Saluting the Nun. Tribute event planned for beloved business.
More on moose. Conservation officer discusses moose seen in Midale.
PAGE A5
Welcome to Estevan.
Preview of the SaskTel Tankard men’s curling event.
PAGES A8-10
PAGE A3 No McLeod Series. Popular basketball showdown cancelled for this year.
PAGE A11
Saluting outstanding farmers. Nominations accepted for Farm Family of the Year Award.
PAGE A15
FREE
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2023
WEDNESDAY, JULY 7, 2021
By David Willberg
It wasn’t an easy path, but Robyn Silvernagle is once again Saskatchewan’s women’s curling champion.
The Silvernagle rink, competing out of the Twin Rivers Curling Club in North Battleford, doubled up Nancy Martin 8-4 on Sunday at Affinity Place in Estevan to win the Viterra Scotties Tournament of Hearts.
It’s her third title in five years, as she also won in 2019 and 2020, and her first with her current team of third Kelly Schafer, second Sherry Just and lead Kara Thevenot.
“Kara and I have curled together for a really long time, and neither of us were playing on a team this year, so we said ‘Why don’t we throw a team together for playdowns and see what happens?’ We wanted some good players so that we had a chance and we played well today, so we gave ourselves a chance,” Silvernagle said in a media scrum after the final.
She noted that Schafer, who hails from Scotland, will have now competed at national events in two countries.
Martin, playing out of the Martensville Curling Club, scored once in the first end, but Silvernagle responded with two in the second and a steal of one in the third. Martin scored another in the fourth, but Silvernagle added two in the fifth to lead 5-2.
“We played this morning, so we’ve been on the ice, we got out the jitters. We had control of the ice and we’re playing well, so we said let’s go after it right away and they might still be nervous. We didn’t want them to have time to get their feet under them,” said Silvernagle.
Martin added single points in the sixth and eighth ends, while Silvernagle scored one in the seventh, leaving Silvernagle up 6-4 with two ends remaining. Silvernagle scored two in the ninth to go up by four, and ran Martin out of rocks in the 10th.
It was the third time Silvernagle and Martin had met during the tournament.
Martin won the first two, beating Silvernagle 9-2 in seven ends on Thursday and 9-8 in a playoff matchup on Saturday evening.
“They definitely outplayed us yesterday [Saturday] and we got some breaks today,” said Siilvernagle. “We played a lot better today. I’d say that was the best game we’ve ever played together as a team, so we picked a good time to do that.”
Martin was undefeated at the Scotties until Sunday’s final, and had been playing great curling since rallying from a 7-0 deficit through three ends against Lorraine Schneider in her first game.
The opening draw of the Scotties was last Wednesday night. Three draws were played on each of Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and two on Sunday.
Martin won the A final on Friday afternoon, defeating Sherry Anderson 7-6 and punching her ticket to Saturday evening’s playoffs.
Silvernagle recovered
to defeat Anderson 8-2 in seven ends in the B final on Sunday morning, putting her in the Saturday playoff game against Martin. The C event spots were taken by Anderson, who defeated 2022 provincial champion Penny Barker 7-5, and Skylar Ackerman, who beat Brooklyn Steven-
son 15-8. Anderson then edged Ackerman 8-7 in an extra-end playoff game Saturday night.
Silvernagle defeated Anderson 12-7 in eight ends in a playoff game Sunday morning, giving Silvernagle’s rink a third shot at Martin.
Christian Mayer, left, and Easton Baranowski were rooting for Team Martin. Easton was the Martin rink’s Junior Star.
wasn’t formed until last fall, they didn’t accumulate enough points through tour events this season to advance directly to provincials. They had to go through the Last Chance Qualifier in North Battleford in January, where they won the B event to make it to the Scotties. HENDERS DRUGS Henders welcomes the SaskTel Tankard and all spectators! Henders - your pharmacy away from home. 409 Kensington Ave • Powerdodge.ca
Call 306-634-3644 306-634-3644 for your appointment . for your appointment. You must present this ad when you You must present this ad when you arrive for your oil change. e o yo o c a u Expiry Date: April 1, 2023
ESTEVAN FARMERS MARKET POP UP MARKET
We are having a Pop Up Sale at the Estevan Market Mall. Enjoy the curling at the Tankard and support small local businesses!
Saturday, February 4 9:00 am to 2:00 pm
EEY FAMILY RESOURCE CENTRE
FAMILY VALENTINE'S DAY PARTY
Photobooth, Cupcake Decorating, Activity Stations and crafts. Please register for a 45 min session at 4:30, 5:30, and 6:30pm on February 8. Limited spots. Please call (306) 634-7233 for more information or to register.
ESTEVAN JUNIOR ROLLER DERBY
Estevan Junior Roller Derby is recruiting Girls and Boys between ages 7 and 18. Come try it out on February 5 & 9 from 6:00pm to 7:00pm at the Wylie Mitchell Building. For more information email estevanderby@gmail.com
TURNBULL REDI-MIX PATCH CABARET WITH DJ ANDREW KINAKIN
$10 Cover Charge - 19+
Doors Open: 7pm - DJ starts: 9pm
Cashless Bar - Raffles - Beer Pong
Free entry with Tankard Event Tickets At the Wylie Mitchell Building
February 3 & 4
Hosted by Estevan Curling Club
NON-PROFIT WITH AN EVENT OR FUNDRAISER
Do you know a Non-Profit organization that has an Event or Fundraiser coming up? Advertise for free with the Estevan Market Mall Community Bulletin Board.
For more information contact Christine @ cjones@estevanmercury.ca or (306) 634-2654
Silvernagle said all four team members were in this for the same reasons.
“We weren’t putting too much pressure on ourselves. We just wanted to go out and play and make some shots and have some fun. We’re all experienced curlers and you can put that all together,” Silvernagle said.
Silvernagle praised the organizing committee, the volunteers, the sponsors and everyone else who made the weekend happen.
“Any event you go to, it’s a lot of work to put on,” said Silvernagle. “I’ve never hosted an event or been a part of a committee, but I know it’s a ton of work. So, you appreciate everything you do from the volunteers to the ice makers.
And it was great to play in an arena again.
“Last year was in a curling club, which is still awesome, but the arena just gives you that atmosphere when the fans are right there and you can hear the cheers. We just thrive off the fans, so we just love it,” she said.
She also thanked Pam Dechief, the Scotties volunteer committee chair, for welcoming her family into the Dechief home. It reflects the type of people found in smaller communities.
The City of Estevan and the union that represents its employees have come together on a new threeyear collective bargaining agreement, retroactive to Jan. 1, 2023.
Members of CUPE Local 726 will receive a two per cent wage increase in each of 2023 and 2024, and a 2 1/4 per cent wage hike in 2025. Mayor Roy Ludwig announced the pact in an interview with the Mercury on Friday morning.
It’s been a “roller coaster” of a year and a half, she said. She wasn’t curling at the start of the season, so to win her third provincial title is a great feeling. This was a special win, she said, after what her family has been through. Her son, Kolt, was born several weeks premature.
“He spent almost an entire year in the hospital from
when he was born. He had eight – I think it was eight – surgeries, and he will need more, but hopefully not for a little while. And there was definitely moments where he shouldn’t have made it, so we’re very happy he is here with us.”
She said she was always “jealous” of those who could have their kids with them at the Scotties, so to have
him in Estevan was pretty amazing.
He’s doing really well now, Silvernagle said, and he’s a determined young man.
Silvernagle advanced to the Scotties Tournament of Hearts in Kamloops, B.C., from Feb. 17-26. She will try to win Saskatchewan’s first national title since Amber Holland in 2011.
“We met several times,” said Ludwig. “The negotiations were very respectful, and went well.”
The previous deal expired at the end of 2022. The first bargaining session was held on Nov. 7 of last year and the two sides met seven times, Ludwig said.
