obligation to clearly warn humanity of any catastrophic threat and to ‘tell it like it is.’ On the basis of this obligation and the graphical indicators presented below, we declare, with more than 11,000 scientist signatories from around the world, clearly and unequivocally that planet Earth is facing a climate emergency.”

Laird Brittin Battleford

Letter

Sing a song Dear Editor On the morning of Jan. 2, I awoke to the sound of a “Canadian singer/songwriter” performing, through the miracle of radio, something called “I would die for you if you want me to.”

Now there’s a brilliant little ditty everyone will be humming decades from now, don’t you think?

Or, perhaps not. Are we in an age of the lowest common denominator for everything? I have heard radio commentators babble on about something being the greatest song ever written. Nonsense; the world has vibrated to truly great songs of many types for hundreds of years.

Oh well, this a democracy, people are supposed to be Continued on Page 5 Gordon Brewerton Senior Group Publisher

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 5

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So much for the myth of easy installation This past Christmas, both our family and my mom and stepdad picked up TVs on sale. In addition to that, Mom recently got a new iPhone.

All should be well, right? Especially since we were replacing a cathode ray tube TV that took three of us to lift into the box of the pickup.

Not really.

That’s because the latest technology is becoming less usable by the day.

For instance, every time Mom uses the internet on her older MacBook or on her iPhone, she gets this message: “Your Apple ID is being used to sign in to a device near Fredericton, N.B.” Why is that? Because her rural internet is done through Xplornet. I finally convinced her to get hooked up, but I can see this is not without issues.

That’s because Apple found religion when it came to making sure it is really you installing stuff.

Ever since a tech journalist got his account hacked a few years ago, Apple and other tech companies have insisted on “two factor authentication.” In other words, if you are making a change on your Apple laptop, Apple detects this and sends a message to your iPhone asking if it’s really you. And it will often send something like a six digit code you then have to input on the laptop before you can actually do anything.

Sure, this may improve

Sing a song Continued from Page 4 able to enjoy freedom of speech and venture their opinions and their music.

In my opinion, however, there is a difference between freedom of speech and free speech. The latter is used by people who think it is acceptable to bombard other peoples’ ears with the “f” word, and to casually say nasty things to people who are, to all intents, their victims. And everyone else is expected to put up and shut up.

I’m beginning to have doubts about democracy and have come to believe that, whereas those of us in any kind of minority have the right to express our ideas, a minority does not have the right to dictate to the rest of the country.

I also have come to believe the political party system is going to destroy democracy, especially when we have leaders of political parties who think character assassination is just good, clean fun.

Investigative journalism is so necessary in a democracy. Whenever a country becomes enslaved by a dictator or dictatorial

From the top of the pile

By Brian Zinchuk

brian.zinchuk@sasktel.net

security, but it makes doing anything like running a 100-metre dash with your shoelaces tied to each other.

In this case, if your identity is apparently being used in two different places, across the country from each other, as Xplornet must have its servers in New Brunswick. Since that’s not near Yorkton, Apple always treats it as suspicious.

And then there’s Apple’s questioning of your devices’ faithfulness. Every five seconds, or at least as often as you hook up your iPhone to the MacBook (or PC, for that matter), it asks, “Trust this computer? Trust/Don’t Trust.”

Meanwhile, iTunes asks, “To allow access, please respond on your iPhone.”

For the love of all that’s in Silicon Valley, how many times do I have to tell the damned phone to trust the computer, especially when they are both logged into the same identity?

Then it asks for the six-digit passcode, again.

Put it down, it asks for it.

Breathe the other direc-

tion, it asks for it. But at least Mom hasn’t enabled facial recognition, which means the camera is always looking around, supposedly just for your face.

I’m sure it doesn’t notice anything else around.

All of this, and her iPhone still won’t connect to the MacBook. Why? The phone is new, but the MacBook operating system hasn’t been updated in forever. So now I need to back up the laptop, first, then do all the other things all over again. And I have to do the update over rural internet. But if I do update it, she has to spend $170 to update Microsoft office, even though her current version works just fine for her needs.

And I told mom to get Apple products because they were the easiest to use.

And then there’s the TVs, Mom’s and ours.

I discovered in installing our new Samsung that setting up a TV is no longer just plugging in the cables and turning it on.

The TV wanted to immediately hook up to the internet. Then it said I should download Samsung’s app to my iPhone

group, the first thing done, almost, is taking over the press and airwaves and even murdering reporters.

There are times, however, that I wonder about investigative journalism.

Usually the people in that group do excellent work digging out wrongdoing, including the wrongdoings of politicians. (That is no doubt why, even in a democracy, some governments have tried to choke off public broadcasting.)

However, there have been times lately that jour-

nalists have made tempests in teacups, times when they have also pandered to political correctness, a term I have come to dislike. This sort of thing makes me snap off a radio dial immediately, because often, if someone tries to voice some independent thinking then that person will be blackmailed, as to speak, because of not bowing to political correctness.

It seems to be just a way of shutting us up, of stopping freedom of

Letters to the editor are welcomed by the Regional Optimist. All letters, including those which are faxed or emailed, must be signed and bear the address and telephone number of the writer. The name of the writer will be published.

Letters are subject to editing. Personal attacks will not be printed. Letters will be rejected if they contain libelous statements or are unsigned.

Does this look like a keyboard to you? Me neither. Photo by Brian Zinchuk

to do the setup. But once downloaded, the app would not connect with the TV, no matter what I did. So I had to set it up manually.

And once I got the TV turned on, it took several rounds to get it hooked up to the SaskTel Max box, I discovered that this device is essentially a computer masquerading as a TV, with “TV” basically an app. I then had to set up numerous other apps for subscriptions we have – Netflix, Amazon Prime, YouTube and Crave. Each had an arduous onscreen keyboard manipulated by the remote. It took forever to get this all to work. And that was with the benefit of a wired internet connection. I’d hate to find out how long it would take with a Wi-Fi connection.

Unfortunately, I would find out at Mom’s in

setting up her TV. This was an LG, and it, too, immediately required an internet connection. What happens if you don’t have internet access? A week before, Mom didn’t have Wi-Fi. And in a way, she still didn’t.

That’s because Xplornet decided to install her rural internet modem and router in the car garage.

Not the utility room (usual) or kitchen, or anywhere in the house. It was along the front wall between the car and minivan. And as a result, there was no Wi-Fi signal in the far half of the house. That would be the signal they are paying a healthy monthly fee for.

When I got home, I called Xplornet and gave them a piece of my mind, insisting they redo the install.

Thankfully they showed up the next business day and corrected this egre-

speech.

Meanwhile, we can still write “songs” and even if

no one ever likes what we like in that way we don’t really have to die for it.

gious error.

The LG was somewhat simpler to setup, in large part because my parents don’t have numerous internet subscription services.

The long and short of it is that I am enough of geek that I can figure this sort of stuff out. But what about mere mortals who don’t live and breathe this sort of thing? It’s not like Mom is technologically illiterate. She’s been using computers since WordPerfect for DOS required you to memorize F-keystrokes. But her supposedly easy tech is so burdensome now due to continual updates and security measures, it’s almost unusable.

This isn’t user-friendly.

It’s user-impossible.

Brian Zinchuk is editor of Pipeline News. He can be reached at brian. zinchuk@sasktel.net Not yet.

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Page 6 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

Regional News-Optimist

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2019: The year in local news

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

Once again, the Battlefords was the News Capital of Canada in 2019 – for better or worse.

Unfortunately, a lot of the news was “worse.” It was another year dominated by crime and court coverage in the Battlefords, with murder and missing persons cases leading a long line of bad news.

But there was “better” news in 2019 –a long line of grand openings throughout the year for example. It included the long-awaited new movie theatre, a new retail business downtown, a new grocery store for Battleford and another new hotel.

No grand opening was bigger than the one for the new Saskatchewan Hospital North Battleford.

But a host of construction problems surrounding that project dominated headlines throughout the year as well.

Here is a rundown of the big stories that dominated the News-Optimist this year.

Tiki Laverdiere: For the first time in years, the Battlefords was hit by multiple homicide cases in 2019.

None drew more public attention than the case of Tiki Laverdiere, a young Edmonton woman who had come to North Battleford to attend a funeral on Thunderchild First Nation.

Laverdiere went missing May 1, prompting a massive search effort. That followed another promi-

nent missing person case, that of Ashley Morin, who still has not been found.

Human remains were discovered in July outside North Battleford, and was confirmed by an autopsy to be Laverdiere on July 16.

In the weeks that followed, eight individuals were arrested in connection to the suspected homicide. Six were charged with first-degree murder and other counts, while two were charged with accessory to murder.

The case was still making its way through the courts by year’s end. By that point the first guilty plea had been entered: Brent Checkosis pled guilty to accessory to murder. He is due to be sentenced Feb. 10 in Queen’s Bench Court.

Mark Jonson: Another homicide that dominated headlines was the suspicious death of 61-year-old Mark Jonson, found deceased inside a 100th Street residence in North Battleford in July.

Two individuals, Nicolas Buck and David Keller, face first-degree murder counts and preliminary hearings for both are scheduled for the early part of 2020. Buck’s preliminary hearing is slated to begin Feb. 11 in provincial court. Keller’s preliminary begins March 30.

Suspicious death in Battleford: An incident on 26th Street in Battleford shocked local residents.

Identified as deceased was 27-year-old Ryan John

Gatzke. Police are treating the suspicious death as a homicide. To this point no arrests have been made.

Other crime incidents: There was a scary incident for local residents near St. Mary School Nov. 1 as a vehicle suspected to have been involved in shooting incidents in Battleford earlier that day collided at the intersection of 109th Street and 13th Avenue. Kane Nicotine of St. Albert, Alta. was arrested and faces several weapons related charges. His case is still before the courts.

A couple of other notable cases were resolved in 2019. A young man who touched off an Amber Alert in September of 2018 for stealing a motor vehicle with a child inside was sentenced in provincial court. Johnathan Gunville was sentenced to serve two years less a day, plus probation, in connection to that incident.

Also in 2019, Tristan Pinder was sentenced in Queen’s Bench Court for his role in an April 2018 robbery of a Regina taxi cab, followed by a wild police chase on Highway 16 that ended with a standoff with police near Delmas.

Pinder received a total sentence of 13 years, less 20 months remand credit.

The year of the grand openings: 2019 will be remembered for several notable grand openings of new businesses in the Battlefords.

The long-awaited Magic Lantern Theatre, dubbed the Capitol Annex, opened

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in March with a special VIP screening of the movie Cold Pursuit starring Liam Neeson. The new cinema was immediately seen as a potential boon for downtown revitalization efforts.

Another boon to downtown revitalization came with the opening of the new Giant Tiger store on 11th Avenue and 102nd Street in May. In the town of Battleford, the vacant building on 22nd Street and 1st Avenue West that housed the former Super A Foods grocery story was back in service again in 2019, as Discovery Co-op opened its new food store location there. It opened for business around the same time as the Giant Tiger opening, though the official grand opening did not take place until August.

In September came the latest hotel addition to the Battlefords with the opening of the Holiday Inn Express and Suites on Pioneer Avenue at 492 - 114th St. in North Battleford.

Back to downtown revitalization: The City of North Battleford completed its latest phase of downtown road and undergrounds construction in 2019 with the reopening in October of the 1100 block of 100th Street.

The work included replacement of water and sewer service pipes to buildings adjacent to the street.

Sask. Hospital: Saskatchewan Hospital was the classic good-news. bad-news story of 2019.

First, the good news: the psychiatric hospital and integrated correctional facility finally saw a ribboncutting in March to mark completion of construction.

It was the completion of a project built under a $407 million private-public partnership.

Premier Scott Moe and 17 other ministers and MLAs were among those on hand, along with officials from Saskatchewan Hospital and Saskatchewan Health Authority.

Now, the bad news: controversy surrounded the selection of SNC-Lavalin by Graham Capital Partners LP to take over as facilities manager of Saskatchewan Hospital in January.

Soon after, SNC-Lavalin was embroiled in a scandal surrounding allegations of

fraud and bribery in connection to dealings in Libya, a scandal that engulfed the federal Liberal government.

Then came word in May of a leaky roof. Access Prairies Partnership determined a product failure occurred with the modular roofing panels, and that the entire roof had to be replaced. But according to Health Minister Jim Reiter, taxpayers would not be responsible for funding the work to be done. It would be assumed by the P3 consortium.

In October, more bad news: copper and lead were found in the water at the hospital, forcing potable water to be brought in from elsewhere. A full facility audit was ordered, to be done by an independent third party. Meanwhile the opposition New Democrats slammed the government for pursuing the build as a P3.

“This is another issue in a string of incidents involving a brand new facility that was a P3 build,” said opposition critic Vicki Mowat.

“It’s really disappointing for us to see a facility that people had high hopes, for letting people down in how it was constructed.”

Political news from 2019: There were the announcements by two local representatives that they would not be seeking reelection to the legislature in 2020. Herb Cox, MLA for the Battlefords, announced in the summer that he would not be running again.

As well, Larry Doke, MLA for Cut Knife-Turtleford, also announced during the fall that he, too, would not be running for a third term.

City Hall financial woes: It was a tough year at City Hall as administration tried to right the financial ship and balance the books.

It meant some tough and painful decisions.

In April the city announced plans to reduce staff. The total staff reduction was estimated at almost $1.4 million in costs, or 10.5 per cent.

Management, CUPE, CSO and firefighter positions were all impacted.

The reduction in firefighters proved a controversial

move, as supporters of the firefighters wore red to council meetings to protest the cutbacks later in the year.

When he spoke to reporters in April, Mayor Ryan Bater pointed to the loss of fire service contracts with the province for Sask.

Hospital, and with the RM of North Battleford, who established their own volunteer fire department in 2019, as reasons the reductions were needed.

When asked if the loss of the RM contract directly impacted the decision, Bater replied, “Yes, it did.”

Indigenous reconciliation: There was a more positive local Trudeau story in 2019. He appeared on Poundmaker First Nation in May for the historic exoneration of Chief Poundmaker.

At the historic gathering Trudeau delivered the government’s formal exoneration of Poundmaker and apology, and then shook Chief Duane Antoine’s hand.

Trudeau: “We recognize that during his lifetime Chief Poundmaker was not treated justly nor showed the respect he deserved as a leader of his people. If we are to move forward together on the path of reconciliation, the Government of Canada must acknowledge the wrongs of the past. It is my sincere hope that — by coming together today and taking this important step together as equal partners — we can continue the important work of reconciling the past and renewing our relationship.”

Antoine: “We honour our legendary leader Poundmaker today, and all affiliated leaders and warriors, for taking a brave stance defending themselves on May 2, 1885, and for holding back and not counter-attacking the retreating Colonel Otter and his men. He saved a lot of lives, and was living up to his promise not to take up arms against the Queen as promised under Treaty Number Six. Poundmaker was a diplomat, a peacemaker, and was practicing reconciliation already in the 19th century. The truth is now known, and he will be remembered in history as a national hero.”

