News-Optimist Feb. 4

News

Anniversary for court program

2

Weekly Feature

A look at people of the Battlefords

Beaver Blues end SPHL season

9

6

News Watch Prairie dwellers a bit smug?

Sports

Quote of the week “We don’t meet them, because they don’t come back. That’s a good thing.”

4

— Judge Violet Meekma

North Battleford

Volume 107 No. 25

2731 - 99th Street

(306) 446-3433

North Battleford, Sask.

NOBODY BEATS THE BRICK!

Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Battlefords Bright Spots

Looking back ...

By Jayne Foster Staff Reporter

On Target The Battle Rivers Archers hosted the Indoor Provincial 3D Archery Championship last weekend at their range. There were two rounds of 20 targets on Saturday and Sunday afternoon. Part of the event was a cash shoot Sunday afternoon. Check out the Feb. 6 issue of the sfor more information on the competition. Photo by John Cairns

It’s Archives Week in North Battleford. Planned for the week are displays at the two malls. Friday, the City of North Battleford Historic Archives will host a digital presentation and display at the Frontier Mall from noon until 5 p.m. in celebration of Saskatchewan Archives Week. Saturday, they will set up at the Territorial Place Mall, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The digital display is entitled Way We Were. It will be a look at historical clothing, furniture, sports, entertainment and leisure activities. Volunteer committee members will be on hand both days to walk visitors through the displays and answer questions. They will also feature a short display on the city’s past 2013 centennial year celebrations. This is the sixth year the City of North Battleford Historical Archives has set up their displays and information booths at North Battleford’s two community malls. The City of North Battleford Historic Archives collects historic papers, documents and photographs depicting the history of the city and is dependent on its citizens for material. This week’s presentations will give the archives committee members an opportunity to thank all who have already contributed and an opportunity to invite citizens of North Battleford to donate further. Most importantly, says

the Saskatchewan Council for Archives and Archivists, the presentations will inform the public about the archives and its role in preserving historical documents and photographs. If you’d like more information, call the city archives at 306-445-1786.

Saturday is the day of St. Paul’s Roast Beef Supper, a fundraiser for Baja Mission 2014. There are only 100 tickets, so if you haven’t got yours yet, you better phone 306-445-4155 or 306-445-4645 to see if there are any left. The doors open at 5:30 p.m. at St. Paul’s Anglican Church Hall and supper is at 6 p.m. A silver collection will be taken for the mission trip.

The upcoming Baja Mission trip takes place June 21-30, when parishioners from the Diocese of Saskatoon will travel to Baja Mexico to build three houses in a poor community.

At the Battleford United Church on Saturday, look for a home business trade show. A variety of items will be showcased, including fashionable jewelry, clothing and home decor. There will also be prizes and snacks. Admission is free. For more information call 306446-6110.

Club 70 is getting together Saturday for an evening of dancing at the North Battleford Legion Hall. Music will be provided by Cherokee Rose. The dance will run from 8 p.m. to midnight. The entrance price of $15 includes a lunch.

Everyone is welcome.

Saturday, March 8, 2014 Agrivilla Building Exhibition Park An Evening of Dining, Dancing & Great Entertainment!

Buffet supper by Second 2 None Catering Dancing by Bruin & The Rocky Tops Comedian Doug Arden Plus don’t forget about the Fabulous Door Prize!

ADVANCED TICKETS ONLY!

$

2500

Contact Battlefords Ag Society 306.445.2024 | Visit www.agsociety.com

Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 2

Domestic Violence Treatment Options Court

Ten years of making a difference celebrated

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

It’s not often you hear encouraging stories from the provincial court house in North Battleford.

Too often, judges there wind up getting to know many accused individuals all too well because of the multiple times they return to face various charges.

But there is one courtroom where judges say they aren’t seeing the same offenders returning over and over again. That is Domestic Violence Treatment Options Court, designed to address the issues of domestic abuse.

It began regular sittings in North Battleford Provincial Court in April 2003. Friday, there was a special ceremony in courtroom number three to celebrate the 10-year anniversary of that program and its accomplishments.

On hand were judges, lawyers and others from various agencies involved with the program.

Also there was the provincial minister of justice Gordon Wyant.

“It’s important to celebrate these kinds of milestones because of how important the court is to the community and the communities in which it serves,” said Wyant.

There remains a need to do something about domestic violence situations in Saskatchewan, the justice minister said. “Regrettably we have a very, very high incidence of domestic violence in this province compared to the rest of the country,” said Wyant.

The idea behind the DVTO court is to stop domestic violence behaviour and reduce recidivism from offenders. “When they go through a therapeutic program and deal with their issues, that serves the community very well,” said Wyant.

The results are positive. Wyant and others cited high success rates in Saskatchewan and across Canada, and the program has expanded to elsewhere in the province. Similar domestic violence courts have been established in Saskatoon in 2005 and Regina in 2008.

According to the news release from the provincial court. the Battlefords DVTO court was the first such court in Saskatchewan dedicated to “using the principles of restorative justice to address domestic violence.”

It was described as taking a collaborative and problem-solving approach that works with partners in the justice, health and community sectors, focusing on treatment for those who have accepted responsibility and pled guilty to charges of domestic violence.

The aim is to get to the root causes of the behaviour.

Offenders are provided early treatment opportunities through agencies such as the Battlefords Mental Health Centre at the Prairie North Health Region, as well as Kanaweyimik Child and Family Services Inc. The court also provides services to the victims and their families through the Battlefords Victims Services Program located at the local RCMP detachment. Victims Services keeps victims informed through the entire process from start to finish, and also assist with referrals to counselling services as well as crisis intervention.

It’s different from the old ways of doing things where offenders would be charged

Judge Violet Meekma speaks at ceremonies marking the tenth anniversary of the Domestic Violence Treatment Options Court in North Battleford. Also on hand was provincial Justice minister Gordon Wyant. Photos by John Cairns and go to court under the traditional process.

Accused individuals still have an option of pleading not guilty and setting a trial date. Here, though, those pleading guilty could have the DVTO option available to them if they meet the suitability requirements. Those who do not meet that criteria would be sentenced the regular way.

According to statistics provided by the Provincial Court, about 150 individuals are estimated to have been referred to Battlefords Domestic Violence Treatment Options Court in 2011-12, and more than 135 victims received services and support. Some 39 offenders completed programming in the domestic violence early treatment option while another 30 were still attending programs at year’s end.

Many of those attending the celebration were involved in setting up the program in 2003. One of them was retired judge Violet Meekma.

Meekma has been a family lawyer in Prince Albert and dealt with many domestic violence cases in her practice there, and dealt with many of those cases in court when she sat as a Provincial Court judge in North Battleford.

Based on those experiences, Meekma noted retribution was not what many of the victims of such violence were seeking. They didn’t want to see the perpetrators end up in jail, she said, they wanted to see some program or help the family to make the situation better.

Meekma explained to reporters that one reason the victims didn’t want to see their partners go to jail was because they wanted them to earn a living and support their families.

“Even if they’re not continuing on in

their relationship it’s not to their benefit to have the offender end up in jail and not pay child support,” said Meekma.

She recalled that it was at a law conference in Saskatoon where a judge from the Yukon had talked about a domestic violence program they started there, which sparked the idea.

Others from various other agencies got involved locally.

When officials at mental health finally signed on to the idea, they were able to move ahead and launch the program.

Meekma said initial meetings were held in December 2002 and their first court sitting was April 2003, which she called “pretty fast.”

The results of the program have been recognized with a Premier’s Award for Excellence in the Public Service in 2010. The award was shown prominently during the anniversary celebrations, alongside a big anniversary celebration cake.

For her part, Meekma calls being involved with the DVTO court “the most exciting, probably, and rewarding experience in my whole career in law.”

She credited the success of the program to all those involved in it, including those victims and the offenders seeking the help to make things better.

“It takes the co-operation of a lot of different organizations in the community and they have to make a lot of continuing effort to keep it going,” said Meekma.

Meekma says she does not have to look very far to see the difference the DVTO court has made. Since retiring from the bench, Meekma has filled in as a relief judge in several Saskatchewan communities where a DVTO court is

still not available as an option.

“The same things happen,” said Meekma, where “the offenders plead not guilty, often victims don’t want to testify because they don’t want to be involved in the court system, they don’t want the offenders to go to jail.

Nobody gets convicted, therefore nobody gets programming and the cycle of violence continues.”

Many of those relationships resume after the court process is over, Meekma noted, so “unless the offender gets treatment, nothing changes.”

One key to the positive results DVTO court has had, according to the judge, is that programming happens before sentencing takes place.

“The likelihood of them completing is not as good unless it’s done before they’re sentenced. If they complete their treatment before sentencing then there’s incentive to complete” said Judge Meekma. “So that’s really the basis of why it’s successful.”

As for possibly expanding DVTO courts to other centres in the province beyond the Battlefords, Regina and Saskatoon, Wyant says that is “certainly something we want to talk about as a ministry.”

“We look at how successful the therapeutic courts are in the province, look for the need and look for resources. It’s something we talk to the federal government about on a regular basis with respect to helping to fund therapeutic courts and we’ll continue to have that dialogue.”

During the anniversary ceremonies, testimonials were read from victims who say they were helped by the DVTO program.

One noted that assistance from the DVTO court program allowed victims to “handle the situation better” and helped her know what was out there for support for herself and her children.

Another noted the positive changes she had seen in the offender, and called the program “awesome,” saying the offender “has the choice to smarten up.”

One offender who had been through the DVTO court was quoted in a news release as saying he “felt like I had really accomplished something when I finished the group and it was good to go into the court with the judge again and hear them say what a good job I had done. It made it clear to me and to others that I had tried to change and that maybe I really had changed.”

Judge Meekma admitted to reporters she hasn’t really stayed in touch with those offenders completing the DVTO option, mainly because they tend not to return to her courtroom.

“We don’t meet them because they don’t come back!” said Meekma. “That’s a good thing.”

That is something other North Battleford judges are able to point to. During the ceremonies, Judge Dan O’Hanlon noted the program helps the individuals with the issues that bring them to court, so they are less likely to come back.

“Sitting in domestic violence court two times per month is the most satisfying court that I sit in,” said O’Hanlon.

“We have success, and that’s not always the case in many of the courts that I sit in on a day to day basis.”

Final building permit numbers, plus some Co‐op expansion news

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

There was a noticeable cooling off of building permit activity in North Battleford in 2013.

That’s based on the final building permit numbers presented to council Monday and compiled by Building Inspector Jerry Wintonyk.

A total of 121 building per-

mits were issued in 2013 for a total value of $20,544,900.

That is down from 126 permits for $43,320,900.

In general, a few categories saw declines in 2013, but the biggest hit came in the categories of new apartment complexes and new condos.

A big “nil” was recorded in each category. The year before, there was one new apartment complex for

$900,000 and four new condos for $17,883,000. Wintonyk confirmed that much of that latter number from 2012 was due to the large-scale Caleb Group seniors’ development that went up near the former Kinsmen Aquatic Centre site.

New dwellings fell from 16 permits for $4,158,500 to 10 for $2,592,000. New duplexes were down from two for $645,000 to one for

$253,000.

Commercial alterations also took a hit for the year from 16 for $9,248,400 to 11 for $6,884,500, and new institutional fell from one for $1,225,000 to one for $80,000.

Still, it was not all doom and gloom as some categories showed improvement. Ten industrial alterations were issued for $5,793,000, compared to eight for $786,500.

Two new commercial permits were issued for $950,000, up from nil the year before, and signs also increased from five for $154,000 to nine for $270,000. Removal/demolitions were also up from nine for $94,000 in 2012 to 10 for $230,500 in 2013.

There was a mixed bag of residential alterations, which increased from 35 to 41 in 2013 although the value declined from $752,500 to

$462,900. Institutional alterations were unchanged at five permits, but the value increased from $635,000 to $1,398,000. Garage/carports remained virtually the same, recording 17 for $357,000 compared to 18 for $347,000 the year before.

The overall numbers follow what was a typical slow month of building activity in December.

Continued on Page 3

PAGE 3 - Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Council notes

Downtown North Battleford work plan revealed Staff Here is a rundown of some of the items from a busy North Battleford city council agenda from the Jan. 27 meeting. Thanks to City Marketing and Communications Co-ordinator Mike Halstead for providing much of this information.

The main presentation on the night was of the downtown business improvement district’s 2014 Work Plan, presented by its Executive Director Lisa McEachern.

The work plan includes development of a master plan to be implemented over the next several years. Numerous beautification projects will also take place in 2014 along with a number of events designed to encourage visitors to downtown.

McEachern confirmed that one of those new events will be an International Street Performers Festival to be

Lisa McEachern was at the Jan. 27 council meeting, speaking about the 2014 work plan of the downtown business improvement district. Photo by John Cairns

held in July.