The mayor noted they met more often than usual because both sides wanted to discuss some language in the collective agreement. They were able to agree on
most issues brought forward.
A wage increase for the city’s employees was factored into this year’s City of Estevan operating budget, which was approved by Estevan city council this past Monday.
Ludwig noted that for the new collective bargaining agreement, the city incorporated new maternity leave benefits that were recently approved by the federal government.
City of Estevan human resources generalist Sheryl March agreed the negotiations went very well and the tone was positive.
“We appreciate that we were able to get an agree-
ment for the benefit of both sides,” said March.
Ludwig noted there is approximately 150 people who are part of the local union, and they work in such areas as public works, leisure services, the water treatment plant, and sewer and water, among others. The number of employees increases during the summer months.
CUPE local president Rhonda Gillespie also commented on the deal.
“Our members have voted to ratify this contract and we will continue to work for the people of Estevan to provide the services they rely on,” Gillespie said.
"Welcome to Estevan for the Tankard"Robyn Silvernagle delivers a shot for Sherry Just, left, and Kara Thevenot to sweep.
For the first time in three years, the Saskatchewan Medical Association’s Road Map Tour hit the road, and its first stop was in Estevan.
The Road Map Tour takes medical students from the University of Saskatchewan’s College of Medicine to rural communities across the province. Thirty-four students were in Estevan to see some of what the city and St. Joseph’s Hospital have to offer.
The vast majority of them were first and second-year students, but there was one fourth year, Lucas King, who lived in Estevan in 2012.
“We’ve been in Estevan before, and Estevan has been an excellent host for us,” said Delilah Cerniuk, the community engagement co-ordinator with the SMA.
Estevan also has a student learning here through the longitudinal integrated clerkship program. It’s a priority for the tour to ensure students are well aware of some of the training programs available, Cerniuk said.
“We want to make sure that this year the program is filled up,” said Cerniuk.
“Present date, we only filled one of two seats this year. It might have something to do with the pandemic.”
Estevan has been a good stop in the past, Cerniuk said, as the city has a fullscope practice at the hospital, lots of great physicians and a great location. The students have a great time whenever they come, too.
While in Estevan, the students checked out the baseball and golf simulators at Global Golf Plus in the
Estevan Market Mall, which she said the students really enjoyed.
“It was great to see that what they typically would be doing outdoors, and they can’t now, they can do it indoors, and it gave them an opportunity to socialize with each other,” said Cerniuk.
They also had a look inside St. Joseph’s Hospital, enjoyed a guided bus tour of Estevan with hospital executive director Greg Hoffort and administrative co-ordinator Kristin Dupuis; and participated in a physician panel with eight local medical doctors and the
LIC student at the Western Star All Suites Signature Hotel, allowing them to get to know the doctors.
Cerniuk said the road map has been going on for nearly 12 years. Over the years, the exposure to rural communities has encouraged students to choose to train in communities like this in the long term.
“Some communities are more fortunate than others, but as we continue on year after year, exposing them to all these different communities, our hopes are that some of these students will end up
being doctors in these communities,” said Cerniuk.
King lived in Estevan after graduating high school. He worked for his uncle Harvey King at PS Electric, realized he wasn’t cut out to be an oilfield electrician, and worked for Audio Video Unlimited (now BrandSource). He enjoyed his time in the community, and still has family in Estevan and the southeast.
“It’s fun coming back here,” said King. “We come here for holidays every once in a while with my family, but it’s nice being back in the community and seeing
things from a different perspective now that I’ve been through different rotations.”
He was impressed with the St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation clinic inside the hospital and the different services the hospital has to provide.
This marked the first time King has been in St. Joe’s. King enlisted with the Canadian Armed Forces about a year and a half ago, and will be serving with the military for at least four years after residency. Then he expects to shift to family medicine
“I took a really roundabout path to medicine. I started as a personal trainer and then continued into some other healthcare professional areas. I actually went to chiropractic school for a while, and I ended up in medicine just because I wanted to be able to do more, I wanted to have broader scope and to work with more people and to be able to provide more to them.”
King said he wants to eventually work in rural Saskatchewan, so he wanted to see the hospital from the perspective of a student.
The Happy Nun Café in Forget was a place to gather with friends or family, to celebrate an occasion or to listen to the many entertainers that graced the doors.
The Nun made its mark not only in Forget, but across Saskatchewan and the neighbouring provinces.
Approximately 500 events took place in the establishment, not including weddings, anniversaries or private celebrations.
Don and Shannon Shakotho owned the Happy Nun when Gayla and Leon Gilbertson met. They had their first date at the Nun and held their wedding supper there. It seemed fitting for the couple to become the owners.
The Happy Nun does not only hold precious memories for the Gilbertsons. This place touched many hearts and holds special memories for many people.
Gayla Gilbertson has far too many memories to speak on but said, “There were so many nights where the atmosphere was perfect, people were making friends and enjoying the food and music.”
She also said: “It was just such a wonderful experience to be part of. The theme nights were my favourites, we just had so much fun.”
Gilbertson joked that the staff may not have enjoyed all the costumes and dancing as much as she did, but it was a blast.
When the Happy Nun was destroyed by fire on Dec. 15, 2022, the outpouring of
people contacting the Gilbertsons and their staff was overwhelming.
So many people came forward with kind words, heartwarming stories and how it touched so many people, not only to the Gilbertsons but to their staff present and past.
People began to reach out to the staff as they wanted to do something for the Happy Nun and for all involved in the loss, but it made Gilbertson incredibly uncomfortable at first, as she was not ready.
As time passed, people needed to say good-bye, but it needed to be done in the Happy Nun fashion.
Gilbertson needs to say good-bye to what they had and to move forward, and what better way to do this than to have a tribute and celebration with family and friends.
An event is planned for April 29 at the Arcola Prairie Place Complex.
The meal will be prepared from scratch in a true Happy Nun fashion and done at the complex.
“They have an excellent kitchen to cook in,” said Gilbertson.
They will have drinks, featuring alcohol from local providers such as Over the Hills Orchards and Winery and the Rebellion Brewing Co.
The meal will be prepared for over 300 people, not the usual amount of 65 at the Nun. Her staff and friends will help with all preparations.
Gilbertson’s staff has become family and she is forever grateful for everything they have done and do. Her
husband, Leon, was always available to help out and offered a lot of support. All these people made the Happy Nun possible.
This evening will have lots of entertainment and the night will be filled with laughter and memories.
Tables are limited and are going quickly, but one can text Gilbertson at 306-4577780.
The difficult decision was made not to rebuild, as any new building will not hold the history or personality that the Nun held.
Gilbertson still has a passion for food, but with her equipment gone and many of her recipes gone as well, she is unsure to what extent she will continue in the culinary field. She does know her future will include her love for food, music and Prairie products.
Also, she and her husband Leon are active members of the Stoughton Tecumseh Fire Department and Rescue Team. They feel it is extremely important to have these services in their town.
The Nun was once a granary, a recreation centre and then a town hall.
“It was such a humble building and to have done so many things in its life to touch so many people,” said Gilbertson.
“I can’t think of anything more Saskatchewan than what the Nun represented. You work hard, you put in the time, you touch people’s lives, and you just quietly change things by being present,” she said. “It truly was a remarkable place.”
Sales Manager
Pat Pasloski - ppasloski@estevanmercury.ca
Sales Assistant Christine Jones - cjones@estevanmercury.ca
Editor
David Willberg - dwillberg@estevanmercury.ca
Editorial Staff
Ana Bykhovskaia - abykhovskaia@estevanmercury.ca
Production Manager
Ana Villarreal - avillarreal@estevanmercury.ca
Production
Morgan Hodgens - mohodgens@estevanmercury.ca
Laura Kish - laura.kish63@gmail.com
Administration
Vaila Lindenbach - admin@estevanmercury.ca
Each month, the Estevan Police Service releases its crime statistics – a look at the number of calls they handle each month.