23rd Street rehabilitation Continued from Page 3 Road rehab projects in Battleford are funded as local improvements, so ratepayers who live on the street will be picking up a larger portion. The intention is for the town to contribute 60 per cent, or $242,000, while property owners’ share would be $161,600, or 40 per cent. Of those property owners the share for Living Sky School

Division/Battleford Central School would be $120,192, Home Hardware $27,273, the town lot $2,417 and the district court’s share is $12,119. The court is, however, status-exempt and their contribution would be a voluntary one.

The share for Battleford Central School is larger and includes half the share for Home Hardware and also half the court’s share,

mainly to account for the street’s heavy use by the school’s teachers and staff and parents. Mayor Ames Leslie noted that the road includes a bus lane.

“It would have to be started once school’s out,” said Leslie. Because no underground pipes need to be replaced in the roadway construction, the project is one the town says it can get done this summer.

Regional News-Optimist

By Faye Erickson

The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 7

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A

We are back in full force following the Christmas season. Everyone is glad to see each other and at lunch time we were busy socializing.

When we create art, we focus on what is important, capture the elements and BATTLEFORDS ART CLUB transplant it on a supporting surface. If it doesn’t turn out, start again.

We will have our quarterly meeting at 12:30 p.m. Jan. 14.

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Page 8 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

Regional News-Optimist

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sports North Stars sweep weekend

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

The Battlefords North Stars swep™t both their weekend games with the Kindersley Klippers, winning the second game at home 5-2 for their fifth win in a row.

It was the exact same score as it was the previous night in Kindersley.

The Saturday contest was the North Stars’ first home game back on Civic Centre ice after the almost two-

week Christmas break, and the team clearly was happy to be home as they scored early and often.

Just 1:15 into the contest Rylan Nivon got his 12th of the year from Austin Becker and Seth Summers to make it 1-0.

After Jaxon Georget tied it, Austin Becker responded with his 15th of the season for a 2-1 lead through one.

In period two Matthias Urbanski got the first of his two goals on the night

at the 8:59 mark. That was only the 10th North Stars shot of the game, ending the night early for Klippers goaltender Matt Senkner.

Steven Bacovsky went the rest of the way in net for Kindersley.

Sean Michalevich responded midway through the period for the Klippers, but Urbanski’s second of the game from Becker and Ben Hiltz on the power play extended the lead to 4-2 through two.

Steven Kesslering’s

goal in the third from Noah Form and Kaden Boser wrapped the scoring for the North Stars. Despite being outshot 33-22, the North Stars still prevailed where it counted most: on the scoreboard. Adam Dmyterko stopped 31 of 33 to get the win.

The North Stars were back in action again at home Wednesday night versus Nipawin at the Civic Centre. Results were unavailable at press time.

Wilkie and Kindersley lead SWHL

By Helena Long As the regular season nears the end for the Sask West Hockey League, the Wilkie Outlaws and Kindersley Sr. Klippers are tied for first place, with 24 points and 12 wins each.

The Macklin Mohawks and Hafford Hawks are close behind, with 21 and 20 points respectively.

The four leading teams have key matches left to play with the Outlaws travelling to Hafford, Jan. 10, followed by hosting Macklin Jan. 11 and Kindersley Jan. 14. Hafford hosts Macklin Jan. 18.

Some teams that could move up in the standings are the Edam 3 Stars, 18 points, and the Kerrobert Tigers, 14 points. The Biggar Nationals, Unity Miners, Eatonia Huskies and Luseland Mallards are in the bottom half of the pack.

Leading the scoring

race are Preston Kopek and Shayne Neigum, both of Kindersley and each with 49 points as of Jan. 6.

In third place is Wilkie’s Brock Harrison with 39 points. Spencer Bast of Macklin and Adam Shirley of Luseland round up the top five, each with 33 points.

He has played only two games, but Trey Deobald of the Klippers has the best goals against average, 2.00, amongst the SWHL goaltenders. With more time in the net, having played seven games, Joel Gryzbowski of Hafford has the second best GAA, at 2.48. As might be expected from the team standings, the Outlaws’ Curtis Sander and Mohawks’ Nathan Hargrave fill the next two slots on the chart, at GAAs of 2.69 and 2.70 respectively.

Rory Gregoire of the Wilkie Outlaws moves the puck across the ice in a SWHL game at Wilkie Jan. 5. The Outlaws won the game against the Eatonia Huskies 12-2. Photo by Helena Long

Haylie Biever commits to Minot State Staff Reporter

The Battlefords Sharks had good news to report about the future of one of their star players.

It was announced that Haylie Biever had committed to Minot State Beavers women’s hockey for 202021.

N

New Horizons had

By Allie Raycraft their final game of 2019, Dec. 17. Results were as follows: Gordon Munn over Alexander Scott, Wally Gordey (skipped by Doug Puff) and Rod Forester played to a tie, Ed Kjargaard over Doug Belyk, Dick Horrell over Dick Wisner, Bob Krismer (skipped by Roy Sankey) over Ralph Hall (skipped by Doug Hall) and Wayne Payne over Wally O’Hare. However, O’Hare won the trophy, having eight wins and one tie.

In second place were Wayne Payne, Bob Krismer with eight wins each.

All enjoyed coffee and goodies after the game and the trophy was presented by Peter Pauls, past president. Members of the winning team were Wally O’Hare, Denis Carignan, Kate McHarg and Lawrence Willness. Teams were made up for the start of curling Jan. 7.

New Horizons started the winter season on Jan. 7 with 12 teams. Results were Wally O’Hare over Dick Wisner, Wally Gordey over Gordon Munn, Rod Forester and Doug Belyk played to a tie, as did Alexander Scott and Bob Krismer, Ed Kjargaard won over Dale Cain and Wayne Payne won over Dick Horrell.

We are lucky to have 12 teams with one team being short a player.

ew Horizons Curling

SPHL news for Jan. 3-4

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

Sharks news

By John Cairns

The final trophy presented. Photo submitted

Biever plays goal for the Sharks and is also the team’s captain this season.

The Sharks were also back in action following the holiday break, playing two games in Regina versus the Rebels at Co-operators Center.

The first game Saturday saw Regina win 6-0 as the Sharks couldn’t get their

offence going. Regina outshot the Sharks 52-25.

The second game on Sunday saw Regina beat the Sharks 3-1 in a game that wasn’t decided until the final two minutes.

Kiana McNinch got the lone goal for the Sharks in the third period shorthanded to tie the game, but a power play goal from

Tavia Terry and then from Sydney Pedersen late in the game gave Regina the win.

The Sharks were again outshot 40-25 and goaltender Biever was named one of the three stars for stopping 37 of the 40 shots.

The next action for the Sharks is at home Saturday and Sunday to Notre Dame and Weyburn at Battleford.

The Saskatchewan Prairie Hockey League was in action with a full slate of five games this past weekend.

On Friday night in North Battleford the Meota Combines beat the Maymont Settlers 8-5, with Coleman Bear scoring the hat trick and Bo Gervais also getting two goals in the win.

That same night in Turtleford, the Tigers beat Radisson 3-2. The

Tigers’ Drew Nelson and Wheatkings’ Dustin Bezugly each had two goals.

On Saturday night the Tigets beat Spiritwood 7-4, Glaslyn beat Maymont 9-5, and Perdue beat Radisson 6-1.

Next action for the league was Wednesday with Maymont in Perdue.

Games Friday sees Meota in Radisson and Turtleford in Spiritwood.

Saturday action sees Battleford in Glaslyn, Meota in Turtleford and Perdue in Maymont.

The Next Decade of Growth Saskatchewan’s Growth Plan for The Next Decade is an ambitious plan to expand our economy and create jobs and opportunity across our province. You can learn more about our plan to grow the population to 1.4 million people and create 100,000 more jobs online at saskgrowthplan.ca Hon. Scott Moe, Premier

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Cheerleading on television

By Rhea Good

The Bring It On movies will always be classic but … the sport of cheerleading is the backdrop for two new TV series starting in 2020. Interestingly, both USA Network and Netflix, the producers of the new shows, have no connection with the Bring It On franchise.

For people who don’t have direct involvement in cheerleading, they probably learned all they know about cheer from the six Bring It On movies released in 2000, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009 and 2017.

Dare Me is a weekly series that has been placed in the mysterythriller genre. The setting is a high school cheerleading team in Ohio.

The plot and characters are based on a novel by the same name written by

Words of

Cheer

Megan Abbott. The series debuted on Dec. 29, 2019, and is scheduled for Sunday evenings on Netflix.

Dare Me was filmed in Toronto.

Meanwhile Netflix created its own docuseries called Cheer. heer is apparently filmed from the fly-on-the-wall point of view as a real-life cheer team at Navarro College in Texas prepares for a competition in Daytona, Fla. The plot follows the struggles of individual cheerleaders and the roller-coaster of team dynamics as they face the challenges of competitive college cheerleading.

These 2 series have a clear purpose, and

The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 9

Stars wrap up Okanagan Classic tourney

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

“We got you,” is the underlying promise in all stunting. This perpetual loyalty among teammates builds trust and friendships. These child athletes are demonstrating a complex Level 2 pyramid and the tops are feeling safe supported by their bases. Photo submitted by Rhea Good

both portray the sport as serious athletic commitment.

Both shows focus on the intense physicality of the sport and the strength, flexibility, and

skill involved.

And both series ultimately portray cheerleading as a metaphor for life: support from people around you is needed so life does not crumble down.

The Battlefords AAA Stars have wrapped up their time in Kelowna at the Okanagan Classic AAA hockey tournament.

The Stars finished the round robin with a 3-2 record, putting them in the tournament’s bronze medal game against the Thompson Blazers last Wednesday. Unfortunately

the Blazers got the winning goal in overtime for a 4-3 final score.

Following the tournament two Stars players were named among the tournament all-stars. Forward Jake Southgate and goaltender Ethan Hein both earned all-star nods.

The Stars are back in action in the league Jan. 7 against the Saskatoon Blazers at the Civic Centre.

Visit www.newsoptimist.ca Follow Battlefords News-Optimist on Facebook and BfordsNewsOpt on Twitter

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Page 10 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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2019: The year in sports news

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

Maybe it’s time for folks at North Battleford city hall to look into acquiring some leftover “City of Champions” signs from Edmonton.

In 2019, the Battlefords was home to hockey’s Canalta Cup champions as well as a champion majorleague curling team (Team Silvernagle). And that was just the start.

Here’s a look back at some of the major sports stories in the Battlefords and area in 2019.

Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling: January 2019 marked the second time the Meridian Canadian Open, part of the Pinty’s Grand Slam of Curling, made its way to the Civic Centre in North Battleford.

In the early going, all eyes focused on the play of the hometown team of Robyn Silvernagle, who entered the field on a sponsor’s exemption. The team from Twin Rivers Curling Club proved they belonged, as the team made it to the quarter-finals, delighting their hometown #SilverSquad fans.

In the end, it was Rachel Homan who took the title on the women’s side and Brendon Bottcher on the men’s side in North Battleford.

Team Silvernagle: Scotties champions It was just the start of the good news for curling fans in the Battlefords.

Later that same month, Team Silvernagle was looking to take home the provincial Scotties title.

After losing in the title game the previous two

Robyn Silvernagle and her team had the Battlefords on the edges of their seats many times in 2019. Photo by Averil Hall

The Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum inductees included this year’s keynote speaker, former major league pitcher Ferguson Jenkins, seen with CEO Jane Shury. Photo by John Cairns

The 2019 inductees of the Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum.

Photo by John Cairns

seasons, this time they defeated Sherry Anderson 6-5 in Humboldt.

That earned the team a trip to the Scotties in Nova Scotia, where Team Silvernagle earned bronze medals.

On the basis of their 20012BB2

strong performance, Team Silvernagle has earned a regular spot on the Pinty’s Grand Slam tour this season and has also competed in the Canada Cup. The team will be defending their Scotties provincial title in January.

Battlefords North Stars: Canalta Cup champions 2018-19 was supposedly a rebuilding year for the Battlefords North Stars.

The rebuild turned out to be a spectacular success.

The North Stars won the division title with an overtime goal over Kindersley on the final night of the season, and then built on their momentum with a glorious run to the Canalta Cup league title.

But it took a while for the North Stars offence to gel.

Bailing the team out during many of those early-round playoff games was goaltender Joel Grzybowski, whose spectacular play earned him playoff MVP honours.

In six-man football, the Hafford Vikings took another provincial high school title in 2019.

The Battlefords North Stars were the Canalta Cup champions.

The North Stars survived a first-round scare from the Flin Flon Bombers before soundly beating Yorkton and Melfort to win the cup. Team captain Cody Spagrud got to hoist the cup in front of the home-town fans at the Civic Centre.

Although it was a disappointing Anavet Cup round against the Portage Terriers, it remained a season to

remember for Battlefords hockey fans – one that carried over to the start of the 2019-20 season, when the North Stars early-season dominance saw them ranked first overall in the national junior A hockey rankings.

Of course, that was just the start of the top stories from 2019. Here are some other championship highlights from 2019: The Battleford Beaver Blues won the Saskatchewan Prairie Hockey League title in 2019, beating Edam to win the cup.

The Wilkie Outlaws were provincial senior B and Sask West League champions again in 2019.

The Battlefords AA midget Barons won the Centre Four Midget League in 2019, making it to the provincial finals

before losing in Swift Current.

The Battlefords also had winning championship junior boys’ and girls’ basketball team (John Paul II Collegiate) and a 4A provincial champion girls’ basketball team (NBCHS Vikings) in 2019.

In six-man football, the Hafford Vikings took another provincial high school title in 2019.

The North Saskatchewan River Baseball League saw Standard Hill Lakers capture the title, beating Macklin.

And congratulations are in order to the 2019 inductees of the Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. The inductees included this year’s keynote speaker, former major league pitcher Ferguson Jenkins.

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 11

Page 12 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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2010-2020: The decade in review

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

The 2010s are now history, and it was 10 years of major news happening out of the Battlefords and area.

Here is a look at some of the major stories the NewsOptimist reported on from the past decade.

The Husky Oil spill: The spill of oil into the North Saskatchewan River near Maidstone in 2016 was a major story, both when it happened and in the months that followed. The spill resulted in major disruptions to the city’s water supply and a massive cleanup effort.

The Colten Boushie case: a major public outcry and debate ensued following the death of a young Indigenous man from a gunshot wound on a rural property between the Battlefords and Biggar. The individual accused of murder, Gerald Stanley, was found not guilty in a controversial verdict from the trial in Battleford in February, 2018.

The Crime Capital: public frustrations boiled over at a meeting at Don Ross Centre in late September 2013 on the crime situation in North Battleford, a meeting held in the immediate aftermath of a murder at a downtown hotel.