Also in the works is the local “LOVE” shopping campaign in February, a rodeo event in April, a Spring Fling in May featuring the Boys and Girls Club Soapbox Derby and the return of Live @ Lunch events in June, July and August. A second annual Fall Festival and Car Show is slated for September, a Turkey Day 5K is set for October and the Christmas Parade and Winter Festival is due to return in November. For more details, see the downtown BID’s website at www.downtownnb.ca.

In correspondence, council received a letter from Richard Hiebert, Ph.D, of the Battlefords Heritage Society, on the formation of a Historic Structures and Properties Committee to review the preservation of historic buildings in North Battleford. The purpose of the committee, Hiebert stated in his letter, is

to “ensure the preservation of our built heritage.”

The committee plans to present a draft policy on all matters respecting the city’s historic buildings and properties. In his letter, Hiebert proposed having the committee act as a stand-alone, but also indicated he wanted to see a formal liaison with the City.

He recommended the City appoint a councillor and an administrator to meet with them as the need arises.

Follow-up correspondence and further discussions are expected in the coming days.

Mayor Ian Hamilton proclaimed Feb. 2-8 as International Development Week.

The final RCMP, fire, bylaw enforcement, and building statistics for 2013 were presented at Monday night’s meeting. Also received was a report from 2013 centennial chair, Tammy Donahue Buziak, giving a detailed

overview of the centennial events that had taken place throughout 2013.

In new business, council has voted to contract with Lystek International Inc. to modify the waste water treatment plant and install bio-solids treatment equipment for a capital cost of $3,197,250 plus GST. This project will design and construct a facility to convert bio-solids into fertilizer and divert sludge from being hauled to the landfill, which has been a major issue for the City in recent years.

Also in new business, council approved the moving of a home from Glaslyn into North Battleford (931 - 107th St.).

In appointments, Diane Gabruch has been reappointed to the Battlefords Transit Committee for a further term expiring Dec. 31, 2014.

The next council meeting is Feb. 10 at 8 p.m.

Lystek contracted by City for bio‐solids equipment

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

North Battleford city council has moved ahead to deal with a long-standing bio-solids issue.

Lystek International Inc. from Ontario has been contracted to modify the waste water treatment plant and install bio-solids treatment equipment at a capital cost of $3,197,250 plus GST. The idea is to convert the bio-solids into a fertilizer. Lystek’s process uses alkaline stabilization to treat the bio-solids, with Class A registered fertilizer being the end product.

In a news release the City says it is the first plant in Western Canada to take on the Lystek technology.

City Public Works Director Stewart Schafer stated in a memo that no further staff would be needed, but there

would be a covered lagoon required to store the liquid fertilizer. It would be pumped from the wastewater treatment plant to the lagoon for storage.

Lystek estimated the lagoon would cost $550,000 to build and that is factored into their their bid. It was estimated construction will take about a year.

The new equipment is required under rules being mandated by the province.

Under the City’s current permit to operate sewage works, they are required to have a Water Security Agency authorized and approved sewage bio-solids treatment and disposal process in place by Nov. 1, 2015.

City administration’s RFP to design criteria called for construction of a facility that would convert the bio-solids to a class A fertilizer, using a process acceptable to the Water Security Agency. Each

proposal was to estimate capital and operating costs and include in their capital costs commissioning and training services, as well as provide ongoing operational support for a five-year period after commissioning. The awarded firm will enter into a cost share profit contract with the City to market the fertilizer.

Schafer reported to council they got three proposals back. One bid from Algoma Bio-Septic Technologies Inc. had a lower capital cost of around $2.3 million but a much higher operating cost of over $2.6 million per year.

N-Viro Systems Canada Inc. had a higher capital cost of over $5 million and also a higher operating cost of $236,250.

Under the Lystek proposal the operating cost came to $71,400, or $21 per tonne.

Schafer cited a number of advantages with the Lystek

Co‐op to build new gas bar Continued from Page 2 Three permits were issued for $147,000 last month, compared to four for $125,500 issued the year before.

Last month’s numbers saw two commercial alteration permits issued for $47,000 while one sign permit was issued for $100,000.

While building permit numbers may have cooled down in the city, 2013 remained a year of growth on the building permit side in North Battleford. Among individual building permit highlights for 2013, the U of S/Cargill project received a permit in the industrial renovation category valued at $4.8 million while the Kramer Building project was valued under Commercial Renovations at $6,526,000.

In addition to those numbers was more positive news about new building plans.

The latest one presented Monday by Wintonyk was news that Battlefords and District Co-op’s long-talkedabout convenience store, gas bar and car wash development is going ahead at 667 Carlton Trail.

That development is on land near Walmart, which itself is going ahead with a major expansion to accommodate a grocery store addition.

The Walmart building plan had been presented to council at a meeting earlier in the month.

“We’re off to a big start,” Wintonyk said, referring to the Walmart expansion as well as the Co-op building

plan.

The gas bar is going on the former Murphy Oil location on the southeast corner of the Walmart parking lot. Battlefords and District Co-op purchased the land last year and council approved rezoning of a portion of the land for the new development at a special meeting in July.

Ground work has been underway at the site of the new Co-op gas bar over this past month. The building plan presented Monday calls for the convenience store to be 2,709 square feet while the one-bay automatic carwash would be 1,399 square feet.

A total of 18 parking stalls are required and 21 are approved on the building plan.

Total value of the project is estimated at $4.1 million.

proposal when reporting to council Jan. 27. The fact there would be no increase to staff was a big factor.

“We did not want to increase our manpower extensively,” said Schafer.

The fertilizer produced through Lystek’s proposal is a registered fertilizer that is safe for use on crops, said Schafer. The other two proposals would have converted the biosolids into a soil amendment product that would see more limited use.

A longer-term advantage is that there will be diversion from the landfill where the bio-solids were sent previously.

Councillors knew about that issue from their previous tours of the wastewater treatment plant where they saw the smelly and watery sludge that is sent out from there — material that Schafer said was very hard to deal with at the waste management facility where it is disposed of into the pit.

In response to a question from Councillor Ryan Bater about the benefits that would be seen from diverting from the landfill, Schafer said it “isn’t going to fill up our pit as fast.”

Plus, had they continued to accept this material there, the pit would have had to be reclassified as “biological hazard material” that would have meant more costs. Schafer said operation costs at the pit should go down as a result of the changes.

Another advantage to the deal is that they will generate income from sales of the fertilizer as part of a revenue sharing agreement with Lystek.

In a statement, officials with Lystek welcomed North Battleford’s decision to contract with them.

“We are thrilled to be working with the community

of North Battleford as we expand our market leading solutions into Saskatchewan and across Western Canada” said Kevin Litwiller, director of business development for Lystek.

“We look forward to working with the City to showcase our proven technology and continue demonstrating our commitment to reducing costs and environmental impact.”

Moosomin First Nation Homicide investigated Staff MOOSOMIN — A homicide investigation is underway in connection to a death on Moosomin First Nation.

The victim was Bryan Darnell Blackstar, 24 years old. His name was released Monday morning by RCMP. Blackstar was found dead at the scene of an incident that took place in the early morning hours of Sunday. At around 4:40 a.m., North Battleford Rural RCMP responded to the report of an assault at a residence on Moosomin First Nation.

The victim had been located at the same residence.

According to the RCMP a number of people were at the residence where the homicide took place and numerous statements have been taken so far.

Through investigation, RCMP have identified two suspects who were known to the victim. A 19-year-old man and an 18-year-old man are currently in custody.

An autopsy to determine the cause of death has been tentatively scheduled for Tuesday morning. Further information will be released as it becomes available.

In addition to Battlefords Rural RCMP members, assisting with the investigation are North Battleford and Meadow Lake Police Dog Services, North Battleford General Investigation Section, Battlefords Forensic Identification Services and Major Crimes Unit - North.

Items stolen from vehicles Staff Battlefords Rural RCMP are investigating several thefts from unlocked vehicles in the Town of Battleford that occurred overnight Thursday.

According to RCMP, thefts of this nature are often ones of opportunity as items of value are left in view. The police encourage members of the community to ensure all items of value, including cash and change, are stored out of view and their vehicles are secured.

No Injuries

Two vehicles involved in a collision at the intersection of 13th Avenue and 96th Street Friday at about 8:50 a.m. sustained extensive damage according to the North Battleford Fire Department. Three firefighters assisted at the scene of the crash and report neither vehicle was driveable. No injuries were reported.

Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 4

Now the weather report, live from the USA Given all the recent talk about publishing attendance records at City Hall, I should point out there was a noticeable absence of one individual at council chambers during budget deliberations in mid-January.

That absent individual was myself! Yes, in the interests of transparency and full disclosure, I was a total no-show for two nights of city council budget deliberations in midJanuary.

The reason I was gone was ill health. I was sick of the Battlefords.

More particularly, I was sick of winter, so I used up some vacation time and went to Las Vegas.

No one needed a winter getaway more than I. I was fed up dealing with all the usual negativity we have come to expect from people in the Battlefords. Second, I knew that if there is one thing that is a sure trigger for even more negativity, it is lousy winter weather.

It’s getting to be a broken record, frankly. Every year, people get mad because it’s minus 30 and the roads are terrible, and then they take that out on your friendly neighbourhood municipal government.

Local governments are a lightning rod for people to rant and rave about the bylaws and policies that impact on every aspect of winter, including such things as clearing streets, sidewalks and parking lots.

People are maddest of all every time some massive snow dump happens. It doesn’t matter if city crews are totally overwhelmed and that every last worker is out there shivering on the streets. People will still be mad.

Sometimes, the anger is justifiable. Recently a car slid right into the river in Saskatoon due to the amount of snow that built up on the bridge. There was no excuse for that situation.

I’m talking more about the situations where the amount of snow was just too overwhelming to handle because it came down too fast. That’s where you end up with impatient people venting frustration.

It’s particularly unfair to the City in those situations because as any City official will tell you, weather is a federal responsibility. (That’s a very old joke, by the way.)

Personally, I find that being angry is a counterproductive, total waste of time.

The only way to really address the situation is to take matters directly into your own hands.

So I found the best winter deal I could, booked my flight and headed south.

No doubt about it, this was the best Las Vegas weather yet that I’ve encountered in January, with temperatures approaching 20 C. The weather was so good I almost fooled myself into thinking it was summer again.

But all I needed to do was turn on the TV to be reminded winter was still going in other places.

At my hotel, I turned on the Weather Channel where there was live continuing coverage of “Winter Storm Janus,” a big blizzard that snowed under several states on the East Coast. They showed plenty of scenes of MetLife

newsoptimist.john@sasktel.net Stadium, home to the Super Bowl, completely buried in snow.

I looked at these TV reports and just laughed at all these people having to deal with the lousy winter weather.

That laughter continued all week in sunny Las Vegas, right up to the moment that I disgustedly got off the plane at Saskatoon airport to find the entire city covered in snow.

Returning to work, I read the reports of the latest nasty weather hitting the United States dubbed “Winter Storm Leon.”

This storm pushed winter weather conditions down to a region that almost never experiences these kinds of conditions — the deep South.

It was a particular mess in Atlanta, Ga. Even though the amount of snow they got wasn’t huge, there were reports of complete chaos with cars sliding around and crashing, and the city basically shut down.

No wonder. They just don’t have the infrastructure to deal with snow down there.

Who took the blame for this situation? Why, who else — their own friendly neighbourhood municipal government.

Those reports prompt laughter of a different order from Saskatchewan residents — laughter of the “they can’t handle winter” variety.

It’s amazing. People here are quick to pile on about the terrible job being done here to clear the roads in winter, yet the moment they hear stories like this, they turn around and brag about how well prepared we are. It’s almost a point of pride for people here to say “we can handle winter! We’re tough!”

I’m almost thinking maybe the crews and the ordinary individuals who clear the snow and keep roads in the best shape they can during the winter months don’t get nearly the credit they deserve.

People take for granted the work done to make our roads drivable in winter. Moreover, a lot of us underestimate how tough winter can really be. There are enough times when blizzard conditions are so overwhelming that even our highways get closed and our own cars end up in the ditch, despite all the equipment we have at our disposal. Then there are the times the temperatures dip so low that our cars won’t start.

Yet somehow we all manage, each and every winter.

Personally, I’m continually amazed at how so many Saskatchewan residents think nothing of driving down highways in howling blizzards to get where they want to get to. So many people have this stubborn refusal to let the ice and snow get in the way of living their lives.

With our harsh winter conditions we are tougher and more able to deal with the ice and snow conditions than even we give ourselves credit for, most of the time.

Letters to the editor are welcomed by the News-Optimist.

All letters, including those which are faxed or e-mailed, must be signed and bear the address and telephone number of the writer. The name of the writer will be published. Letters are subject to editing. Personal attacks will not be printed.

Letters will be rejected if they contain libelous statements or are unsigned.

