Jonah and Kyla Janzen’s adventures: An excursion of 13 flights, 3 countries and 8 islands
BY JONAH JANZEN
A choppy two and a half hour boat ride on April 30th took my wife Kyla and I away from our small and very flat island back to the main land for our long flight home. Our trip included a total of 13 flights, 38 days, eight islands, 24 dives and three countries. I do warn you, the theme of this trip was mainly diving.
We started our adventure with a 26 hour journey to the Philippines. A night in Manila and another flight the following day landed us in Busuwango, which is littered with ship wrecks from WWII. I managed to see four out of eight of the wrecks on my dives.
A morning hike on Easter Sunday was not planned, but turned out to be quite symbolic. Stairs leading all the way to the top had signs referring to Jesus’ last days, Palm Sunday, Judas’ betrayal, the crucifixion and resurrection. At the top was a large cross overlooking the town of Coron. This is not what we were used to while traveling across Asia. However a ride in a tuk tuk was a familiar experience.
How many people can you fit in a tuk tuk? As many as it takes! It’s amazing what makes you smile on an adventure when it’s so far from luxury, and you’re crammed in a tuk tuk along with a family on vacation.
The dirt roads get pretty rough, so we rented a trail bike and boy was it fun when we flew past others trying to tackle the terrain on their mopeds! We arrived at our destination where we saw a man in the sea cooling off his pet monkey, and some locals near by asked to take a photo with us. Not sure if we were the monkeys or what was happening.
We moved onward to an area called MoalBoal which is famous for the sardine run, where tens of thousands of fish form what are known as bait balls. No need for dive equipment; they are seen right off the shoreline. It’s a must see for anyone going to the Philippines.
Filipinos love to sing … they sing on the street, at their jobs, invite people on stage to sing along with a band, and sing on the 40 minute boat ride out to sea to go diving. On that early morning dive I saw a Thresher Shark. Its body is 6 feet long, and its tail is of equal length, and used as a whip to stun their prey. And out of nowhere came hundreds of tuna, making me feel like I’ve been transported to another world. It was one of the most incredible sights I have ever seen.
We moved on to one of the most famous islands in the Philippines called Boracay. We got dropped off at our airbnb, which was a giant pile of rubble, the first hiccup on our trip, so we had to find new accommodation.
Soon it was goodbye Philippines, hello Singapore! What a neat city! Gardens by the Bay, walking trails galore, and you find yourself walking around Singapore just to admire the architecture.
One of the highlights of our trip was dinner at Braci, our first Michelin Star restaurant. Here we enjoyed a 32 egg yolk pasta with caviar, orange sea urchin, and don’t ask us what the rest was. Who makes pasta with caviar and sea urchins? Michelin chefs, that’s who.
We pack our bags yet again and head off to Indonesia. We can usually get a good feel for a place based on the look of its docks, and this place looked like we were at the edge of the world at Lembeh.
While muck diving I spotted an ornamental pipefish belonging to the sea horse family, measuring one inch in length. Also spotted a yellow frog fish. These guys dangle a little piece of bait in front of their mouths hoping to lure in their prey. You could say they’re fishing.
Our quick lay over
a taste of the worst airport handling we have ever wit-
The crowd was far greater than shown and it was a free for all with a quick plane switch and no one having a clue what was happening.
Leaving our rustic resort, we headed off to another place in the middle of nowhere - Bunaken. While wall diving and snorkeling we saw the most incredible, abundant, huge corals. Kyla said it wrecked her for snorkeling anywhere else. We also saw Ninja turtles, gentle giants of the sea that are about the same size as Kyla.
While at the resort we spotted a 12 inch centipede, and I was pretty sure they are venomous. When I showed one of the staff a video of the centipede she “SCREEEECHED” and the centipede was promptly treated as a venomous snake and killed. Welcome to the jungle; this may not be your version of paradise.
A local guy showed us some pretty awesome pictures of the volcano erupting which was 100 kms from our island. Very cool as a picture, not so cool when our flight was cancelled and we were stranded at a little town for three days.
Well, when you’re handed lemons, make lemonade, so we checked out the town. We were the only white people everywhere we went, and apparently were an odd sighting for the locals.
But hey, soon planes were flying again. Our quick lay over gave us a taste of the worst airport we’ve ever witnessed. There was a huge crowd, a free for all with a quick plane switch and no one had a clue what was happening.
We arrived at Gili Air, an island off the coast of Lombok. Couldn’t help but notice a bunch of cats were missing their tails on the island, but did see a few lucky kitties strutting around with full tails.
Our long flight home ended our 45-day adventure. After being back home for a day I could already hear the ocean calling my name.
Hello Singapore! This is the Gardens by the Bay. What a neat city. You find yourself walking around just to admire the architecture. PHOTOS BY JONAH AND KYLA JANZEN
LEFT: MoalBoal in the Philippines is famous for tens of thousands of fish that form bait balls. Kyla is snorkelling and able to plunge into the formation right off the shoreline. RIGHT:
in Indonesia gave us
nessed.
D’Arcy School students entertain at Mother’s Day Tea
BY JOAN JANZEN
The students at D’Arcy Elementary School treated their audience of moms and grammas to an excellent array of air band performances. Thanks to the choreography provided by the teaching staff and the students’ obvious excitement to get on stage, the afternoon tea on May 8th was a total success.
Students from kindergarten to Grade 6, participated in seven air band routines, which was quite an accomplishment for the student population of 24. While each group or solo performer was on stage, the remaining students were on the sidelines happily singing along.
Principal James Walker was the MC for the afternoon, introducing the entertainment and periodically announcing the winners of twelve door prizes. There was an abundance of tasty treats on the tables, provided by Malory Cormack, and the students gifted each mom with a fresh flower.
After the tea, everyone was invited to the library to browse at the craft sale, and purchase candles, bracelets, key chains and many more products provided by the Grade 4 to 6 students.
The afternoon was everything the moms and grammas could have asked for. Hats off to the staff and students for welcoming all the moms to D’Arcy School for a fun afternoon.
The Grade 2/3 boys performed “Mr. Mom” at D’Arcy Schools’ Tea Time.
This little fellow was placed at the school entrance, greeting the moms as they came to the Mother’s Day Tea at D’Arcy Elementary School.
Students Addie, Annie and Kayla pulled off a dynamite performance of “Dynamite” for all the moms and grammas at D’Arcy School.
D’Arcy School students - Jessie, Payten and Roxene performed “Party in the USA” for the moms and grammas.
Kids grew up fast during the 30s and 40s
BY JOAN JANZEN
Winnie Larson of Kindersley sat back in her easy chair and reminisced about her life which began with her birth on April 8, 1931 on a farm at Shell Lake, Sask. She and her four siblings and parents lived on a mixed grain farm located approximately 70 miles west of Prince Albert.
“My father died when I was three years old, and my mom remarried five years later,” she explained. Her stepfather immediately became the father to four young children, as well as having another child a few years later.
Like every other farm kid back then, Winnie milked cows and helped out with household chores. “I even helped stook one year because we didn’t have extra help,” she said.
Winnie recalled the dry years of the Dirty 30’s when their garden and crops were eaten up by striped army worms. A hole in her running shoe revealed the unfortunate discovery that the worms also bit humans.
During winter, spring and fall, she and her siblings walked three miles to a one-room school, where 29 children and one teacher filled the desks. However many days in January were spent at home due to extremely cold weather. When winter weather permitted, the students built igloos in the winter and played a lot of baseball in the warmer months.
“We always looked forward to Christmas. We’d have a Christmas concert at school and put on plays and they bought costumes. One year we had Disneyland play and I was a dwarf,” she said.
Christmas was the only time they received gifts. Each child was allowed one gift, which was usually something they had picked out from the Eatons catalogue. In the morning they would find their stockings filled with hard candy, an orange and an apple, which were all rare treats.
“We couldn’t afford those things,” she said. However she recalled her parents receiving family allowance in the amount of $5 per month for each child when she was a school-aged youngster.
“We lived close to a river so we’d wade in the water and skate on it in the winter,” she said. In exchange for babysitting for a family, Winnie received a pair of figure skates. On her first attempt at skating, the blade went into a crack and down she went. That was the end of her skating exploits, however her brothers learned how to skate using those figure skates.
Although the family didn’t have access to many books, the Free Press newspaper arrived once a week. “There was a continuing story in the paper and my mother would read some of it to us each night,” she recalled.
Winnie became ill for about six months when she was ten years old, so her mother took her to see a travelling doctor who stayed in a hotel where he saw patients. There she was told her appendix needed to be removed, so Winnie and her mother travelled to Prince Albert by train. Winnie’s mother returned home, but Winnie stayed at the hospital for ten days.
A year or two later Winnie’s mother became ill after the birth of a stillborn baby, and spent four months in the hospital at Prince Albert. By then Winnie’s oldest sister had decided to move in with their grandparents who lived twenty miles from their farm. That meant Winnie was left to take care of her siblings, who didn’t see their mother the entire time she was hospitalized.
“I grew up fast. By the time I was eleven, I would
bake bread … twenty loaves at a time,” she said. She could also knit and sew on a peddle sewing machine, just like her mother had taught her.
Winnie’s formal education ended after Grade 8, and she took on various babysitting and housekeeping jobs. “The wages were $15 a month back then,” she said.