A series of violent incidents, coinciding with North Battleford’s rise to the top of the national Crime Severity Index, spurred on efforts to introduce the city’s new Community Safety Strategy.

Included in the effort was the hiring of Herb Sutton as community safety co-ordinator and the introduction of a new force of Community Safety Officers.

The CUPlex opens: The fall of 2012 marked

Gerald Stanley was found not guilty in the death of Colten Boushie in 2018. Photo by Averi Hall The verdict in the Stanley murder trial was met by tears from Colten Boushie’s mother. Photo by Averi Hall

The Jesus is Alive building burned down in 2012.

Photo by Jayne Foster

the completion of the Credit Union CUplex.

Opening ceremonies took place at the Co-op Aquatic Centre, Dekker Centre, NationsWEST Field House and the Northland Power Curling Centre, marking the start of a new era of recreation for the Battlefords.

Saskatchewan Hospital construction: the long effort to bring the new Saskatchewan Hospital North Battleford to reality domi-

nated headlines throughout the decade. From “Lean” planning sessions to shovels in the ground, through to the grand opening in January 2019 and beyond, the News-Optimist was there to report it.

Gerry Ritz, Gerry Ritz, Gerry Ritz: Whether it was ending the Canadian Wheat Board monopoly or dealing with listeriosis scares or with railways in getting the grain cars moving to market, there was

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The Husky Oil spill: The spill of oil into the North Saskatchewan River near Maidstone in 2016 was a major story

never a shortage of news surrounding the MP from Battlefords-Lloydminster – who was Canada’s Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Foods until the change in government in 2015.

Rosemarie Falk, Rosemarie Falk, Rosemarie Falk: the News-Optimist covered the 2017 byelection race that saw Falk win a contested Conservative nomination

and then the byelection in Battlefords-Lloydminster in December – despite a campaign stop in the riding by none other than Justin Trudeau.

The rise and fall and rise of Ryan Bater: He started the decade as provincial Liberal leader. He ended it as North Battleford mayor. In between, Ryan Bater made the headlines constantly, whether from

political activities or his efforts attracting tourism and major events to the community.

Jesus is Alive: Sadly, major fires in the city made the headlines more than once this past decade. The spectacular fire at the former Jesus is Alive location on Railway Avenue and 104th Street, and the aftermath of the blaze, dominated headlines in early 2011.

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 13

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Preserving the history of the ‘Brick Building’ at the WDM NB

By Elizabeth Scott, Curator Western Development Museum

At the west end of the Heritage Village at the WDM North Battleford sits a tidy little brick building. Inside this elegant little building, Jakob (Jake) Marjan spent 50 years breathing new life into well-worn shoes and boots.

Like many European immigrants who came to Canada between the world wars, Jake found hope, peace and resilience in that small sturdy building. Far from the war-torn Central Europe of his youth, Jake’s professional and community life in North Battleford took shape inside those brick walls. The Western Development Museum is honoured to care for Jake’s brick building and the remarkable stories it tells.

Jake’s early life set the stage for what he would make of himself in Canada. At the age of 12, in 1914, Jake had been apprenticed to a shoemaker in his home village. After the First World War, Jake’s father urged him to seek opportunities overseas.

The Canadian passenger list marking Jake’s arrival at Halifax in August of 1926, states that he was born in “Secany” in the former Yugoslavia in 1900.

Upon landing he intended to work as a farm labourer, as many young men did.

Instead, he funded his travels from east to west working for railway companies, finally settling on North Battleford as the site where he would hone his craft as a shoe repairman for the next five decades.

In 1929, Jake first returned to cobbling at the Beaver Hotel. Two years later, he married Leokadia

(Lottie) Martin, daughter of a farming family that had immigrated from Poland. Together, Lottie and Jake built the little shoe shop that would stand on Railway Avenue in North Battleford from 1932 to 1991 when it was saved from demolition and moved to the WDM North Battleford. The hours were long, and the work was hard, but Jake was remembered to have done it all with a friendly smile. Jake kept the shop open until 1979.

Jake traveled back to Europe in 1933, shortly after the brick building was complete. He visited his parents to give news of his successes in both business and marriage. This bittersweet reunion was the last time Jake would see his parents alive as they were killed in concentration camps during the Second World War. We can only imagine the security and safety the little brick building gave to Jake after enduring such tragedy.

Jake’s brick building tells the story of one man, his family, a now diminishing trade and a community that supported and loved him. The decades and scents of leather work imbued into the bricks, the grout, the nooks and crannies deserve to be preserved. The building, now nearing 90 years old, needs our help. Help us preserve and interpret this #SaskInspired story today so that future generations may learn from Jake’s Saskatchewan spirit. He was the true embodiment of our provincial motto, From Many Peoples, Strength.

To support the brick building, visit wdm.ca/donate or telephone the WDM North Battleford at 306-4458033.

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Page 14 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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Canadians had plenty to “weather” in 2019 Submitted by Environment Canada From a list of 100 significant weather events happenings across Canada in 2019, events were rated from 1 to 6 based on factors that included the degree to which Canada and Canadians were impacted, the extent of the area affected, economic and environmental effects, and the event’s longevity as a top news story.

1. Another record-setting Ottawa River flood Nature was all primed for another catastrophic spring flood along the Ottawa and St. Lawrence Rivers — the second record discharge in three years.

This year’s flood was bigger than the 2017 event that was then considered the flood of the century. On April 5, Hydro-Québec r2.

Active hurricane season as predicted The 2019 Atlantic hurricane season was one of the world’s most devastating, with many casualties and widespread destruction in the Caribbean. Posttropical depression Erin reached the south shore of Nova Scotia on Aug. 29, merging with a trough of low pressure arriving from the west. At its peak, this hybrid storm’s rainfall rates exceeded 30 mm per hour, triggering flash flooding with ponding and washouts.

A week later, Hurricane Dorian arrived on the scene. Dorian was the most destructive storm of the season both outside and inside Canada. With

winds of nearly 300 km/h, it destroyed parts of Grand Bahama and the Abacos before it crawled adjacent to Florida and Georgia and made landfall in North Carolina. On Sept. 7, a weakening Dorian raced northeastward toward Canada. As it neared Nova Scotia, Dorian transitioned into a post-tropical storm but maintained its Category 2 intensity with sustained winds of 155 km/h before making landfall just west of Halifax after 7 p.m.

Post-tropical storm Dorian pounded Atlantic Canada with heavy rains, winds, storm surges, and high significant waves over the 24hour event on Sept. 7 and 8. Some century-old trees in full leaf suffered a swift uprooting, often landing on homes and vehicles. Nearly half a million people were without power across Atlantic Canada. Eighty per cent of Nova Scotia’s homes and businesses lost power — the highest number of outages in Nova Scotia Power’s history.

3. sNo-good Prairie fall Snow in September is not rare in Calgary, and about two-thirds of its annual snowfall usually occurs in the fall and spring seasons. But for four days at the end of September, Calgary was assaulted by a bout of wintry weather with sub-freezing temperatures and snow. The four-day snowfall totaled 32 cm. While not a record dump, Calgary did see the greatest depth of snow on the ground in 65 years for

January at the Club - Our Hockey Program is in full swing!

We could not have offered this program without the support of BATC CDC who awarded us funding in the amount of $25,000 in order to replace all of our hockey equipment!

Help us say THANK YOU to them!

- Early Dismissal Day is Wednesday Jan.22nd, 2020. Programming at both our Main Site and our Satellite Sites will begin at 2:00 p.m.

- There is a PD Day on Friday, January 31st, 2020 for both School Divisions. As with all PD Days there will be no programmingn at our Satellite Sites; however, our Non-School Days Program will be happening at our Main Site from 8:00 a.m. – 6: 00 p.m.

- Reminder that starting Jan. 6th we will be offering a Before-School Program at EMBM. We hope our EMBM families are excited!

To register, visit our website or call the office.

Visit us on our website www.battlefordsboysandgirlsclub.ca and/or Facebook page for more programming information.

- Our hours of operation are as follows: • Office: Monday to Friday, 8:30 am – 3:30 pm • Drop-In Program: Monday to Friday, 3:30 pm – 8:30 pm and Saturday, 1:00 pm – 4 pm • EMBM Before-School Program: Monday to Friday, 7:15 am – 8:30 am • EMBM After-School Program: Monday to Friday, 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm • Bready Before-School Program: Monday to Friday, 7:15 am – 8:30 am • Bready After-School Program: Monday to Friday, 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm • Holy Family After-School Program: Monday to Friday, 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm

late September. Over the foothills, heavier snowfalls fell at more intense rates, with upwards of a metre of snow accumulating in the higher terrain of Waterton Lakes, Pincher Creek and Crowsnest Pass.

The heavy, wet snow created huge traffic problems. Several universities and colleges closed, public services shut down, and air travelers faced delays and flight cancellations.

Trees still flush with green leaves bowed, sagged and snapped from the weight of sticky snow. Snow accumulation on power lines and branches led to widespread power outages. Outside Calgary, especially to the south and west, farmers and ranchers braced against more killing frost and heavy, wet snow that beat down crops. In southern British Columbia, the early blast of winter also brought 35 to 50 cm of snow across several mountain passes. Eventually, the storm moved eastward, bringing much less snow to southern Saskatchewan and only rains to Manitoba.

Two weeks later, heading into the Thanksgiving Day weekend, Manitobans were still drying out from record September rains, nearly three times the norm. Farmers were especially concerned but, after a relatively dry first week of October, they once again started up their combines and resumed roundthe-clock harvesting. They were keeping an eye on a pending well-announced weather system. The storm sat over the region for days.

Heavy, sticky snows draped Manitoba from Brandon to Winnipeg from Oct. 10 to 12 and through the Thanksgiving weekend.

Historic snowfall totals included 34 cm at Winnipeg over two days, making it the biggest October snowstorm in the city since records began in 1872. States of emergency were declared across the province and in eleven communities, including Winnipeg. More than 6,000 people had to evacuate from a dozen or more First Nations com-

munities. Lengthy and widespread power outages created hardship. Powerful winds exceeding 80 km/h drove the wet snow, creating blinding blizzards and two-metre drifts. In some cases, transmission towers toppled, downing total electrical grids. According to Manitoba Hy The storm’s early arrival in October meant tree branches, still loaded with leaves, were bending.

Many of Winnipeg’s trees saw damage and loss under the weight of the snow.

Over 30,000 trees on public land were affected, with estimates of thousands more on private land.

4. A brutal Febrrruary in Canada The Polar Vortex prevailed across Canada and helped to define a long winter! El Niño was expected to tame winter across North America, but it was late to arrive and its effect on weather patterns was weak. Instead, Arctic weather pushed southward for six weeks, from late January and throughout February, with a continuous supply of cold air.

For half the country, from the Pacific Coast to the Upper Great Lakes, February was the coldest month in at least 70 years. Along the Pacific coast and the BC interior, temperatures were 9 degrees below normal and nearly 1.6 degrees colder than the previous coldest February, in 1949. Calgary had its coldest February in 83 years, and Alberta’s Chinook Country was 14 degrees colder than normal. The February mean temperature in Calgary was an astounding 10 degrees below normal—the greatest monthly departure from normal ever for anywhere in the Prairie provinces. Toronto saw a year’s worth of snow in the first two months of the year with only 10 days without precipitation in January and February. Montréal saw nine days of thaws and freezes in February, meaning that liquid on the ground during the day turned to ice overnight.

5. Record heat continues in Arctic With many consecutive warm years, the Arctic is seeing less snow, permafrost slumping deeper, sea ice thinning, and highlatitude glaciers retreating.

Increasing temperatures above and below the ice caused a further reduction in ice concentrations, from its maximum extent in March to minimum amounts in September.

This September, Arctic sea ice reached its annual minimum at 4.15 million square km — the second lowest minimum extent on record, tied with the minima observed in 2007 and 2016, and behind the record set in 2012. According to the Canadian Ice Service, the pattern of reduced ice coverage was observed in northern Canadian waters, with maximum and minimum ice cover attained in mid-May and late September, respectively.

Freeze-up in the fall was the latest on record (since 1979), primarily due to the extraordinary warm spell spanning 10 weeks starting in early September.

6. On the Prairies …

Too dry early, too wet later Prairie farmers and ranchers had another challenging weather year in 2019. It was too cool and dry in the beginning and too cold and wet at the end. Before the growing season even got underway, ranchers and farmers were facing some of the driest winter-spring conditions in 133 years of record keeping. In some of the southern regions, the amount of moisture and rain had been running low for more than two years.

Edmonton, Alberta, experienced its driest spring on record. Regina saw its driest March with just 0.8 mm of precipitation. Saskatoon was even drier in April with 0.4 mm of precipitation. Winnipeg, Manitoba, recorded its driest first half year with only 91 mm of total precipitation; the normal January-to-June total is 235 mm. In those cities, homeowners were seeing

their foundations cracking, shifting and sinking in the abnormally dry ground.

Record cold, especially in February that continued into March and April, had already delayed seeding and slowed crop growth.

The Prairies welcomed scattered rains in July, but pockets of drought continued in the southern area, leading to a shortage of feed resources, which carried over from 2018. Stunted grasses forced ranchers to either sell off part of their herds or start using winter feed, months early.

The much-needed moisture in mid-summer through the fall initially raised spirits among rural Westerners but, unfortunately, the rains didn’t stop until the Prairies had gone from dry to drenched. Regina saw nearly 175 mm of rain in August and September, bringing 100 mm more than normal, making it the second wettest August/ September in 136 years.

Frequent, heavy rain events often left fields saturated and incapable of handling heavy farm equipment.

Residents on the Prairies witnessed double the normal number of severe summer weather happenings with tornadoes, intense rainfalls, windstorms and 2.25 times the usual number of hailstorms, but no place exemplified the summer misery more than Edmonton. Through June, July and August, inclusively, Edmonton’s city weather station had 55 days of rain, the second highest number of days since 1881.

Further, there were only 18 days in 2019 in which temperatures climbed in a summery way to 25 °C or above.

In central Alberta, crops were drowning, pastures were under water and ditches were full and overflowing. The wetness led to major crop losses, especially hay. Farmers were desperate for warmer, windier and sunnier weather to dry things out so that they could begin harvesting. Instead, they got overcast skies, cold temperatures, and continuous showers with more hail. The stress and strain reached the breakBattlefords & Disctrict Community Foundation Battlefords and District Community ing point for thousands of producers, their famiFoundation Inc. lies and communities. As rains persisted in September and October, farmers grew even more anxious.

Huge tracts of land received double the average August-to-October precipBDCF manages funds that have been established to benefit local agencies. itation. The historic midSeptember snowfall that Battlefords Boys and Girls Club receives annual income from the Edwards Irwin struck Alberta and western Fund and the Caring for Kids Fund.

Saskatchewan, followed by The Peggy Westwood Fund has been established to benefit Battlefords and Area more snows and rains in Sexual Assault Centre.