Contact us:
(306) 634-2654
68 Souris Avenue N. Estevan, SK S4A 2M3 www.estevanmercury.ca
@Estevan_Mercury facebook.com/EstevanMercury
In Saskatchewan - $105
In Canada - $126
Published weekly by Prairie Newspaper Group Limited Partnership, 68 Souris Avenue N., Estevan, SK S4A 2M3. The Estevan Mercury is owned and operated by Prairie Newspaper Group Limited Partnership, a subsidiary of Glacier Media Inc. Advertising rates are available upon request and are subject to change without notice.
Conditions of editorial and advertising content:
The Estevan Mercury attempts to be accurate in Editorial and Advertising content; however, no guarantee is given or implied.The Estevan Mercury reserves the right to revise or reject any or all editorial and advertising content as the newspaper’s principals see fit. The Estevan Mercury will not be responsible for more than one incorrect insertion of an advertisement, and is not responsible for errors in advertisements except for the space occupied by such errors.
The Estevan Mercury will not be responsible for manuscripts, photographs, negatives and other related material that may be submitted for possible publication.
All of the Estevan Mercury’s content is protected by Canadian Copyright laws. Reviews and similar mention of material in this newspaper is granted on the provision thatThe Estevan Mercury receives credit. Otherwise, any reproduction without the permission of the publisher is prohibited. Advertisers purchase space and circulation only. Rights to any advertisement produced by The Estevan Mercury, including artwork, typography, photos, etc., remain the property of this newspaper. Advertisements or parts thereof may not be reproduced or assigned without the consent of the publisher.
The incidents that result in criminal charges – crimes against people, crimes against property, Criminal Code traffic violations and drug offences – are listed in detail. And then the EPS cites the total number of calls for service for the month and year.
We also get to see the number of calls from the previous year, and this past year, the EPS started comparing the numbers from the past five years, giving a little bit more information on the activity levels.
The numbers for 2022 show an interesting picture. The calls for service were down more than 28 per cent from 2021, a staggering amount. Yet the total number of Criminal Code offences was up. Crimes against the person increased. So did crimes against property. Drug offences were stable, and Criminal Code traffic offences were down, thanks largely to a decline in the number of impaired driving cases.
How you interpret these numbers will depend on your priorities. If the focus iis on crime, then you might be a little worried. The total number of Criminal Code charges was up. Not by a lot, but there was an increase. The number of drug possession charges was down, which would be
surprising to some, but the number of trafficking charges increased.
If you’re concentrating on the overall picture, then you’ll be looking at the total calls for service. Those who want to see fewer members of the EPS will use this as ammunition.
One does have to wonder how the total activity could be down so much. Does it reflect a change in priorities for the EPS?
Were there fewer speeding tickets and other traffic violations that would reduce the number? Were there fewer scam calls?
(Those who have been pestered numerous times by someone claiming to be with Amazon or the Canada Revenue Agency would have a hard time believing this).
Did we just behave better than last year?
Is the reduction in call volumes reflective of a lower population base? We know that the city isn’t hopping like it was a decade ago, but we didn’t see a 28.7 per cent decrease in residents from 2021 to 2022
Police Chief Rich Lowen noted that the EPS is going to start sending out more detailed reports on call for service numbers. These won’t only include the crime numbers, but they will include other police data as well, with everything from conditions checks to traffic enforcement, and how they compare with the five-year average.
It will be interesting to see how things
stack up, and if there has been a change in the way in which the calls for service are recorded. There is a lot of work the police do that won’t show up in crime numbers or calls for service.
What we choose to do with these numbers is ultimately up to us. We can take them, study them and try to find trends in the community. We can ignore them, or decide to look at them when we have more time on our hands.
Credible data is ultimately the key to an informed opinion.
The fact that crimes against property were up last year shouldn’t be a surprise. Estevan’s non-violent crime severity index was at a low level in 2021, so an uptick was likely inevitable. Crimes against the person were up, thanks largely to a jump in the number of assaults.
As for impaired driving, well, that’s one category that we can all be happy is down. While there are always going to be people apprehended for driving while impaired – be it by drugs or alcohol – it appears that more and more people are getting the message about the risks of driving while impaired. Hopefully, this number continues to go down.
But regardless of whether you’re looking at Criminal Code charges or overall calls for service, we should feel safe in this community.
On Jan. 24, after a few years of quiescence, the Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists moved the hands on the Doomsday Clock forward. It now stands at 90 seconds to midnight.
As it was getting more intense around the world in the last decade, the hands were slowly crawling to the vertical position. The clock was moved from three to 2 1/2 minutes to midnight in 2017. Then forward again to two minutes to midnight in 2018. The time remained unchanged in 2019, but the first signs of the pandemic and other global tensions pushed the hands to 100 seconds, or one minute 40 seconds before midnight, in 2020.
The symbolic time remained unchanged in 2021 and 2022. But this year, the war in Ukraine, with its mounting dangers and Russian threats to use nuclear weapons, along with other factors, pushed the hands forward again.
Ninety seconds or 1 1/2 minutes to midnight is the closest to the global catastrophe the Doomsday Clock has ever been, which suggests that the world hasn’t been in such danger as we are now.
The idea of this symbolic measurement was born in the aftermath of the Second World War. The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, consisting of those who helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan Project, created the Doomsday Clock in 1947. The image of the apocalypse in the project was represented by midnight, and the contemporary idiom of a nuclear explosion with its countdown to zero expresses the level of threat to humanity and the planet.
Since the inception of the project, every year the Bulletin’s Science and Secu-
rity Board, in consultation with the board of sponsors, which includes 10 Nobel laureates, has been assessing the global situation, especially focusing on three areas: nuclear threat, climate change and disruptive technologies. And every January they’d announce the new time left until the apocalypse.
Over the past 70 years, through the times of the Cold War and other conflicts and cataclysms, the clock served as an indicator of our vulnerability to a global catastrophe caused by manmade technology.
So, when I heard the latest “time”, the first thought I had was “Congratulations! We almost made it to a complete hell, and we did it all ourselves!” (with a very sour feeling). I don’t mean every individual, but us as humanity with our leaders, our priorities and our choices.
It’d be nice if we had just one party to blame for all of our problems. Usually, it’s more complicated than that, but this year there actually was an outstanding actor.
Jan. 24 marked one month short of a full year for the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I don’t know if anyone in the world could have thought we’d still be there, comes January 2023. The 11 months of warfare took hundreds of thousands of lives, displaced millions, pushed even more into poverty, destroyed beautiful cities, and affected the well-being of the rest of the world.
It also resulted in a great deal of instability, impacting the established international
relationships protocols that were helping to maintain relative global safety for a while.
War and nuclear threats slacken the global system, which directly affects the global nuclear danger index reflected by the Doomsday Clock. The Science and Security Board of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists also says that the Russian disinformation about Ukrainian plans on using biological and chemical weapons and radiological dispersal devices, which was quite widespread during the first months of the war, may indicate that the aggressor itself might be working on such technologies, which may add another layer to the global danger equation.
Not only have the conflict and the changes in international affairs shaken our little planet quite well, but they also take the focus away from other issues. They take resources away from global efforts to combat climate change, which pushes countries back or even forces them to return to old practices in order to make it through this tough time of changes, dangers and risks. But protraction now may mean even more problems tomorrow.
Unfortunately, the list of problems that probably every single country has to deal with has swollen this past year, and there are no easy or obvious solutions. We need to deescalate the conflict, we need to get back on track with climate efforts before things go worse, we need to reconsider the approach to nuclear weapons, and we eventually may need to reconsider the entire international relationships system. As of the end of January, it didn’t seem to me that we are at least moving in the right direction. And the Doomsday Clock hints that we’d better find a way that works sooner rather than later, otherwise, we’ll be indeed doomed pretty soon.
There are few events more synonymous with the Estevan-Weyburn rivalry than the McLeod Series.