Published since 1905

A community newspaper published Tuesdays

by Battlefords Publishing Ltd. 892 104th Street, North Battleford, Saskatchewan S9A 1M9 (Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to the above) Telephone: 306-445-7261 – Fax: 306-445-3223 Email: newsoptimist.news@sasktel.net Personal Delivery Charge — Out of Town $43.00 Plus GST.

Becky Doig Editor

John Cairns Reporter

Jayne Foster Reporter

Brett Smith Sports Reporter

Alana Schweitzer Publisher

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Jessica Woytowich Advertising

PAGE 5 - Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Final ‘13 crime numbers show overall decline

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

As it turned out, 2013 was not as bad a year for crime in North Battleford as some might think.

Final numbers are in and Battlefords RCMP detachment reported notable declines in several crime categories in the city for the year.

That is based on the final December numbers compiled and presented to council Monday by the new Battlefords RCMP commander Insp. John Sutherland.

Not only were the overall 2013 numbers encouraging, but so were the December crime stats as well as fourth-quarter statistics that compared trends to the previous two years. Fourth quarter stats showed crime down across the board, even in what were usually more troublesome areas such as property crime and break and enters.

His report provided an antidote to what had been a steady diet of doom and gloom about high North Battleford crime numbers from residents, activists and the media over the past several months. Recently, Newcap Television in Lloydminster was the latest in a long line of news outlets to focus on North Battleford’s crime situation, running a one-hour documentary on the subject.

Despite that, the overall

crime numbers for the city turned out to be better than they had been in years. According to Sutherland, they were the lowest since 2009.

“This year 2013 was the second-lowest in overall statistics only to 2009 in the last five years,” said Sutherland to council. “So we’re seeing some positive trends in those numbers.”

In 2013, calls for service dipped from 15,148 to 14,639.

Declines were registered in the categories of person offences, business break and enters, criminal code offences, drug offences, liquor act offences, impaired operation of motor vehicles and in municipal bylaw offences. There was also a drop in motor vehicle collisions in 2013.

The three areas that showed noticeable increases are residential break and enters, property offences and provincial traffic offences.

Property offences have long been a problem area in North Battleford and were up 11 per cent for the year, from 2,477 in 2012 to 2,744 in 2013.

Residential break and enters are up from 92 to 115 for the same period. The increase in that latter category has been attributed by police at prior meetings to the wave of school break-ins that took place in spring and early summer months. All are counted in the category.

Provincial traffic offences

also were up from 2,474 to 2,626, an increase of six per cent. Beyond that, plenty of progress in the fight against crime could be seen in the 2013 numbers.

Despite some high profile incidents in the fall that included shootings and a stabbing-death murder, person offences were down for the year by six per cent from 867 to 813. Business break and enters were down slightly from 45 to 43. Criminal code offences were down 16 per cent from 2,036 to 1,707.

Drug offences fell 33 per cent from 374 to 252. Liquor act offences were down nine per cent from 306 to 279.

Impaired operation of a motor vehicle was down from 341 to 332, a difference of three per cent. And municipal bylaw offences were down 28 per cent for 2013, from 247 to 177.

Motor vehicle collisions were also down for the year from 322 to 290, a 10 per cent drop.

In addition to the yearly numbers were some encouraging statistics from the month of December that showed declines in several areas. Person offences for December were down from 69 the year before to 39 last month.

Business break and enters were down from three to zero, though residential break and enters went up to six from four. Property offences dropped from 148 to 122, criminal code offences

Tuesday provided one more chance for Sharon Mohagen to say goodbye after a year in office as president. Mohagen, seen here with executive director Linda Machniak, had already handed the gavel over to new president Ryan Moe. But with Moe out of the country, she was able to preside over the annual general meeting at the Chamber.

Photo by John Cairns

Chamber annual meeting

One last goodbye for Mohagen

By John Cairns Staff Reporter

It was one more chance for Sharon Mohagen to say goodbye following a year as president of the Battlefords Chamber of Commerce.

Mohagen had handed over the gavel to new Chamber president Ryan Moe at the President’s Banquet almost two weeks earlier. But with Moe gone to Hong Kong it fell on Mohagen, now the past president, to chair the annual meeting held Tuesday at noon hour at the Chamber.

The agenda included the presentation of financials as well as the introduction of the newly-elected Chamber directors. Also finalized was the appointment of Warren Williams as member-at-large on the Battlefords Chamber executive.

The meeting allowed Mohagen, who as past president will be staying on the executive, a final chance to reflect on the end of her term leading the Chamber.

“It’s time to move forward and move on,” said Mohagen, who added she was excited by the arrival of “younger members of the directors, because it just means our future is going to be moving forward.”

dropped from 129 to 83 and provincial traffic offences fell from 77 to 65. Drug offences, however, went up to 15 from seven a year earlier.

Fourth-quarter crime statistics were also released at the meeting for the Octoberthrough-December period and those numbers showed declines almost across the board, including in the areas of property crime and break and enters.

There were 523 property crimes recorded in the fourth quarter compared to 526 for the same period in 2012 and 607 in 2011. Five business break and enters were recorded compared to 13 a year earlier, and 17 residential break and enters were recorded compared to 19 a year earlier and 24 in 2011.

Criminal code offences

were down to 354 in 2013 compared to 445 in 2012 and 491 in 2011. Drug offences were down to 39 compared to 96 two years earlier, and person offences were down to 149 compared to 217 in 2012 and 215 in 2011.

Showing increases compared to 2012, though still lower than 2011 numbers, were the categories of liquor act offences (80, compared to 52 in 2012 and 86 in 2011) and impaired driving offences (89, compared to 63 and 90 respectively).

Provincial driving offences showed a slight decrease to 424 from 442 in 2012, though it was still higher than the 256 recorded in 2011.

In a departure from the previous two council meetings, the section known as “activities of interest” was

not part of the monthly statistical report for December.

The RCMP continued foot patrols in December. Two were recorded that month, bringing the total for the year to 160.

That was raised as a concern by Councillor Cathy Richardson, who wanted to see those patrols increase.

The RCMP took part in another Neighbourhood Watch meeting in December, and attended schools in North Battleford as part of their community relations activities.

Students from Connaught School had a tour of the detachment in December.

RCMP members also performed approximately 100 patrols in the vicinity of the schools to increase visibility during the month.

Agreement Ratified

The teachers of Living Sky School Division No. 202 have ratified a new agreement. The new collective agreement is effective from July 1, 2012 to June 30, 2015 and will apply to approximately 400 teachers. The new agreement was achieved through the co-operative efforts of the teachers’ Local Implementation Negotiating Committee and the board of education. Discussions were focused on the topics of noon hour and extra-curricular supervision. A formal signing of the collective agreement took place Jan. 21 at Living Sky School Division central office in North Battleford. Standing are: Ronna Pethick, board member; Randy Fox, director of education; Daryle Wing, teacher negotiating committee member; Mary Ann Ayotte-Closen, teacher negotiating committee member; Jack Snell, board member; Dan Barber, teacher negotiating committee member; Andrew Sneddon, teacher negotiating committee member. Seated are Bob Foreman, board negotiating committee chair; Brenda Vickers, superintendent of human resources; Micheal Hagel, teacher negotiating committee chair; and Brian Hargreaves, teacher negotiating committee member. Missing are: Glenn Wouters, board member; Lonny Darroch, chief financial officer; Herman Bugler Jr., human resources manager; and teacher negotiating committee members Jeff Tkachuk, Shannon MacFarlane, Janette Huber, Morag Riddell and Lyndon Heinemann. Photo submitted

Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 6

Allie R aycraft: ‘ I te n d to get elected’

by Jayne Foster

visitWhen Raycraft was add ise ra s ha it of he raiser, and ing, there were lots bingo hall as a fund e last two decades. respect s. th ge wi lla th ws vi er ne e ne ov th ni n lines in er $9 millio and eight or ho s w ov ft, RM ra t lls yc en ca e far as Ra re as at th rk t, th t hall ea, bu ber, I go d still be wo It was at the bingo hus- to North Kor life in Sokcho jayne@newsoptimist.ca year ago in Decem nt Allie Raycraft coul “A ft. rre ra cu r yc , he Ra id et sa ys m e sa , sh ,” no see, 2003 year ago to work, and I said id take my name was widowed in nickel she could rried on as noring, but just over a n. Sloan is a retired n’t think I to go ca sa l oa d do ou I Sl an Se ht d. up d ig ol w ed an s D ar on , ye m ph nd ba “I’m 76 “I finally ttleford fro Ba th or N to e e.” or am m . yminer who “c f the list.” need to do this any , Manitoba.” mal you didn’t hear an in Inverness, of e has no regrets. he funny part was tario, via Thompson rst moved “T rs On ie y, ld ur so db w Su sa I e it.

Raycraft was born mmunity in Sh hing about people,” sh when he fi yt of ne an t yo lo ng an a co yi l et sa ow al m kn dy I sm ju ’t a bo it. dn is t they st He di bingo “I enjoyed Que., which g the street … bu ound the northvolunteering at the originally ar on e g k al m in or so av w ng d H ki di of al t ty. he w lo un so a , d Co re he says. “I di Megantic le. on leave.” sh and Scottish ll to meet new peop eir seemed to be ha th in tl uments to the Koac al been settled by Iri home to a mix west here.” w es e ud on cl in e, s insistenc e noticed many mon ministrator as n’ w ad Sh oa an ea Sl ar as t e s A ng th ue , ki aq es or pl ili d W fam , an llection of er. ch-speaking resiofficer for elections kitchen boasts a co of appreciation rean war, howev ys. of English- and Fren a farm, attended ing as a returning ber the war,” she sa about em m re y he on “T s up ha ew se gr ne rti ni concer d r expe dents. She fr om or ga e people seemed un ur years, then he called upon th fo t r Bu fo ol ho h sc it w try been a coun za ti on s ess when it closed.

North Korea. are proswas bused to Invern and 11 in Sher- for school diviwhich Ray,” she says. “They on es go ife 10 “L de ns ra el ec tio lots of traffic, She took her G craft has been e streets are clean, commercial si on e Th . th us ke ro ta pe to r de ith or as well. brooke in associated w shorthand, typing d lots of vehicles.”

“I was the rer daughter ’s husban course that included over the years, er daughter and he r H ei th g. er in on fic e e ep of th er ke g w g , ok in in bo rn SS and in cl ud taught at CI her now tu so th al wi ho ies w air ft il, pr ra Ph e yc th ng She came to ... fo r Li vi so they took Ra now disbanded l. ster school break, 56. The Raycrafts ttlefords Area Ea seeing throughout Sokcho and Seou late husband in 19 d between 1956 Sky and Light Ba ht an ce , ni sig r th as ui fo w t sq ad it A is t Ro hr in bu er, of C settled Municipal t shirtsleeve weath five children. nce Dis- It wasn’ e says. There was still snow in e la st tw o la th bu and 1965, they had m A ds ki y m d y I ha enough, sh elections.”

“I was always happ trict Association ft. ra the mountains. yc e th Ra ), n A ys W he uld take them anyAMRAD young,” sa , (B ed riv ar ld hi taxis in Sokcho co dc e an Th gr $20 st vi fir sr di A he ol of n sc ho Whe r 2,200 won, about the Town Asquith, her friends s i o n s w e r e here they wanted fo well for Raycraft as w in ll sti ilas V w e e sh th , le whi qu ith th e dian. That worked Yo u ca n cu rl in of M eo ta , Cana t walk far. smaller, they ge sa id , “O h go od ! so la al w no he (S piel.” she can’ ed the subway, grandmother’s bons n and three great- w er e ru n as the Jackfish Lake oul, they also us Se In e re ld hi e dc d th ar an of gr bo n pa rt s reserved for th has seve Watershed re there were seat omen. he w ) ec un. el M re n ’s ld ba hi ty Ur dc w ci nt gran and the rly and for pregna ars in Asquith, Ray- tion, but now, l A dm in is - elde ywhere they went, she says, there During the first ye pa ci n, ni oo at sk Sa in Ever us jobs er th e e says, the craft worked vario trators Association w er e ga te w ay s an d ar ch w ay s ov e job as town sh tim ll fu a eets, n e str ga ar . e be th an ns e ng ew sio sh divi tues alo In 1970, of Saskatch eets. There were sta she held until 1984 m uc h la rg er str ern ch hi od y w m an a r, m to so ra al ed ist is ck in adm istrator t she has pa rvise electains. But it in bu pe un m e, su fo ad or to so of m al b e ed d jo ar ne e an e ok a th er lo is Th there turistic when she took on ral Munici- and skyscrapers and fu Ru ith . e . w th ay es d ty ac aw ci an pl r em ge s he th lla ay ot of Vi w tions in for both the d,” she says. “I al ample, there was ing buildings.