October, caused the majority of the Prairie crop still Marylou and Panos Antoniades created an endowment that provides yearly in the fields to deteriorate funding to nine groups including: St. Paul’s Anglican Church, Battlefords Humane and prices to fall. Grains Society and the recreation department of Battlefords District Care Centre. began to show sprout and As a donor, you can create a designated fund that will help the causes that you mildew. Never had so care about. Forever. much crop — from canola to potatoes to sugar beets Contact us to find out how.

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 15

Orange is the new green.

Battleford - 82B Battleford Crossing North Battleford - 2-302 114 Street

Page 16 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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Superannuated teachers award scholarship Submitted

institution and is a graduate from the Living Sky School Division, Light of Christ School Division, Sakewew High School or any high school administered by one of those school divisions.

The scholarship committee is composed of Barb Sealy, Bonnie Flahr and Lorna McLean.

The Battlefords and District Chapter of the Superannuated Teachers of Saskatchewan awards an annual scholarship in the amount of $500 to a student who is pursuing post secondary education at an accredited educational

This year’s recipient of the scholarship is Blaise Seiben from North Battleford, a graduate of John Paul II Collegiate. He is currently a first-year student studying Actuarial Science in the Math and Statistics department at the University of Regina.

Additionally, each

year the chapter supports various local charities such as the Empty Stocking Fund, Creative Kids, Music Festival, Children’s Choir and provincially the Stirling McDowell Foundation for Research into Teaching and Learning.

The Battlefords and

District Chapter of the Superannuated Teachers of Saskatchewan, numbers over 300 retired teachers.

The executive for 20192020 is President Alan Laughlin, Vice-President Bonnie Flahr, SecretaryTreasurer Jean Deyell and Past President Carol Stevenot.

Blaise Seiben

USask leads study into PTSD service dogs and veteran’s substance abuse recovery Submitted

zations and members.

Colleen Dell, a USask sociology professor specializing in addiction and animal-assisted interventions, has been awarded $850,000 by Health Canada to lead a national project that will help veterans suffering from trauma who are coping through the problematic use of substances.

USask is supporting the

Learning how psychiatric service dogs can help veterans living with posttraumatic stress disorder recover from problematic alcohol and drug use is the focus of a new $1.4-million research program led by the University of Saskatchewan, in partnership with five universities and a dozen community organi-

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program with $175,000, and an additional $360,000 of in-kind support will be provided by AUDEAMUS, a non-profit service dog organization run by and for veterans. Service dogs are increasingly being recognized as a complement to regular PTSD treatment.

The dogs are trained with technical skills, such as waking a veteran from a night terror, and the human-animal bond is a motivating influence for improved health, such as going for regular outdoor walks.

“We know that some veterans turn to alcohol and other substances, and overuse prescription medication, to cope with their PTSD symptoms. It is important that service dog organizations be aware of this and have recovery resources to share with their clients,” said Dell, who also serves as the Centennial Enhancement Chair in One Health and Wellness at USask’s College of Arts and Science.

Working with participating service dog organizations, the goal of the team’s three-and-a-half year project is to develop an addictions specific

Colleen Dell, a USask sociology professor specializing in addiction and animal-assisted interventions.

Photo courtesy of USask

toolkit and pilot test it with 30 veterans from the AUDEAMUS service dog program. The kit will highlight the role of peer support, recognizing it is an important part of the Canadian Armed Forces culture, as well as addictions recovery.

The project was announced Nov. 26 at the national Issues of Substance

conference where Dell and her One Health team reported on their exploratory work that informed the development of the new project.

They will continue to apply a patient-oriented approach, making sure the veterans’ lived experiences direct the research process.

Veteran Paul de Groot participated in the pilot

study and is now a member of the project team.

“It wasn’t like typical research because the researchers trained right alongside us with service dogs,” he said. “We really got to know them. And we really got to have our voices heard throughout the study. I am excited now to continue as part of the research team.”

He is featured in a 10-minute video announcing the project and soliciting participation from service dog organizations in the project.

“Service dogs can be an important step in the healing journey for veterans suffering with PTSD and substance use disorder.

We hope many service dog organizations in Canada will join us and take part in this project,” de Groot said. “Lives depend on it.”

The Canadian Research Initiative in Substance Misuse (CRISM), funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, awarded $114,000 to Dell for one of two exploratory studies that are coming to a close. The other study was funded through her Centennial Enhancement Chair. Initial results were recently published in the Journal of Substance Use and presented at the Saskatchewan Research Showcase.

A MEMORIAL

GIFT Candace Mack-Horton Sales Manager

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Provincial Office 279 - 3rd Ave. North Saskatoon, SK S7K 2H8 Phone: 244-2124 Call Toll Free: 1-800-565-9000

NBCHS

North Battleford Comprehensive High School

Providing the most COMPREHENSIVE education service in the Battlefords

Semester 2 Registration Day – January 16th We encourage new students who are registering for Semester 2 at NBCHS, to stop by any time between 8:30 am – 4:00 pm on January 16th.

Classes begin on February 3rd for Semester 2.

Contact the school at 306-445-6101 or email nbchs@lskysd.ca for more information NBCHS has been welcoming high school students from the Battlefords and area since 1970. NBCHS offers over 100 different courses for students in grades 7-12 ranging from core classes to the skilled trades. The comprehensive education offered better prepares students for their future after graduation.

Welcome to the home of the Vikings!

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 17

Second Front

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Thursday, January 9, 2019 www.newsoptimist.ca

Battlefords Union Hospital

First baby of 2020. It’s a girl!

SHOWTIMES

January 10 - 16, 2020

Star Wars:The Rise of Skywalker Fri, thru Thu 7:30 Matinees Sat/Sun 1:30

1917

Fri, thru Thu 7:30 Matinees Sat/Sun 1:30

Spies in Disguise

Fri, thru Thu 7:00 Matinees Sat/Sun 1:15

According to the Saskatchewan Health Authority, at 5:43 a.m. on Jan. 1, 2020, Dayanna Delisha Deshaye Stone was born to Daelene Moosomin and Desmond Stone at Battlefords Union Hospital, officially making her Battlefords’ first baby of 2020. Dayanna weighed 10 lbs. 7 oz. Her parents are from Mosquito First Nation, and everyone is doing well. Photo courtesy of the family

Jumanji: Next Level Fri, thru Thu 7:30 Matinees Sat/Sun 1:45

Lloydminster Hospital

Lashburn infant is Lloydminster’s first baby

Underwater (TBR) Fri, thru Thu 7:15

Matinees Sat/Sun 1:00

C

Colin from Lakeland Library Region HQ recommends the book heck It Out! Let’s Bring Back: An Encyclopedia of Forgotten-Yet-Delightful, Chic, Useful, Curious, and Otherwise Commendable Things from Times Lakeland Library Gone By by Lesley M.M. Blume. www.lakeland.lib.sk.ca “A nostalgic look back at things from days long past - an enjoyable read for all.”

The Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum bids farewell to one of their loyal employees. Ina Williams has worked as secretary at the museum for more than 11 years.

President Jane Shury, far right, described her as a “dedicated employee” and said they’d developed a “great friendship which will continue.” Tuesday of last week was her last day and she was sent off with a come-and-go event at the museum with plenty of food and a few gifts. Ina will be switching to a new work role based out of home, but plans to stay involved with the museum as a volunteer.

Photos by John Cairns

According to the Saskatchewan Health Authority, at 4:49 p.m. on Jan. 1, 2020, Benjamin Conrad Lavallee was born to Shelby Stapley and Jordan Lavallee at Lloydminster Hospital, officially making him Lloydminster’s first baby of 2020. Benjamin weighed 7 lbs. 3 oz. His parents are from Lashburn and everyone is doing well. The family would like to say a special thank you to Benjamin’s grandparents, as well as the doctors, nurses and staff at the maternity ward of the Lloydminster Hospital for their support. Photo courtesy of the family

A Retirement Event at the Saskatchewan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum

Page 18 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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Phone: 306-445-7261 Fax: 306-445-3223 In person/mail: 892 - 104th Street North Battleford, SK S9A 1M9

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OBITUARIES REID: Mr. Donald Reid passed away at the River Heights Lodge at the age of 81 years. A Funeral Service was held Monday, January 6, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. at The Garden Chapel- Battlefords Funeral Service 1332 100th St North Battleford, SK .

Memorial donations in memory of Mr. Reid may be directed to the River Heights Lodge 2001 99th St North Battleford, SK S9A 0S3 or the Heart & Stroke Foundation 1738 Quebec Ave #26, Saskatoon, SK S7K 1V9. Left to cherish his memory and will be deeply missed by his children: Karen (Ray), Jamie (Charlotte) and Marcy; grandchildren: Ashley (Donald), Cole, Grayson, Roberto, Emily, Andrew, Marianna, Christopher, Angela, Michael and Jonathon; greatgrandchild Luke; siblings: Archie (Marie), Joyce (Donnie), Lynda, Janet and Ethel (Terry). He is predeceased by his wife Stella; parents Downie and Minnie and sister Eleanor. Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Vanessa Macnab & Trevor Watts of Eternal Memories Funeral Service & Crematorium Card Of Thanks The family would like to thank Dr. Johnson and the staff at River Heights Lodge. Also, to our family and friends for your support thought this difficult time.

GRATTON: Maurice Joseph of North Battleford, Saskatchewan passed away peacefully with his loving family by his side on January 5th, 2020 at the age of 85 years. Maurice is survived by his loving wife, Evelyn (Thompson) of 62 years, his children Linda McFaul (Saskatoon) and her 3 sons, Seamus, Brennan, and Calin, his son, Victor Gratton (North Battleford), and Laurie (Ralph) Westerager (Drayton Valley) and her sons, Jesse (Ange) Saccucci and Justin Saccucci.

He is also survived by 4 great-grandchildren Mikaylah, Khol, Jace, and Jayden and his little puppy, Buttons. Maurice was predeceased by his oldest son, Raymond Gratton in 2004, his parents, Ulderic and Flora (Lessard) Gratton, his sister, Aline Roberts along with his in-laws Walter and Eva Thompson, and brother-in-law, Archie Thompson. Dad was born on August 3rd, 1934 in the Hamlet of Delmas, Sask. He spent his early years attending school in North Battleford, Sask. until the family moved to a farm in the Edam, Sask. where he worked on the family farm until they moved back to North Battleford. He was employed at the Saskatchewan Hospital until he retired after 30 years of service in 1987. Dad enjoyed spending time with his family, whether it was camping and sitting around campfires or maybe doing a little fishing when out in his boat, holiday gatherings and carving up turkeys. His love for travelling with Mom across all of Canada and the USA and spending many winters in Arizona. He was never one to pass up a road trip.

Some of Dad’s proudest moments in life were becoming a grandfather to his 5 grandsons and 4 great grandchildren.

Celebrating almost 63 years with his best friend and wife, Evy. Dad was very down to earth and friendly, always had a smile on his face and a firm handshake for everyone. He will be remembered by all for the dedicated husband and father that he was, hardworking and a proud man. There will be a private celebration of life with his family at a later date. Special thanks to the Doctors, Nurses at Battlefords Union Hospital, the staff from Home Care and COPS, along with the Tele-Health Coordinator and Scott Parker. Your care and compassion were greatly appreciated by our family. Thanks to Eternal Memories for taking care of the arrangements. Donations in honour of Dad, can be made to the Saskatchewan Heart and Stroke Foundation 1738 Quebec Ave #26, Saskatoon, SK S7K 1V9 or the Canadian Cancer Society 1910 McIntyre Street Regina, Saskatchewan S4P 2R3. Good byes are not forever Good byes are not the end They simply mean we will miss You Until we meet again. Written by his daughter, Laurie For those wishing to leave a condolence, you may do so at www.eternalmemoriesfuneral.ca Funeral Arrangements have been entrusted to Trevor Watts of Eternal Memories Funeral Service & Crematorium

JULLION: Mr. Guy Jullion resident of Edam, SK passed away with family by his side at the Battlefords Union Hospital at the age of 69 years. Vigil of Prayer was held Wednesday, January 1, 2020 at 7:00 p.m. at the St. Hippolyte Roman Catholic Church in Vawn, SK. Mass of Christian Burial was held Thursday, January 2, 2020 at 2:00 p.m. at the Edam Community Centre both with Reverend Father Barry Tkatchuk as celebrant.

Memorial donations in memory of Mr. Guy Jullion may be directed to the BUH Foundation Po Box 1358 North Battleford, SK S9A 3L8 or the Canadian Cancer Society 1910 McIntyre Street Regina, Saskatchewan S4P 2R3. Guy is lovingly remembered by his wife Emily of 41 years, Daughter Angela (Mike) Weber their children Mia, Kobi and Klay; Son, Joel (Cindy) their children, Bram and Rylee; Son, Adam (Lindsey) their children, Charley and Grae; Son, Brett (Cassie) their children Bentley and Vienna; Daughter Jenna (Jason) Nash their children Harper and Wren. His three brothers, Denis (Cami), Marc (Carlys), Mike (Shelley); sisters, Paulette (Lenny) Blais, Nicole (Al) Babiuk; brothers-in-law, Robert Delaire (Darlene), Roger Delaire, John Delaire, sisters-in-law, Donna Gratton, Carolyn (Terry) Tait, Corinne Delaire (Herb), Darlene (Cory) Rewerts; Numerous nieces and nephews. Guy was predeceased by his parents Charles Jullion and Agnes Jullion Wilkinson, his stepfather Neil Wilkinson; his sister Jocelyn Grismer, brother-in-law Gary Grismer; and his father- and mother-in-law Clarence & Muriel Delaire. For those wishing to leave a condolence, you may do so at www.eternalmemoriesfuneral.ca Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Trevor Watts of Eternal Memories Funeral Service & Crematorium.

FUNK: The family of James (Jim) Funk has been changed with his passing on January 3, 2020. Jim was born in Waldheim, SK in his family home on January 1, 1932. He left home at the age of 15 to seek adventures that would satisfy his love of the outdoors. He spent most of his working life working with animals, in pastures, and helping out local farmers. Jim was very much a family man. He met his wife, Elsie Letkeman in 1952. They were married July 13, 1954, and raised 5 children. Jim is predeceased by his wife, Elsie Funk, parents, Lena and Henry Funk, infant daughter, Katherine Funk, son, Wesley Funk, sister, Grace Uhl and her husband, Reinhold Uhl, brothers, Howard and, Harold Funk, parents-in-law Henry and Agnetha Letkeman. sister/brother-in-law, Doreen and Edward Smith, brother/sisterin-law, Leonard and Peggy Letkeman, and brother-in-law, Douglas Bundy. He is survived by, and will be lovingly remembered by his children, Bradley Funk, Leila (Finlay) Currie, Bernie (Val Plummer) Funk, and Delores Funk, 10 grandchildren and 9 great-grandchildren, many nieces and nephews and great nieces and nephews, sisters, Ruth Jalbert, Dorothy Benard, Josephine (Don) Bogner, Trudy (Marvin) Bauer, Sam (Pat) Funk, Gladys Ruedger, as well as many friends that he has met on his trails. Jim took pride in his work at many jobs as well as his many creative hobbies. He loved all things of nature, like wildflowers, birds, horses, the fresh spring green of aspen trees, and above all, he found great joy in his children and grandchildren.