The venerable best-of-four showdown between the Estevan Comprehensive School Elecs’ and the Weyburn Comprehensive School Eagles’ senior boys’ and girls’ basketball teams dates back to 1932. It’s had its peaks and valleys, but recent years have certainly been a peak for oncourt competitiveness.
Estevan’s victory over Weyburn in 2015 ended a 32-year drought for ECS and breathed new life into the showdown.
Sadly, the McLeod won’t be happening this year.
The Weyburn Comprehensive School announced on its Facebook page on Jan. 24 that the series would be taking a break this year. Weyburn cited harassment and even threats that have occurred in recent years.
Now, let me be clear about this: If you’re the type who is uttering threats at players at a sporting event, then maybe you take it a little too seriously. If you’re hurling threats at a high school basketball game, well, that’s even worse. It’s high school basketball. Not Game 7 between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Boston Celtics in the 1984 NBA Final.
There is absolutely no excuse for threatening and harassing behaviour towards players, coaches, officials or anyone else, especially in youth sports. Such conduct should be dealt with harshly and swiftly. If students are guilty, then the school needs to act accordingly. If it’s adults, then the police might need to be involved.
I’ve said a lot of stupid things at sporting events over the years, things I certainly wish I could take back. My conduct was inexcusable. But I never shouted threats to an opponent.
These athletes are playing for school and community. They aren’t paid to be on the court. So let’s keep our conduct respectable.
I’ve seen and heard fans be loud and even obnoxious at the McLeod Series games, but I haven’t noticed something that I would classify as harassing, threatening or even offensive.
That being said, the McLeod Series should be allowed to go ahead this year. The kids on both teams who have looked so forward to the event shouldn’t be punished for the conduct of others. And there are so many, both in the school and in the community, who look forward to the showdown, to those two fun Wednesday nights in February.
Take a zero-tolerance approach when it comes to unruly behaviour. Let the fans be boisterous and energetic, as long as they aren’t disrupting anything. If they cross the line, well, they’ll get to be escorted from the premises in front of hundreds of people who know them.
The people who cause the problems should be punished, not the kids or those associated with the teams.
Reaction on social media was every bit as heated as one would expect. People look forward to this showdown. And now that it won’t happen, they’re accusing the schools of a gross over-reaction.
There have been interruptions to the McLeod Series before, such as the restrictions associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. But when this competition was started nearly 90 years ago, I doubt anyone would have thought crass behaviour would be a reason for cancellation.
Estevan beating Weyburn in the 2015 McLeod Series is one of my strongest sports memories in 21 1/2 years of covering sports in this city. You could tell the Estevan kids knew this was a golden opportunity to regain the elusive crown; Weyburn players didn’t want to be known as the ones who lost it. The games were packed with emotion, intensity and wild emotional swings.
Since then, we’ve had several editions in which the result wasn’t known until the final moments. Estevan’s last title in 2017 was decided in overtime.
But now, because of a few yahoos who took this series far too seriously, the McLeod won’t be happening this year. The kids on both teams deserve better, especially the Grade 12s who won’t get another opportunity to play in this event. It’s the second time in three years that the McLeod Series has been called off
It’s technically an exhibition series, but I can’t imagine a better pressure test for the kids to go through before they get to regionals and, hopefully, the Hoopla provincials
Hopefully, this will be just a one-year reprieve, and the McLeod Series can return for next season, with measures in place to handle those who insist on embarrassing themselves, their school and their community.
Conservation officers were called to Midale on Jan. 17 to help relocate three moose – a cow and two calves – that ended up in Jennifer Biette’s backyard and were seen elsewhere in the community.
Biette said she looked out her window at about 11:30 a.m. that day and saw them eating off of a tree. She noted the moose had been in the town for a while, and they found their way into her backyard.
Lindsay Leko, a conservation officer based out of Weyburn with the Ministry of Corrections, Policing and Public Safety, said moose come into Midale quite often as it’s almost like a “gem in the middle of nowhere” for them, and these particular animals were also known to the community.
“The town of Midale, much like any other town or yard, offers some unique cover and protection for them. These moose had been in the town for quite a while,” Leko said.
On Jan. 17, when conservation officers were called to the scene, they had to assess the situation, estimate how much risk a cow and two calves were posing, determine whether the wildlife could stay or needed to be moved and formulate a plan on how to deal with the animals.
Leko said due to the location, as they were right in the core area of Midale, and also due to the fact that a cow would be protective of her calves, they decided to relocate the animals.
“Officers confirmed that the three moose were in fact bedded down in the backyard in Midale. So, we mobilized some equipment and some manpower and we came in with the plan to chemically immobilize them and relocate them to better habitat outside of the town of Midale,” Leko said.
Officers sedated the cow first, and once it went down proceeded with the calves.
“Cows always go down in an area where it’s not really great to have to recover them, but that’s something we have to adapt to,” Leko said. “The calves didn’t go too far from the mom. We immobilized each of them as well with our drugs and delivery equipment, and the cow and one calf were put in the back of an enclosed trailer, and the other calf was put in the back of the truck with the assistance of the town maintenance staff. And all three were taken to a safe location away from Midale near the Rafferty land.”
The animals were given reversal drugs. The two calves fully recovered from sedation, but the cow, unfortunately, did not.
“We feel it went into a mode of capture myopathy and despite several attempts, she was unable to recover. So, we had to humanely euthanize her,” Leko said. “Basically, what capture myopathy is, it’s muscle damage that domestic and wild animals receive as a result of chemical immobilization. And the damage is caused by the exertion, the struggle, the stress.”
He added the calves seemed fine after recovery and were grown up to be able to make it on their own. The officers came back to check on them the next day, and they were gone.
“We’re under the impression that they did move on and we think they’re at the age now, probably where the mom would have been kicking them out in the next couple of months anyways, they weren’t little tiny things, so they definitely were able to go off on their own,” Leko said.
He noted situations like this happen, but not very often. Conservation officers weigh the circumstances and decide the best way to go.
“Officers come in and we make a determination. Many times, the relocation is successful. Sometimes it’s not based on the condition of the animal, how much trouble we had in recovering the animal, how long we have to take them away to a safer place to relocate. So, it’s not always a good news story. But in this one, we just couldn’t keep them in the town of Midale anymore,”
Leko said, adding that the cow was already wound up in defence mode trying to protect her calves, which affected the situation.
Once an animal is immobilized, officers check their condition, perform first aid, treat any wounds and ensure they rest comfortably while being relocated. However, every situation is different, and sometimes wild animals can’t recover.
He also pointed out that southeast Saskatchewan is a moose country, and they’ve been receiving many moose-related calls. Some people just inform them about an encounter, while in other cases animals were moved.
Leko noted that whenever people run into wildlife, there are a few basic things they should keep in mind. And with another cold spell here, there is a good chance more moose will be seeking shelter and protection from predators in the communities.
“Moose, along with many other species of wildlife, is a natural part of our landscape. Decades ago, maybe moose weren’t that common, but now they are. And I think that they’ve become pretty accustomed to coexisting with us in different environments,” Leko said.
“So, we have to make sure that we’re educating our kids and everyone that moose are around and what to do if you happen to see one.”
Keeping a safe distance is one of the main rules when encountering a moose. Moose are big wild animals, they may get defensive, and they move very fast even in deep snow, so “taking a selfie may not end up well,” Leko said. He added that keeping dogs on a leash is also important, as sometimes if they run at large in smaller communities, they may start chasing wildlife, which would make the wildlife become protective and more dangerous.
A new group of Estevan Comprehensive School students has dived into the world of business.
The ECS Entrepreneurship 30 class, led by teacher Maisy Daoust, created and successfully sold the first batch of their product.
This year 20 students involved in the class chose to go with scented candles. In the fall of 2022, they were learning all about the world of business, formulating ideas and making a plan, and then, towards the end of the year, students started preparing the product. They chose Prairie Candle Co. for their business name.