“I tend to get electe e last election, for ex subdivision of th In things to see,” says ch pality of Meota. en .”

Fr th e rt ou tiv be m y ro ac m er an K en “There are lots of d e op th un to fo in s e n ve ay sh tio ha , w ec ta al el t eo n’ an M In such a big city.” age raft does Raycraft. “Seoul is pi ta l an d la rg meone like Rayc Raycraft’s first langu In Living Sky School Division. le lf So hi go W . ys ity jo een un ng m e ra m ar sh co l. ies, but there to make Se ou l is th e ca with a populaoke French as wel have time for hobb “I had to go down llots.” was English, she sp to use the language orizons. She also ba H e th ew South Korea er N liv ith de w , lls t ng le o po curli d the es city of than 10 million. The 25.6 an us or Ch s Meota, she was ab mits she’s now lost ments for tw reer has been one oriented and on Li ta e e ad r the tion of mor in and around Seoul make sings with the Meo Raycraft’s ca more, however sh in local governle d Church Choir unde op ng ite pe ki it.

Un n or k io ue W ea ill . en sp m rs Av to be m ty ird opolitan toward nu ting, Th . un en co re much of the abili ac rg as . te second largest metr et ys ch ’s sa W su e rld ne es sh wo iti Ile ,” e tiv of th gh n it ac ou io es th ct , lv it re ily vo di nd m in ut ment of So h Koreical fa xation.

“I understa really from a mus ay,” says area, home to over half b in Meota didn’t assessment and ta has t jo r no ts, he di ’m m au “I fro g, in t” et en dg m 000 international that w “Retire d she ra- bu s along with 632, sonate with her, an them. but I’m able to sing, put it reer as an administ an re ca ll r t sti he bu rs of e, be d ic um en vo N e th od spell k for remembering “I have a pretty go residents. raft and her always had a knac licence Raycraft. od as it used to be.” t a ou tor. as t w en I w th en ui e city bus tour Rayc e street, th sq on , A n 97 go O in 19 as as , t w 30 , no I s ys n ne it’ sa he Ju “W “I retired rted started says ey discovered on lo anymore, she for different RMs.” or issuer,” says Raycraft. “They sta She doesn’t sing so ng soprano in the hosts joined, th rive, that featured all .” d and did relief work 77 gi re fi 19 o sin t kept in enjoys dubbed Rode D le were sick, go ods and uing the ones you y of but she still iss an m ed of in Raycraft. “If peop rs tra be I m d erican products, fo nu m an , A se in en th d or lic lle e N fi th I r. oi of ew ly, ch She kn quit unexpected hts of the first year shops.

One of the highlig munity’s residents. m co r so he rs e, history and be e m has been a trip to th t nu lots of people.” d en ith ha w em e d tir sh ke re e e or hile the architectur us w tru I W ca s , be ft’ ow ra ns kn r yc t ai he n’ pl Ra d ex do an .

“I ft ys er ught yed by Raycraft, d she sa Raycra lture were all enjo orea to visit her da d everything else,” she was often calle cu K an te h s ca e ut fi ok Sh So rti bo e food. e. ce h, e er te uc th lik m ria ng I’d approp ere teachi t received y the same for all th resow on you. w sa ye gr t ’t ho n’ of w dn ca nd e ha w ki sh -la ho es in at w cnpl ff so ue colle “License to supervise sta se plate but I like on her iPad and a e the Korean barbec oked a Roughriders licen has photos loaded other memorabilia she She did lik co ve as ha w to t ea s m ed e their certificates. th ne d taurants where t a certificate tion of brochures an “Someone withou until they get their my number.” centre of the table. ember. m re to g. in sy ar ea on a brazier in the sh s ise it’ ys rv t jo ys pe ge en sa su e to to y Sh to y da ed od a us eb the way we with si ng som as it course “We’re so used to ory’s not as good e la ug hs ab ou t lo ouver March 27 course done,” the em Sh r m ei y th d “M an in s e ur po nc ho de m Vanc eat and tatoes.” of Regina correspon n. there. She flew fro p.m. live with m of the visit to Seoul e laughs. sh 25 ’s ,” 4: at be at th l w, ou no Se being a University tio in ed ra ing truly retir Highlights rnment administ at 12:50 p.m., arriv While Raycraft is Folk Museum course in local gove did relief work in 15 . sy bu ’t uded the National isn . cl e in 28 sh e n ch h sh ea at ar ut m M ys t So sa n’ at e es ft th th ra do as yc en an w Ra differike her dinner d a show Sh e’s be , The first thing to str nous than she real- of Korea and se ou H e th ea or of K an s ch ai rm e mountai or ld -f am ou or w m e as th w ea ’t le or dn K op di pe s ion Lakeland Library ized the highway more than 1.5 mill ized. She also real nal arts they went where , tio ns di ai tra nt e ou th m e in Region for about th n or around have take er ov go ng vi ha five years, performance. through them. on a day tu nn el s, it ju st y an m been on the board so raft returned home e er yc w Ra re he “T called back since 1996. She is n her daughter was e,“ she says. he m w ed d az en am e th t en ds with the supervig towar also the presid to school to meet ycraft was visitin Ra la ei Sh , ter Ba ht ug th da . N ow th at th e her da of the Nor the two-year term as principal of the so r fr om Ca na also returned to of t es w th or N rving tleford udes have Johnsrude, was se Sokcho, Johnsr mpbell Bingo Association Canadian International School in , to their home in Ca e as da na Ca e et pl m s co e se t e a la will rv offers th which oper River, B.C., Shei fshore school that of uic to an rr cu ol o. ho ng r and will return public sc Carousel Bi eir the superviso British Columbia th t an yw Ra ns g ea in or th K One id many yearly. e the t lum. Raycraft sa in English, and they’ll pay Sokcho ft is glad she mad craft probably can’ ra ed at yc uc Ra ed n re ild ch like w un n. t ho io ea, bu at educat re m em be r is trip to South Kor s no plans 0,000 fee to get th a $2 is a d, te s ca e’ lo sh is os ha school , she many bing Sokcho, where the n near the demilita- her daughter s tio She’s happy to be na . sti ck w or ke d. Sh e ha de ba ist go ur to to r la . pu ea po or K th nNor r hobby of worked as a volu between South and orth Korea home and back to he ne zo ed riz e th N teer for most of in fact, part of volunteering. e The city was, of the war. d en e th to 45 groups that use th 19 from

PAGE 7 - Tuesday, February 4, 2014

All‐American Selections vegetables for 2014

By Erl Svendsen All-America Selections (www.All-AmericaSelections.org), a non-profit organization, has been testing and providing unbiased recommendations for new flower and vegetable varieties for more than 80 years.

Plants are tested in several locations around North America including some locations in Canada. In years past, plants had to perform well in all locations to be awarded the coveted AAS stamp of approval. This year, they’ve added regional winners to account for geographic and climatic differences. Last week I described the 2014 winning flower cultivars; this week we’re on to the

vegetables.

Marcotte is a compact (10 – 24 in. tall x 10 in. wide) bush green bean, equally at home in containers as in garden beds. Long, slender, stringless pods are held well above the green foliage for easy picking. Plant 2 – 3 in. apart with rows spaced 12 in. apart. For season long picking, plant as soon as the danger of frost is past (late May/ early June) with successive seedings two weeks apart until July. Days to harvest from planting are 50 days.

Pick-a-bushel is an early, heat-tolerant, semi-bush (10 – 24 in. tall x 24 – 26 in. spread) cucumber ideally suited for northern areas like Saskatchewan. Plants produce up to 18 – 20 cucum-

Mama Mia Giallo yellow sweet pepper. Photos submitted

bers. Fully mature fruit are 3 – 6 in. long. Picked early, they make great pickles either as gherkins or larger but they are also excellent fresh in salads having a firm texture and sweet taste. Because of their compact size you can grow them in containers as well as in the garden. Plant in hills 10 in. apart after last frost. Consider staking or trellising to save space and keep the fruit off the ground.

Fifty days to harvest.

Mama Mia Giallo yellow sweet pepper produces several elongated (seven – nine in.) fruit per plant. A fairly sturdy plant at only 24 in. tall, it may require staking in windy areas. In Saskatchewan, start indoor to transplant in early June, 15 in. apart in rows three feet apart. Pick fruit when fully yellow for best flavour; 85 days to harvest. Enjoy fresh, grilled or roasted.

With a name like Cinderella’s Carriage, it could only be a pumpkin. Vigorous vines produce as many as five – seven large (18 – 20 lb.), flattened (15 – 18 in. diam.), reddish-orange fruit per plant. For the lucky gardener, an occasional pale blue pumpkin is produced. Sow three seeds per hill directly

Mountain Merit tomato.

Cinderella’s Carriage pumpkin. in the ground (transplant not recommended) in late May/ early June, two – three feet apart. Can be used for fall decoration but is also great baked as a vegetable or as pie filling. Flavour is described as sweet and nutty – yummy!

Harvest when the skin loses its glossy sheen, about 100 days after sowing.

This year, three tomatoes made it to the finals. First is Chef’s Choice Orange, an indeterminate vine (requires staking) that produces 20 plus large, bright orange beefsteak tomatoes 75 days after transplanting. Reminiscent of heritage cultivars, the fruit is described as flat boat-shaped with sweet, mild flavour and firm texture. Great fresh or in soups and sauces.

Next is Fantasico, producing up to 12 lb. (approx.

350 fruit) of deep red grape

tomatoes on a compact determinate bush. Does equally well in containers, hanging baskets and in the garden – use a cage if growing in the ground. Harvest starts as early as 50 days after transplant.

Rounding out the trio is Mountain Merit, a nice allaround, deep red, mediumsized tomato ideal for slicing, salads and sandwiches. Up to 45 fruit are produced on bush-type plants; harvest starts about 75 days after transplant.

All three plants have good to excellent resistance to various diseases with the latter two having some late

Fantastico Fruit In A Bowl tomato.

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blight tolerance. As with all tomatoes, ensure soil is kept evenly moist to prevent blossom-end rot, a nutrient deficiency problem caused most frequently by drought stress.

If you’re interested in seeing some of the past AAS flower winners, visit the demonstration garden on the south side of the Agriculture and Bioresource building at the University of Saskatchewan.

— This column is provided courtesy of the Saskatchewan Perennial Society (www.saskperennial.ca; hortscene@ yahoo.com).

Pick-a-bushel cucumber.

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Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 8

Brett Smith Sports Reporter

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Fax: 306-445-3223

Email: newsoptimist.sports@sasktel.net

North Stars down Nipawin to extend winning streak to 12 games

By Brett Smith Sports Reporter

The Battlefords North Stars penalty killers took over Thursday night’s game against the Nipawin Hawks.

Blake Young and Jack Petrino scored shorthanded goals in the North Stars’ 4-2 win over the Hawks in front of the largest crowd of the season.

“They work hard in practice,” said Battlefords coach Kevin Hasselberg of the penalty kill units in Thursday’s game. “It’s a very proud group. They take their job seriously and it’s an opportunity for those guys to contribute to the hockey team.

Each player’s got a specific role on our hockey team and tonight the penalty killers pulled through for us.”

The Hawks had the first scoring chance three minutes into the game. Hawks forward B l a k e F o u r n i e r ’s s h o t wasn’t controlled by North Stars goaltender Michael Gudmandson. The puck bounced back to Fournier, but he could not slide it through Gudmandson’s pads.

Taylor Reich had the first great chance for the North Stars. He took the puck from

the corner and snapped it through Hawks goaltender Joe O’Brien’s five-hole.

However, the puck slid through the crease and missed the net. Luke McColgan followed up with another chance for Battlefords on a two-on-one with Ryne Keller.

McColgan kept the puck and shot, but O’Brien turned him away.

Dillon Forbes broke through for Battlefords with nine minutes left in the first.

His shot from the point found its way through traffic and barely got off the ice. The puck beat O’Brien low on his blocker side to give the North Stars a 1-0 lead.

There was a nervous moment for Gudmandson after the goal. He went behind his net to play the puck but turned it over. Hawks forward Carter Danczak collected the loose puck. Gudmandson scrambled back into net in time to make the save.

Late in the first period, the North Stars extended their lead while shorthanded.

Young picked off a cross-ice pass at the blue line and had a clear path to the net. He was hauled down on a breakaway and was awarded a penalty shot. Young made no mistake on the penalty shot. He deked

Blake Young scored on a penalty shot during the North Stars’ 4-2 win over the Nipawin Hawks Thursday night. Photo by Brett Smith to his left and beat O’Brien high over his blocker.

In the second, Battlefords took another penalty 50 seconds into the period. However, it was the North Stars that capitalized. After Battlefords forward Darcy Greenaway put pressure on the Hawks’ defence, he recovered a loose puck in the neutral zone. He skated the puck back into the

Hawks’ zone and passed to Petrino, who jumped behind the defence. Petrino had room in front of the net and beat O’Brien to extend the North Stars’ lead.