Jim will be lovingly remembered and greatly missed. We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to the medical staff and care teams at St Paul’s Hospital, as well as in the Saskatoon Cancer clinic. Dad had a deep faith, and a great love of his church. In lieu of flowers, we invite donations to be sent to The Hafford Mennonite Brethren Church. We welcomed all who wished to attend to a celebration of his life January 8, 2020 at 1:00 p.m. at the Shell Lake Lion’s Hall. Following the service, all were invited to gather for lunch, catered by A.M Bistro in Hafford, to share stories and refreshments. Of course, no celebration of Jim would be complete without ice cream! Family and friends wishing to send online condolences are welcome to visit www.beaulacfuneralhome.com. Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of Beau “Lac” Funeral Home, Fred Pomrenk, Director, Shellbrook (306-747-2828). __________________________________________________

TO BOOK CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING CALL 306-445-7261

Wandler: Julia Ann passed away peacefully December 21, 2019 at Battleford District Care Centre at the age of 92 years.

Mass of Christian Burial was held Monday, December 30, 2019 at 2:00 p.m. at St. Joseph Calasanctius Roman Catholic Church with Reverend Father Phinh Do as celebrant.

Private Family interment was held at the North Battleford City Cemetery.

Memorial donations in memory of Mrs. Julia Wandler may be directed to The Lung Association, Saskatchewan 1231 8th Street East Saskatoon, SK S7H 0S5.

Julia was born January 7, 1927 in Compeer, Alberta. Julia and Mike married in 1950 and farmed near Wilkie, Sask. They moved to North Battleford in 1967. Julia began working at the River Heights Lodge and retired in 1991. After retirement Julia enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren and great grandchildren, time baking and having coffee with friends. Julia is loved and remembered by her children Julie Kozak (Pat), Annette Kinakin (Lyle), Tammy Michnik (Doug); grand children Jodi Bell (Rod), Christian Kozak (Alexis); great grandchildren Michael, Kyle, Madalyn Michnik, Taylor Kinakin, Kalan, Sydney Bell; one sister Agnes Wandler; three sisters-in-law Amelia Sander, Theresa Sander, Joan Wandler; one brother-in-law Chris Wandler, plus many nieces and nephews. Julia was predeceased by her husband Mike, infant son Frank William; her parents Wilhelm and Julia; brothers Joe, Bill, John, Jerry, Leo and sisters Elizabeth, Mary and Veronica.

Card Of Thanks Thanks to family and friends for all the emotional support, food trays, phone calls and messages. Thanks to Dr. Holtzhousen and staff at BDCC for the compassionate care. Thanks to Trevor Watts and staff of Eternal Memories Funeral Services and Crematorium for the support given to the family.

KEDL, Rita Christina Rita Kedl, age 83, beloved sister of Father Aloysius Kedl and Mary (Bill) Comeault, passed away peacefully on Wednesday, December 18, 2019 at Sherbrooke Community Centre in Saskatoon, SK. Rita was born in Paradise Hill, SK and attended school in Perch Lake. Rita sang in church and community choirs and served the local Parish through her involvement with the CWL. She moved to Battleford in 1970. Sometime later she was the caregiver to her parents. Rita spent many years working for the Oblates stationed in Battleford as secretary to Raema Communication. Later, Rita served the St. Vital Parish in Battleford as secretary. She served many local parishioners in their ministries. She was a coordinator of RCIA in the Prince Albert Diocese and the St. Vital Parish. Her favourite hobbies were photography and travelling to the Rocky Mountains with her brother, Father Aloysius. Stamp collecting was one early hobby. Reading and following world events was of great importance to Rita. She treasured her friendships with many people in the Paradise Hill area and the Battlefords. Her nieces and nephews were a blessing to her and she treasured their visits. Family members who mourn her loss are her brother Father Aloysius Kedl; sister Mary (Bill) Comeault; brother-in-law Frank Koob; nephews John (Jennevieve) Koob, Mark (Tanya) Koob and their son Noah; nieces Christina (Kevin) Zarycki, Michelle (Todd) Gaucher and their children Nathanael, Gemma, Mirielle and Tobias, Cecile (Justin) Klein and their son Owen.

Rita was predeceased by her parents Aloyius and Christina Kedl; and sister Rose Koob. Rita’s family wishes to thank all those who cared for her during her stay at Miel’s Private Care Home, RUH, City Hospital and Sherbrooke Community Centre.

The Vigil for Rita was held at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, December 27 at St. Philip Neri Roman Catholic Church (1902 Munroe Ave. S.) in Saskatoon. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 28 at St. Vital Roman Catholic Church (11-18th St. E.) in Battleford. Memorial donations may be made to St. Vital Parish Building Fund.

Arrangements were in care of John Schachtel – Mourning Glory Funeral Services (306) 978-5200 www.mourningglory.ca

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OBITUARIES

ANNOUNCEMENTS Victor Rose January 10, 1930 – December 17, 2019

Dear family and friends, it is with sadness of our hearts that we must share that our loving husband, adoring father, grandfather and great grandfather, Victor Boniface Rose has gone to be with the Lord his Saviour in heaven.

He passed away peacefully on the evening of December 17, 2019 with all of us surrounding him with our love and prayers. It was truly a miracle that we could all be by his side at the time of his passing. Although we are sad, we rejoice in knowing he lives forevermore with Jesus! So many people loved and adored our 89 year old Dad! He had such a large family, on both the Rose and Parenteau sides, plus a large circle of friends, and fans both near and far! We will all miss his kind and gentle manner, his humour, his talent and oh……, so much more! He was the most caring and generous man, and we were blessed to have him in our lives for so many years!! A celebration of his life is being planned for sometime in the spring. Watch Marshall’s Funeral Home website for details www.marshallsfuneralhome.ca. With much love from Tina Rose, the Rose, Norman, Saunders and Namur Families __________________________________________________

FUNERAL SERVICES GORDON: Funeral Service for Mrs. Evelyn Gordon, resident of Unity Long Term Care, Unity, SK will be held at 2:00 P.M. on Friday, January 10, 2020 from ‘The Garden Chapel’ – Battlefords Funeral Service, 1332 – 100th Street, North Battleford, SK. Donations in Evelyn’s memory are requested to Unity Long Term Care, Box 741, Unity, SK S0K 4L0 (please designate to the Rec Department) or to the donor’s choice. Condolences can be sent to www.eternal memoriesfuneral.ca Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Robert MacKay of Battlefords Funeral Service (306-446-4200).

MEETINGS

The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 19

FOR SALE - MISC

LAND FOR SALE

40 Brome, Brome/Alfalfa Bales $75.00. 40 Wheat Straw Bales $25.00. 306-445-5426. 306-4412741

Is this a credible SOURCE?

S

PROVINCE-WIDE CLASSIFIEDS. Reach over 550,000 readers weekly. Call this newspaper NOW or 306-649.1405 for details.

P O T

COMMUNITY NEWSPAPER

READERS

NOTICE

THE AUTOMOTIVE ADS

IN THEIR PRINTED

Don’t believe everything you see.

NEWSPAPER

SPOTfakenews.ca

CARD OF THANKS

WORK WANTED

Lori Neville and the family of Lawrence Oborowsky would like to thank all our family and friends for the many phone calls, visits, flowers and gifts of food.

Your support and thoughtfulness was greatly appreciated. A special thank-you to Trevor Watts and staff at Eternal Memories Funeral Service.

DUPLEXES FOR RENT 2 Bedroom duplex for rent. Fridge, stove, washer, and dryer. $900-$1100 per month. references required. 441-1596 or 441-6728 (no texts)

Classified advertising 306-445-7261

Source: News Media Canada

ANNOUNCEMENTS

battlefords humane society

COMING EVENTS Saskatoon Farm Toy and Collectible Show January 10-12, 2020 at the German Cultural Centre, Saskatoon, SK. Friday 5pm-9pm, Saturday 10am-5pm, Sunday 10am-4pm.

Special features include farm toys and scenes, construction equipment, vintage toys, die-cast models, collectibles, replacement parts and more!

MOBILE/MANUFACTURED HOMES FOR SALE

The names Angelica.I enjoy hanging out with other other cats here but mostly I love attention from you humans! I will do anything to get an ear scratch or a tummy rub, I’d say I’ll be extra adorable but I don’t even have to TRY to do that.

Im JoleneWith the year approaching I’m settin’ my sights on the road ahead, and for me it could lead anywhere, there are so many possibilities! One of those roads will hopefully lead me to meetin’ my furrever family.

Call the Animal Shelter 306.446.2700 NOTICES / NOMINATIONS

Eternal Memories Funeral Service and Crematorium

2741-99th St., North Battleford Trevor Watts - Owner/Director (306) 445-7570 24 hours

The Battlefords Only On-Site Crematorium Funerals | Burials | Cremation | Preplanning

TO BOOK CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING CALL 306-445-7261 REGISTRATIONS

Battlefords Funeral Service

1332 - 100th St., North Battleford Robert Mackay - Director (306) 446-4200 24 hours

Serving Families with Dignity, Respect & Compassion WE ARE LOCALLY AND FAMILY OWNED

eternalmemoriesfuneral.ca

John Paul II Collegiate Invites new Students to Register for Semester 2!

Community Safety and Crime Prevention

Registration for new students will take place on Thursday, January 16th at 10:00 a.m. in the JPII School Library.

Please plan to attend.

GET INVOLVED!

Men have a responsibility to stop male violence against women.

A message from the Canada Safety Council

Early Registration is your best chance to get the courses you need.

1491 97 St, North Battleford, SK S9A 0K1 (306) 446-2232

Page 20 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

FARM SERVICES

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LEGAL / PUBLIC NOTICES

FEED & SEED

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

VILLAGE OF

MERVIN PUBLIC NOTICE

SALE OF TAX TITLE PROPERTY Tenders will be received by the Village of Mervin for the following property until 4 pm January 30, 2020.

ANY TENDERS SUBMITTED AFTER 4 PM, JANUARY 30, 2020 WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. Legal Description: Lot 3 Plan U828 Zoning: RESIDENTIAL Property Taxes: $1578.56 (2019 Tax Year) Possession Date: Upon payment in full, transfer of title will be submitted.

SINCE 2008

Built with Concrete Posts Barns, Shops, Riding Arenas, Machine Sheds and More

The Required Tender Form: CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

sales@ Integritybuilt.com 1-866-974-7678 www. integritybuilt.com FEED & SEED

Advertisements and statements contained herein are the sole responsibility of the persons or entities that post the a d ve r t i s e m e n t , and the Saskatchewan Weekly Newspaper Association and membership do not make any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness or reliability of such advertisements.

For greater information on advertising conditions, please consult the Association’s Blanket A d v e r t i s ing Conditions on our website at www.swna.com.

THURSDAY’S BEST

ONLINE

www.newsoptimist.ca RENTALS & LEASES

SENIORS AFFORDABLE HOUSING New easy access 2 bedroom unit in a four-plex 6 appliances $

876/month

Must be 55+ and make under $44,500 per household.

Call Linda

306-441-2533 900 Block on 104th Street SPACE FOR LEASE

SPACE FOR RENT - 1,500 sq. ft.

2202 - 100th Street North Battleford Next to A & W

Call: 306-481-6576 OR 306-397-1212

Leave an

IMPRESSION

- 1 888 470 7997 CallCall306-445-7261

All tenders are to be submitted on the required tender form (available at the village office).

1. The tender form must be completed in full. No other information is to be provided other than that asked on the required form. Form to be submitted to the Village office in person or by mail to the following address: Village of Mervin, Box 35, Mervin, Sask. S0M 1Y0 2. A deposit equal to 10% of the total bid amount must be included with the tender forms. The deposit shall be in the form of a certified cheque, bank draft, money order or cash. Deposits will be returned to unsuccessful bidders.

All tenders must be submitted in a sealed envelope and marked as Lot 3 Plan U828.

The successful purchaser must enter into an agreement for sale. Failure by the successful purchaser to conclude the sales transaction will result in forfeiture of their deposit as liquidated damages.

The Village of Mervin reserves the right to reject any or all tenders.

Lora Hundt, Administrator CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

R.M. OF MEDSTEAD NO. 497 SEASONAL MAINTENANCE/EQUIPMENT OPERATOR POSITION The R.M. of Medstead No. 497 invites applica�ons for an experienced full �me Seasonal Maintenance/ Equipment Operator. The Seasonal Maintenance/ Equipment Operator will be responsible for mowing this municipality’s ditches, rock picking, mulching in conjunc�on with the grader operators, installing and repairing signs and other jobs as directed by the Reeve. Opportunity may be present in the future to move into a grader operator posi�on. Pay rates depending on experience.

The R.M. of Medstead No. 497 is located in central Saskatchewan located approximately forty five minutes north of North Ba�leford.

Applicants must possess a valid Class 5 driver’s license and have skill and experience in maintenance and opera�on of equipment including tractor, mower, rock picker and mulcher.

Submit wri�en resumes sta�ng experience, expected wage, two references and a current driver’s abstract by 4:00 p.m. on March 12th, 2020. All resumes shall be marked “Seasonal Maintenance/Equipment Operator Posi�on” and dropped off at the RM Office, mailed to the address below or emailed to rm497@sasktel.net.

R.M. of Medstead No. 497 Box 12 Medstead, SK S0M 1W0 Council thanks all applicants for their interest in this posi�on but only persons selected for interviews will be contacted.

Edwards Society Inc., a community organization providing residential and program service work to persons with long term mental illness, is inviting applications for position of Mental Health Worker II, Next Step Program.

The Next Step Program Staff reports to the Executive Director and is responsible for the coordination, implementation and evaluation of the program. This person works closely with Saskatchewan Health Authority representatives through Mental Health Services, Community Mental Health Nurses and Community Recovery Team.

The position is responsible to ensure that the clients in the program receive the assistance they require to live in the community and maintain their wellness, in accordance with the agency mandate and the program goals and objective. Your role is that of a mentor, role model and advocate assisting individuals who live in their own homes. You will facilitate the learning of new skills and will provide assistance with solving day to day problems.

This facilitation and assistance will occur during both structured and unstructured program time with clients.

Qualifications: • CCA certificate. Individuals without this qualification may also be considered where there is other equivalent education and / or experience.

• Have a working knowledge regarding confidentiality as it applies to a health care setting.

• Be dependable and highly motivated.