While working on their business, students had to figure out everything from idea and name to pricing, production, advertising, marketing and more. In their business model, four-ounce scented
candles were priced at $7 each, and the eight-ounce candles are $12.
The first sale was slated for Jan. 18-26 at ECS, yet students sold out the approximately 100 candles they’d made by that point in the first day. They had to stop production at the end of January for finals, but they plan to get back to it once the exams are done and have another sale. After the success of the first group, they decided to make the second and potentially last batch bigger, and the plan is to have a sale taking place in mid-February.
“We’re going to restart up and do just one more selling. We will have a bigger batch. And they haven’t decided yet if it’s just going to be school selling or if we’re going to take it out into the community,” Daoust shared.
Students work in groups, which represent different departments responsible for various tasks. This way they were learning about how a business works in the real world.
Barrett Fleck and Arin
Park were co-presidents of the project. Kate Schmidt and Robert Mitchell were responsible for the human resources department; Jeff Martin Albofera, Alecia Wiebe and Kelsey Dryden were involved with the finance depart-
ment; Rachel St. Onge, Kailey Wolfe and Hailey Duke dealt with technology; Arabella Cheska Boloto, Armita Kiaei, Hailey Gardiner and Brenna Sellsted were working in the marketing division; Olivia Wallewein, Zaylan Schlingmann and Brooklynn Sullivan were responsible for sales; the production department was the responsibility of Jazmine Mae Espina and Maddy Schulz; and William Clayton took healthy and safety, corporate social responsibility and environmental department. The business project that students came up with is done under the school program. If participating students want to take it further and continue with their business outside the curriculum, they’d need to run it by the school and then apply for and acquire all necessary permits and licences.
Some previous Entrepreneurship 30 classes did that, however, Daoust said it seems that the current class just wants to do one more round to complete the program. She added the students were pretty independent in this project. They completed their research and then decided on the idea, product and its aesthetics, company name, logo, labelling and much more.
“They do vote and they make decisions on what they think they would like to incorporate or what they would like,” Daoust explained. Students had various roles, which allowed them to learn particular tasks and sides of entrepreneurship, as well as about communication within the business. They also had two co-presidents who would step in and help resolve any arising issues.
The Estevan Police Service said on Jan. 23 that it had received a report of a person forwarding a significant amount of cryptocurrency into an investment opportunity.
The individual later learned that several others have been scammed by this fraud. This matter is under investigation.
Chief Rich Lowen said the crypto scam is no different than any other financial crime.
“It’s just the exchange of currency and in this case, it was a cryptocurrency that was exchanged,” Lowen explained.
An individual was contacted, enticed with the investment opportunity and chose to invest in the offer. Like with any kind of investment, Lowen said the EPS encour-
ages people to make sure they do their research on investment opportunities before sending any kind of currency, whether it’s crypto or cash.
“Don’t fall to any pressures or phishing scams or anything like that, random email contacts or anything along those lines. It is something where an individual has to do their due diligence prior to making any kind of investments,” Lowen said.
While there was just one person that reported the loss in Estevan, the EPS also shared the information with the RCMP for them to further investigate within Saskatchewan and across Canada to see if there are links to the same suspects, and how the currency was transferred.
“It appears that there may have been some links to other files, but that’s still under investigation,” Lowen said.
There were several reports of cryptocurrency scams in Saskatchewan and in Canada lately. Lowen said that cryptocurrency is used as a scam because it has recently had such a wide fluctuation in its value.
“People look to make easy, fast money. And anything that’s easy and fast, you should look at it as a red flag and start to do your research on why it’s easy and fast, whether it’s in actual existence or not. It’s like any other scam, we try to get people to do their diligence to make sure that they’re actually investing in something that’s valid,” Lowen said.
The police chief noted the EPS had one other crypto currency fraud in the last two years. It occurred in 2022 and the amount was under $5,000.
Provincial RCMP have been noticing an increase in cryptocurrency fraud, and it’s
costing people hundreds of thousands of dollars. Looking back over the past year in Swift Current alone, police received 105 reports of fraudulent calls with a total of $361,000 in losses.
Maidstone RCMP also said they received 37 reports of similar phone calls with $570,000 in cryptocurrency fraud loss.
“There are thousands of different cryptocurrencies and cryptocurrency companies in the market today. Some are legitimate companies, while others may have weak online security or are completely fraudulent,” said Const. Tyson Maxwell. “Investigating cryptocurrency fraud is complex as perpetrators are often at various international locations, or hiding through hard to trace IP addresses.” Maxwell is one of two crypto co-ordinators for the
Saskatchewan RCMP. His job is to review cryptocurrency files, then help officers with how to further their investigations.
“Once a crypto transaction has been completed, it cannot be reversed,” Maxwell said, reinforcing the old adage “if the investment looks too good to be true, it probably is”.
There seems to be a few common angles fraudsters use in these scams, such as pretending to be from a government agency demanding overdue taxes. In this case, the scammer wants a potential victim to use a cryptocurrency ATM to buy and send that currency.
Another method is the “learn to trade crypto” scam where the fraudster tries to get a victim to send money in order to learn the secrets of trading cryptocurrency.
A third way scammers will
try and fool a potential victim is simply through false advertising. Sadly, these scammers can be successful in luring victims into investing their life savings, investing in a fake company or compromising the victim’s digital wallet.
“If you choose to invest, use a major reputable trading platform or online exchange and do your research to protect yourself,” he said, adding that he also recommends individuals to monitor the price of cryptocurrency themselves on a reputable trading program.
“We have lots of investment scams, where the scammer says the victim made 20 per cent on their Ethereum investment for example, when they were actually going down 10 per cent. A good way to know if you’re being scammed is to verify through other sources what your investment company tells you.”
I’m a very sweet boy. I can be timid at first but once we bond, my tail will wag non stop to show you how happy I am. I love walks, fetch, and playing around with my shelter dog friend Maggie! I’m great with cats, and play well with female dogs or passive male types. I can’t wait to meet you!
Hi I’m Morgan! I’m a high-energ y, fun-loving goofball My fa vourite things to do is playing fetch and tug of war I’m also a big fan of the sno w! The staff a t the shelter say I’m a good learner, and will thrive with someone who can help me reach my fu potential With proper introduction I could get alon with dogs or ca ts I’m a ha ppy, healthy bo y and ca wait to meet my new family!
By David Willberg
After a slow start to 2022, the carbon capture and storage facility at SaskPower’s Boundary Dam Power Station had one of its best years yet, and it attained another major milestone at the end of last year.
According to information supplied by SaskPower on Jan. 23, as of the end of 2022, 5,001,707 tonnes of CO2 had been captured and prevented from entering the atmosphere since the facility came online in October 2014.
Total capture for the 2022 calendar year was 749,035 tonnes, and SaskPower says CCS is on track to achieve an 800,000-tonne target for the 2022-23 fiscal year, which ends March 31.
The best year for CCS came in 2016, when 792,809 tonnes of CO2 were captured.
“After recovering from a couple of outages … that occurred in late 2021 and then stretched into the very start of 2022, we were able to
return to stable operations,” said Joel Cherry, a media relations and issues management consultant with SaskPower.
During the fourth quarter of 2022 (Oct. 1-Dec. 31), the CCS facility was available 78.9 per cent of the time, capturing 192,703 tonnes of CO2, which works out to more than 64,000 tonnes per month. A two-week planned maintenance outage in the fourth quarter allowed SaskPower to undertake scheduled work, which the Crown corporation hopes will enable the facility to run smoothly until the next planned outage in May 2023.
“During the October planned outage, we were able to clean, refurbish, inspect and service a wide variety of operating components at CCS,” said Cherry. Unit 3 at Boundary Dam (BD3) was available 84.1 per cent of the time in the fourth quarter.
While online, the facility had a daily average capture rate of 2,631 tonnes in the fourth quarter, with a peak
one-day capture of 2,874 tonnes.