Her adult life began when she was married at the age of 18. She and her husband were blessed with six children - three girls and three boys. The family moved to Kindersley in 1962 and twenty years later her husband passed away.
Winnie began housecleaning at a motel to support her family. Five years later she got a job at the new Kindersley Hospital where she was employed for 21 years. She also remarried, however her husband passed away after they had been married for only a year and a half.
Although she tragically lost two adult sons, she has three children living in Edmonton and a daughter who resides nearby in Eatonia. Even after she quit working at the hospital, Winnie served as a caregiver for people in their homes for about ten years until her 80th birthday.
Now Winnie enjoys life at the seniors apartment building where she resides. She attends church, goes shopping, and plays cards twice a day.
Thanks for the visit, Winnie. I really enjoyed it.
Winnie as a teenager (far left) standing beside her mother, aunt and young cousins.
Winnie Larson recently celebrated her 93rd birthday and enjoys living at a senior’s apartment in Kindersley.
OPINION: Great things start from small beginnings
BY JOAN JANZEN
A retired man volunteered at the local hospital, playing piano for patients. After he had finished his performance he said goodbye to one of the patients and said, “I hope you get better soon.” The patient replied, “I hope you get better too.”
It’s a funny comment, but the truth is seniors contribute a significant portion of volunteer hours in Canada. Just four years ago, Jacintha and Jim Collins, a senior couple from Ontario, started up a small endeavour that grew into a major charitable organization called Harvest Hands. Faytene Grasseschi interviewed Jim and Jacintha recently on Faytene TV.
“Four years ago we started collecting food for local charities and groups that were suffering from lack of food and no resources to buy anything,” Jacintha explained. It started with a car load, then a van load, a bigger truck, and four years later they have tractor trailers picking up and delivering an average of $150,000 worth of food every week to 270 organizations in Ontario. Those organizations include food banks, senior homes, lunch programs, pregnancy centres, shelters, missions, and anybody who needs food.
Jim was the driving force behind the initiative. “I knocked on doors, going to retailers, growers, food processors asking for surplus, seconds or food that was approaching its best before date,” he said. “We were amazed at their re-
sponse. Now every week they rescue, pick up and deliver food that would otherwise go to a landfill.
Statistics report Canada produces enough food for 52 million people, yet one in six Canadians experiences food insecurity every day. Furthermore, statistics also show 58% of all food produced in Canada is never consumed, 86% of waste occurs along the supply chain, and 45% of that waste is avoidable.
Which may help to explain why Jacintha discovered, “The more food we gave, the more we started to get back.”
Harvest Hands helps retailers save money by not paying to take food to the landfill and charities receive free donations and delivery of food.
Further statistics report the over production of food in Canada is equal to 124,000 fifty-three foot tractor trailers full of food. “That’s the amount of food wasted annually,” Jim said. “There’s a simple, but not necessarily easy answer.”
Faytene observed that the not necessarily easy answer involves the heavy lifting of Harvest Hands’ 200 monthly volunteers. “We clock 1200 volunteer hours every week,” Jim said. “That’s equivalent to about $20,000. Without volunteers we couldn’t do anything.”
When they started four years ago, Jim recruited everyone in their circle of friends and acquaintances as volunteers, and it grew from there.
“It takes a village of people to do
TO THE EDITOR:
IT’S TIME TO LEAVE, TRUDEAU:
Trudeau, you have done irreparable damage to Canada. Please take your big pension and fade into the sunset. You have ignored Health Care, Education, Housing, Poverty, and Homeless people sleeping in the streets who are trying to survive by dumpster diving. These are just a few things a Prime Minister is supposed to take care of. Instead,
you have put most of your time and energy into trying to play God by attempting to control the weather. LOL! If you are any kind of a man, admit your mistakes and get the hell out of the way, and be sure to take Environment Minister Guilbeault with you along with your Carbon Tax. Bye Bye El Wacko!!
Robert Blagen Youngstown, AB
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what we do every single day. And they (the volunteers) did it with their whole hearts and are still doing it four years later,” Jacintha said. They have students, grandchildren, church groups and charities who periodically help at Harvest Hands.
“It’s the thing we wanted to do our entire life, and now we’re experiencing it,” Jim said. “It gives us the opportunity to show people the goodness of God.”
Jacintha said people always ask how they accumulated all the contacts who give them food. She said it was simple, “The more food we gave, the more we started to get back. Every step we took God had a supply.”
The couple have many stories to tell about how their charity has touched the lives of individuals, and shared one example. A few years ago they heard about a pregnancy centre who had to cancel their fundraisers because of the lockdowns, and didn’t have supplies for the moms and babies.
“We loaded up a truck with food and diapers,” Jacintha recalled. “They said we’ll take one of these and one of these, and then we told them the whole truck load was theirs. And we still supply them to this day.”
The reclamation of food is relatively new, but there are other groups doing the same thing. Second Harvest - the largest food rescue organization in Canada, as well as FoodMesh (which also operates in Kindersley) are among those groups.
“There is a huge opportunity. Fifty percent of all food in Canada is wasted,” Jim said. “Our work can be replicated. We’ve had people come work with us for a week and study the process.”
It’s amazing what can happen when everyday people take a small step up and end up tackling the big issues of our time. During the spring of 2024, some food banks are already reporting as many visits as they usually receive at Christmas, which is the peak period. And with statistics showing there’s been a 78.5 percent increase in visits to food banks since March, 2019, it’s obvious that food insecurity has become a big issue throughout Canada.
The good news is everyday Canadians are helping alleviate the problem, with zero government involvement. In fact, it appears everyday Canadians are doing a better job than government ever could.
“There’s a network that you’re not even aware of if you’re not in that situation,” Jacintha said. “They help one another and protect one another.” And that could very well be the secret that drives their success.
This Ontario couple started from nothing. They came out of a tough business situation and turned their pain into purpose. “We didn’t have a strategic plan,” Jim said. “We’ve seen that the harvest of generosity will grow, and honestly we’ve seen that in real time.”
Kerrobert 306-834-5657
Kindersley.law@sasktel.net
Pop89: Blood and guts
BY MADONNA HAMEL
Walking along the Frenchman River at dusk yesterday, Spring sang her song. From one side came a thousand frog arpeggios, from the other the descending winnowing of snipes. On bass: hooting owls and moo mooing cows, with solos by the magnificent meadowlark, backed by robins and choruses upon chorusses of twittering little brown birds.
The atmosphere filled with song sent me into rapture, replaced my worry about about a cultural obsession with technology with a holler of “Thanks!”. Where else in the world can you go for a walk in the evening and be inundated by sounds that are entirely natural, not man-made?
And when’s the last time you heard the word “twitter” and thought about birds? It’s a slow creep - this usage of the language of the natural world to define technology. I think it’s a clever way of easing ourselves out of the physical world without realizing we’ve left both the wild and our bodies behind. Academia and the corporate world both use the language of athletics and body without inhabiting blood and guts reality. Words like “nimble”, “agile”, “pivot” - a vocabulary used to describe gymnasts, sprinters and basketball players - constantly show up in the rhetoric of universities and businesses
Much has been written about how we overlook the natural world with distancing and disembodied language. In a blog post called: “When it comes to nature, what language are we speaking?” freelance writer Sarah Boon gathers a variety of quotes on the subject. From Rebecca Solnit she gives us: “The destruction of the earth is due in part to…its eclipse by systems of accounting that can’t count what matters.” And from Robert Macfarlane she quotes: “By instrumentalising nature, linguistically and operationally, we have largely stunned the earth out of wonder.”
She also references George Monbiot warning us that our language for nature has become cold and scientific: “Places in which nature is protected are called ‘sites of special scientific interest’. At sea, they are labelled ‘no-take zones’ or ‘reference areas’. Had you set out to estrange people from the living world, you could scarcely have done better… Wild animals and plants are described as ‘resources’ or ‘stocks’, as if they belong to us and their role is to serve us.”
But there’s something else going on that isn’t just about us looking at the woods and seeing only lumber. As if to assuage our pricked conscience about our lack of relationship with nature, we word-jack the language of nature and make it fit our brains and computers. We cover up our disembodied state by turning physical language into conceptual language. We hope by redefining ourselves and behaviours using the language of nature we become un-separated from nature.
The language of the body seems to be used most in two very disembodied places - the university and the corporation. If I hear one more dry academic speak
of “robust” “engagement” and “nimble” thinking, or one more tech company’s brag about AI’s “agility”
I think I am going to barf.
Barfing may be the only tactile way to prove my point, which is, in keeping keeping with a vocabulary of natural and organic processes, that we’re being fed a bunch of BS. However, sadly, because it’s not actual BS - it can’t even serve as decent fertilizer.
Using the language of bodies doesn’t bring human beings closer to embodiment. But it can be used to assuage our fears of loosing touch with the living world and assure us we are still behaving humanely. One tech company who prefers to see themselves as an “organism” and who specializes in “faster transformations” along their “customer journey” uses the analogy of sprinting to explain why, “as an increasing number of tasks are taken over by cognitive-intelligence capabilities, companies will need to take many of the lessons learned from lean management and update them. Like a sprinter who needs all her muscles to be finely tuned and working in concert to reach top speeds, fast-moving institutions must have a system to continually synchronize their strategies, activities, performance, and health.”