Midway through the second, the Hawks cut the North Stars’ lead in half. Jivan Sidhu’s point shot fooled Gudmandson, who was sliding to his right. The puck found the open left side of the net to bring the Hawks within one.

The Hawks then found themselves with an extended two-man advantage.

McColgan was sent off for elbowing with 10:04 to play in the period, followed by Reich being penalized for roughing 41 seconds later.

Nipawin capitalized on the power play time just as Reich’s penalty was about to expire. Danczak fanned on his first shot, but knocked the puck out of the air to beat Gudmandson with 7:27 remaining to tie the game.

The tie did not last long.

27 seconds after the Hawks’ goal, McColgan gave the North Stars the lead again.

He carried the puck over the

blue line and put the puck on net. The shot fooled O’Brien and found the top corner over the goaltender’s glove. It was McColgan’s sixth point in three games.

“When the stick’s hot, you got to keep throwing pucks that way and that’s what Luke’s doing,” said Hasselberg. “He’s come back after Christmas a new player and he’s been rewarded for his efforts.”

Gudmandson carried the North Stars through the rest of the game. He stopped all 10 shots he faced in the third period to preserve the North Stars’ two-goal lead.

Hasselberg said they ride Gudmandson at the end of games, but it’s a part of hockey. “ You need good goaltending to be successful in any league,” said Hasselberg. “It definitely provides a new level of confidence for the players to play in front of him when he’s playing as well as he is.”

Gudmandson made 28 saves to earn his 15th win of the season for the North Stars. O’Brien made 31 saves to pick up his 11th loss on the year for Nipawain.

Battlefords (29-16-0-2) have a week off before their next game. They host the Nipawin Hawks again Feb. 7. The North Stars play the Estevan Bruins at home Feb. 8. Both games start at 7:30 p.m.

AAA Stars pick up win and a draw

By Brett Smith Sports Reporter

The Battlefords AAA Stars picked up a win and a tie against the Generals in SMAAAHL action last weekend in Moose Jaw. Layne Young scored with 1:36 remaining in overtime to give the Stars a 3-2 victory over the Generals Saturday night at Mosaic Place.

The Generals opened the scoring on the power play in the first period. Moose Jaw winger Donovan Neuls beat

Battlefords goaltender Rylan Toth while Josh LaFramboise was serving a two-minute minor for hooking.

There was no scoring in an even second period. The Stars outshot the Generals 11-9 in the period.

In the third, Josh Bly tied the game for the Stars 3:19 into the period. Corbin Schmidt assisted on Bly’s 18th goal of the season.

Battlefords took the lead with 8:15 left to play. Spencer Bast scored his 21st goal of the year on Moose Jaw goaltender Colby Entz with

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assists from Graham Gove and Bly. With the goal, Bast leads the SMAAAHL with 54 points.

With 1:21 remaining in regulation, Battlefords defenceman Traye Tkatchuk took a holding penalty.

Moose Jaw used the power play to tie the game with six seconds left. Rykr Cole beat Toth to send the game into overtime.

In the overtime period, Young’s 10th goal of the year from LaFramboise gave the Stars the win.

Continued on page 9

PAGE 9 - Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Beaver Blues and Combines lose in final regular season games

By Brett Smith Sports Reporter

The Battleford Beaver Blues and Meota Combines enter the 2014 SPHL playoffs with losses to the Spiritwood Timberwolves.

Raymon Harris scored twice and had three assists in the Timberwolves’ 9-6 victory against the Combines Friday night at the Civic Centre.

The Timberwolves opened the scoring with two goals midway through the first period. Spiritwood captain Bryce Gatzke and Harris scored 30 seconds apart nine minutes into the period to give their team a 2-0 lead. Raymond Witchekan added a goal 12 minutes into the first to put the Timberwolves up 3-0.

Meota responded with two goals before the end of the period. Tanner Robinson struck first with 4:20 remaining in the first. Kyle Gregoire scored less than two minutes later to get the Combines back within one before the end of the period.

The Combines evened up the game with less than four minutes left in the second.

Tyson Knight’s goal with 3:53 tied the game at three.

The tie did not last to the intermission. Gatzke found

The Beaver Blues swarm in front of Timberwolves goaltender Jason Sawitsky in Battleford’s 5-2 loss Saturday night. Battleford and Spiritwood meet again in the first round of the SPHL playoffs. Photo by John Cairns the back of the net for the Timberwolves with 10 seconds left in the period, giving Spiritwood a 4-3 lead.

Spiritwood scored five unanswered goals in the third to seal the victory. Shane Gopher beat Combines goaltender Carson Churchman 4:11 into the third. Two minutes later, Anthony Radke found the back of the net.

Harris added his second of the game 8:37 into the period.

Shane Gopher struck again 39 seconds after Harris’s goal. Colton Poulin scored the last of the Timberwolves’ goals with 8:39 remaining in the game.

The Combines tried to mount a comeback, but were unable to get closer than three goals. Brody Tatchell, Brett Miller and Robinson all scored in the third period.

Churchman picked up his fourth loss of the season.

Timberwolves goaltender Jason Sawitsky won his seventh game.

Alternate captain Shane Gopher had two goals, including the game-winner, and added an assist to lead the Spiritwood Timberwolves to a 5-2 win over the Beaver Blues Saturday night at the Battleford Arena.

The Timberwolves struck

Belyk keeps lead in New Horizons

by Gerry Bristow Three was the number when the New Horizons curled Jan. 28. Each ice saw that score recorded, three of them in the first end.

Doug Belyk played on sheet one again. He started off with the last rock and, even with the practice, he could score only the one to begin the game. Practice does pay because he scored three in each of the next two ends to be six up over Allan Rogers. Belyk eventually got

the win.

Eugene Korpach scored a three and a two in the first four ends to be three up on Dick Horrell. Scoring an even number of ends doesn’t mean a tie game. In this case, it meant a loss for Horrell’s group. It was a close game, ending in the eighth end.

Ed Kjargaard came back to form when playing Bryan Peever by starting off with three, giving up two and then scoring four in the next three

ends. In fact, he never let up.

Kjargaard picked up an easy win, scoring in all but two ends. He is now even up in games.

Ralph Hall scored a deuce over Rod Forester in the fourth end, but was still down by three and he never did recover. Forester scored in seven out of eight. It is three wins in a row for Rod’s Rangers.

After playing four ends, it was all tied up at three even though Bob Krismer had scored in only one end. Alexander Scott kept the pace up and his win/loss record is at par.

Gordon Munn started off with a couple of ones, gave up one, and then scored two in the fourth to lead Peter Pauls. Munn was only one up coming home, but it was enough.

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Shane Gopher restored the Timberwolves’ two-goal lead late in the second. His goal with 12 seconds left put Spiritwood up 3-1 heading into the third period.

Harris put the Timberwolves up three goals with his marker with eight minutes to play. Blaine Fineday added a power play goal with 1:48 left to put Spiritwood up 5-1.

With 24 seconds left in the third, the Beaver Blues made the game 5-2 when Darren Poitras beat Sawitsky.

After the whistle, there was a scrum that led to a fight. Spiritwood’s Wayne Jim and Battleford’s Logan Weeseekase

squared off. Both players received game misconducts.

It was Sylvester’s first loss in two games played for the Beaver Blues. Sawitsky picked up his eighth win of the season for Spiritwood.

Despite the losses, the Beaver Blues and the Combines made the playoffs.

Battleford finished fourth in the SPHL and will play the Timberwolves in the first round.

The Combines finished sixth and face off against the Shellbrook Silvertips in a match up of the two firstyear teams.

Both series are best of five.

Two teams undefeated left in Thursday Open League Submitted Two of the 20 curling teams playing in the Canadian Tire Thursday Open League have remained undefeated after four weeks of play in 2014.

Mike Lehman and Allan Hoffman skipped their teams to victories Jan. 30 and are looking forward to the weeks ahead to see if their winning streaks will continue.

Four other skips are hot on their heels.

Gary Southgate, Brian Welford, Lloyd Carriere and Terry Kjargaard are sitting with three wins and one loss each, proving that the competition is fierce this year on Thursday nights at the Northland Power Curling Centre.

In addition to Lehman, Hoffman, Southgate and Welford, other skips winning

games on Jan. 30 included Ian Hamilton, Susan Wright, Bret Baptiste and Matt Taylor.

The Thursday night league is one of several leagues hosted by the Twin Rivers Curling Club. It is an open and mixed league meaning that any four people competing as a team can enter and play. Other league play takes place on Monday and Tuesday nights and Tuesday and Thursday during the day. The curling club hosts a drop-in night where anyone interested in throwing a few rocks can do so Friday nights. Wednesday night play sees the Business League on the ice.

The Canadian Tire Thursday Night Open League will continue play through the end of the season, which concludes by the end of March.

Stars tied for first in SMAAAHL Continued from page 8 Toth stopped 28 shots for his 10th win of the season.

Entz’s loss was his second of the season.

Battlefords and Moose Jaw played to a 2-2 draw Sunday afternoon.

LaFramboise extended his point streak to 11 games when he scored his 28th goal of the season with 4:54 remaining in the first period.

Young and Schmidt picked up assists on his goal.

The Generals tied the game in the second period. Jared Legien’s unassisted goal got

by Stars goaltender Ryan Rewerts with 39 seconds remaining in the period.

Moose Jaw broke the tie midway through the third.

Braydon Delorme found the back of the net with 9:57 left to play for his 15th goal of the season.

The Stars tied the game with 4:37 left in the third. Defenceman Mason Benning’s fourth goal of the year beat Moose Jaw goaltender Grant Naherniak.

Overtime solved nothing and the game ended in a tie.

The Stars outshot the Gener-

als 3-2 in the extra frame.

Rewerts stopped 33 of 35 shots faced for the Stars.

Naherniak made 27 saves for Moose Jaw. With three points earned over the weekend, the Stars (25-7-5-1) moved into a first place tie with the Notre Dame Argos. Both teams have 56 points on the campaign.

The Stars’ next game is Thursday night in Saskatoon against the Contacts at 7:45 p.m. Batlefords return home Feb. 13 to host Prince Albert.

Puck drop is 7 p.m. at the Civic Centre.

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first on the power play with two minutes left in the opening period. While Adam Kozlowski was in the box for roughing, Gatzke beat Battleford goaltender Mike Sylvester with assists from Harris and Gopher.

Spiritwood used the power play again to extend their lead in the second period.

Shane Gopher got his first of the game with Greg Shury off for holding to put the Timberwolves up 2-0 five minutes into the frame.

The Beaver Blues cut the lead in half midway through the second period. Blaine Weber beat Sawitsky with 10:10 remaining.

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Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 10

Venus is the Morning Star in February PUZZLE NO. 644 24.

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Shelf of rock Hole punch Lock openers Yesteryear Foster role Distribute Commotion Outdoor trek Place Underwater worker Pinnacle Sorority member Grocery reminder Split Earlier than, in poems "____ Will Buy?" Play it by ____ Change the color of

By James Edgar The New moon was Jan. 30, so we see only a thin slice of lunar crescent in the west at sundown Feb. 1.

Mercury shines just a few degrees below it, but you need a clear western horizon to see the fleetfooted innermost planet. By Feb. 11, the moon is right below Jupiter in the eastern evening twilight, sharing the darkness with the constellations Taurus, Orion, Canis Major, Gemini, and the six brightest stars in the night sky. They are Aldebaran, Betelgeuse, Rigel, Sirius, Procyon and Pollux.

The moon is full Feb. 14.

A few days later, in quick succession, Spica, Mars, and Saturn join with our satellite Feb. 19, 20 and 21, respectively. These events occur very late at night.

Feb. 26, in the eastern morning sky, Venus and the moon are less than a degree apart.

Mercury appears low in the western evening sky, but fading fast for the first week of the month. Then,

Copyright © 2012 by Penny Press

ACROSS 1.

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"On My ____" Complexion affliction Snatch Rival Train sound Like a certain fish Infant's problem Chimney clogger Doctor or chart Spruce, e.g.

Bundle of cotton Peeled Friend's opposite Fleecy female Zone or table Picnic intruder

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Strangely '20s car Gathered Apparatus Beach discovery Made level Not at work Realtor's measure Kind Penny or dime Looked over again Waiter's handout Makes angry Dried grass On ____ (tense) Cheeky Valuable rock

DOWN 1.

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Frequently, to a bard ____ is me!

Named before marriage Painful Leader Convent member Breakfast food "Beau ____" Requested again Medicinal plant Computer unit Abound Rafter Ms. Bancroft Calligraphy, e.g.

ANSWER TO PUZZLE NO. 644

Professional Business & Service

DIRECTORY

Serving Our Rural Communities

T W B Construction Oilfield Cleanup - Oil Sand Hauling

KERANDA

PHONE: 306-875-9522

INDUSTRIAL SUPPLY LTD.