This resulted in an emissions intensity of 383.2 tonnes of carbon dioxide produced per gigawatt hour of power produced, which is within the current federal carbon tax threshold of 549 tonnes of CO2/MWh.
“The federal government has set a threshold below which we need to operate. Any operations above that threshold for the facility are going to be subject to a carbon tax,” said Cherry.
The target number will decline each year, so SaskPower needs to remain below the number.
“In the past, we haven’t necessarily been running the facility to maximize that metric,” said Cherry. “That means that, for example, if CCS is down, we’d still continue to run the BD3 unit in order to get baseload power from that. In order to maximize reducing carbon intensity, we could only run BD3 when CCS is available, and that’s what we
A former Estevan resident is returning to his hometown to talk about his journey from the Energy City to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Dr. Eric Grimson is the chancellor for academic advancement at MIT, a professor of computer science and the Bernard M. Gordon professor of medical engineering, as well as a former head of the department of electrical engineering and computer science and former chancellor for MIT.
He will be the guest speaker at the first event in the Innovation Conversation series, developed by the Southeast TechHub. The event is a partnership with the Southeast College.
A Future in Tech: My Journey from Estevan to MIT is slated to take place March 2 at the college’s Estevan campus. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. Online participation will also be available.
“The TechHub has been open now since March of last year, and its goal is to help diversify or add technologybased jobs to Estevan’s and southeast Saskatchewan’s economy. And one of the things that I’m trying to do is to inspire local people to look at technology, both software and hardware, as a new business or a new job. In that, I decided to create Innovation Conversation, which is going to be a series of talks from people who are from Estevan or Saskatchewan on their career path within technology, again, just to inspire people and so that people know that there’s this option,” explained Gordon Moore with Southeast TechHub.
The other goal of the series is to introduce Estevan and the southeast to a bigger world.
“[We want] to let people out in the world know that Estevan and southeast Saskatchewan is a place of innovation, is a unique place of high intelligence and aptitude. And so by showcasing some of our homegrown innovators, we can let people in Canada, outside of Saskatchewan, or in the U.S. know how amazing we are,” More said. He added Grimson responded to his invitation quickly and agreed to become
their first guest speaker for an in-person presentation.
According to his bio on the MIT website, Grimson also serves as interim vice-president for open learning. As chancellor for academic advancement, he represents the institute to alumni, parents and others, and is a central advisor to MIT’s president on issues related to MIT’s Campaign for a Better World. As vice-president, he oversees MIT’s efforts in online education, including open courseware, MITx and xPro.
In addition to research in computer vision and medical image analysis, Grimson teaches introductory computer programming courses, including an online MITx course. In all, he has taught
some 15,000 MIT undergraduates and served as the thesis supervisor to almost 50 MIT PhDs.
A fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, the Association for Computing Machinery and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, he earned a bachelor of science in mathematics and physics from the University of Regina and a PhD in mathematics from MIT, and holds a doctor of letters (honoris causa) from Dalhousie University and a doctor of science (honoris causa) from the University of Saskatchewan and the University of Regina.
The first Innovation Conversation will also feature a drone demonstration, heavy equipment simulator test drive and other attractions. More said these elements were added to also serve their two main goals.
“Through these Innovation Conversations, the goal is to inspire locals to look at innovation and technology and also to showcase those from outside what we are. So, we looked at what more can we bring to the presentation, to the conversation so that when people attend, they can say oh,
this is interesting what is offered in my community at this time,” More noted.
The presentation will be engaging for a wide range of people who want to know more about technology and innovation.
“[It will be interesting for] the kids, especially those involved with St. Mary’s elementary innovation program or the new computer science program at the Comp, or some of the adults who have come into the TechHub, asking about or setting up new technology-based companies, anyone and everyone who’s just interested about innovation and technology,” More said.
The presentation will also be live-streamed to help people from outside the southeast to learn more about Estevan and its opportunities.
The event is free, and everyone is encouraged to attend. More just asked that people register in advance.
“For those who want to attend we strongly recommend people registering beforehand on our event’s page at the TechHub website (estevanhub.ca),” More said.
To watch virtually, people are asked to email techhub@ estevan.ca for the link.
would be looking at some years into the future.”
By 2030, the carbon tax threshold is to be 420 tonnes of CO2/MWh. The facility would fit within federal thresholds for 2030 if it operates as it did the final two quarters of the year.
The acid plant at CCS also had an extremely strong year, according to SaskPower. Last year saw numerous records broken, including highest daily acid production at 52.2 tonnes on Nov 12, the highest monthly acid produced at 702 tonnes in November, the highest quarterly acid produced at 1,470 tonnes in the third quarter, the highest yearly acid produced at 3,788 tonnes, and the highest quarterly and yearly availability since startup at 80.4 per cent and 46.2 per cent, respectively.
“It’s a secondary feature or benefit of CCS, that we’re able to, first of all, prevent SO2 [sulfur dioxide] from entering the atmosphere, so that is some pollution that is being prevented, and
then we’re able to use that for industrial purposes, both for ourselves and to sell it as well,” said Cherry.
Availability and output have been strong, he said.
The sulphur dioxide is captured from the emissions, and then the acid is sold for industrial purposes.
“A lot of it we use for our own industrial purposes and we do sell some of it. In terms of how lucrative it is, it’s difficult to say,” said Cherry.
SaskPower has not encountered any issues so far this year with the CCS facility. During the outages of late 2021 and early 2022, they were able to complete some work on cleaning the absorber tower, the heat exchangers and more.
“When we were able to get that facility back up and running again, we had a lot of work done to make sure it continues to operate.”
The next planned outage in May is to last 25 days. A list of what will be completed has yet to be finalized.
One premier provincial curling event is finished in Estevan, and now it’s time for the next one to begin.
The SaskTel Tankard men’s provincial curling championship will run from Feb. 1-5 at Affinity Place. The opening ceremonies will be at 6 p.m. and the first draw will be at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 1, and there will be lots of great curling until the tournament’s completion.
Event committee chair Devon Fornwald said he is looking forward to 12 of Saskatchewan’s top men’s curling teams coming to Estevan.
“We’ve got a strong field coming for the teams here. We’ve got a lot of past winners coming,” said Fornwald.
Six of the teams entered are from the Nutana Curling Club in Saskatoon: Michael Carss, Colton Flasch, Jason Jacobson, Dustin Kaithoff, Rylan Kleiter and Dallan Muyres.
Daymond Bernath and Kody Hartung are playing out of the Sutherland Curling Club in Saskatoon. Logan Ede is with the Martensville Curling Club, Joshua Heidt is from the Kerrobert Curling Club, Kelly Knapp is from the Highland Curling Club in Regina and Steve Laycock is out of the Swift Current Curling Club.
Flasch is the defending champion.
“Saskatchewan is a tough province to get out of, and there’s some great
Affinity Place will remain busy with curling action, thanks to the SaskTel Tankard from Feb. 1-5.
Opening ceremonies will be at 6 p.m. on Feb. 1, and the first draw will begin at 7:30 p.m.
There will be three draws a day from Feb. 2-4. The games on Feb. 2 start at 9 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. They will be at 10 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. the next two days.
The 3 p.m. match-ups on Feb. 4 will be the last for the preliminary round. Playoffs begin with the 7:30 p.m. games that night.
The tournament uses a page playoff format, so the winners of the A event and the B event will meet in one contest to determine who goes directly to the championship final at
curlers all the way through the province. For the top 12 to make it here, that’s just an accomplishment in itself. So congratulations to those 12 teams on making it this far,” said Fornwald.
At this level, it’s a oneon-one game, Fornwald said, and the winner will be who pieces enough of those games together.
The winner of the Tankard will advance to nationals in London, Ont., from March 3-12.