• Ability to assess behaviors, needs and wellness of adults with mental illness and addictions.

• Have good organizational skills and be able to maintain a positive attitude.

• Experience in program planning, implementation and evaluation • Objective verbal and written communication skills • Ability to work effectively with community resources and personnel • Responsible to work independently and manage own workload • Competent in problem solving and decision making skills • Demonstrate motivation for continued learning & professional development • Knowledge of psychosocial rehabilitation practices • Must be computer proficient • First aid and PART an asset To apply, please submit a package which includes a cover letter, resume and references, along with copies of your driver’s license, driver’s abstract, criminal record check with vulnerable sector, and all certificates you have earned.

Apply in person, fax or email Monday to Friday between 9-5 Edwards Society Inc. 11301 Clark Drive, North Battleford, Sk. S9A 3P4 Fax: 306-445-0334 Email: wendy.esi@sasktel.net For more information contact: Wendy Childerhose, Executive Director at 306-446-2706 Deadline for applications is Jan. 13, 2020, or until a suitable candidate is found.

We wish to thank all applicants and wish to advise that only those individuals who have been selected for an interview will be contacted

306-445-7261

The R.M. of Medstead No. 497 reserves the right to reject and refuse any or all expressions of interest.

If you want to drink, that’s your business.

If you want to stop, we can help.

CALL ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS

306-446-6166

BOOK YOUR CLASSIFIEDS THE BATTLEFORDS

Integrity Post Frame Buildings

EDWARDS SOCIETY INC.

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 21

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

The R.M. of Medstead No. 497 invites applications for an experienced full time Seasonal Grader/ Equipment Operator. The Seasonal Grader/ Equipment Operator will be responsible for public works operations, organizing their own schedule and work duties, have good communication skills and be able to prepare and maintain reports as directed by the Council. Wages will be between $25.00 - $28.00 per hour depending on experience.

The R.M. of Medstead No. 497 is located in central Saskatchewan located approximately forty five minutes north of North Battleford.

Applicants must possess a valid Class 5 driver’s license and have skill and experience in maintenance and operation of heavy equipment including grader, dozer, buggy, tractor, mower, rock picker and mulcher.

Submit written resumes stating experience, expected wage, two references and a current driver’s abstract by 4:00 p.m. on March 12th, 2020. All resumes shall be marked “Seasonal Grader/Equipment Operator Position” and mailed, dropped off at the address below or emailed to rm497@sasktel.net.

R.M. of Medstead No. 497 Box 12 Medstead, SK S0M 1W0 Council thanks all applicants for their interest in this position but only persons selected for interviews will be contacted.

The R.M. of Medstead No. 497 reserves the right to reject and refuse any or all expressions of interest.

The Rural Municipality of Meeting Lake No. 466 accepting applications for

Casual Office Assistant The successful applicant will provide clerical support, process public inquiries and complete municipal tasks as assigned, with casual hours to retain the regular office hours.

Requirements include technical skills in municipal administration, governance and municipal accounting.

Preference will be given to candidates who possess the following: • Local government administration or another certificate from a business-related program.

• High level of computer literacy - with Munisoft and Microsoft Office programs • Knowledge in basic accounting principles and practices • Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written • Ability to deal effectively with the general public and to work independently Applicants are invited to submit a resume detailing qualification, work experience and three references.

Deadline for receiving applications is February 6, 2020 at 4:00 p.m.

Please submit application to the following address: Email: rm466@sasktel.net Fax: 306-246-4974 Mail: R.M. of Meeting Lake No. 466, Box 26, Mayfair, SK S0M 1S0 The R.M. of Meeting Lake wishes to thank all applicants, but only those selected for an interview will be contacted.

Now accepting applications for the following:

FAMILY SERVICE WORKER

(Term Position February 1/2020–February 28, 2021) Keyanow Child and Family Centre Inc. is seeking application for a highly motivated individual who is willing to meet the challenges of Child Protection on Little Pine First Nation, Poundmaker and Lucky Man Cree Nation. In this position, you will be responsible for investigating allegations of neglect, physical or sexual abuse; assessing family function; determining risks to children’s safety; implementing intervention plans to address child protection issues; and providing support services to families. When necessary you will initiate court proceedings and work through this process with the family. You will be required to travel and work flexible hours. Our Agency has Zero Tolerance of Drugs including Marijuana, and Alcohol. Must have a BSW or BISW. Qualified applicants please submit: resume plus 3-professional and 2-personal references, RCMP Criminal & Vulnerable Sector Record Check and a Driver’s Abstract to: HR Personnel at P.O. Box 1426, North Battleford, Sk. S9A 3M1 or e-mail: joyces@kcfcentre.com or fax 306-445-5568.

COOK

• North Battleford Comprehensive High School

TEACHERS

• Bready Elementary School • Spiritwood High School

Educational Assistant

• St. Vital Catholic School, Battleford

Apply online prior to 12:00 noon, Tuesday, January 14, 2020 Details and link to online applications can be found on our website at www.lskysd.ca.

All applications must be submitted online.

Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre Inc. is an accredited organization serving the Health needs of the following First Nations: Little Pine, Mosquito, Poundmaker, Lucky Man, and Moosomin.

Deadline for applications is January 17, 2020 We thank all applications and wish to advise that only those individuals who have been selected for an interview will be contacted.

Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre Inc. is seeking a PERMANENT FULL TIME HOME CARE NURSE AN EXCITING NURSING OPPORTUNITY IN A SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT Qualifications: • Registered Nurse in good standing (or eligible to become registered) with Saskatchewan Registered Nurses Association • Bachelor of Science in Nursing • Home Care nursing experience in First Nations community an asset.

• Must be self-directed and demonstrate organizational skills • Excellent interpersonal communication skills • Valid driver’s license • Previous working experience with First Nations people and demonstrate an understanding of the health and social issues encountered by First Nation people and a willingness to learn about and accept First Nations cultures.

• Knowledge of Plains Cree Language is a definite asset • Must provide a clear criminal record check with vulnerable sector Hours of work: 8:30 to 4:30; Monday to Friday.

Rotational On Call Weekends Company Vehicle Provided.

For position specific information contact Lorna Whitford, Home Care Nurse Supervisor at 306.937.6700.

Submit resume, cover letter and 3 professional references by 4:00 PM, January 17, 2020 to: Human Resources Department Email: Recruitment@BRT6HC.ca Fax: 306 937 6767

CALL NOW • 306-445-7261 FOR THE BEST COVERAGE IN THE COMMUNITY

• DOOR-TO-DOOR • CARRIER SERVICE

BRT6HC wishes to thank all applicants for their interest however, only those candidates selected for interviews will be contacted.

newsoptimist.ca

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• TOTAL COVERAGE OR PERSONALIZED COVERAGE

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Financial thinkers wanted.

We’re looking for fresh customer service talent to join our team.

We create an exceptional experience for members and potential members both face to face and online/mobile.

Visit the careers section of our website to view full details on any of our positions. innovationcu.ca Innovation Credit Union offers

• Competitive wages • Comprehensive benefit program • Matched company pension of 7% • Attractive variable incentive program • Career advancement • Financial education support • Learning on work time • Fast paced exciting environment

T H E B AT T L E F O R D S

SEASONAL GRADER/EQUIPMENT OPERATOR POSITION

JOB OPPORTUNITY

THE BATTLEFORDS

R.M. OF MEDSTEAD NO. 497

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Page 22 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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Celebrating local music talent in the New Year

By Kelly Waters

Battlefords Kiwanis Music Festival

Here’s to 2020 and celebrating local musical talent through the Battlefords Kiwanis Music Festival. This year’s festival is scheduled to run from March 24 to April 5. Deadline for entries is Saturday, Jan. 20.

Fees for solos, duets, trios and small ensembles are $15 per entry. Band, choir and large ensemble entries are $30 per entry. Late entries will be accepted with a $25 late registration fee per participant. As the festival entry system moves along with technology, an online profile can be created for the entry system (Music Festival Suite) at any time, even for those not ready to submit entries.

If a student or teacher has a profile from last year, it will be saved in the system, accessible by password.

Participants are welcome for adjudication by

“Finally, my father said to get a job or go to school. So, I looked into Juilliard. I asked my father if he would pay for it if I got in by audition. He said he would. So, I practiced the most complicated pieces I could find. I took the audition, and when I was done, there were no smiles or frowns. A week or so later, a letter arrived. I was accepted into the school. I was exposed to classical music and became amazed at how much jazz harmony came from Stravinsky and Ravel. We’d analyze the scores of classical works, which got me into arranging. Eventually I was devoting as much time to music theory and writing as I was practicing the saxophone.” – Words from an interview with Jazz Legend Ray Santos (1928- 2019) experts in the field of each musical discipline and recommendation to the provincial and national com-

petitions. To be eligible for scholarships and awards, participants must be 19 years or under and have

lived in the Battlefords and district for a minimum of six month prior to the festival or be furthering their education elsewhere, but still supported by parents living in the Battlefords district. Areas of competition for musicians include voice, piano, guitar, strings, woodwind, brass, percussion, pipe and electronic organ, choir/school music including special education, multicultural, speech arts (individual verse and speech therapy classes, storytelling), small ensembles and band and orchestral classes.

Information about regional, district and provincial music festivals can be found on the Saskatchewan Music Festival’s website http:// smfa.ca. The Saskatchewan Music Festival Association was established in 1908.

The Battlefords festival is one of 47 district festivals in Saskatchewan. The SMFA is committed to

promoting excellence in music and speech arts by providing performance and educational opportunities through competitive music festivals.

The SMFA provides a provincial syllabus, entrance to annual provincial, concerto and opera competitions, as well as the National Level of Music Festival competition.

Member festivals are organized by local volunteers and judged by qualified professional musicians.

Entrance to SMFA festivals is accessible to all ages, all ethnic groups and people of all religions.

Participants may enter any classes for “adjudication only” and forego marks and scholarships. The SMFA hires more than 170 qualified professional musicians to serve as adjudicators each year.

The board of directors for the SMFA announced, for the 2020 festival year, the creation of the SMFA

Senior Excellence Classes, available to competitors at the district festival level with opportunity for advancement to provincial finals. Also, the first SMFA musical theatre competition will take place in February and the new concerto classes, at provincial finals.

The committee of volunteers is always looking for more parents, grandparents and community-minded people to step forward and say, “How can I help?” If you have any interest in offering support, contact a committee member or indicate interest on your child’s registration. If your time is not available, but you or your business would like to support the festival monetarily, consider sponsoring an award to be presented at the final gala event, sponsoring a session for a music discipline or being recognized as a patron or friend of the festival.

Ice fishers continue to dot lake with shacks

By Lorna Pearson Correspondent

Winter holidays are over for most folks, but the weather has not been too bad. Roads were passable and mostly dry, so I hope you all had a nice time with family and friends.

Apologies are being offered by the folks who organized the fish fry. After much effort it became impossible to carry out.

The post office hours have been shortened and

are now 9 a.m. to noon and 1 to 3 p.m. All services will continue to be available at the wicket.

There are more fish shacks going out onto the lake every day. Some look fancy. Today I saw one with a truck camper, likely with

a hole in the floor or maybe just a warm-up shack.

My niece and her hubby went for a drive in downtown Vancouver to see the lights.

They couldn’t believe what they saw. Hundreds of homeless people line the sidewalks to bed down for the night. They said it was also sad the amount of garbage and trash everywhere – paper cups and other trash littering their once beautiful downtown. They went home disheartened.

Over Christmas, Gail Hilderman and Eric Callbeck travelled to St. Albert, Alta. to spend time with Eric’s son and family and then went on to High River to spend time with Gail’s son. This drive took one gallon of windshield washer, as the QE2 was slushy. They spent a couple days in Calgary, too. It was a happy holiday time with family gatherings and mild weather.

Last weekend I watched the world competition of

horse jumping at Geneva, Switzerland. So many made clear jumps as they competed for a chance to go to the Olympics in Tokyo this year. Likewise I watched the swimming and again records were broken and winners were decided by electronics. There were differences of fractions of seconds in both sports.

How did they manage before they had this device?

While we enjoy the nuthatches and sparrows, doves and others, the pretty

birds are further north. We used to have them at Chitek, but no more. These are the red pine grosbeaks and yellow evening grosbeaks along with the ptarmigans, red polls and others.

Carol and Albert Huys of Trevessa Beach had the pleasure of their family home for Christmas from Calgary and the Cayman Islands. The weather was perfect for skiing, tobogganing and skating on the lake. They all had a great time.

Here are the Top 10 puppy names for 2019 Submitted The highly anticipated list of the Top 10 Puppy Names for 2019 has arrived!

Trupanion, a leader in

medical insurance for cats and dogs, combed its database of over 500,000 pets to find out what the most popular puppy names were for 2019. If you happen to find a new furry friend in

your home this season, you may want to use this list as inspiration when you’re considering names. Drum roll, please ...

Most common puppy names in 2019:

1. Luna 2. Bella 3. Charlie 4. Bailey 5. Lucy 6. Cooper 7. Max

COMING EVENTS

Mondays & Thursdays

North Battleford Table Tennis. September - May 28. Mondays & Thursdays from 7:00PM - 9:00PM 1371-103rd Street - use back parking lot doors off 102nd - behind the library. Youth, Adults & Seniors - All skill levels. Contact us for more information or drop in! tabletennisnb@gmail.com.

8. Daisy 9. Bear 10. Oliver Trupanion also looked at puppy names from a historical perspective (see the chart). As you can see, Luna tops the puppy name chart in 2019. But that wasn’t always the case.

Looking back 10 years, Luna was barely a blip on the name game chart … not even cracking the list

of top 20 names. Bella (always neck and neck with the name Charlie) took a dip in 2017 and 2018, but has edged back to the number two spot this year.

Over a span of nearly 20 years, Trupanion has covered more than 785,000 puppies, paying out more than $100 million for medical care (puppies do love to get into things they shouldn’t)!

Thursdays

Peer to Peer Support Group for Mental Health meets Thursday mornings @ 9:30 am at 1602 103rd Street in North.We welcome you to join us as we work towards recovery, and support one another.You will be warmly welcomed by all.

Friday January 10, 2020

Enjoy stories inspired by STREAM activities.At the North Battleford Library, starting at 11:00AM. Ages 4-8.

www.newsoptimist.ca for more community events

Alcoholics Anonymous

Please call our 24 hour at 1-877-341-3322 for support or information.

Al-anon Family Groups

If someone’s drinking troubles, attending Al-Anon Family Group provides understanding and support. Meetings Monday at 7:00 PM and Friday at 10:00 AM at the Zion Lutheran Church, corner of 15th Ave. & 108th Street. Contacts 306-937-7765, 306-937-7289 or 306-441-9324.

Saturday January 11, 2020

Come share your poetry with the group in a safe space. At the North Battleford Library, starting at 2:00PM. Ages 13+.