Such language is a long way from “we are a part OF nature.” And it doesn’t come close to understanding that: We ARE nature. Nature to the marrow. Nature to the end. From dust we come and to dust we will return. Slowly, every day, we’re each becoming good compost, moving from blood and guts to humous,“Human” comes from the same word as “humous,” after all.
While on a long cross-Saskatchewan walk led by Matthew Anderson and Hugh Henry the full realization that we ARE nature hit me like a ton of field stones. We were in the Cypress Hills region where horses were free to run wild. A storm was coming and I was lagging behind the rest of the group. I’d come across a circle of stones so huge I wondered if it might be a medicine wheel. I knelt down to get a closer look and put my hand on one of the stones. That’s when the wondrous-strange feeling swept through; I knew it was alive.
Next I had a brief, glorious glimpse of all of us from above, from the long game of history and I came to the full realization, with my whole being, that the stone was made not just of vegetation and organisms compressed over time, but of humans as well. We are nature.
I was brought back into the moment by the voices of my friends yelling and pointing. “Yeah, yeah, “ I said. “I’m coming.” I assumed they were pointing at an incoming storm. But when I rose and looked behind me, there stood seven wild horses, manes lifting in the rising wind. I was so awestruck by their presence I fell to my knees. They stood before my venerating self for a few moment then galloping away, but not before they circled me and the circle of stones, their manes flying behind them.
It’s time to ditch the whiteout in Winnipeg
BY BRUCE PENTON
Hey, Winnipeg Jets fans, it’s time to lose the ‘whiteout’ approach to your team’s National Hockey League playoffs. It’s not working. In fact, it seems to be more of a jinx than anything else.
BY BRUCE PENTON Sports Columnist
The idea of the ‘whiteout’ — having all 15,000 fans wear white garb to home games to create some sort of powerful mystique to help their team defeat the opposition — has been about as successful as someone trying to sell broccoli-flavoured bubblegum. White is associated with pale; pale is associated with death; dying in the playoffs is what the Jets have done far too often lately.
How about a red-out? A black-out? Even a greenout might work. Green suggests vibrancy and growth, and the Jets definitely need a growing number of playoff wins. During his decade or more of pro golf dominance, Tiger Woods wore red on Sunday because psychologists suggested red is an aggressive colour and opponents could be intimidated. White is blah. What colour is the flag one waves when surrendering? White, of course.
Face it, Jets’ fans. White is not working. The whiteout approach to playoff games began as a marketing ploy in 1987 but to say it’s getting as stale as white bread left out overnight is an understatement. And while we’re talking about white this and white that, can the NHL powers-that-be not arrange for the Jets to wear their white sweaters while their fans are coated and sweatered in white up in the pews? When the Jets bowed out of this year’s playoffs, they wore blue jerseys in their 6-3 loss to Colorado while the Avalanche wore white. Seemed inappropriate.
While the Jets played at a .695 percentage pace on home ice during the regular season, they have not come close to that kind of success in the post-season. Blame it on the white. Since 2015, when the whiteout fad started to reach its zenith, the Jets are a horrendous 6-15 on home ice in playoff games. They were 1-2 this year, which snapped a seven-game home-ice losing streak. You’d think with that kind of failure, some marketing expert would say, ‘hey, maybe we should lose the white.’
Next year, Jets’ fans, let’s go red. A bullfighter uses a red flag to get the bull supercharged and snorting. Maybe red throughout the Canada Life Centre will add a level of aggressiveness and speed to the Jets that will make them unstoppable. The people in the stands who shell out big bucks to watch their loveable Jets should be reminded that a heart — the symbol of love — is almost always shown as bright red. If you really love your Jets, ditch the white. Leave white for the bride’s wedding day dress and for the colour of the rice on your next Chinese food takeout order. It’s not working as a winning hockey gimmick.
• Super 70s Sports: “The NCAA transfer rules are insane. I used to think ‘one and done’ was stupid but ‘one here, one there, one there, and one there’ is infinitely worse. These kids are moving around more often than a left-handed relief pitcher.”
• Phil Mushnick of the New York Post: “How’d
you like to be a CBS News-Tokyo employee, recently laid off in order to cut costs while CBS pays Tony Romo $180 million to call half-a-year’s NFL games?”
• Bob Molinaro of pilotonline.com (Hampton, Va.): “The NBA may survive the absence of LeBron James, Kevin Durant and Steph Curry from the remainder of the playoffs as long as Charles Barkley makes it to the studio on time.”
• Vancouver comedy guy Torben Rolfsen: “Ferrari signed a massive title sponsorship deal with HP. So expect to start seeing their race cars constantly overheating.”
• Canadian satirical website The Beaverton, before Game 7: “Hardworking Leafs tie up series, maximize how sad fans will be when they still lose.”
• Another one from the Beaverton: “Loblaws promises to lower grocery prices as soon as Leafs win three rounds in the playoffs.”
• Bob Molinaro again: “Virtually every TV highlight from baseball’s spring training is a long ball, as if that’s all the game is about. That would be like daily NBA highlights of nothing but dunks and three-pointers. Uh, never mind.”
• RJ Currie of sportsdeke.com: “The Canucks won the final two games against Nashville by scores of 2-1 and 1-0. I tuned in to some hockey games and two soccer matches broke out.”
• Another one from Currie: “How can you tell it’s springtime in Canada? The snow has melted and the Leafs have been falling.”
• Headline at fark.com: “Falcons tried to get back in top 10 after drafting Penix, perhaps to grab J.J. McCarthy.”
• fark.com again: “LeBron is starting to concede that the only way he’ll play basketball with his son is at a local rec league at the Y.”
Care to comment? Email brucepenton2003@yahoo.ca
Lost Treasure on the Circle Star Ranch
Ben stumbles across yet another mystery as readers get a glimpse of life on his family’s ranch on the Canadian prairies. The story draws the reader in imme
diately with a vivid visual of two hors-
es gallopping across the prairies, their riders-Ben and his sister Sarah-shouting about a grass fire.
Ben’s family springs into action. The appearance of a stranger in a blue truck who helps put out the fire raises Ben’s curiosity. When he learns from a Hutterite neighbour that there had been another grass fire years ago near an abandoned cabin on his family’s rented land, and that the fire might have been connected to a thief using the cabin as a hideout, Ben’s imagination goes into overdrive. Could the stolen money and jewellery still be at the cabin? And could the mysterious man in the blue truck, who Ben spots again later at the rodeo, be on the hunt for the lost treasure?
Swift Current author Jackie Cameron effectively weaves details about life on a ranch-the danger of grass fires, the value of neighbours, the kids’ participation in rodeos, the diversity of prairie wildlife, fun campfire traditions, and more-into the twists and turns of the main storyline.
I really enjoyed this story because although I didn’t grow up on the prairies, my father and his extended family did. With one cousin who still ranches and another cousin who was a national rodeo champion, this city girl got a glimpse into what life on the prairies might have been like when they were young boys, with a page-turning mystery to boot.
I hope this story inspires young readers with prairie roots-and those reading to them-to learn more about their own
family history. For students who grew up in another culture, this engaging novel for kids is a wonderful way to learn about the unique lifestyle of a fundamental part of the Canadian cultural tapesty.
Author Jackie Cameron was a teacher-librarian for 25 years. She has tapped into her intimate knowledge of life on the Saskatchewan prairies-her family raised beef cattle-to write childrens’ books that educate and inform about the ranching life. The first book in her series, Adventures on the Circle Star Ranch-the author’s first ever publication-was shortlisted in the children’s book category of the 2022 Saskatchewan Book Awards. This story is suitable for ages 5-8 (K-3) and is a worthy addition to a school, classroom, or home library.
This book is available at your local bookstore or from www.Skbooks.Com.
SWAC Senior Badminton Regionals
A full contingent of 10 teams were sent to the SHSAA regional tournament in Rosetown on May 4. They were vying for a top two placing to earn a spot at SHSAA provincials.
Boys Doubles teams, David Cocks/ Karter Ries (Leader) and Austin Evans/Tate Unger (SC), finished second in their respective pools with 2-1 records. Both teams lost in their semi finals. The team of Cocks/Ries’s loss was especially heartbreaking, losing 22-20 in the
third set to Assiniboia. It was a SWAC match up in the bronze medal game, with Cocks/Reid defeating Evans/Unger (2-0).
Gull Lake’s Chase Collier/Brynne Leppa finished 3rd in their girls doubles pool (1-2) and didn’t advance to the playoff round. Natalie Cocks/Addison Banks(Leader) finished their round robin pool play with a perfect 3-0 record. Luck didn’t follow them into the semi final, where they lost a tough 3 set match (1-2) to Rosetown. The girls rebounded with a decisive win over LCBI in the regional bronze medal game to finish 3rd overall.
Sask Polytechnic receives
$7.5 million gift
Saskatchewan Polytechnic is excited to announce a $7.5 million gift from renowned philanthropists and successful business leaders Leslie and Irene Dubé toward its Time to Rise campaign supporting the construction of the new Jospeh A. Remai Saskatoon Campus. In recognition of this gift during National Nursing week – the School of Nursing will be renamed the Leslie and Irene Dubé School of Nursing.