There will be some work to be done after the Viterra Scotties Tournament of Hearts, which ran from Jan. 25-29 at Affinity Place, and before the Tankard begins. Fornwald said the ice makers would look at the ice and likely give it a good scrape and maybe even a small flood. They might have to sharpen the rocks.
Local curlers were scheduled to be on the ice on Jan. 31 to give it a test.
Fornwald noted the icemakers have equipment that gages the ice temperature and building humidity.
“It’s really quite a science, so they can change the ice temperature in a couple of minutes, and get it to be where they want it to be, because they know the precise temperatures for these rocks to slide and curl the best,” said Fornwald.
The two-day break between the Scotties and the Tankard will also give the event’s 190 volunteers a chance to rest, recharge and get back to the facility for another five days.
3 p.m. on Feb. 5. The loser of that game will compete in the semifinal at 10 a.m. on Feb. 5.
Meanwhile, the winners of the two C events will meet in the other 7 p.m. game on Feb. 4, with the winner advancing to the semifinal and the loser being eliminated.
The Turnbull RediMix Patch at the WylieMitchell building will also have lots of off-ice entertainment throughout the tournament.
On Feb. 2, local DJ Dave Elliott will bring his musical Bingo competition, known as Singo, which has proven to be popular when it has been held at the Black Grasshopper restaurant. Games will occur at 8, 9 and 10 p.m. that night.
The Scotties Tournament of Hearts women’s curling provincials tournament was a great event, Fornwald said. He was particularly pleased to have so many school students at the event, as they brought energy to the building for the morning draws on Jan. 26 and 27.
“The curlers were super impressed with the facility,” said Fornwald. “They couldn’t say enough. The coaches, I’ve had multiple coaches come and stop and say ‘Wow, this facility is great. You’ve done an excellent job.’ A lot of the fans are so impressed with this building and what we have here for the facility.”
The ice makers did a
Cabarets will be held on Feb. 3 and 4, with DJ Andrew Kinakin coming from Saskatoon to Estevan.
Proceeds from the cabarets will be directed to the curling club.
Also on Feb. 3, Bandits Distilling out of Weyburn will at the Patch with free taste testing of their products.
And at noon on Feb. 2, there will be a luncheon for the curlers. If anyone in the public wants to attend, admission is $20 per plate. It gives the fans a chance to hear some speakers from CurlSask and meet the curlers.
People can also enjoy music at the patch on Feb. 1 and 5, and the curling will air on television on two large smart TVs. And during the day, there will be cornhole, large-block Jenga, beer pong and playing cards for people to enjoy.
Kyle Whitehead, who operates the concession at the Power Dodge Curling Centre, will be serving food each day from 11 a.m. to close.
Admission is free, except for the Thursday lunch and the cabarets.
great job of getting the ice surfaced prepared. The curlers were impressed with how the rocks curled, along with the ice consistency and how it translated to sweeping.
Fornwald said they ironed out a few “minor hiccups” from the Scotties to be ready for the Tankard.
“Everybody who is here as a volunteer knows their role, they know where they’re supposed to be and at what time. Our volunteers, that’s another thing. We get tremendous support from our volunteers in Estevan,” said Fornwald.
The Scotties-Tankard has 190 volunteers, and people are showing up to
help out even when it’s not their shift.
“They’re just happy to be here to help out,” he said.
Many of them worked at previous events, whether it be curling or hockey, and they know what needs to be done.
Fornwald hopes the Scotties-Tankard will have a positive impact for the club. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many clubs in Canada have been hurting because some curlers didn’t come back to the sport. These events have really promoted the game in the community.
He expects some might come and watch and decide to get a team back together because they re-
alize how much they miss curling.
Each time they have an event, there is a bump in people who want their kids in the sport.
“That translates into members further down the road. That’s incredible when you see those kids progress from the first time on the ice when they’re five years old, or if they’re 10 or 12 years old, the first time they’re on the ice and you see them out there with their volunteers that instruct them. It’s amazing how fast these kids just come into the program, they learn the game and they get excited about it.”
Once someone is a curler, they’re always a curler, he said. There are members at the Estevan club who are as young as four or five, and some who are in their 80s.
“You can play this game a long time and really enjoy it,” said Fornwald. “It’s a lot of fun. The level of physical activity, it’s up to you. You can go hard, or you can sit back and enjoy the social aspect of it, too.”
Fornwald stressed the event committee has done a terrific job of organizing the event. They have things so well organized that they have made his job as chairman much easier. For full coverage of the Tankard, including photos and stories each day, be sure to visit our provincial news hub at www.sasktoday.ca.
Next week’s edition of the Mercury will have full coverage of the Tankard.
An event pass or a ticket for that day’s curling will get someone in for free to the Patch for the cabarets.
It costs $10 to get into the cabaret without a pass.
Minors will be allowed to come to the patch
throughout the tournaments as well, except for on Feb. 3 and 4 after 7 p.m.
Steve Laycock isn’t the defending champion of the SaskTel Tankard men’s provincial curling championship, but the last time he entered the event, he won.
Laycock captured the 2018 edition of the Tankard when it was held at Affinity Place in Estevan, defeating Colton Flasch 9-7. (Flasch won the event in 2022).
Laycock’s eager to be back on the ice for the marquee event.
“It was one of the provincials we had to grind through,” said Laycock. “We ended up in the C event and had to go through the semifinal game instead of going straight to the final. It was very rewarding to have that finish.”
That squad in 2018 was a star-studded one, too. Laycock was the skip but threw the third’s stones. Matt Dustone was the fourth, and Kurt and Dallan Muyres were second and lead, respectively.
Dunstone is playing out of province now, Kurt Muyres didn’t enter playdowns this year, and Dallan Muyres has a team of his own.
Flasch and Laycock used to curl together, too.
“I’ve been fortunate to play with some really good players over the years, and you don’t have
success if you don’t,” said Laycock.
This year’s team features lead Brayden Stewart, second Chris Haichert and third Shaun Meachem. Laycock will continue to work on continuity as the Tankard approaches by sweeping each other’s rocks, calling the line and communicating about the ice.
“We actually gelled quicker than I thought we would,” Laycock said.
“And we’re had a couple of really good training weekends here leading into it. I’m pretty optimistic about our chances, but it’s certainly a little bit different than most years as far as how much time we spend together on ice.”
They have put in the technical work on throwing and sweeping.
Laycock and Heichert were teammates when they won the world juniors in 2003. He noted this year marks the 20th anniversary of that team, and they’re looking to rediscover the magic.
Heichert had asked Laycock a few times over the years about reuniting, and Laycock believes now is the right time.
“Obviously we’re not nostalgic about it. We’re focusing on what’s ahead of us here,” Laycock said.
The new Team Laycock played together in September and October, came together quickly
and found success. Since then, they have had just one event in January, and Laycock admitted they looked rusty.
He remembers the Tankard of 2018 was held in a beautiful venue at Affinity Place, with a really knowledgeable and supportive crowd. The tournaments blend together after a while, but 2018 still lingers in his mind.
After the 2018 Tankard, Laycock started looking at various options and decided to start curling out of province. He remained in Saskatchewan, but the rules allow for each team to have a non-resident curler for
its provincial championship. Laycock joined the Jim Cotter team, because they were of a similar mindset over how much they play.
He actually travelled less going to B.C. than if he would have gone to all of the Saskatchewan qualifiers.
“It was just a really good fit for where I was at in my career, and I really enjoyed those years. They were great guys to play with,” said Laycock.
After taking last year off, in which he only served as a spare for Rylan Kleiter, he decided to start curling in Saskatchewan again.
“Even if I wasn’t wanting to go full bore into men’s curling, I still really enjoyed that thrill of competing at the Tankard, so that’s one thing I wanted to get back into this year,” he said.
There will be a lot of familiar faces at the Tankard in Estevan, including former teammates and foes. And there are some good young teams, such as Kleiter and Damon Bernath, that have emerged since the Tankard was last in Estevan.