1-800-387-6193 “Our Written Warranty Guarantees Your Satisfaction”

Trucks, Backhoes - Gravel Supply & Delivery BILL PIKE Res. 306-893-2362 Cell. 306-893-7614

TERRY PIKE Res. 306-893-4210 Cell. 306-893-7615 Shop Ph. 306-893-4500

Box 398 Maidstone, SK. S0M 1M0

MIGNEAULT GREENWOOD

Barristers and Solicitors Sallows Building 1391 - 101st Street, North Battleford, Saskatchewan, S9A 2Y8 Telephone: (306) 445-4436 Fax: (306) 445-6444 Kevan M. Migneault, B.A., LL.B. Murray E. Greenwood, B.A., J.D. Monte M. Migneault, B.A., LL.B.

MAIDSTONE OFFICE: Murray E. Greenwood attends at Elliot Insurance Offices every Thursday afternoon Telephone: 306-893-2461

P.O. Box 330 Maidstone, SK, S0M 1M0 Located: Bus.: 306-893-2631 507-Hwy. 21 N Fax.: 306-893-2410

Supplies for all your agricultural, industrial & automotive needs.

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Place your business card on this page CALL VALORIE HIGGS 1-866-549-9979 Fax: 306-445-1977 Email: battlefords.publishing@sasktel.net

Fax: 306-248-3339

CUT KNIFE OFFICE:

www.marshallsfuneralhome.ca

Murray E. Greenwood attends every second and fourth Tuesday afternoons at the R.M. of Cut Knife building.

Telephone: 306-398-2353

FUNERAL DIRECTORS Gordon Marshall Doug Hanley

after inferior conjunction (passing in front of the sun), the speedy planet is visible in eastern mornings, hugging the horizon. You may even see it with the moon and Venus Feb. 26.

Venus is the Morning Star in February. As mentioned above, it shines alongside the moon Feb. 26. In the Indian Ocean area, this is an occultation, when the moon passes in front of the bright planet.

Mars appears late in the evening, as mentioned in the moon section above.

Watch for the two bodies Feb. 19 and 20, as the moon glides by the much more distant Red Planet.

Jupiter rises in midafternoon and is high in the southeast at sunset, so offers a good evening observing opportunity. Use binoculars or a telescope to watch the daily dance of the four Galilean moons of the giant planet. Viewing the ever-shifting moons is like watching a small version of the Solar System in action.

Saturn and Mars are close to each other in the late evening sky, and the moon sidles up to the Ringed Planet a day after its encounter with Mars.

This close approach Feb. 21 is another occultation in distant lands south of the equator (Feb. 22 Down Under).

Uranus is in the western evening sky for an hour or two after sundown.

Use binoculars or a small telescope to see this distant greenish planet.

Neptune is too close to the sun for practical viewing.

In the western evening sky, look for the Zodiacal Light in the latter two weeks of the month.

— James Edgar has had an interest in the night sky all his life. He joined The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada in 2000 and is now assistant editor and a contributor to the Observer’s Handbook, production manager of the bi-monthly RASC Journal, and the society’s national secretary. He was given the RASC Service Award at the 2012 General Assembly in Edmonton.

Check out The Battlefords RCMP Daily Report on our website at

www.newsoptimist.ca

PAGE 11 - Tuesday, February 4, 2014

Scan here for careers online

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Ph.: 306-445-7265 / 306-445-7266 Deadline: Tuesday 3 p.m.

Deadline: Friday 3 p.m.

OBITUARIES MRS. STELLA BARTKO: Mrs. Stella Bartko, age 92, of North Battleford, SK and formerly of Prince Albert, SK passed away on Monday, January 27, 2014.

Funeral service will be held at 2:00 p.m. on Saturday, February 1 from River Park Memorial Chapel. The Reverend Father Michael Lomaszkiewicz, Priest of Holy Trinity Ukrainian Orthodox Church, will officiate. Stella is survived by her loving family: her son David and daughter-in-law Cindy; her grandsons Adam and Ryan as well as numerous nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by: her husband William “Bill” Bartko in 1983; her parents Kost and Maria Picklyk and all her brothers and sisters. Stella was born on December 29, 1921 in Honeymoon, SK. Stella belonged to the Ukrainian Greek Orthodox Church and the Ladies Auxiliary.

She truly enjoyed singing and sang in the church choir and the Veselka choir. She always praised and appreciated her neighbors and friends for all the help they gave her and wishes to thank them again for all they did. Stella truly loved cooking her ethnic foods for her family and friends. In her golden years she enjoyed bowling, reading, crocheting, knitting and doing all kinds of puzzles. As a good driver she took every chance to drive her friends around, which always led to a coffee and a visit. Stella was gifted with a unique sense of humor to keep people laughing. This is how she wants to be remembered. Always remember me with smiles and laughter, for that’s how I’ll remember you all. If you must be sad and remember me with tears then just don’t remember me at all. A special thank you to the Renal Care Unit at St. Paul Hospital in Saskatoon and Battlefords Union Hospital for the excellent care given to my mother during her stays. It is the family’s request that anyone wishing to place memorials may do so to the Renal Care unit of the Battlefords Union Hospital. Interment will take place in the South Hill Cemetery. Funeral arrangements are entrusted to the care of RIVER PARK MEMORIAL CHAPEL, Prince Albert, SK 306764-2727 Donald M. Moriarty, Funeral Director ____________________________________________________ McARTHUR, John Ernest (Ernie): Ernie passed away January 8, 2014 at 95 years of age. Ernie was born in Battleford, Sk on October 2, 1918.

He lived and worked in the Battleford area in his younger years. He married his “soulmate” , Rusty, August 1, 1942. They had 47 years of marital bliss. They were blessed with two children, Lyle and Joann, while living in Battleford.

Ernie and Rusty and their small family moved to Melfort in 1948 and that is where Sheila and Larry were born. Ernie worked most of his life as a mechanic. He operated Ernie’s Texaco Service garage for many years and helped farmers service their farm equipment in the fields. Ernie loved the outdoors: hunting and fishing. This led to Ernie and Rusty managing The Pelican Narrows fly-in-fishing Camp for Bert Whitley for several summers. Ernie and Rusty spent the summers of their early retirement years at Caribou Creek where they enjoyed the company of many friends. Winters, for Ernie, were spent travelling to Houston, Texas with the chuckwagons tending to the horses and doing various other duties (cooking, repairing wagons). Ernie built a woodworking shop where he spent many hours entertaining friends and working on one of his favorite hobbies: woodworking and doing small repair jobs. Ernie purchased a 1942 John Deere AR tractor and Clipper Combine which he fully restored. He proudly drove the tractor and combine for 29 years in the Melfort parade and won many ribbons. Ernie lived for 63 years in the same home until the age of 93. He then lived at Chateau Providence, St. Brieux until his passing. Ernie is survived by his children Joann (Gene) Anderson and their children Paula and Tonya, Sheila (Rodney) Holowaty and their daughter Jaime, Larry (Maxine) McArthur; 3 grandchildren, 6 great grandchildren; sister Carolle Pickering and many nieces and nephews. Ernie was predeceased by his wife Vienetta (Rusty); son Lyle and grandson Ryan Holowaty; his parents John and Zella and 6 siblings. At a later date, the family will bury Ernie beside Rusty at the West Eagle Hills Cemetary in the Battleford area. Funeral arrangements were entrusted to Melfort Funeral Home Ltd. ____________________________________________________

FUNERAL SERVICES

BAILLARGEON: It is with great sadness that we announce the sudden passing of Rollande Marie Baillargeon on Saturday, January 25, 2014 at the age of 72. Rollande was born August 9, 1941 in Edam, Saskatchewan.

She was predeceased by her father Paul in 1986. She is lovingly remembered by her mother Leona and her siblings Pauline (Albert) Reiter, Lionel (Marge) Baillargeon, Marcel (Sharon) Baillargeon, Irene (John) Dawe, Jacqueline (Gerald) Weedmark, and Laurier (Merlie) Baillargeon; as well as many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. Vigil of prayer was held Tuesday, January 28, 2014 and Mass of Christian Burial was held Wednesday, January 29, 2014 at St. Andre’s Church in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. Family and friends were very important to Rollande.

She enjoyed every day she could spend with them. She was a kind hearted woman who touched many lives. As one of her friend’s commented “she was one of those neighbours who you just knew would be a lifelong friend.” She has always been a strong support for her mother. Being single, she adopted her nieces and nephews and their children as her own. Never a birthday or anniversary went by without a homemade card being received by Rollande. Unfortunately as her health declined these last few years she found it hard to do the things she loved to do, but her door was always open to everyone and she always had a bed for whoever needed one. Although we will miss our dear sister we know that her dad has met her at Heaven’s gate and that she is safe in the arms of our Lord, free of all pain and suffering. For those so wishing memorial donations can be made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Saskatchewan, Diabetes Association, or to a charity of the donor’s choice. We love you Rollande.

Card of Thanks The family would like to thank everyone for their kind support, prayers, masses, expressions of sympathy, cards, flowers and donations of food to help us through this difficult time. Thank you to all Rollande’s friends who helped her throughout the years, especially Teake Wright who drove her to the ER. Thank you to all the emergency staff at St. Paul’s hospital. Thank you to St. Anne parishioners who prayed and supported Rollande during her illness. Thank you to Father Gerard Legaspi, Gill Bellevance, the music ministry, the Notre Dame CWL, the pallbearers and the participants in the services. Thank you to Trevor Watts and staff at Eternal Memories Funeral Service and Crematorium.

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ANNOUNCEMENTS HOST FAMILIES NEEDED. Northern Youth Abroad is looking for families to host 2 youth from Nunavut/NWT. Volunteering in your community.

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ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES SHOW & SALE. February 24 to March 2 (inclusive) at Market Mall, Preston & Louise, Saskatoon, during mall hours.

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Eternal Memories Funeral Service & Crematorium 2741 - 99th Street, North Battleford, SK 306-445-7570 The Battlefords only Locally Owned & Operated Funeral Provider Providing traditional burial and cremation services

CREMATORIUM ON SITE Serving Families with Dignity, Respect & Compassion

Trevor Watts - Director/Owner Counsellor for Bronze and Granite Memorials Pre planning guides, assisting with Purple Shield plans email: eternalmemories@sasktel.net website:

www. eternalmemoriesfuneral.ca IN MEMORIAM

In Loving Memory of Bev Houk August 2, 1957 - February 5, 2006 Remember her with a smile today, she was not one for tears.

Reflect instead on memories, of all the happy years.

Recall to mind the way she spoke, and all the things she said, her strength, her stance, the way she walked, remember these instead.

The good advice she’d give us, how her eyes shone with laughter, so much of her will never die, but live on ever after.

As we loved you, so we miss you, in our memory you are near.

Loved, remembered, longed for always, bringing many a silent tear.

James, Ryan, Trent & McCracken Families

In Our Hearts

Funeral Home 1271 - 103rd Street | North Battleford | 306-445-2418

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Quality Assurance Course for Health Canada’s COMMERCIAL MARIJUANA PROGRAM. February 22 & 23 Best Western Hotel, Kelowna, BC. Tickets: www.greenlineacademy.com or 1-855-860-8611 or 250870-1882

In Loving Memory of

We thought of you with love today.

But that is nothing new.

We thought about you yesterday.

And days before that too.

We think of you in silence.

We remember how you look.

Now all we have is memories.

And your pictures in our book.

Your memory is our keepsake.

With which we’ll never part.

God has you in his keeping.

We have you in our heart..

Lovingly Remembered Zonie, Sharon, Henri, Tim, Judy, Cory, Janey, Andy, Amanda, Jan. 28, 1939 - Feb. 10, 2012 Adam, Megan, Hayden

Joyce Margaret Krawchuk

Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 12

IN MEMORIAM

In Memory of Alec Textor

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CAREER OPPORTUNITIES Heavy Duty Mechanic/Apprentice required for preventative maintenance, repair and service of heavy equipment fleet.

Experience with CAT, JD, and Hitachi.

Appropriate credentials and/or certifications.

Valid drivers license.

Both camp and shop locations. Service truck and accommodations provided. Wage negotiable. Send work references and resume to: Bryden Construction, Box 100, Arborfield, Sk. S0E 0A0; Fax: 306-769-8844 Email: brydenconstruct@ xplornet.ca

News-Optimist

ONLY A FEW UNITS LEFT! 55 PLUS ADULT COMMUNITY Ground Level Ranchers. www.diamondplace.ca 306 241 0123 Warman, SK

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 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.

FOR SALE: Sask Valley News, a weekly paper operating out of Rosthern, SK for over 100 years. Contact janet@saskvalleynews.com for further information.