Same predictable results for Maple Leafs
BY GREG BUCHANAN
Immediately after losing in overtime the Toronto Maple Leafs’ main guys clocked in for their second jobs.
“We were right there all series,” William Nylander said.
“I thought we were right there with them,” Auston Matthews said.
“There’s no doubt that we’re right there,” John Tavares said.
After winning one playoff round in six years, it should be obvious that Toronto’s core four are not primarily in the business of winning hockey championships. Their main goal is continuing on exactly as they are. They play alike, they promise alike and they lose alike. They can’t even be bothered to come up with slightly different excuses.
On the level of pure entertainment, this year’s show was better than earlier instalments. Game 7 against the Bruins in Boston on Saturday night was high drama. Until, in the last 10 seconds, it turned to vaudeville.
There are no good ways to lose a series in overtime, but allowing your opponent to float a one-hundredfoot billiards pass off the end boards to its best scorer,
who has just tiptoed through the middle of your entire squad, while your goalie sits so far back in his net it looks like he is sheltering in place, must be among the worse.
As pure theatre, yes, better.
Oh you say you missed that , no worries the re run will come your way in 2025.
Ukrainian community celebrated Easter on May 5
BY JOAN JANZEN
Members of the Ukrainian community met at Saskatoon to celebrate Ukrainian Easter on May 5th at a church in the city. The Voloshyn family from Kindersley joined in the celebration, including Vita and Vasyl and their children Orest and Dasha.
During the period called Lent leading up to Easter, Ukrainians do not eat meat or food originating from animals such as milk, butter and eggs. They also don’t drink alcohol during this time. Along with candles and willow branches, these foods, including eggs, salt, butter, sausage, ham, sweet bread (Paska), horseradish and cheese are placed in Easter baskets. The food will be eaten later at dinner.
The various foods are also symbolic. Sausage and ham symbolize the wealth and prosperity of a person. Eggs represent fertility, and are often intricately decorated, which is an old tradition passed down through the generations. The colourful dyed eggs are called Pysanka, which comes from the Ukrainian word “to write”. Salt has traditionally been a symbol of prosperity, and the horseradish’s bitter flavour is thought to be a reminder of Christ’s suffering before Resurrection Sunday.
LESSONS
Swimmer 1 11:45 - 12:30 pm Rookie/Ranger/Star Private lessons will be offered this summer. Contact Recreation Director Garrett Turner 306-962-4444 for information Register online: eston.ca/recreation-and-culture/pools or at the Town
Dasha Voloshyn from Kindersley (far left) joins her family and friends at Saskatoon to cele-brate Ukrainian Easter on May 5, 2024. SUBMITTED
Public notice is hereby given that the Council of the RM of Snipe Lake No. 295 intends to consider the adoption of a bylaw under The Planning and Development Act, 2007 to adopt a new Official Community Plan.
INTENT
The proposed bylaw establishes municipal land use policies including, but not limited to, the following subjects:
Natural and Heritage Resources: Identify and protect natural features, ground water, historical and heritage resources, and ensure development happens in an environmentally sustainable manner.
Biophysical Considerations and Hazards: Regulation for development on and near hazardous lands, including environmentally sensitive lands, contaminated lands and flood hazard areas. Ensuring source water protection and public safety.
Transportation and Infrastructure: To provide adequate servicing capabilities for future development, ensuring the cost for required infrastructure is known and covered by servicing agreement fees. Intermunicipal and Interjurisdictional Cooperation: Pursuing opportunities with government to enhance services and provide innovative opportunities for the region, and facilitation of interjurisdictional cooperation with neighbouring municipalities, First Nations, and other stakeholders on joint planning issues.
Agricultural Land Use and Development : Protection of prime farm land within the RM while allowing for diverse forms of agricultural development.
Residential Land Use and Development : Identify existing and future residential development areas, support infill development, and ensure the preservation of agricultural land.
Commercial / Industrial Land Use and Development: To minimize land use conflicts between commercial and industrial developments and any existing land uses, as well as any potential environmental impacts as a result of such development.
Recreation and Tourism
recreation and community services within the RM, preservation of natural areas and ecosystems, and support for public service delivery agencies.
Implementation: Policies regarding the implementation of the Official Community Plan and the application of tools within the Zoning Bylaw for subdivision review, dedication of lands, the use of a Building Bylaw, and the use of Development Levies and Servicing Fees.
The Official Community Plan also contains a development considerations and constraints map which graphically displays, in a conceptual manner, the present and intended future location and extent of general land uses in the RM. These maps will assist in the application of general goals, objectives and policies of the Official Community Plan. The policies in the Official Community Plan will be implemented primarily through administration of the RM ’s new Zoning Bylaw.
YOUR PROPERTY MAY BE DIRECTLY AFFECTED BY PROVISIONS IN THE NEW OFFICIAL COMMUNITY PLAN. PLEASE CHECK THE FULL VERSION OF THE BYLAW, AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW OR PURCHASE AT THE RM OFFICE OR FOR REVIEW AND DOWNLOAD AT CROSBYHANNA.CA/DOWNLOADS.
AFFECTED LAND
All land within the RM of Snipe Lake as shown on the Map contained in this notice is affected by the new Official Community Plan.
REASON
The new Official Community Plan will help direct and manage growth and development in the RM of Snipe Lake for the next fifteen to twenty years.
PUBLIC INSPECTION
A copy of the proposed bylaw is available online at www.crosbyhanna.ca/downloads
PUBLIC HEARING
Council will hold a public hearing on June 13th, 2024 at 9:00 AM. at the RM Office to hear any person or group that wishes to comment on the proposed bylaw. The Councils will also consider written comments received at the hearings or delivered to undersigned before
(306) 962 3214
Eston, SK S0L 1A0
Snipe Lake this 7 th day of May,
Soccer season kicked off again for 2024. Not only were the kids excited to get back on the field, but their families were happily seated on the sidelines watching their kids hustling to be their best. Thanks to all the coaches; without them there wouldn’t be a soccer season for all those kids. PHOTOS BY JOAN JANZEN
Notice of Preparation of Assessment Roll
RM OF SNIPE LAKE NO. 259
Notice is hereby given that the assessment roll for the R.M. of Snipe Lake No. 259 for the year 2024 has been prepared and is open to inspection in the office of the assessor from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on the following days:
Monday to Friday, May 10, 2024 to June 10, 2024
A bylaw pursuant to section 214 of The Municipalities Act has been passed and the assessment notices have been sent as required.
Any person wishes to appeal against his or her of assessment is required to file his or her notice of appeal with:
Western Municipal Consulting c/o Secretary P.O. Box 149, Meota, SK S0M 1X0 by the 10th day of June, 2024.
For information regarding your assessment please contact the Assessor at: Rural Municipality of Snipe Lake No. 259, Box 786, Eston, SK S0L 1A0.
Appeal fees in the amount of $100 per parcel should be forwarded to the R.M. of Snipe Lake at the same time as the appeal is sent.
Dated this 10th day of May, 2024
Brian Shauf, Assessor
Seeding and harrowing operation at Anton Schmalzbauer’s farm in 1913.
Seeding operations have come a long way
It’s seeding time on the prairies. And a quick look back in time to when the homesteaders were putting seed in the ground, shows us in real time how far seeding operations have progressed. These photos are from the Loverna area.
“Life has no remote – get up and change it yourself.“
Charlie Brown (Charles M. Schulz)
NOTICE
Public notice is hereby given that the Council of the R.M. of Snipe Lake intends to consider the adoption of a new Zoning Bylaw under The Planning and Development Act, 2007 INTENT / ZONING DISTRICT OBJECTIVES
AG Agriculture District: To provide the primary use of land in the form of agricultural development, associated farm dwellings, limited single parcel country residential development, locations dependent natural resource development and other uses compatible with agriculture development.
CR1 Country Residential District: To provide for low density, multiple lot country residential development and other compatible development in specific areas with standards for such development which does not directly support agriculture.
C1 Commercial and Light Industrial District : To provide for general commercial/light industrial and other compatible development in specific areas, with standards for such development.
M1 Industrial District: To provide for light industrial, heavy industrial and other compatible development in specific areas, with standards for such development.
H Hamlet District: To provide for limited residential and commercial growth in the form of infilling of vacant land in existing hamlets.
The proposed Zoning Bylaw also contains updated and new general provisions that apply to development throughout the RM. Updated and new provisions include:
• development permit requirements and application process;
• discretionary use permit requirements, application fees, application process and evaluation criteria;
• regulations for fences; accessory buildings and structures; signs; manufactured homes; recreational vehicles; shipping containers; membrane covered structures; home based business; and farm settlements.
• regulations for development on or near hazard lands; and
• regulations for outside storage and waste material storage.
AFFECTED LAND
All land within the R.M. of Snipe Lake as shown on the Map contained in this notice is affected by the new Zoning
YOUR PROPERTY MAY BE DIRECTLY AFFECTED BY PROVISIONS IN THE NEW ZONING BYLAW. PLEASE CHECK THE FULL VERSION OF THE BYLAW, AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW OR PURCHASE AT THE RM OFFICE OR FOR REVIEW AND DOWNLOAD AT CROSBYHANNA.CA/ DOWNLOADS.
REASON
The new Zoning Bylaw will help direct and manage growth and development in the R.M. of Snipe Lake for the next fifteen to twenty years.
