Dawson Trail Dispatch
Celebrating Over 20 Years of Service to Our Communities!
Vita’s First Annual Winter Festival a Hit
The dog sled races were a huge draw during Vita’s first annual Winter Festival.
By Marianne Curtis
The toboggan slides were a huge hit for the young and the young at heart.
For two glorious days, dog sled races and sleigh rides were among the event hits when the community of Vita, hosted their very first winter festival on January 14 and 15. Thanks to a $10,000 tourism grant, the Vita Community Recreation Centre committee was able to successfully organize the event as a fundraiser for the community’s recreation centre. Organizer Jerry Lubiansky said the event exceeded expectations. The highlight of the weekend was two days of dog sled races. “It was brought up by the local sled dog teams, they approached the municipality and they decided that maybe we should try a winter festival featuring the sled dog races,” Lubiansky.
Several champion dog sled teams participated over the weekend, including Dave Hochman, a six time Provincial Champion and the 2008 World Champion, Rachel Courtney, the current Manitoba Champion and her husband local musher Serge Garand. The couple owns a kennel in Caliento where they train and race 58 sled dogs. While the dog sled races were a huge draw, there were plenty of activities for everyone, including a hockey tournament, cribbage tournament, children’s activities, maple taffy making, toboggan hill, and sled rides. The evening ended with a bonfire with fireworks and a Ukrainian Malanka supper dance.
February 2017
Three Arrested After Niverville Man Attacked
Three suspects have been arrested and charged in connection with a machete attack on a man who went to check on a noise in his Niverville garage. On January 11, a 22-year-old man from Steinbach was arrested and a 21-year-old man from Niverville was arrested the following day. The third man, also from Niverville, was arrested on Friday. All have been charged with robbery, break and enter, assault with a weapon, assault causing bodily harm and using a disguise. The third suspect, who was arrested in Morden on Friday after police issued a news release, is also charged with five counts of failing to comply with prior court conditions. The arrests were made in connection with an incident when the St. Pierre-Jolys RCMP was called just after 1:30 am on January 3 about an injured man at a home in southwest Niverville. The 43-year-old man heard activity in his detached garage and went to check what was happening, police said. When he entered the garage, he was confronted by three male intruders who all had their faces covered. The man was sent to hospital for treatment.
RCMP Want Help Identifying Owners of Stolen Goods Discovered On January 8, the Steinbach RCMP responded to a break and enter to a garage that had just occurred on Poplar Crescent in Steinbach. As a result of the investigation, four youths were arrested. The RCMP are currently in possession of several recovered stolen items (bicycles, skate board) and are requesting the public’s assistance in identifying ownership of these items. Several vehicles and garages are believed to have been gone through in the Walnut Street, Pine Crescent, Spruce Crescent, Reimer Avenue, Poplar Crescent, and Rosewood Drive areas. If you have any information or if you have noticed items missing on our about January 8, 2017, please contact Cst. Trim, Steinbach RCMP, at 204-320-8214 in order to set a time to view the items.