RIVERS
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ersary v i n Celebrating our 108th An
Gazette-Reporter
Serving the Rivers, Rapid City and Oak River areas for 107 years
Volume 109, Issue 27
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Max makes a miracle
By Sheila Runions Banner Staff
A
Minnedosa woman was the subject of a small town miracle on Christmas Day. She returned from a west coast vacation and was met with a typical Manitoba storm, which closed roads and altered many travelling plans among families throughout Westman. When she deboarded the train in Rivers, she was dismayed to discover her vehicle would not start. Her car’s battery ran out of juice after too many days of being parked at the station during the successive cold snap. Rivers Police Service
received an anonymous call so the man on duty did what he could to help. Const. Max Tschuschba volunteered here as an auxiliary member for two years but last June, he graduated and has been officially employed for six months. The unior officer was working Dec. 25 when the call was made. It was approximately 10:30 p.m. and after he successfully boosted her car, Max went beyond the average call of duty. Nancy McLennan was “not expecting a blizzard. The TransCanada was already closed and
north-south roads were covered with drifts. I was nervous about driving; I don’t think I played the little old lady card…” As she watched and waited for her vehicle to start, her fears about the 55-kilometre northeast drive home became heightened. Sensing that anxiety, Max said he would drive her home. “He just made the call. He said, ‘I’ll drive you home,’ and I was blown away. He’s a super guy, drove me right to my door. It was a nice drive, a perfect Christmas night,” she says adding that they only met two vehicles. “We talked all the way, about Montreal Jazz Festival and how great that is, and about sailing; we both enjoy that as a hobby. He really kept me distracted [from the conditions]. I was really grateful.”
Max is currently enjoying a holiday and will not be back to work until Jan. 9. Comments from him are unavailable but police chief Bruce Klassen commends him. “It was the right thing to do. This is one of those situations where the officer felt it was worthy of going above and beyond, and he did. I was proud of his actions.” This story gained attention on Twitter from Green Party leader Elizabeth May, who was on the same train and expressed worry about Nancy getting off the train, at night, in a blizzard. “She emailed me afterward and made sure I was okay,” says Nancy who adds that Elizabeth then tweeted her praise for the Rivers police force. She also has a message for Max: “Thank
you for putting humanity first and helping me and making the logical decision. It’s a Christmas I will remember for years to come.” Bruce says driving someone that far isn t something officers here would normally do, but he agrees Max made the right choice, and he believes any member working that night would have done the same. “I can say this with 100 per cent degree of confidence there isn’t one of the officers under my direction right now that would not have done that. It’s a good lesson for a young officer on how something so immaterial can be something significant. While this simple gesture was an act of small-town kindness, Nancy can claim it as her Christmas miracle.
Photo by Jessie Bell
Don’s hangover
By Jessie Bell Photo by Sheila Runions
Celebrating Canada
Rivers’ Super Thrifty Pharmacy created this patriotric display on an the first da f siness in as their means t c mmem rate r c ntr s th irthda Canada ined c nfederati n in and man ce e rati ns are ein anned
Local residents aren’t singing the song Let it Snow! because streets have to be cleared of the stuff on a near-daily basis since Christmas. Rooftops, such as that of Don Montague’s in Rivers, look dangerously heavy with snow hanging down over eavestroughs. Rather, people are singing a lot of Baby, It’s Cold Outside because of the several storm warnings since early December. These storms stopped bus routes, closed schools, shut down some businesses and curtailed Christmas plans and New Year’s celebrations. Winds have swept snow high among town streets, yet stubble is visible on area fields. The next concern with all this snow comes in the months ahead when there will be possible ooding.