PUBLIC INSPECTION
A copy of the proposed bylaw is available online at www.crosbyhanna.ca/downloads
PUBLIC HEARING
Council will hold a public hearing on June 13 th, 2024 at 9:00 AM. at the RM Office to hear any person or group that wishes to comment on the proposed bylaw. The Councils will also consider written comments received at the hearings or delivered to undersigned before the hearings.
Email: rm295@sasktel.net
Phone: (306) 962 3214
R.M. Office: 213 Main Street, Box 786, Eston, SK S0L 1A0 Issued at the Rural Municipality of Snipe Lake this 7th day of May, 2024.
Brian Shauf, Administrator
Bylaw.
BOTTOM: Otto Schmalzbauer, aged 13, harrowing. PHOTOS FROM THE SCHOOL BENEATH THE HILL
BY BRIAN ZINCHUK
SASKATOON – Royal Helium Ltd. published a substantial update on April 24, announcing ongoing plans for further helium development in southern Saskatchewan and Alberta, as well as bought deal financing to pay for some of those plans. It’s also got a buyer purchasing all of its helium production from the company’s Steveville, Alta., facility, its first production plant.
On April 24 Royal Helium Ltd. (TSXV:RHC) (OTCQB:RHCCF) announced that it has entered into an agreement with Research Capital Corporation as the lead underwriter and sole bookrunner, on behalf of a syndicate of underwriters, pursuant to which the underwriters has agreed to purchase, on a bought deal basis, 66,667,000 units of the company at a price of $0.09 per Unit for aggregate gross proceeds to the company of $6,000,030.
Each Unit shall be comprised of one common share of the company and one common share purchase warrant of the company. Each warrant shall entitle the holder thereof to purchase one common share at an exercise price of $0.12 per common share for a period of 36 months following closing of the offering. In addition, the company will use commercial reasonable efforts to obtain the necessary approvals to list the warrants on the TSX Venture Exchange.
The net proceeds from the offering will be used for new high-impact drilling on the 40 Mile project in southern Alberta, development through the Saskatchewan helium corridor, completion and testing of an
existing discovery at the Ogema project, working capital and general corporate purposes, the company said.
The company has granted to the underwriters an option to increase the size of the offering by up to an additional number of units, and/or the components thereof, that in aggregate would be equal to 15 per cent of the total number of units to be issued under the offering, to cover over-allotments, if any, and for market stabilization purposes, exercisable at any time and from time to time up to 30 days following the closing of the offering.
At the time of the announcement, the closing of the offering was expected to occur on or about May 1, 2024, or such other earlier or later date as the underwriters may determine. Closing is subject to the company receiving all necessary regulatory approvals, including the approval of the Exchange to list, on the date of closing, the common shares, and the common shares issuable upon exercise of the Warrants and the underwriters’ broker warrants, on the exchange.
In connection with the offering, the company intends to file a prospectus supplement to the company’s short form base shelf prospectus dated September 28, 2022 following pricing of the offering with the securities regulatory authorities in each of the provinces and territories of Canada (except Quebec).
Steveville Helium Purification Facility, Alberta: Ramping up and continuing sales
Since officially coming online at the end December 2023, Royal has delivered 9 trailers of high purity he-
...Royal Helium
lium to its end customer in the aerospace and defence industry. Royal noted, “As a reminder, this customer has entered into offtake agreements with Royal to purchase all of the helium volumes from this flagship facility; these two offtake agreements are at an average net sales price of approximately USD $500 per mcf or approximately CAD $700 per mcf. Given the increasing demand for purified helium, Royal Helium anticipates a robust pricing environment for the foreseeable future.”
Royal Helium said it is continuing to ramp up its throughout volumes through the plant site and steadily increase the number of helium trailers leaving the plant gate and is expected to reach an optimal run rate capacity volume over the coming months.
“The processing facility at Steveville is being fed by highly productive Devonian horizons that will provide material cash flow to Royal through the offtake agreements that are already in place,” the company said.
The Steveville plant is designed to process 15,000 mcf/day of raw gas fed by the two 100 per cent owned helium wells at Steveville, Alberta and produce 22,000 mcf of 99.999 per cent helium per year. The engineered life of the plant is 25 years, produces enough fuel gas to power the plant itself, and is capable of producing up to 22,000,000 pounds of commercial CO2.
The facility captures more than just helium, however. Royal has also recently entered into its first offtake agreement for the sale of food and beverage grade CO2 from its Steveville facility. This initial CO2 offtake agreement significantly expands the overall economics and cashflows of the plant facility with this new offtake to primarily serve markets in the Pacific Northwest Region of the United States, the company said.
40-Mile Project, Alberta: High Impact New Appraisal Drilling In 2023, Royal acquired its newest project area in southern Alberta. Acquired under a seismic option
agreement with an independent private vendor, the 40 Mile project is comprised of 7,000 acres and boasts one historic well that was drilled, flow tested and assayed. “This well flowed at exceptionally high rates during initial testing and returned helium concentrations exceeding anything that Royal has tested or produced to date,” the company said.
Royal completed seismic work at 40 Mile in 2023 and has multiple seismically defined drill targets across multiple prospective zones. Royal plans to drill a “high impact well” on the 40 Mile project in H2 2024.
Climax/Cadillac: Core Project, Saskatchewan: Developing in the Existing Helium Fairway
The core of Royal’s Saskatchewan lands are located within the prolific southwestern Saskatchewan helium fairway that features highly economic helium concentrations coupled with multiple helium purification facilities near its borders. Royal said its technical team has completed extensive geological and geophysical subsurface work in the Climax/Cadillac corridor and, with many new analog wells adjacently offsetting these core lands, the team has identified and selected numerous new drilling targets among these three project areas.
The amount of drilling and testing data available in the area has helped verify Royal’s subsurface model and has enabled the team to understand the different Helium play types that are found in Saskatchewan and more importantly on Royal leasehold, the company said.
Royal has several seismically defined drilling targets in the Climax/Cadillac corridor that it intends to drill in a follow-on program to the initial drilling already completed.
Ogema Project, Saskatchewan: Testing of an Already Drilled Discovery
The Ogema project in south central Saskatchewan comprises more than 60,000 acres and is home to the
eastern most helium wells drilled in Saskatchewan. Drilled in 2021, Royal received helium concentration tests results of 0.60-0.70 per cent. The company now intends to complete and test the newly acquired rights to the Ordovician Red River formation within the wellbore with the view of making a production and plant decision, once final testing of both concentration and flow rate have been completed.
The Red River formation in south central and southeastern Saskatchewan has long been a prolific oil and gas producing formation that boasts helium prospectivity with numerous shows across the province, Royal said. This formation has returned some of the highest concentrations of helium historically in Canada, with test results as high as 2.45 per cent.
Strategic $25 Million Joint Venture and Economic Partnership with Sparrow Hawk for New Multi-well Development and Plant Construction on the Val Marie Project in Saskatchewan
As announced on April 16, 2024, Royal Helium has entered into an economic partnership with Sparrow Hawk Developments Ltd. to develop the Royal’s next core area for helium production. Under the terms of a signed Economic Participation Agreement and letter of intent, Sparrow Hawk Developments Ltd. will fund $25,000,000 into the drilling and completion of new wells (drill, test and tie-in 4 to 5 new development wells), as well as the construction of the associated helium purification facility. Pursuant to the agreement terms, Sparrow Hawk will have an approximate 57.5 per cent non-operating working interest in the wells and an approximate 46 per cent non-operating interest in the processing facility. The Val Marie helium project comprises a 32,000-acre, 21-year lease land package representing approximately 3 per cent of Royal’s current helium permit and lease lands across Saskatchewan and Alberta. Royal Helium will operate the newly constructed plant facility and multi-well development.
24053GE0
Purple Pansies fundraiser is back!
BY JOAN JANZEN
The Purple Pansies for Pancreatic Cancer fundraiser is back once again, thanks to the efforts of a team of dedicated volunteers. At the forefront of the group is Pam Kosolofski from Eston who has been organizing the event for years.
“My daughter and I started twelve years ago when the fundraiser was started across Canada,” Pam explained. They sold 94 packs during that first year and the sales have continued to get bigger and better ever since.
At that time Pam contacted Oyen Greenhouse who gave them a really good cost price. “We made $13,000 last year, selling 3,000 four-packs of pansies. We don’t really have a deadline; we just
sell as many as we can,” she said.
The fundraiser includes the communities of Kindersley, Eatonia, Eston, Elrose, Kerrobert, Wilkie, Rosetown, Saskatoon, as well as Airdrie where Pam’s daughter Tammy lives. “We’re spreading out pretty good,” Pam observed. “I’ve got lots of helpers.”
And lots of helpers are needed to make phone calls, and pick up and distribute the flowers, but Pam continues to contribute a great deal of time and effort to the project.
“I pick up all the boxes, deliver them and return the boxes the next day. It’s a lot of travelling,” she said. Owens and Sweitzer from Eston graciously lend a trailer and driver for the pick up.
“We’re up to 2200 flats sold, but we still have more to go. We need a little
more promotion this year because some people are cutting back,” she explained. “When I walk in the greenhouse and see a flood of purple … it’s pretty nice.”
