review
weyburn Vol.114 No. 45 - Weyburn, Saskatchewan Wednesday, November 6, 2024 - 14 Pages
Centenarian reminisces
War Mother honoured
Susan Mailhiot shares stories as she approaches her 100 birthday. Page 3
Betty Knibbs is very honoured to represent War Mothers on Nov. 11. Page 8 $1.25 (Includes GST)
Canada Post Canadian Publications Mail Sales Product Agreement No. 40069240 Publication Mail Registration No. 09093
Singing of the ‘Bear Necessities’
Photo – Greg Nikkel, SaskToday.ca
The leading characters for the stage musical version of “The Jungle Book” sing of the “Bear Necessities”, for the production at Legacy Park Elementary School by their Performing Arts Club. In front are Baloo (played by Rhys Fowler), Mowgli (played by Erica Ryan) and Bagheera (Mariella Maddigan).The musical was first performed on Tuesday night, and will be on stage tonight, Nov. 6, at 7 p.m. in the school gym.
Weyburn candidates field questions on attracting more businesses By Greg Nikkel, SaskToday.ca The candidates running for mayor and city council in Weyburn fielded a series of questions by the Weyburn Chamber of Commerce at a forum on Wednesday evening at the Weyburn Legion Hall. Due to the number of candidates, each question was answered by a group of candidates, and questions were posed for the mayoral candidates separately.
The forum had all but one candidate present, with Jeff Richards and Marcel Roy for mayor, and for council, John Corrigan, Larry Heggs, Dana Pretzer, Laura Morrissette, Kellie Sidloski, Ryan Janke, Todd Bedore and Lorri Wiberg. Mayoral candidate Bruce Croft did not attend the forum. Only one question presubmitted by the public was asked, and no questions were allowed from the
floor due to the time and the number of candidates. The first group of candidates were asked about the need for downtown revitalization and what they think the next steps should be. Janke pointed out that downtown businesses told him the biggest day of the year for them is when the car show is on in mid-June. The city could be putting on many more similar type of events to expand on this,
he said, such as street fairs or sidewalk sales, with the Chamber and downtown businesses working together to put events on. Morrissette suggested having a dialogue with the members of the Chamber to see what works for them for revitalizing the business community. Wiberg noted she used to work with the City of Prince Albert, including with the downtown business association and other
groups, and said events in the downtown could be held on a regular basis. In addition, the city could bring forward more programs and have dialogue to find out what the business require. Heggs said the city could help by being more open about the processes to apply for development permits, or how programs like Weyburn Builds is available for use in the city.
“We certainly should look continuously at some fo the policies we have,” he said, noting it’s important the city stays competitive with other cities to attract residents and new businesses here. A group of candidates were asked what should be done to make Weyburn more attractive in terms of tax levels, to bring in more investments to the community. Continued on page 2
Singer-songwriter’s fan base expands to include King Charles By Greg Nikkel, SaskToday.ca Saskatchewan-based singer Jeffery Straker has been expanding his fan base with his current tour of the United Kingdom, and includes a new very
high profile fan, namely King Charles. Just before he put on a sold-out show in London on Wednesday, Straker received word that not only had King Charles heard his latest CD, but he was
touched by the song Straker wrote for his coronation, and wished him good luck for the remainder of his tour in England. In a phone interview just before he went on stage on Thursday night at a venue
Singer meets the High Commissioner
Singer-songwriter Jeffery Straker, and his guitarist Bryn Besse, met up with Canada’s High Commissioner to the UK, Ralph Goodale and his wife Pam, after performing a sold-out show in London on Wednesday night. Straker was amazed as King Charles said he was touched by the song he wrote for the coronation, and Photo – courtesy Jeffery Straker gave him best wishes for his tour in England.
RE-ELECT X On November 13, 2024
in Northumberland, Straker explained how this came about. As the king’s coronation approached, he was asked by Lieutenant-Governor Russ Mirasty if he might write a song in honour of the event. “It’s a big challenge to sing about someone starting a new position,” he said, and he ended penning a song of encouragement that can apply to any person starting a new major chapter in their life, called “Better Than What We Had.” Straker included it in the CD he released that October, and Lt-Gov. Mirasty arranged to send the CD to Buckingham Palace, to the Royal household, which Straker found out about a month and a half ago, just before he was to start his UK tour. “I thought, ‘this is amazing! Is King Charles listening to it? Does he have a CD player?’ I knew it was in the palace, and the suspense was killing me,” said Straker. While on his UK tour,
he received a note by email from the LieutenantGovernor’s office, telling him that not only had His Majesty heard the CD, but he was touched by his song written for the coronation. “He also sent good wishes to me for my tour in England, and was signed ‘Charles R’,” he said. He has been talking about the song in his performances, and will now make note of the King’s approval of it. At his London show, special guests in the audience included the High Commissioner from Canada, former MP Ralph Goodale and his wife Pam, who are also from Regina, and the Agent General for Saskatchewan, who has an office in London. Explaining more about the song, he said it came from what he was taught by his parents, namely that people should strive to leave the world better than they found it, and his wish for King Charles is that he will do the same. Straker has been tour-
ing with guitar player Bryn Besse, and they play as a piano-guitar duo, which helps make a tour economically more feasible. “I’m more of a folkroots singer, so the piano and guitar work really well,” he added. After Thursday night’s show, they have nine more in 12 days, and they will return to Canada on Remembrance Day, Nov. 11. The response from his British audiences has been really good, said Straker, noting he had done a tour there two years ago, and some of the fans he made then have returned for his current set of shows. “We’re seeing people come back, and there’s lots of new faces. In my repertoire I’ve got quite a few songs about Saskatchewan, and people are seeming to really appreciate them,” he added. “These British audiences listen, and they’re friendly and they buy my merch,” Straker said, noting one fan even brought him a Yorkshire dessert pie.
DR. JOHN CORRIGAN FOR WEYBURN CITY COUNCIL Authorized by the committee to elect Dr. John Corrigan