Wednesday January 15, 2020

For ages 18 months to 3 years. Enjoy 30 minutes of stories and rhymes. at the North Battleford library, starting at 10:45AM.

Wednesday January 15, 2020

Join us for an exciting travel talk by our very own head librarian. At the North Battleford Library, at 7:00PM

This section is provided free-of-charge to non-profit organizations.

To list the Community Calendar please please email adtakers@sasktel.net.

Please provide complete information including event, time, date and location.

Although we will do our utmost to make sure your event appears in this section, we can not guarantee all submissions will appear. Deadline for submissions is Friday at 10:00 a.m.

www.newsoptimist.ca 892-104th Street | North Battleford | 306-445-7261 T H E B AT T L E F O R D S

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 23

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Cairns on Cinema

Box Office year in review: the force is not with Star Wars

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

Welcome once again to my annual Cairns on Cinema Box Office Year in Review, where we look back upon all the hits from the past year.

As usual, I am sitting here doing a Year in Review when the final numbers are not even in. Still in release is Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which continues to rake in big dollars. Its latest domestic total sits at over $390 million at the moment.

However, this haul is way short of expectations.

People were thinking the Star Wars franchise would again topple, or at least threaten to topple, no shortage of all-time box office records. That isn’t happening. For instance, this movie’s domestic opening weekend was a $175 million haul when people were predicting over $200 million.

What happened? It’s obvious. Disney got greedy and opted to make a quick buck when they should have waited another year or so to release a decent movie. That’s what Scott Mendelson was basically saying in his Forbes column, titled “Disney Should Have Delayed ‘Star Wars: Rise of Skywalker’ to

2020.”

I would have considered waiting until 2021.

By then, Star Wars fans would have been truly excited to see their favorite characters again, and several all-time records would have been under threat. But that approach would have meant sacrificing sure-fire short-term revenue for the Walt Disney Company.

Disney’s mistake is thinking the Star Wars franchise is a sure-fire money train they can roll out at will. It’s not that simple and it’s not so easy.

Yes, Disney does make a quick buck short-term, but they are going to lose longterm. This strategy risks burning out the Star Wars franchise both exposurewise and creatively as well.

If that happens, Disney

won’t make money on Star Wars in the future. Period.

And what good will that be to them?

I don’t feel like going on and on about this topic.

The bottom line is the box office champion for 2019 is NOT Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker. Instead, it is Avengers: Endgame, whose worldwide gross of $2.797 billion toppled Avatar’s record as the biggest of all time.

Here are the total domestic gross numbers as of Jan. 2, 2020 according to Box Office Mojo: 1 Avengers: Endgame $858,373,000 (Disney) 2 The Lion King $543,638,043 (Disney) 3 Toy Story 4 $434,038,008 (Disney) 4 Frozen II $430,098,939 (Disney)

5 Captain Marvel $426,829,839 (Disney) 6 Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker $390,602,536 (Disney) 7 Spider-Man: Far from Home $390,532,085 (Sony) 8 Aladdin $355,559,216 (Disney) 9 Joker $333,494,002 (Warner Bros.)

10 It Chapter Two $211,593,228 (Warner Bros.)

Total worldwide grosses as of Jan. 2, 2020 according to Box Office Mojo: 1 Avengers: Endgame $2,797,800,564* (new record for biggest gross of all time) 2 The Lion King $1,656,821,650 3 Frozen II $1,228,494,815 4 Spider-Man: Far from Home $1,131,927,996 5 Captain Marvel $1,128,274,794 6 Toy Story 4 $1,073,394,593 7 Joker $1,062,994,002 8 Aladdin $1,050,693,953 9 Star Wars: Episode IX - The Rise of Skywalker $774,829,514 10 Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw $758,910,100 I should point out the hauls for Star Wars: Episode IX – The Rise of Skywalker are not yet final.

The expectation is it will

finish second in domestic gross and as high as third in the worldwide gross when all is said and done, based on current totals.

With respect to the overall box office, Deadline Hollywood was reporting the total domestic box office for 2019 stood at $11.4 billion, down four percent from a year ago.

The global box office for the year is $41 billion.

Again, there are a lot of reasons to point to for why the box office is down, but there’s a lot of “franchise fatigue” out there with people fed up at seeing the same old product at theatres all the time. How many more Spider-Man movies can one stand? You get the picture.

The top studio in 2019 was, of course, Disney.

Seven of the top 10 domestic releases belonged to Mickey Mouse’s studio, fresh on the heels of its major acquisition of 20th Century Fox. AP reported that Disney’s worldwide box office was $13 billion this past year.

Since the 2010s are now over, we might as well provide numbers for the top grossing movies of the past ten years. Once again, these numbers were the ones posted at the Box Office Mojo website.

Top five grossing mov-

ies of the 2010s: Domestic 1 Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens $936,662,225 (2015 release) 2 Avengers: Endgame $858,373,000 (2019) 3 Black Panther $700,059,566 (2018) 4 Avengers: Infinity War $678,815,482 (2018) 5 Jurassic World $652,270,625 (2015) NOTE: Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker will likely bump Jurassic World out of the top 5 list once its run is complete.

Worldwide 1 Avengers: Endgame $2,797,800,564 (2019) 2 Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens $2,068,223,624 (2015) 3 Avengers: Infinity War $2,048,359,754 (2018) 4 Jurassic World $1,670,400,637 (2015) 5 The Lion King $1,656,821,650 (2019) NOTE: Again, this is pending final numbers for Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, but the latest projections out there have it finishing at around $1.2 billion.

That will do it for now as far as the 2019 box office is concerned! We’ll see how things go in 2020 and where Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker finally ends up.

Thank You!...

KidSport Battlefords has successfully hosted Operation Red Nose for the 2019 campaign.

We would like to thank the North Battleford detachment of the RCMP, SGI and Val Wasmuth at Western Financial Group for their assistance in the success of the campaign. A large thank you to the following Corporate Sponsors for their generous donations both financially and by providing free services and products.

Thank you to the following volunteers who called to volunteer their time with driving and other activities, we could not succeed without your many hours of co-operation: Eric Bilanski, Harold Bishop, Elle Mae Bishop, William Bowman, Corinne Dimmick, Siobhan Gormley, Darlene Humenny, Raymond Humenny, Kelvin Keller, Rose Keller, Barbara Kirby, Thomas Schwab, Gordon Mullet, Rob Rongve, David Schell, Boyd Wakelin, Dustin Bohse, Jerry Wintonyk, Deborah Wohlberg, Colliar Kelvin,Colliar Sharon, Fehr Doug, Elizabeth (Jean) Leitner, Ronald Leitner, Shea O’brien, Johnny O’Brien, Linda Sheppard, Bob Mercer, Lauralee St. Amant, Jewelene Ironstand, Dawn Weenie, Debbie Miller, Trina Thunder, Mel Trach, Daisy Adams, Shane Adams, Tashina Pakimin, Trina Campbell, Colleen Milman, Grace Bowman,Jane Zielke –deMontbrun Last but far from least we would like to thank the business clients who contacted us to provide safe rides home for their staff and to all our clients who made the wise decision to “not drink & drive” and called us for a safe ride home for themselves & their vehicle. Battlefords KidSport are the recipients of your generous donations in 2019.

We look forward to everyone’s continued support of Operation Red Nose in 2020.

Operation Red Nose Corporate Sponsors 2019 • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

A & J Mechanical Maintenance Anderson Pump House Ltd Andre’s Meat Shoppe Battleford Flooring Battleford Furniture Ltd Battleford Remedy (Drug Store) Bee-J’s Office Plus Bernier Millwork Boyd Auto Body & Glass BTR Industrial & Ag Canadian Seed Coaters Cargill Grain CJV The Carpet People Doug’s Paint Shoppe Inc Dwight’s Trenching Elaine & Rod Lane Empress Furniture Eternal Memories Funeral Service Fishers Drug Store Fortress Windows and Glass Fountain Tire Four K Auto Service Full Throttle Pump Repair Gold Eagle Lodge Greg Lightfoot/Hein Financial Group • Guys Furniture Ltd • Home Hardware Building Centre NB • Home Hardware

Building Centre Bfrd • J & J Air Conditioning & Refrigeration • Jim Pattison Broadcasting Group • Kerr’s Cleaners • Lakeland Vet. Services PC Ltd • Leonard Parkinson • M/T Holdings Co Ltd (Pennydale) • Meridian Utilities Ltd • Minute Muffler • Monsebroten Financial Services Ltd • No Frills • Nor West Distributors 2015 • North Battleford Agencies • NorthLand Power • P & W Mechanical (1993) Ltd • Parkland Farm Equipment (2004) Ltd • Porta Bella Restaurant • RBC Wealth Management Securities • Red Head • River City Plumbing • Sallows & McDonald Funeral Home • San-Berg Collision Ltd • Sask Tel • SIGA • Sigstads Prairie Catering • Silvester Glass

• • • • •

Sky-Tech Equipment (2013) SunLife Financial Trent Houk Enterprises Tropical Inn Ultra Print Services Ltd

IN KIND DONATIONS:

• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • •

Battleford’s Pizza Boston Pizza Bridges Chevrolet Buick GMC Ltd City of North Battleford CMHA (Headquarters Office) Comfort Inn Country Cuisine Discovery Co-Op Domino’s Pizza Enhanced Driver Education Family Pizza News Optimist North Battleford Hyundai Nutter Bulk Food Paul’s Motorcycle Shop Pizza Hut Rainbow Toyota Scott Campbell Dodge Ltd Security Company of Excellence Sobeys The Blend Tim Hortons Valley Ford

Page 24 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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4-H goes to McKitrick School for gift wrapping

By Keaten Osicki Eagle Hills Multiple 4-H Club has volunteered at McKitrick Community School’s annual Christmas Store for several years. At this event, kids go in line to go shopping for their friends, family or more. At the front of the line, there is a person who asks the kids who they are shopping for. They prepare the list of names on a paper. They find gifts of the people on their list and bring it to the table where they will get their presents wrapped by

the 4-H club.

This year, the 4-H members and families wanted to give back even more to the school and the schoolchildren. Eagle Hills Multiple 4-H Club members were awarded a #RisingYouth Community Service Grant. #RisingYouth is a program led by TakingITGlobal to help youth build Canada and develop life skills by giving back to their communities. Created for youth by youth, we are building a program to increase involvement through com-

munity service. This grant is provided in conjunction with Canada Service Corps., TakingITGlobal and the Government of Canada, the 4-H Club was able to purchase $250 of Christmas gifts which were provided to the schoolchildren. The 4-H Club wants to ensure that everyone is able to have a Merry Christmas.

We were happy to have the opportunity to volunteer at the McKitrick School Christmas Store on Dec. 17.

Eagle Hills Multiple 4-H Club volunteered at the McKitrick School Christmas Store on Dec. 17. Check www.newsoptimist.ca for more photos. Photo submitted

events.

On the Dec. 9, we went to the Battlefords District Care Centre to have a visit with the elderly. We did many fun things at the Care Centre, such as playing both card games and board games. We, also, enjoyed a little bit of colouring with them. We had to help remind them how to play some of the games.

Overall, it was a great fun time for them as it was for us.

On Dec. 16, our 4-H members took turns ringing the bells for the Empty Stocking Fund at four different locations throughout the North Battleford. These locations were located at Discovery

Co-op, Sobeys, Walmart and Frontier Mall. The members worked in teams from 4-8:30 p.m.

The funds collected were used towards purchasing Christmas gifts for children in need in our

community.

The last event was helping the Battlefords and District Food Resource Centre on Dec. 20. Our members and leaders met at the food bank to prepare toy hampers for

Eagle Hills 4-H goes strong for the holidays

By Keaten Osicki Once again, Eagle Hills Multiple 4-H Club goes large for the month of December. We were able to complete our Week of Caring. This means we perform deeds for others in need or in a way of thanking a group of people for their service for what they have done for us and our town. The last things we did were visit seniors at Battlefords District Care Centre, Ringing of the Bells for the Empty Stocking Fund and the toy hamper project with the Battlefords and District Food Resource Centre. So, give us a moment of your time to read through this as we explain each of these

2019

BABY

Parents and Grandparents

DON’T MISS OUT!

Now is the time to submit a photo of your baby or grandbaby born in 2019.

ONE LUCKY SUBMISSION WILL

WIN A

Aralynn Grace Brosseau

GIFT CERTIFICATE!

December 9, 2019 Parents: Colby and Jessica Brosseau Grandparents: Murray and Ramona Evans Dave and Cheryl Panton

DEADLINE: JANUARY 10, 2020

45

$

15

(GST included) A SPECIAL

FULL COLOUR FEATURE

will be published January 16, 2020 in the Regional News-Optimist.

volunteering for such a worthy cause.

Thank you for reading this article on our busy month of December. We hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Playing games and colouring with seniors at Battlefords District Care Centre. Photos submitted

Registry

FOR ONLY

the children and youth of our community who are in need of Christmas presents.

The toys are generously donated by the community and we select the toys based on the children’s age.

The club looks forward to

SUBMISSION FORM for BABIES OF 2019 Baby’s Full Name: __________________________________________ Birth Date: (MONTH/DAY/YEAR) _____________________________ Parent’s Names: ___________________________________________ Grandparent’s Names: ______________________________________ _________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ Contact Name: ____________________________________________ Phone Number: ____________________________________________ Mailing Address: ___________________________________________ _________________________________________________________ PAYMENT METHOD: o Cash o Debit o VISA o Mastercard o Cheque Mail or Drop off submission form and payment to: Battlefords Publishing, 892-104th Street, North Battleford, SK S9A 1M9 or email: adtakers@newsoptimist.ca Photos can be picked up anytime after January 10, 2020

Above and below, ringing the bells for the Empty Stocking Fund. See more photos at www. newsoptimist.ca

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The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 25

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High school exams on students’ minds

By Sherri Solomko Correspondent

Happy New Year. Wishing all our readers much health and happiness for 2020. And a sincere щасливого Різдва and щасливого Нового року to all of our Ukrainian friends.

School is back in session for the second half of the school year and senior high exams are set to run Jan. 27-30. Graduates are studying for exams, making post-secondary applications and scholarship applications and embracing every moment of their last semester of Grade 12.

Rave reviews are still flowing from all of the wonderful events and activities hosted in December. The Dec. 5 Winter Wonderland set the tone for great things all month.

There were packed houses for both schools’ community Christmas concerts and the Fitness Lair Jingle Bell Jog benefitted the local food bank. Mistletoe Magic was well attended

U

nity News

in its inaugural year, with a silver collection going to the museum.

Now, Unity is ready to roll for some more funfilled, activity in the new year.

Battle of the Blades, hosted by the Unity Figure Skating, takes place Jan. 10 at the rink. Eight USC skaters and eight community guys have been practising hard to put on a great show.

The season-end carnival is set for March. 8 The hockey arena hosts an atom tournament this weekend, Jan. 11, and the initiation division hosts Jan. 25. The Miners are on the road until they host their last home game Jan. 18, followed by playoffs.