That flood of purple often spills over on to Pam’s deck. “I pick up the slack and take home a flat or two, so my deck looks purple,” Pam confessed.
Pam’s passion for the project has continued to motivate her for twelve years. Her daughter Tammy who lives in Airdrie sells about two hundred packs and drives to Oyen to pick them up. “She’s passionate about it too because of her dad, so that’s a good thing,” she said. Pam’s husband was diagnosed with Pancreatic Cancer in October, 2010 and passed away in 2011.
As for Pam she said she’s “gotta keep on helping. They need all the help they can get.”
Prairie Sunset Music Festival celebrates performance arts
The communities of Macklin, Luseland, and Kerrobert enjoyed a great variety of performances during the Prairie Sunset Music Festival, which was held from April 22nd-25th in Macklin. Competitors entered individual and group items in the disciplines of piano, speech, vocal, and instrumental.
The Prairie Sunset Music Festival was delighted to report that entry numbers continue to rise. This year, entries for the piano, speech, and vocal categories increased significantly. They were also excited to have entries from school and community groups, especially during this challenging school year.
The festival concluded with a stellar Festival of the Stars concert, where scholarship winners performed highlights from the week’s festival. The audience were treated to solo performances in piano, guitar, cello, violin, vocal, and musical theatre categories. Evesham Community Church’s handbell
and Chloe joined Elias Bakanec to play a cello duet as well. Steyn and Willem Hoogstad amused the crowd with a humorous duologue.
Eliana Bakanec was awarded the most prestigious piano scholarship, the Gordon Wallis Memorial Plaque and Scholarship. The top performer in each discipline received a trophy and a scholarship: Willem Hoogstad (speech), Liné Linde (vocal), Eliana Bakanec (instrumental), and Chelsea He (piano).
Adjudicators recommended four competitors to the provincial level of the music festival competition that will be held in Saskatoon from May 30th to June 2nd.
Eliana Bakanec, a talented 13-yearold pianist and cellist who lives in the Kerrobert area, received provincial recommendations for Strings Solo Concerto/Concerted Work as well as for three Piano Solo classes (Recital Piece, Canadian Repertoire, and Saskatchewan
Spoken Word (Solo Prose). She also received three Canada West recommendations: for Speech, Classical Vocal, and Musical Theatre in the under 13 years category. What an accomplishment! Steyn Hoogstad received provincial recommendations for Spoken Word (Solo Concert Group) and Canada West Speech 22 years and under.
Willem Hoogstad was recommended to provincials for two Spoken Word classes (Solo Poetry and Solo Concert Group) as well as Canada West Speech 17 years and under. Steyn and Willem live in Macklin but go to school in Unity and will represent Unity Music Festival at provincials, as they were first recommended at Unity’s festival.
The Prairie Sunset Music Festival
would like to thank all of the patrons of the festival, teachers, committee members, parents, accompanists, volunteers, adjudicators, and participants for a very successful festival. They also thank Luseland Credit Union for the printing of programs, everyone who baked and donated cookies, Steyn Hoogstad for creating and donating all trophies, Mariah Bakanec for the artwork on the program, and the members of St. Mary’s Church who helped to transform the church space into a performance venue. The communities of Macklin, Luseland, and Kerrobert work together to host this festival according to a rotating schedule. Next year, Prairie Sunset Music Festival will be held in Kerrobert from April 13th to April 16th.
Kerrobert School Community Calendar
(and why you need one!)
The Kerrobert School Community Council (SCC) has started the 2024-25 calendar campaign! The calendar is the SCC’s only fundraiser. 100% of all profits go towards learning enhancements at KCS. Some examples of how funds have been used:
• Guest speakers and presenters
• Playground equipment
• Supporting special SLC events
• Sponsoring the school’s participation in Festival of Trees
• Water bottle fill stations
• Pancake breakfasts
• Athletic and academic resources Features of the calendar:
• It follows the school year (starts in September)
• It has all the early dismissals, PD days, K days, etc.
• It has community events and meetings listed
• It has birthday, anniversary, and me-
morial reminders
• It is a terrific fund-raiser that supports the school!!!
Each school is required to have a School Community Council (SCC). The Kerrobert SCC is an organization made up of local parents, staff, and community members who are interested in supporting learning at Kerrobert Composite School. As part of our mandate, we participate in discussions regarding school goals, learning opportunities, and learning supports for all students at KCS. We encourage you to join us in this endeavor by attending SCC meetings five times a year at the school to learn more about what is happening at KCS.
To contact us Follow our Facebook page Kerrobert Community Calendar –KCS SCC or contact Judy Neumeier on Facebook messenger or 306-834-7145. Calendar order forms are available at the Kerrobert Credit Union.
“I fall in love with any girl who smells
of library paste.”
Charlie
Brown (Charles M. Schulz)
Pam Kosolofski’s daughter Tammy is as passionate about the Purple Pansies fundraiser as her mother. Tammy lives in Airdrie where she sells about 200 flats of flowers and drives to Oyen to pick them up. SUBMITTED
Classifieds
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
In the Estate of Harvey John Penner, late of Kindersley, in the Province of Saskatchewan, Deceased.
ALL CLAIMS against the above Estate, duly verified by statutory declaration and with particulars and valuation of security held, if any, must be sent to the undersigned before the 14th day of June, 2024.
SHEPPARD & MILLAR
Solicitors for the Estate of Harvey John Penner
Barristers & Solicitors
113 - 1st Avenue East Box 1510, Kindersley, SK S0L 1S0
Attention: MONTE J. SHEPPARD
NOTICE TO CREDITORS
In the Estate of John Collin Wyman, late of Kindersley, in the Province of Saskatchewan, Deceased.
ALL CLAIMS against the above Estate, duly verified by statutory declaration and with particulars and valuation of security held, if any, must be sent to the undersigned before the 7th day of June, 2024.
SHEPPARD & MILLAR
Solicitors for the Estate of John Collin Wyman
Barristers & Solicitors
113 - 1st Avenue East Box 1510, Kindersley, SK S0L 1S0
Attention: MONTE J. SHEPPARD
Suffern Lake Regional Park
Located 1/2 way between Lloydminster and Macklin, SK
Camping Seasonal power / water Camping Day/Week/Month power / water / non
• FREE Golf • Hiking • Fishing
• Beach • Hall Rental
• Horseshoe Pits • Bunnock
Grounds • Showers • C-Store
1-306-210-8667
admin@suffernlakeregionalpark.ca Web: saskregionalparkss.ca /park/suffern-lake/
FEED AND SEED
FULL LINE OF FORAGE
SEEDS. Free blending to your needs. Phone Tom Williamson, Pambrun, SK 306-582-7202.
HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATORS
Motor scrapers, dozers, excavators, rock trucks, packers; wide range of machines.
Lots of work all season. Camp/R & B provided. Competitive wages. Valid drivers license req’d.
Send resume and work references to: Bryden Construction and Transport Co. Inc. Box 100, Arborfield, SK S0E 0A0; Fax: 306-769-8844
Email: brydenconstruct@ xplornet.ca www. brydenconstruction andtransport.ca
place your Career /
HELP WANTED
Wanted a FULL TIME PARTS COUNTER PERSON for a retail aftermarket parts store specializing in the agricultural and industrial sectors.
The successful applicant must be self motivated and be willing to work independently in a fast paced environment. This person should be customer oriented and be willing to work in a team environment.
Experience in either the agricultural or industrial sectors will be an asset, but not necessary as we are willing to train the successful applicant.
Wages are dependent upon experience and knowledge. This position also offers a comprehensive benefit package. Please reply with a written resume to:
FORAGE SEED FOR SALE: Organic & conventional: Sweet Clover, Alfalfa, Red Clover, Smooth Brome, Meadow Brome, Crested Wheatgrass, Timothy, etc. Star City, SK. Birch Rose Acres Ltd. 306-921-9942.
WE BUY DAMAGED GRAIN HEATED... LIGHT BUGS... TOUGH MIXED GRAIN SPRING THRASHED WHEAT... OATS PEAS... BARLEY CANOLA... FLAX “ON FARM PICKUP” WESTCAN FEED & GRAIN 1-877-250-5252
Join us in celebrating Joe Faichuk on his 90th
Birthday
Saturday, May 18th, 2024 Come & Go Tea from 2:00 – 5:00 PM at the Pensioner’s Hall 115 – 3rd Avenue East, Kindersley, SK
*New - AB StANdSwell* Smooth awn, high yielding, grain and forage great lodging reSiStance 1St NitrogeN uSe efficieNt cereAl iN cANAdA cerveza, eSma cdc auStenSon, cdc maverick, Sundre wheAt Pintail, forage or grain oAtS ac JuniPer, ac morgan, ac muStang, derby, cdc So1 SuPer oat PeAS very early yellow Pea forage PeaS, AlSo AvAilABle PoliSh canola & SPring triticale mastinseeds.com 403-556-2609
Starting June 3rd
The Salvation Army Thrift Store will be open Mondays.
Store hours from Monday to Saturday will be 10 am to 5 pm.
warranty as to the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness, or reliability of such advertisements. For greater information on advertising conditions, please consult the Association’s Blanket Advertising Conditions on our website at www.swna.com.