SUITES FOR RENT

HOUSES FOR SALE

FOR SALE - MISC

BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES

For Rent One Three Bedroom Luxury Adult Family Townhouse on Foley Drive. Totally renovated 1,080 sqft. plus developed basement, five appliances, air condition, fenced yard.

Possession Feb, 1, 2014 or earlier, no smoking, no pets, can be furnished for right tenant at addiftional cost. References required, security $1,350.00, rent $1,350.00. Call for details and personal viewing 306481-2836.

IN THE ESTATE OF JAMES N. MACLEOD, late of Meota, Saskatchewan, deceased.

ALL CLAIMS AGAINST THE ABOVE ESTATE, duly veriÀed by statutory declaration and with particulars and valuation of security held, if any, must be sent to the undersigned before the 4th day of February, 2014.

KEVAN MIGNEAULT B.A. LL.B. Executor (or Executor's laywer) Sallows Building 1391 - 101st Street, PO Box 520 North Battleford, SK S9A 2Y8

LAND FOR SALE

3 Bedroom House Fridge, Range, Washer, Dryer, older or working couple. Available Feb. 1st, 2014, Phone 306-445-5108

ED IN NE

OF

FLYER Y? R E V I L E D

Talk To The Experts At

News-Optimist 445-7261 • • • •

Door to Door Carrier Service Total Coverage Personalize Your Coverage Area

Call today for the “Best Coverage In The Community” CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

Railway Tamper Operator Cando is looking for experienced Mark IV Tamper, EJ6 Tamper, or equivalent tamper operators to join its team. The positions will troubleshoot and repair computerized, hydraulic/electrical components; train others on the operation & maintenance of the tampers; perform track inspections; coordinate daily activities ensuring track permits are issued, followed and cancelled as required.

Five years experience operating a tamper, ability to hold CROR, TIG, and eRailsafe certifications and have experience working in Class 1 or similar railway environment. Clear drug and alcohol test. Ability to travel in Canada Full time; wage range $30 to $35 per hour; overtime. Schedule is 10 days on, 4 days off; accommodations & living allowance provided when on the road.

Email: employment@candoltd.com Fax: (204) 725-4100 c a n d o l t d . c o m 4th Floor, 740 Rosser Avenue, Brandon, MB 204-725-2627

PAGE 13 - Tuesday, February 4, 2014

CAREER OPPORTUNITIES

WANTED CLASS 4 DRIVERS $14.24 per hour.

Full-Time and Part-Time.

Weekends and Evenings.

Phone 306-321-4635 or email: nmaclaren@shaw.ca

HOUSES FOR RENT

Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre Inc. is seeking an

NEW SENIOR INDEPENDENT LIVING 6 appliances, elevator, air conditioning, indoor parking & pet friendly.

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

Brylin.ca

306-480-1990

Occupancy October 2014.

RENT FROM

69500

$

Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre is currently seeking applications for a permanent full-time Accounts Clerk.

WW1451

Lilydale Inc - A Sofina Foods Company Is currently seeking full-time Production Workers for their chicken plant in Wynyard, Sask. Starting wage is 13.84/ hr with a comprehensive benefits package and pension program. All applicants welcome!

Call Linda @ (306) 554-2555 EXT 238 for more info Send Resumes to: Linda Karakochuk Sofina Foods Inc Box 760 Wynyard, SK SOA 4T0 Fax: (306) 554-3958 Email: LKarakochuk@sofinafoods.com

The Account Clerk will work under the direction and supervision of the Director of Finance and Personnel and will have the responsibility of keeping accurate financial records which are in accordance with generally accepted accounting principals and will ensure the safekeeping of all pertinent financial documents of the Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre Inc. accounting standards.

Qualifications: • Diploma from a recognized business college with credits in accounting/bookkeeping.

• Previous work experience with ACCPAC for Windows (General Ledger, Accounts Payable) and Grand Master Suite payroll.

• Must be proficient with word processing and spreadsheets.

• Demonstrated ability for attention to detail, thoroughness and communication skills.

• Demonstrated organizational, administrative, inter-personal and team building skills.

• Confidentiality is essential.

• Must have a valid driver’s license.

• Must provide a criminal record check.

For more information, contact Juliette Pewapisconias, Director of Finance and Personnel 306-937-6700.

Submit updated resumé, cover letter and 3 professional references by 4:00 pm February 14, 2014 to: Janice W. Kennedy, Executive Director Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre Inc. P.O. Box 1658 North Battleford, Sask. S9A 3W2 Fax: (306)445-3612 Only those candidates selected for interview will be contacted.

Battle River Treaty 6 Health Centre Inc. fosters and promotes a safe work environment.

TO BOOK CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING CALL 1-888-470-7997 COMING EVENTS

École Monseigneur Mo Blaise Morand Catholic French Immersion School for Kindergarten to Grade 7

At EMBM we • Pray • Learn • Serve in a Catholic, bilingual community.

Catholic French Immersion Bilingual: Everyone can learn 2 languages! We have many students who speak more than 2!

Catholic: Immerse your child in a rich and vibrant faith community.

Excellence: High standards of excellence for all students Support: For all families, over 90% of our families do not speak French at home.

Did you know?

According to re search, French Immersion students do as well or better in English reading an d writing than their peers in allEnglish programs.

To learn more, please join us in our library on

Wednesday, February 5th at 7:00 pm for an information night. École Monseigneur Blaise Morand, 1651 96th Street, North Battleford, S9A 0H7, 306-446-2167

Community Safety and Crime Prevention

GET INVOLVED! Men have a responsibility to stop male violence against women.

A message from the Canada Safety Council

Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 14

COMING EVENTS

Community Events Calendar ALCOHOLICS ANONYMOUS Please call our 24 hour helpline at 306-446-6166 for support or information.

Thursday, January 30 Grief Share Support Group for those dealing with the death of a loved one at the Living Faith Chapel at 7:30 p.m. Pre-registration required.

New sessions starting January 30. Phone Wendy at 306-445-7315 or Sue 306-445-6658.

Tuesday, February 11, 18 & 24 Heart to Heart is a Heart and Stroke Foundation program, working in partnership with Prairie North Health Region to offer cardiac patients and their partners the answers to their questions about heart health. Through these 5 sessions, patients learn about coping with health problems, making healthy eating choices, the role of exercise in heart health and how to manage stress. Classes will be held on February 4, 11, 18 & 24 from 1:30 - 3:30 p.m. at the Primary Health Center. To Ànd out more or to register, call Kellie Heidel 306446-6424 or email kellie.heidel@pnrha.ca. Please leave a daytime phone number if leaving a message.

Tuesdays, February 4 & 11 Time for Tots at the North Battleford Library at 11:00 a.m. Phone 306-445-3206.

Wednesdays, February 5 & 12 Preschool Storytime at the North Battleford Library at 11:00 a.m.

Phone 306-445-3206.

Thursday, February 6 & 13 Preschool Storytime at the North Battleford Library at 2:00 p.m.

Phone 306-445-3206.

Saturday, February 8 The City of North Battleford Historic Archives will present a power point presentation and display at the Territorial Mall, 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. in celebration of Saskatchewan Archives Week. For further information please call City Archives at 306-445-1786.

Saturday, February 8 Battlefords Trade & Education Centre - Mardi Gras Dinner & Dance.

Please come out and enjoy the tastes and sounds of New Orleans. For tickets call at 306-445-6141.

Saturday, February 8 Beef Supper Fund Raiser for Baja Mission 2014, at St. Paul’s Anglican Church, 1312-99th Street. Come at 5:30 p.m. for fun and fellowship, supper served at 6:00 p.m., light musical entertainment to follow.

Tickets must be purchased in advance. Call the church ofÀce at 306445-4155 or Rosemarie at 306-445-4645 for more information.

Saturday, February 8 Club 70 - Cherokee Rose at the Royal Canadian Legion, 1352 - 100th Street from 8:00 p.m. to 12:00 a.m. with lunch. Phone Les & Donna at 306-845-3772 for more info. Everyone welcome.

Tuesday, February 11 TOPS Open House - Take Off Pounds Sensibly at Hope Mennonite Fellowship, 1291 - 109th Street at 6:45 p.m. Phone Jan Trost for more info at 306-937-7639.

Tuesday, February 11 Seniors Fun Day at St. Joseph Hall, 1942 - 98th Street from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. Entertainment by Larry Symynuk & friends. Lunch and bingo to follow. All seniors welcome. Door prizes.

Tuesday, February 11 Cupcakes for Cancer - Cupcake Wars at the North Battleford Civic Centre - North Stars Hockey Games. Call the Canadian Cancer Society ofÀce to register and get complete information at 306-445-3339.

Tuesday, February 11 Kaiser Tournament at the Borden Senior’s Room at 7:00 p.m.

Wednesday, February 12 Soup and sandwich lunch at Borden Hall from 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m.

Hosted by Borden Lions & School.

Thursday, February 13 St. Joseph CWL Valentine’s Lunch at St. Joseph Calasanctius Parish Hall, 1942 - 98th Street from 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Door prizes!

Everyone welcome.

Friday, February 14 Telemiracle Valentine’s Tea at the Senior’s Club Room at 2:00 p.m.

Friday, February 14 Meota Hobby Band presents Sweetheart Dance Night at the Community Complex from 7:00 to 10:00 p.m. Advance tickets available from: Band Members, Meota Village OfÀce & Innovation Credit Union Meota Branch. Further information call Lawrie at 306-892-2517.

Thursday, February 20 Senior’s Cash Bingo in the Club Room at 7:00 p.m.

Monday, February 24 Annual General Meeting of the Battlefords Society for Autism at 6:30 p.m. at 792 - 101st Street, North Battleford. Everyone welcome.

This section, which will appear weekly in Tuesday's News-Optimist and Thursday’s Regional Optimist, is provided free-of-charge to non-profit organizations. To list the Community Calendar please call News-Optimist at 306-445-7261 or fax the information to 306-445-3223. Please provide complete information including event, time, date and location. Although we will do our utmost to make sure your event appears in this section, News-Optimist does not guarantee all submissions will appear. Deadline for submissions is 12:00 noon Friday prior for Tuesday's & Thursday’s publication.

Monthly Community Events Calendar Every Week Day Mornings

2nd Wednesday of the Month

Play Pool at the Hillcrest Centre, 122 - 24th Street, Battleford at 8:00 a.m.

Battlefords Wildlife Federation, Supper Meeting at the Wildlife Federation Building at 7:00 p.m.

Tops Regular Weekly Meetings Please call for time and dates of meetings. Phone 306-937-2437.

4th & 5th Sunday of the Month (when applicable) Knights of Columbus Brunch at 1202 - 105 Street from 10:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Sundays Music Jam at Pioneer Hall, 792 - 105th Street from October 6th to May 4th, 2014. Come sing, dance and enjoy. For more information call 306-445-5036.

Monday, Wednesday & Thursday FREE Health Education Walking Program at the Meota Community Complex from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon. Stretch & tone portion at 10:00 a.m. For more informaiton phone Program Co-ordinator at 306-892-2218

Mondays Scrabble from 1:30 - 4:00 p.m. at the Hillcrest Centre, 122 - 24th Street, Battleford. Come join us. For more info call 306-937-2744.

2nd Monday of the Month Retirees of B.U.H. meet at the Co-op Cafeteria for an informal gathering at 11:30 a.m. If stat holiday, move to 3rd Monday. For more info call 306-937-3318.

2nd Monday of the Month Waseca Rink Association at 107 - 1st Street West, Waseca at 7:30 p.m.

Tuesdays & Thursdays Circle of Learning at the Battlefords Family Health Care, 1192 - 101st Street from 10:00 - 11:30 a.m. Call Rose Favel at 306-937-6842.

Tuesdays Borden Health Clinic has Doctors attending from 9:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.

Tuesdays Borden Senior’s Club Cards/Kaiser at 7:00 p.m. Kaiser Tournament every 2nd Tuesday.

Tuesdays Battlefords Art Club welcomes anyone interested in painting to join them from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. at the Don Ross Centre Art Room. For more information phone Kathy at 306-937-3686.

Tuesdays TOPS - Take off Pounds Sensibly Meeting at the Living Faith Chapel, 103rd Street & 14th Avenue entrance. Weigh in from 5:15 - 6:15 p.m.

Meeting 6:15 - 7:00 p.m. Phone Kay at 306-937-2780.

Tuesdays TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) meeting. Weigh-in 6:00 - 6:45 p.m.

Meeting 6:45 - 7:45 p.m. at the Hope Mennonite Fellowship, 1291 109th Street. Contact Lynn Fuchs at 445-4529 or Mary Johannesen at 306-446-3315.

Tuesdays Battlefords Blend Harmony Chorus at the Western Development Museum at 7:15 p.m. Phone 306-892-2196.