The Midget AA Lazers, in their farewell season in Unity, play at home Jan. 18 and 19, then not again until

Unity Regional Park members stand with the newly constructed picnic pavilion ready for use in the town’s regional park. Photos by Sherri Solomko

Feb. 8.

The curling rink plays host to a junior bonspiel Jan. 11. Unity Curling Club is accepting team registration for the Pattison Ag Men’s bonspiel Jan. 21-25, followed by a continuous steam of bonspiel and playoff activity until the season ends in late March.

Did you make New Year’s resolutions? Options in Unity include several gyms, a couple of yoga classes, Zumba classes and Club Ryde spin classes. There are many opportunities to help you stay active, including Mount Wilson sled hill and the Richardson Outdoor Recreation Park rink.

More than 40 participants took part in the Jingle Bell Jog co-hosted by Fitness Lair and Rise and Grind Dec. 22.

Former Baljennie resident passes away

B

Claudette McGuire on the passing of her husband Correspondent Micky McGuire Dec. Happy New Year to all 11. They had been living those who read the Baljenat Bridge Road Condos nie happenings column. At in Battleford for a few times, I find it difficult to months. Micky has been in get news. Any help is al- are in the works for an- poor health for some time. ways welcome. other year. Sponsors were A celebration of life was North Battleford West- the backbone of the event’s held for him at the museum ern Development Museum success. in North Battleford and in CONNECT HEARING STUDY UPDATE SEPT 2019 village lights tour came to – HEARING the common room at the The museum is closed an end Jan. 3.

Everyone Mondays now, until the end apartments.

9.875” × 5.250” 10/30/19 at the museum was happy of March.

Sympathy goes out to with a good turnout. Plans Sympathy goes out to the Wilson and Owens

By Dorothy M. Mills

aljennie

families of Spinney Hill and Saskatoon on the recent passing of 83-year-old George Wilson. His parents came from Ireland where they grew potatoes. They made some moves then settled in Saskatoon in the 1930s and got into gardening. George worked at various places in the Saskatoon area. He delivered mail for Canada Post for 11 years.

He married Doris Owen, formerly of Spinney Hill.

They kept a small greenhouse in the backyard that led to the purchase of Hi-Way Greenhouse Ltd. They had a family of three children. The family have taken over the greenhouse, which is now a large operation. A celebration of life for George was held in Hillcrest Funeral Home in Saskatoon with a graveside service.

Greetings go out to Gordon and Jean Smith of Battleford on their 58th wedding anniversary.

They made their home at

Baljennie on the farm of his parents Bill and Margery Smith. They had a family of two sons and three daughters. Gordon took over his dad’s farm while Jean ran a greenhouse for few years. She sold many bedding plants to people in the community and elsewhere. They later moved to Battleford.

Gordon still likes the farm life and keeps his hand in while hunting and participating in many nature activities as well as mechanic work.

Help the University of Guelph improve hearing healthcare across Canada.

Connect Hearing and Professor Mark Fenske at the University of Guelph are seeking participants who are over 50 years of age, have never worn hearing aids and have not had a hearing test in the last 24 months, for a hearing study that investigates factors that can influence better hearing.

Study Parameters The researchers will examine listening in a range of situations, from one-on-one, to group conversations, watching TV and wider social contexts like supermarkets and other noisy environments, and how it effects connection and socialization.

Why Participate?

It is estimated that 46% of people aged 45 to 87 have some degree of hearing loss, but most do not seek a solution right away. In this study you’ll be playing an important part in determining the key factors around identifying hearing loss and what influences the decision to seek treatment.

Participants will be significantly adding to growing knowledge surrounding hearing loss.

You can register to be part of this groundbreaking new hearing study by calling 1.888.242.4892 or visiting connecthearing.ca/hearing-study *Wingfield, A., Tun, P. A., & McCoy, S. L. (2005). Hearing Loss in Older Adulthood: What It Is and How It Interacts With Cognitive Performance. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 14(3), 144–148. † Study participants must be over 50 years of age and have never worn hearing aids. No fees and no purchase necessary. 1. Cruickshanks, K. L., Wiley, T. L., Tweed, T. S., Klein, B. E. K., Klein, R, Mares-Perlman, J. A., & Nondahl, D. M. (1998). Prevalence of Hearing Loss in Older Adults in Beaver Dam, Wisconsin: The Epidemiology of Hearing Loss Study. Am. J. Epidemiol. 148 (9), 879-886. 2. National Institutes of Health. (2010).

Page 26 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

Regional News-Optimist

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Stupid means someone else – not me Ed, my old neighbour in Saskatchewan, has a few words that he uses frequently. He uses the word stupid to describe people, places and things. I have told him that telling people they are stupid can put a hole in their self-esteem.

He reminded me that he hadn’t yet called me stupid to my face, but it could happen. He claims that I’m forgetting more names of people, places, and things and that I could be called stupid if I don’t smarten up. I explained forgetting might not be a matter of stupidity but being wise enough not to remember what doesn’t matter anyway.

The dictionary explains

The rapper Eminem has reportedly said, “I’m stupid, I’m ugly, I’m dumb, I smell. Did I mention stupid?” What we say about ourselves is one thing, but to call another person According to Ed stupid sets a verdict of

By Raymond Maher who is superior and who www.accordingtoed.com is inferior. No one likes to be treated like they are revraymaher@accesscomm.ca dumb. Ken Ebright shared that when he was a kid, he stupid as having or showing need not be permanent. had learning difficulties. a great lack of intelligence We all suffer from it at The worst part for him was or common sense. I prefer times. Sometimes it is said that other kids knew it and to see stupidity as a matter there are no stupid quescalled him stupid. Calling of limit, like a blind man tions. Who is intelligent in others dumb may be about trying to see himself in a every circumstance of life? the most stupid thing a mirror. If the blind man No one except God. How person can do in this life. gained his sight, he could unsearchable are His judgHow easily we forget see himself in the mirror ments and his paths beyond that we are not so smart because he is no longer tracing out! He alone has and wise when it comes without sight. Stupidity the words of eternal life. to sin. Sin makes us act

N

eighbourly Advice

stupidly and leaves us in a stupor of brainlessness and mindlessness. How easily we are in a daze of self-love, lovers of money, proud, boastful, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, loveless, unforgiving, slanderous, treacherous, rash, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God. We refuse to entirely flee evil desires to pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace with a pure heart.

If we call ourselves Christians, we must turn from wickedness to be useful to God, our Master. We live in a time of scoffers and doubters.

There is endless mocking chatter about God so that many are turning from the

word of God, rejecting it as the truth to be handled in the example of Christ.

They forget that we are to be God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. God’s word builds us on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the chief cornerstone.

The world is full of conceit, with the labeling of others as stupid, but God calls his people to do good to all people. We are to live in love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control.

We forgive just as Christ God forgave us our stupid sins.

Worship Together Spend some quality family time together. Worship at the church of your choice.

Our community has a number of churches and a variety of denominations for you & your family.

(RC) St. Joseph Calasanctius Parish 1942 - 98th Street, North Battleford, SK S9A 0N4

TerriTorial Drive alliance church

306-446-1695

PASTOR: Rev. Phinh Do

DAILY: Tues., Wed., Thurs. & Fri. - 9 a.m. unless otherwise noted WEEKEND MASS TIMES: Saturdays - 7:30 p.m. Sundays - 9:00 a.m. & 11:00 a.m.

St. Andrew’s Presbyterian Church

ANGLICAN PARISH

306-445-5901

St. George’s Anglican Church - 9:30 a.m.

1401 - 98th Street, North Battleford, SK

SUNDAY SERVICES Rev. Trevor Malyon

Reverend George Yando Sunday Services 10:30 AM Everyone Welcome

191 - 24th Street West, Battleford, SK

St. Paul’s Anglican Church - 11:00 a.m.

1302 - 99th Street, North Battleford, SK

Hope Mennonite Fellowship

Battlefords Grace Community Church

1291 - 109th Street, North Battleford

SUNDAY - 11:00 a.m. - Worship Service

Pastor: Bill Hall

Pastor Gerhard Luitjens & Abel & Sonya Zabaleta (Mission Partners)

191 - 24th Street W., Battleford, Sk. 306-937-7575

WORSHIP SERVICES - 11 a.m. Sunday

Church Phone 306-445-4181

Everyone Welcome

Battlefords Cowboy Church Services 1st & 3rd Thursday of each Month

Battleford Legion Hall 7:00 p.m.

PASTOR - Rick Martin

All Saints Ukrainian Catholic Parish

ROMAN CATHOLIC ST. VITAL’S

DIVINE LITURGY Sundays at 10:00 a.m.

Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m.

Phone 306-937-7340 PASTOR - Fr. Sebastian Kunnath

902 - 108th Street, North Battleford

Contact: Fr. Ivan Derkach 306-937-3767 or 306-317-8138

Battleford United Church 52 - 4th Avenue West Battleford, SK

306-937-3177 Rev. Gayle Wensley

SUNDAY SERVICES 11:00 a.m.

Third Avenue United Church Rev. Dexter van Dyke Sunday Worship Service - 10:30 a.m.

Sunday School 1301 - 102nd Street, Phone 306-445-8171

Everyone Welcome www.thirdavenueunitedchurchnb.ca Email: thirdaveunited@sasktel.net

11 - 18th Street, Battleford, SK

Saturday Evening Mass - 5:00 p.m.

Sunday Mass - 10:30 a.m.

Living Water Ministry

Sr. Pastor Brian Arcand Pastor Anand George Phone: 306-445-3803 Cell: 306-441-9385 Fax: 306-445-4385

1371 - 103rd Street (Use East Door)

LIVING FAITH CHAPEL

1372 102nd St 306-445-3009

DELMAS - Fr. Sebastian Kunnath SUNDAY MASS - 9:00 a.m.

S0M 0P0

Phone 306-937-7340

Maidstone/Paynton United Church of Canada Phone: 306-445-4338

Clergy Person: Rev. Ean Kasper

10:30 a.m. Service

Church & CE Wing: 306-893-2611 For booking the Wing: 306-893-4729

Sunday Services 10:30 am Various Weekly Programs www.livingfaithchapel.ca

Battlefords Seventh-Day Adventist Church

St. Jean Baptiste de la Salle Roman Catholic Church Box 10, Delmas, SK

Sunday Evening Service 7:00 p.m.

Bible Study Wednesday 7:30 p.m.

1702 - 106th Street, North Battleford

Come Join Us Sundays at 11:00 am Loving God Growing Together Serving Others Phone Church: 306-445-4818 Fax: 306-445-8895 Email: tbcnb@sasktel.net www.trinitybaptistchurch.ca

Pastor James Kwon

Corner 16th Ave. & 93rd Street, North Battleford

Phone 306-445-9096

Saturday Services Bible Study - 10:00 a.m.

Worship Service - 11:00 a.m.

Regional News-Optimist

The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020 - Page 27

WHO DOES IT? w w w. n ew s o p t i m i s t . c a

Professional Directory

AGRICULTURE PARTS

Bob Frolek's

ELECTRIC CONTRACTOR

Ag Services • Solar • Residential Commercial Maintenance

AGRA PARTS PLUS WRECKING

Look for the RIGHT business for the JOB DEADLINE FOR THURSDAY EDITION IS MONDAY BY 4:00 PM

GENERAL CONTRACTOR

Derrick Shynkaruk General Contractor

• New Construction • Renovations

• Older Tractors • Combines • Swathers • Balers & Tillage • Other Ag Related Equipment

306-445-6769

3 miles N.W. on Hwy. 16, 2 1/2 miles west on Sunshine Road

CRANE SERVICE

Race Crane Ltd. 24 Hr. - 7/24 Service

306-446-2155

Shop - 10021 Thatcher Ave.

Kevin Ryhorchuk

306-441-8727

djshynkaruk@gmail.com

ESTHETICIAN

TRUCK TRAINING

Esthetics By Sharon

DE

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Pedicures Manicures Facials Body Waxing Lash/Brow Tinting

TRUCK DRIVING Training Division

Gift Certificates Available

TEACHING YOU • Class 1 • Air Endorsement • Class 3 • 1A Tutoring • Class 5 • Driver Improvement Training

Sharon Colliar

racecrane@sasktel.net

2030 Foley Drive North Battleford, Sask

Serving the Battlefords Area for over 35 years

306-441-7737

Marv & Sancia 306-441-9650

Phone/Fax 306-446-2606 Passing you on to Perfection

ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES

GENERAL CONTRACTOR T H E B AT T L E F O R D S

COURIER SERVICE & MOVING

306.441.1980 306.445.3144

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news-optimist Serving the Battlefords since 1908

Jeff Schommer

306-481-4892 Let us take care of your move, short haul or long distance moves...

schommshandymanrenos@yahoo.com

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From the Pastor’s Desk of TBC

By Pastor Dave Walker

Turtleford Baptist Church

singing. Everyone had an opportunity to participate.

The evening was dedicated to Marie Grant who turned 94 years young on Jan. 1 and seldom misses this monthly occasion. A special thank you to her daughter Debbie, who is so faithful in providing every need for Marie. There are always lots of snacks, and

892-104th St. | North Battleford

306.445.7261

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December was a busy time at the Turtleford Baptist Church. On Dec. 8 following the morning service, the ladies had a get together with gifts and a Yankee swap. While they were involved in that, the men went to “The Four Leaf” for lunch.

On the 22nd, we had a Christmas concert with the Sunday School participating, along with special readings and a skit, “The Little Shaver.”

On Dec. 29, we had our Christmas Gather Gospel Music Hour with almost everyone dressed in Christmas colours. We sang a variety of carols. There were solos, duets and group

Candace Mack-Horton Katasha Clarke Maureen Charpentier

sitting around talking and laughing leaves one with such a feeling of belonging. If you have never attended a Gather Gospel Music Hour why not join us for our next one on Jan. 26 at 6 p.m. If you play an instrument or would like to sing, this is your opportunity.

You are also invited

to a free breakfast at the Mervin Cafe and Bistro, at 8 a.m. Jan. 9. If you have a nickname or had one growing up, we want to hear about it.

Finally, if you do not have a regular place of worship, or are searching for a home church, please feel free to join us at 11 a.m. every Sunday morning. Our congregation is small, but the warmth you will feel is huge, and our slogan is “where family’s come together to meet the Father.”

Until next month, Pastor Dave and Lorna Walker wish you all a healthy and prosperous new year. Remember, “On the straight and narrow way, the traffic is all one way.”

Call 306.445.7261 ask for Candace, Katasha or Maureen Puzzles A’Plenty

Liz at Paradise Hill Manor is seen with donated puzzles for the Paradise Hill Library. The used puzzles are sold as a source of income for the library. Photo by Violet Lantz

Page 28 - The Battlefords, Thursday, January 9, 2020

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