WANTED
HEALTH
LAND FOR SALE
ANNOUNCEMENTS
nominations for celebrating seniors Provincial volutneer awards
FARMLAND WANTED
I am currently PURCHASING single to large blocks of land. NO FEES OR COMMISSIONS Saskatchewan born and raised, I know farming and farmland and can help you every step of the way.
Doug Rue, for further information 306-716-2671 saskfarms@shaw.ca www.sellyourfarm land.com
MISCELLANEOUS
Advertisements and statements contained herein are the sole responsibility of the persons or entities that post the advertisement, and the Saskatchewan Weekly Newspaper Association and membership do not make any
Gala on Sunday, September 29, 2024 Conexus Arts Centre, Regina
You can nominate a deserving senior volunteer who contributes to Your communitY!
Nominees must be: - 55+
- Reside in Sask - Be a volunteer in your community
Go to SSM website for more information: www.skseniors mechanism.ca OR email ssm@skseniors mechanism.ca OR phone 306-359-9956
Deadline for nominations is June 14, 2024
BARLEY
PHOTO BY JOAN JANZEN
“I don’t have time to worry about who doesn’t like me, I’m too busy loving the people that love me.“
Charlie Brown (Charles M. Schulz)
FULL TIME OPERATORS & SWAMPERS to join our team in Macklin/Chauvin Area Class 1A 3A 5A Rod Trucks, Flushbys. Vac trucks, Batch Trucks Experience an asset. Oilfield Tickets required. Please email resume and abstract to: dshapka@steelview.ca
For Sale by Tender
capacity.
53 railcar spot on CN high capacity line. Deadline for Submission of Tenders: 5:00 pm Friday, June 14, 2024
10% deposit required at time of submission. Deposit will be returned if not successful bidder. For Terms and Conditions, Other Inquiries and Submission of Tenders please contact:
Member Service Representative
EATONIA, SK We’re hiring...
Are you looking to make a lasting impact by delivering outstanding member service, fostering positive relationships, and contributing to the overall satisfaction of our members? If so, we need to chat! Check out the careers section of our website to find out more about this opportunity. Visit pccu.ca today!
Deadline to apply is May 20, 2024.
HELP WANTED
HEAVY EQUIPMENT OPERATOR
The RM of Newcombe No. 260, with office/shop located in Glidden, SK, is currently seeking applications for a seasonal Heavy Equipment Operator. The RM offers competitive wages and benefits (health, dental and vision care, disability insurance, and pension plan).
Successful applicants will possess the following qualifications:
• Be willing to work 40-50 hours per week, during peak season;
• Have experience and be willing to operate heavy equipment as required (grader/snow plow, tractor/ mower/rock picker, payloader, gravel truck/ trailer, etc.);
• Knowledge of maintaining and repairing roads;
• Be able to work under direction of the Council/Foreman/Administrator, and work well with other employees;
• Be able to work independently and with minimal supervision;
• Be physically able to complete laboured tasks when required;
• Be willing to perform other duties as required (ie. maintenance to municipal buildings culvert installation, etc.)
• Provide proof of a valid driver’s licence and driver’s abstract upon request (a Class 1A driver’s licence would be a definite asset);
• Provide a criminal record check upon request;
• Knowledge of machinery maintenance (being mechanically inclined would be a definite asset);
• Be safety-conscious and pay attention to detail.
Only those applicants selected for an interview will be contacted. Applications will be accepted until suitable candidate has filled the position. Please apply by sending a resume that includes work experience (including types of equipment operated), proof of education/training/certification, and reliable references to:
RM of Newcombe No. 260
Box 40, Glidden, SK S0L 1H0
Ph: 306-463-3338 • Fax: 306-463-4748 Email: rm260@yourlink.ca
TAX TIPS
Photo ops from the past
BY JOAN JANZEN
You can receive personal amounts in the following areas:
• Age amount • Pension income amount
• Disability amount
If your spouse is unable to completely offset these amounts against taxes payable, they may transfer the unused portions to your return, and vice versa.
Landscaping Supplies
• Mulch • Decorative Rock
• Screened Topsoil • Sand • Clay
• Crushed Rock & More
• Shercom Rubber Products
KODIAK SAND & GRAVEL
1103 - 7th Avenue West, Kindersley, SK 306-463-5990
A look at family photos from generations past reveals distinct similarities in a vast number of images from days gone by. Many photos show loved ones posed in front of their most prominent mode of transportation at the time. It started in the early 1900’s with homesteaders seated in their horse-drawn buggies, then progressed to groups of individuals posed in front of their first automobile, a Model T or Chrysler. Subsequent generations stood in front of a 1950’s Chevy or other classic vehicle.
In all of the photos, it always appeared as though the image of the mode of transportation was equally as important as the photo of the people posed in front of it.
These three photos have one common denominator: they all proudly show the mode of transportation of the day. Mrs. Pincemin is pictured with Ben and the buggy at Teo Lake. In the second photo, Orval Awde, Howard Ward, Ev Near and Lawrence Witherspoon relax in front of a 1928 Chrysler. The third photo has Dennis Noble standing in front of Jim Noble’s Pontiac in 1955.
TOWN OF KERROBERT Buildings for Tender
The Town of Kerrobert is accepting submissions for tenders on the buildings/ sheds listed below:
If you would like to look at these buildings, please notify the Town Office when we can arrange for Operations staff to meet you at the site, 635 Alberta Ave. as it has now been fenced off.
The recipient of the Tender is required to remove the building from the property by August 31, 2024. The costs associated with removal are the responsibility of the buyer. The buildings are sold as is, any contents in the buildings are the buyer’s responsibility to clean out and dispose of, they are not to be just placed outside the building on-site. If the plan is to move them to a town-owned lot please ensure that you get the appropriate development permit. Any questions regarding zoning setbacks and regulations please contact Northbound Planning at 1-306-313-4434.
Tender packages should indicate which building(s) you are bidding on, the offer, and the estimated timeline of the removal.
Anyone interested in any of these buildings can drop off a sealed tender package at the:
Kerrobert Town Office (located in the courthouse) at 433 Manitoba Ave., Kerrobert, Saskatchewan before 4:00 p.m. on Friday, May 17th, 2024. The tenders will be opened and reviewed by the council at the May 22nd, 2024 meeting. The Town of Kerrobert reserves the right to reject any or all tenders. Tenders can also be mailed to:
Town of Kerrobert
Box 558
Kerrobert, SK S0L 1R0
Or email kerrobert.admin@sasktel.net
For more information please call the Town Office at 306-834-2361
Tara Neumeier
CAO
Photos from Echoes of Pinkham Pioneers and The School Beneath the Hill
Lorraine Joyce Sitter (Materi)
August 14, 1939 - March 31, 2024
SITTER - It is with great sadness that the family of Lorraine Joyce Sitter (Materi) announce her passing. She passed away peacefully surrounded by family on March 31, 2024. Lorraine was 84 years old. She was born in Leader, SK on August 14, 1939, lived on a farm near Prelate, SK, spent her younger years in the Pinkham area, then moved to Kindersley, SK.
She married Glen Sitter and together they created a beautiful home and family life in Kindersley. Lorraine loved gardening, reading, sewing, crocheting, baking, curling and puzzle making. She loved hummingbirds and sitting on her back patio on the acreage watching the birds, grouse, rabbits, deer and any other wildlife that walked through the yard. Lorraine will be remembered for her kind heart, lovely smile and easygoing nature.
No matter how busy things got, Lorraine always made time for the people she cared about, and showed us that family always comes first. Everyone who knew her knew how proud she was of her
family and beautiful extended family of grandkids and great grandchildren!
She is survived by her Husband of 67 years, Glen Sitter. Her Brother, Garry Materi, and Daughters, Rhonda Coates, Rhelda Simon (Harvey), Shelley Conway (Nelson), Cheryl Abbey (Dave) and Son, Byron Sitter. And many grandchildren & great grandchildren: Stephen Conway [Michelle](Cora); Eric Conway [Emily] (Mia, Grace); Christina Welker (Sadie, Brantley); Britney Hanke [Travis] (Braelynn, Oaklin); Jennifer Baran [Michael] (Paxton, Liam, Evelynne); Amber Coates [Kevin] (Madison); Tricia Kuntz (Mathew, Abigail, Haley), Austin Abbey and Luke Magnus Tengs (Abbey).
Lorraine is predeceased by her Daughter, Patricia Sitter, her Parents, Elizabeth and Louis Materi and Brother, Ronald Materi.
The Celebration of Life of Lorraine was held on Saturday, April 6, 2024 and many family and friends gathered.
Lorraine will be missed by all those that she’s left behind. Our hearts are broken by this loss. She was one of a kind and to be loved by her was to be truly blessed.
Thank you to friends and family for the caring, support, flowers, cards, food and donations in memory of Lorraine.
Kindersley RCMP investigating mischief in Eston
On April 4 the AGT arena in Eston was broken into and vandalized. The Kindersley RCMP are requesting assistance in identifying the persons of interest from the surveillance video and that anyone who has information that may assist the investigation to reach out to the Kindersley Detachment or contact Crime Stoppers. In addition to the ongoing investigation Kindersley RCMP responded to a further 98 calls for service from April 22nd to May 5th which included, but was not limited to, six suspicious person/vehicle calls, three mischief calls and four fraud related calls for service.