1st Tuesdays of the Month The Battlefords Photography Club meets downstairs at the Allan Sapp Gallery from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. For more information please phone Chris at 306-445-3909.

Last Tuesday of the Month Support group for families, friends and caregivers of persons with mental illness at Canadian Mental Health Association - Battleford Branch (CMHA), 1011 - 103rd Street, North Battleford. For more information phone Jane at 306-446-7177.

Wednesdays & Fridays Twin Rivers Curling Club Drop-In Curling from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m. Learn the game, sharpen your skills and join friends for refreshments.

Wednesdays Battlefords Toastmasters Meet in room #108 Don Ross Centre (enter the building via door #4) from 7:00 - 9:00 p.m. Check out Battlefords Toastmasters.com for more information.

2nd Wednesdays of the Month Hillcrest Seniors Member Meeting at 10:30 a.m. at the Hillcrest Centre, 122 - 24th Street, Battleford. Coffee at 10:15 a.m.

3rd Wednesday of the Month Battlefords North West Historical Society Meeting at the Lions Club House, 22nd Street, Battleford at 1:30 p.m. Phone 306-445-3480.

3rd Wednesday of the Month Genealogy at the North Battleford Library Board Room from 7:00 p.m. to 8:45 p.m. (except May to August & December). Contact Janice Walker at 306-445-5425 or Rosalie Jarvis 306-386-2127.

3rd Wednesday of the Month Hillcrest Pot Luck Member Supper 5:30 p.m. at the Hillcrest Centre, 122 - 24th Street, Battleford. Entertainment to follow.

Thursdays Radisson TOPS #SK5243 Meeting at the Radisson Town Office at 9:00 a.m.

Thursdays Regular Bridge at the Pioneer Association at 7:00 p.m. Phone Margaret at 306-445-7615.

Thursdays Grief Share Support Group for those dealing with the death of a loved one at the Living Faith Chapel at 7:30 p.m. Pre-registration required. Phone Wendy at 306-445-7315 or Sue 306-445-6658.

1st & 3rd Thursday of the Month Midwest Food Resoures - 1st & 3rd Thursday of the month order $10 or $15 fresh food boxes featuring local produce and organic grains. To order email us at battleford.mwfp@sasktel.net or call us at 306-446-2684.

Pick up on the 2nd & 4th Thursday at 10202 - 11th Avenue between 11:00 a.m. noon. This is a non-profit program.

2nd & 4th Thursdays of the Month Join us for Hillcrest Kaiser at 7:30 p.m. at the Hillcrest Centre, 122 24th Street, Battleford.

2nd & 4th Thursdays of the Month Hilldrest Knitting/Crochet from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. at the Hillcrest Centre, 122 - 24th Street, Battleford.

Fridays Hillcrest Singers from 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. at the Hillcrest Centre, 122 - 24th Street, Battleford.

Fridays North Battleford Grand Squares Dance (Mainstream & Plus Levels) at the Ukrainian Senior Centre - Slava Center, 792 - 108th Street from 2:00 - 4:30 p.m. Phone Maurice & Arlene 306-445-4671 or Laura at 306-445-4676.

1st Friday of the Month Retirees from Sask Hospital Lunch at the Kihiw Restaurant, Gold Eagle Casino at 11:45 a.m.

1st Friday of the Month Kaiser Tournament at the Action Now Senior Centre, 1501 - 101st Street at 7:30 p.m.

1st Friday of the Month The River’s Edge Quilt Guild at the Don Ross Craft Room at 1:00 p.m. from September 2013 to May 2014. New members and beginners are welcome. Phone Carol Johnson 306-445-4352, Darlene Hiltz 306-4454403 or Barb Sealy 306-445-0486 for more information.

2nd Friday of the Month Olde Tyme Dance at the Pioneer Hall, 792 - 105th Street from 8:00 - 10:30 p.m. Pot Luck Lunch. Everyone welcome. For more info phone 306-445-5036.

2nd & 4th Friday of the Month Ukrainian Seniors Kaiser Tournament at the Battlefords Ukrainian Hall, 792 - 108th Street at 7:30 p.m. For further details phone 306-446-2269.

2nd Saturday of the Month Family Justice Services Parenting after Separation & Divorce Program from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m. To register for these sessions call toll free 1-877-964-5501. Registration is mandatory. There is no fee.

Registration deadline: Two days prior to the session. Location: will be advised when you register. Classes are for adults only. No child care is provided.

This section, which will appear weekly in Tuesday’s News-Optimist and Thursday’s Regional Optimist, is provided free-of-charge to non-profit organizations. To list the Community Calendar please call News-Optimist at 306-445-7261 or fax the information to 306-445-3223. Please provide complete information including event, time, date and location. Although we will do our utmost to make sure your event appears in this section, News-Optimist does not guarantee all submissions will appear. Deadline for submissions is 12:00 noon Friday prior for Tuesday’s & Thursday’s publication.

PAGE 15 - Tuesday, February 4, 2014

The importance of having a solid foundation If you’re going to build a house, you need a good solid foundation. No matter how impressive the superstructure, if the foundation is poor it spells trouble.

Some years ago, we had a friend and neighbour who had built a beautiful home next door to us. The design and decor indicated careful thought and skilled craftsmanship. And it did have a solid foundation. Then one day the owner sold it, and the one who bought it decided to move it to another town.

We watched as workmen carefully separated the building from its foundation, jacked it up, and lowered it on a huge truck. But that truck never reached its destination. On a narrow and poorly paved back road, a wheel slipped onto the sandy shoulder and the house toppled into a ditch, instantly disintegrating into a pile of splintered rubble. Without its foundation, it was weak and vulnerable, and ended in ruin.

The Lord Jesus told a parable about the need for a firm foundation (Lk. 6:4649). It tells of a wise builder who “dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock,” and a foolish man who erected a house on the earth, without a proper foundation. When

Robert Cottrill, B.A., B.R.E. http://wordwisehymns.com/ www.Wordwise Bible Studies.com storms and floods came, the first house survived, but the second collapsed “and the ruin of that house was great.”

The parable illustrates the danger of those who merely call Christ Lord, but who do not obey Him and live by the dictates of His Word (vs. 46).

Religious externals are not enough. On what (or whom) are our lives founded? Do we have a secure foundation?

The Apostle Paul takes up that theme with the Corinthian church, saying, “No other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” (I Cor. 3:11) Our works, whether worthy, or worthless in terms of heavenly reward (vs. 12-15), must be built on a personal relationship with Christ.

Peter uses a slightly different symbolism, but there’s a connection. He refers to Christ as “the chief cor-

nerstone” (I Pet. 2:7) in the building of God (the church), to which we, as “living stones” are being added one by one (vs. 5). God the Father sovereignly chose His Son for this purpose. Though at His first coming Christ was rejected by many, to those who believe on Him He is precious (I Pet. 2:4).

In modern buildings, the cornerstone is often merely decorative. But in ancient times this was a large and strong stone, and indispensable stone, binding the walls together. That imagery pictures the supreme importance of Christ to His church. But in how many local churches today is Christ merely decorative – a subject for artwork and formal liturgy, but little more? Without the presence of the living Christ, such a church becomes little more than a religious social club.

In reality, the church cannot

exist without Him, or apart from Him. In the Middle Ages, perhaps as much as 15 centuries ago, a hymn was written extolling the Lord Jesus Christ as both the foundation and cornerstone of the church.

In 1851, it was translated from Latin into English by John Mason Neale. The hymn says, “Christ is made the sure foundation, / Christ

the Head and Cornerstone; / Chosen of the Lord, and precious, / Binding all the church in one, / Holy Zion’s help forever, / And her confidence alone.”

As believers, we need such a passion for Christ, that we cannot abide a cold, dead religiosity. With Peter we cry, “Lord, to whom shall we go?

You only have the words of eternal life.” (Jn. 6:68) In

contrast to those churches for whom Christ’s presence is all form and no substance, this ancient hymn pleads for His active involvement.

“To this temple, where we call Thee, / Come, O Lord of Hosts, today; / With Thy wonted loving kindness / Hear Thy servants as they pray. / And Thy fullest benediction / Shed within its walls always.”

Best cracked pot on Earth Sitting on my kitchen counter is a very special cracked pot. Actually, it’s a cracked bowl but call it what you want, it’s a gift from a renowned potter and it fills a special place in my life.

Here’s the background.

I once spoke at a women’s retreat, a privilege I treasured. The theme of the weekend gathering was The Potter and the Clay and included in the group of attendees was a skilled potter who enhanced the presentations with demonstrations of her art. For example, as I spoke about the process involved in working the clay in order to remove air bubbles, she showed us how it was done. She explained the methodology involved in firing and glazing the vessels

she had created. I believe everyone present gained as much benefit from her explanations as from mine; I certainly haven’t forgotten them.

In a final gesture of generosity, this potter had various pieces available as gifts, one piece for each participant. I looked them over carefully then deliberately chose a large and very beautiful bowl that was partially split down

one side. Though it will never be suitable for use as a soup tureen or as a punch bowl container, it’s perfect for holding fruit and vegetables.

Nothing else in my kitchen will ever merit the place held by this vessel of honour. I don’t care that it isn’t perfect, it’s chosen.

If you’re like me, there are days when even being “the work of His hands” doesn’t quite dismiss our disappointment over the cracks we see in our lives. How wonderful to know that God sees things differently. I don’t have to be perfect, just available.

“Yet, O Lord, You are our Father; we are the clay, and You our Potter, and we all are the work of Your hand.”

(Isaiah 64:8).

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

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

TERRITORIAL DRIVE ALLIANCE CHURCH Corner of Scott & Territorial Drive

10:30 a.m. Sunday Worship Service Everyone Welcome!

Senior Pastor - Keith Klippenstein Assoc Pastor - Mike Magnus

Pastor: Rev. Allen Huckabay nd

1372 102 St 306-445-3009

ANGLICAN PARISH

Notre Dame (RC) Parish Corner of 104th Street & 12th Avenue Rev. Father Gerard Legaspi MASSES: Saturday - 7:00 p.m.

Sundays: 11:00 a.m. & 5:00 p.m.

SUNDAY SERVICES St. George’s Anglican Church - 9:00 a.m.

191 - 24th Street West, Battleford, SK

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

OFFICE 306-445-3836

1302 - 99th Street North Battleford, SK Rector: The Rev. Peter Norman

Email: notredame.nb@gmail.com www.notredameparish.ca EVERYONE WELCOME

Hosanna Life Center Friday, Saturday & Sunday 7:00 pm Bible Training Classes & Personal Mentoring

306-445-5079

Pastors: Peter & Lydia LitchÀeld Members of Christian Ministers Association

Reclaim Outreach Centre A Gospel Mission Teaching the Word Caring for the hurting

Battlefords Seventh-Day Adventist Church

962A - 102 Street

Pastor Dave Miller

Sunday Service: 6:00 p.m.

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

“Reclaiming Our Spiritual Heritage” Pastors Len Beaucage & Don Toovey Furniture or Donations: Please call Don at

306-441-1041

Phone 306-445-9096

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

Worship Service - 11:00 a.m.

Community Baptist Church 1202 - 103 Street, North Battleford, SK 306-446-3077 PASTOR: RON BRAUN

Sunday Morning Service 11:00 a.m.

Everyone Welcome Canadian National Baptist Convention

Maidstone/ Paynton United Church of Canada Phone: 306-445-4338 Clergy Person: Rev. Ean Kasper

10:30 Service Church & CE Wing: 306-893-2611 For booking the Wing: 306-893-4465

CHURCH SERVICE Sunday 11:00 a.m.

1702 - 106th Street, North Battleford Rev. Dan Millard Phone: 306-445-4818 Email: tbcnb@sasktel.net Website: www.trinitybaptistchurch.ca Come join us this Sunday!

Living Water Ministry Pastor Brian Arcand Phone: 306-445-3803 Cell: 306-441-9385 Fax: 306-445-4385

Sunday Evening Service 7:00 p.m.

Bible Study Wednesday 7:30 p.m.

1371 - 103rd Street (Use East Door)

Zion Lutheran 10801 Winder Cres. 15th Ave. & 108th St. North Battleford, Sk

306-445-5162 Fellowship Hour 9:30 a.m.

Worship Service 10:30 a.m. www.battlefordslutheran.sk.ca Pastor Sheldon Gattinger Everyone Welcome

Third Avenue United Church Sunday Worship Service - 10:30 a.m.

Sunday School 1301 - 102nd Street, Phone 306-445-8171 Rev. Frances Patterson

Everyone Everyone Welcome www.thirdavenueunitedchurchnb.ca www.thirdavenueunitedchurch.

Email: sasktelwebsite.net thirdaveunited@sasktel.net

Tuesday, February 4, 2014 - PAGE 16

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Phone 306-445-3300 Toll Free 1-877-223-SAVE (7283) website: www.bridgesgm.com