If you need to report any suspicious activity in your community, please contact the Kindersley RCMP detachment by calling 306-463-4642 or their local police service. Information can also be provided anonymously through Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers by calling 1800-222-TIPS (8477) or submitting a tip online at www.saskcrimestoppers.com.
Want to help your local RCMP investigate crimes
Suffern Lake Regional Park Tender
Find out first-hand how rewarding
WORKING IN THE TRADES CAN BE!
Journeyman or 4th Year Plumber
Entry Level or 2nd Year Plumber
- Competitive Wages
- Full Benefits Package
- Company Matched RSP/DPSP
- Employee Discounts & More!
Email resume to jeanabaker@lukplumbing.com
ALSASK
SUNDAY, MAY 19
• First CFS Alsask Radar Dome Tour of 2024! Tours at 12:00 PM, 2:00 PM and 4:00 PM. Please pre-register by emailing info@civildefence.ca. Entry will be a donation of your choice. Please arrive 15 minutes before your tour and wear closed toe shoes. Each tour is 1 hr and 45 minutes.
- Free Fun Learn Different Line Dances. Monday nights 7:00-8:00 PM at the Alsask Rec Centre. All welcome.
EATONIA
SATURDAY, JUNE 1
• Eatonia Oasis Living invites you to an Art Exhibit & Auction 6:00 PM to Midnight at the Eatonia Community Hall. Live Auction at 8:00 PM with Silent Auction to follow. All artists of any medium are invited to show their work. Proceeds from this fundraiser will go towards improving our outdoor space and to the Resident Activity Fund. Please contact Moorease Scott at 306-460-9088 for more information.
- Every Thursday from 11:30 AM -1:30 PM come to the Eatonia Library for puzzles, visiting and grab your books for the week!
- Check out our TOPS Chapter … it’s free to try! Every Wednesday. Weigh in: 5:45 PM. Meeting: 6:00 PM at the EOL Meeting Room. Contact Marie 306-2546 or Mila 306480-2035.
ESTON
MONDAY, MAY 20
• Yard Clean Up! Get your yard ready for the summer ahead. Town staff will be around to pick up your branches and bagged leaves.
SATURDAY, JUNE 1
• Eston Caring Hands Community Garage Sale and Summer Barbecue. 9:00 AM - 3:00 PM. For $10, please contact Joy Gan 306-962-2368 to get on the map and register your garage sale site before May 29th.Cash, cheque or e-transfer to cjoygan@gmail.com. Pick up maps under the gazebo at the Eston Jubilee Lodge. BBQ Burgers and Drinks $6 11:00 AM-1:30 PM. Cinnamon Bun and a Map $3.
FRIDAY, JUNE 14
• 3rd Annual Eston Bullarama. Sanctioned with Bull Riders Canada. 7:00 PM at Eston Outdoor Rodeo Grounds. Admission: $20. Novice Bulls and Jr. Steer Riding as well!
SATURDAY, JUNE 15
• Minor Sports Day. Activities for the whole family.
- Eston Wheatland Centre Chase the Ace - Draws every Wednesday at the Centre. Ticket sales 4-7 PM. Draw at 7:30 PM. See our Facebook page for details. Lic#LR23-0068. - Wheatland Centre Potluck Supper fourth Friday of each month 6:00 PM. $5.00. Bring your own utensils. Coffee & tea provided.
- Wheatland Centre Bingo - 1st & 3rd Thursday of the month 7:00 PM. Regular Bingo plus Bonanza, 50/50 Draw. Must be 14 years of age. Call 306-962-7117 (ask for Linda) for more info.
FOX VALLEY
SATURDAY & SUNDAY, JUNE 22 & 23
• Fox Valley’s 30th Annual Mixed Slo-Pitch Tournament.
Concession, Beer Gardens, Bingo at the Community Hall, Dance on Saturday night. Enter by phone/text: Charlotte Anton 306-662-8485.
HOOSIER
- Sunday Service Hoosier Community Church 10:30 am at the Community Hall. Contact Joel Hamm 306-460-7056 or Curtis Kornelson 306-460-7327.
KERROBERT
TUESDAY, MAY 21
• Spring Clean Up. Pick up dates for bagged leaves and branches. Only leaves in clear bags will be picked up. Pick up will be done on front boulevard (not back alley). Questions? Call the Town Office at 306-834-2361.
SATURDAY, JUNE 1
• Kerrobert Seniors Centre Annual Town Wide Garage Sale. Free maps available at the Seniors Hall 9:00 AM. To register your property for free on the map, contact the Town Office 306-834-2361.
• BBQ 11:00 AM - 2:00 PM at the Seniors Hall 541 Atlantic Avenue
TUESDAY & WEDNESDAY, JUNE 4 & 5
• Kerrobert & District Agricultural Society 78th Annual Show & Sale - 4-H Beef Projects at the Kerrobert Fairgrounds, AG Building. June 4th - starts at 1:00 PM. Judging Cards, Team Grooming. June 5th - starts at 9:30 AM. Heifers, Cow/Calf Pairs, Showmanship, Steers, Sale!
FRIDAY, JULY 26
• Kerrobert Gumball Rally & Show & Shine. Cool Cars, Lots of Prizes, Live Music, Food & Drinks and More! More details to come.
- Storytime at the Kerrobert Library the first and third Thursday of every month at 10:30 AM.
KINDERSLEY
WEDNESDAY, MAY 15
• Kindersley Chamber of Commerce is hosting an evening of information and a Q & A on the Kids Academy Early Learning Centre 7:00 - 8:00 PM at the Elks Hall. This presentation by the Kinder Kollege will speak about the 90 Childcare spaces and 30 Before and After School care spaces going to be built in Kindersley.
WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY, JUNE 12 & 13
• Kindersley & District Chamber of Commerce 35th Annual Trade Show & Exhibition at the Kindersley West Central Events Centre. Wednesday 1:00-9:00 PM. Thursday 11:00 AM - 7:00 PM. $2.00 entry fee.
- FREE! Drop-In Soccer (Ages 15-99) Westberry School Gym every Thursday at 8:00 PM; Elizabeth School Gym every Friday at 7:00 PM. All welcome. Contact Kevin for more info: 306-430-4103 or email: kindersleysoccerboard@gmail. com
- Parkinson’s Support Group Meetings are held the second Wednesday of the month 1:30 PM at 401 - 4th Ave West (New Life Church). Everyone welcome! For more info call Nancy at 306-463-4514.
- Monday Night Jam Sessions at the Norman Ritchie Community Centre. Doors open at 6:30 to set-up, then the fun begins at 7-11 PM. Call Keith 306-460-8633.
- Interested in a support group for weight management?
TOPS meetings; every Monday at 6:00 PM in the Kindersley Senior Centre OR contact Jill at 306-463-4210.
- PickleBall every Sunday & Wednesday 7:00-9:00 PM at Elizabeth School $50 per season or $5 drop in. More info call 306-460-8356.
- Prairie Crocus Quilt Guild meet the second Tuesday of the month (September to May) at the Pensioners Hall (3rd Ave. E., Kindersley) at 7:00 PM. For more info contact Donna at 306-463-4785.
LEADER
JUNE 14 - 16
• Leader Wild West Daze Slo-Pitch Tourney. Enter your team today. Call Travis 306-628-7930 or Becky 306-604-3206 for more info.
SATURDAY, JUNE 22
• Community Garage Sales 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Pick up maps at the Tourist Caboose.
• Marketplace Kick-Off 5:00 PM at Sandhills Credit Union Marketplace. Live Music, Food & Drinks!
- Mondays are Family Fun Night (open to all ages) at the Leader Library 6:30-7:30 PM.
- Tuesdays & Thursday Stretch Exercises 10:00 AM at the Leader Friendship Centre.
- Wednesdays Toddler Time (ages 1.5 to 3) at the Leader Library 10:30-11:00 AM.
- Thursdays Baby & Me at the Leader Library 10:30-1:00 AM 0-2 years old (older siblings welcome)
LUSELAND
TUESDAY, MAY 14
• Luseland School Drama presents “A Little Misunderstanding” by Kendall Kreuger and “One Eye! Two Eyes! Three Eyes!” By Aaron Shepard. Doors Open: 6:00 PM. Silver collection at door.
Recurring events at The Luseland Pioneers Club: PUBLIC
- Every Monday 2:00-4:00 PM Coffee
- Last Monday of the month 2:00-4:00 PM Pie ’n Ice Cream
MEMBERS
- Monday-Saturday 8:30 AM - Noon, Coffee, Pool, Cards, Visiting
- Tuesday 1:00-4:00 PM Cards
- Tuesday 7:00-10:00 PM Games
- Wednesday 1:00-4:00 PM Cards
- Thursday 1:00-4:00 PM Cards
- Third Friday of the month Birthday Lunch at noon.
MAJOR
SATURDAY, MAY 25
• Community Garage Sale 10:00 AM - 2:00 PM. $20 / table or street space. Major Hall & Centre Street. Lunch - Major 4H Club BBQ Fundraiser. Contact Janice Borland 306-8348180 (call or text) to book your space or table. Home based businesses welcome.
SATURDAY, JUNE 8
• Community BBQ - Food. Music. Games. Drinks. 5:00 PM Supper. Contact Lynn Cairns if you would like to play slopitch 306-834-8605. Silver collection. Beach Volleyball.