The Flasch rink has been to the Brier a couple of times, and they’re used to playing on arena ice, whereas most other
teams are accustomed to curling rink ice.
“I would say Colton’s team is probably the one with the target on their back, but everyone’s good enough to beat each other on any given draw, so we’re looking forward to seeing how it shakes out,” said Laycock.
Laycock said there isn’t pressure on the champion of the SaskTel Tankard to win the Brier like there used to be. Saskatchewan hasn’t produced a Brier champion since Rick Folk did it in 1980 (?). Laycock has been to the Brier seven times, including five as a skip.
“It’s a question that’s been asked a lot of times, and I think the answer used to be yes, it was kind of that who’s going to be the team that brings us back to glory. It’s almost getting to the point where it’s been so long since we’ve won that people are almost pessimistic, or it’s almost taken the pressure off.”
People expect Saskatchewan will be strong but won’t win. It’s extremely tough to win a Canadian men’s curling championship, he said, with all of the great teams competing each year. Dunstone made it to the final in 2020 and 2021.
The Laycock rink will open their tournament on Feb. 1 at 7:30 p.m. against Logan Ede.
The Junior Stars program is a big part of the Scotties-Tankard competitions in Estevan, as it allows young curlers to interact with Saskatchewan’s best.
Twelve young curlers from the Estevan area received an incredible experience during the Viterra Scotties Tournament of Hearts women’s curling provincial tournament at Affinity Place in Estevan from Jan. 25-29.
Each team entered in the Scotties had a local youth shadow them during the tournament through the Junior Stars program.
Selected were Cailyn Phillips with Team Skylar Ackerman, Brynley Rosengren (Sherry Anderson), April McMillen (Penny Barker), Danae Schlamp (Amber Holland), Trinity Massier (Ashley Howard), Eva Gedak (Madison Kleiter), Easton Baranowski (Nancy Martin), Jorrie Thompson (Jessica Mitchell), Hope Massier (Cindy Ricci), Arizona Spencer (Lorraine Schneider), Meeka Gedak (Robyn Silvernagle) and Natalie Currie (Brooklyn Stevenson).
The Junior Stars are
honourary members for their respective teams.
The youths receive merchandise, spend time with their teams and were part of the opening ceremonies on Jan. 25.
The teams benefit from
participating in Junior Stars because they can see the joy for the sport among the youths.
The Junior Stars program has been part of marquee curling events in Estevan in the past.
Another group of Junior Stars will be part of the SaskTel Tankard men’s provincials from Feb. 1-5.
Young curlers selected for the Tankard are Heidi Fradette (joining Day-
mond Bernath’s team), Liam Knowles (Michael Carss), Oliva Marsch (Logan Ede), Malina Stead (Colton Flasch), Braydon Ludtke (Kody Hartung), Emma Marsch (Joshua Heidt), Sophia
Murphy (Jason Jacobson), Amy Fradette (Dustin Kalthoff ), Braxton Fleck (Rylan Kleiter), Kane Massier (Kelly Knapp), Kristen Carlson (Steve Laycock), and Andy Fradette (Dallan Muyres).
School principal Nathan Johnson hopes the McLeod Series basketball showdown with the Weyburn Comprehensive School can once again be an annual event, even if it won’t happen this year.
The Weyburn Comp. announced on its Facebook page on Jan. 24 that the McLeod Series wouldn’t be happening this year, citing “high emotions” and “threatening behaviour” during and after games in previous years.
The McLeod Series is a four-game, total-point basketball series between senior boys’ and girls’ basketball teams from the two schools. The event started in 1932 and since then, the games have been played with a few breaks over the years.
Weyburn leads the alltime series 46-40, and has won the past four editions. This marks just the fourth time the series hasn’t been played, but the second time in three years it has been cancelled.
It was also called off in 2021 due to restrictions
from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The McLeod Basketball Series has been very competitive throughout the years, as basketball has evolved with the growth of our province and its schools. Due to the highly competitive nature of sport in our country, province and schools, fan expectations and codes of conduct have been put in place to ensure that players, coaches and fans have a positive and safe competitive experience at all school athletic events,” the Weyburn Comp. said on its Facebook page.
“In some situations, emotions have run high and harassment and threatening behaviour directed to both players and coaches during the game and after the game, both in the school and extending beyond the school grounds, has occurred.
“As such, the decision has been made to take a break from the McLeod Series play this year to allow fans, players and coaches to review and reflect on participant expectations and codes of conduct. We hope that this series break will support all participants in being active and positive
spectators at future school series events.”
Johnson said there had been discussions earlier in the school year about incidents in previous years.
“There was conversation about this event. I think there was a miscommunication about how we were going to proceed with our conversations,” said Johnson.
Johnson said discussions about cancelling the
McLeod Series occurred in December, starting at the coaches’ level and then moving up to administration.
“There was a conversation and we knew there were concerns, so head coaches of the teams and I talked, and then there was a follow up conversation with their school as well,” said Johnson. The issue was not discussed in January, he said.
Students and coaches
have been disappointed since the announcement was made, he said, but they recognize things need to be better.
“But that doesn’t change the disappointment,” said Johnson. “It’s an exciting event to be part of if done well.”
Johnson noted there was also concerning behaviour in the Co-op Challenge volleyball series between the
The Flin Flon Bombers went two for two on the weekend, getting a measure of revenge on the Estevan Bruins.
Flin Flon won 5-1 Friday and 3-1 Saturday. It was the Bruins’ first trip to Flin Flon since last year’s SJHL final, which the Bruins won in seven games. In Saturday’s game, Bruin forward Jagjeevan Phangura took a high-slot wrist shot that snuck through traffic and past Bombers’ goaltender Harmon Laser-Hume to give the Bruins a 1-0 lead after the first period. The Bomber goalie protested the goal, saying Bruin Mitch Kohner had interfered with him, but the marker stood.
The Bruins ran into penalty problems in the second period, and those infractions cost the visitors, as Cole Duperreault tied the game
midway through the second on a power play. The Bombers took the lead when Bruin defenceman Robbie Stewart, attempting to clear the zone from behind his net, accidentally got the puck caught in Bruin goaltender Cam Hrdlicka’s skates. The puck stopped next to the left post on the goal line, and Jacob Vockler took the puck and pushed it into the net behind Hrdlicka.
Alexi Sylvestre scored on a wide-open net in the third. Hrdlicka argued he’d been interfered with, and other Bruins argued that the goal should be waved off
Laser-Hume made 37 saves on the night, while Hrdlicka recorded 53 saves on 56 shots.
The night before, Flin Flon opened the scoring when a Vockler breakaway was stopped by Hrdlicka, but Ethan Mercer made good on a rebound.
Then Duperreault scored from a high-slot shot, sneaking the puck past a screened Hrdlicka.
The Bruins scored their lone goal Friday when Phangura tossed a no-look backhand on the Flin Flon net that caught Laser-Hume off guard and slid into the net.
Down a man early in the third, Vockler rushed the puck down into the Estevan zone and started a play. Duperreault took a shot and, while Hrdlicka stopped it, the rebound bounced off a Bruin backchecker and in. Tremblay then fired one from the high slot that beat Hrdlicka clean for a 4-1 lead.
Bomber captain Lucas Fry connected with a slapshot from the blueline and beat Hrdlicka, but the goalie said he’d been interfered with, having had his blocker knocked off before the goal. Officials on the ice first signalled a goal, but then reversed their call with
the Bombers waiting at centre ice for a faceoff Tremblay later scored his second of the game into an empty net. Laser-Hume made 30 saves for the win, while
Hrdlicka stopped 46 shots in a losing cause.
All SJHL teams will pause their schedules for the upcoming SJHL/MJHL Showcase, set to take place in Winnipeg Jan. 31 and Feb. 1.
two schools in October, but that wasn’t a factor in cancelling the McLeod Series.
The school has dealt with situations of harassing or threatening behaviour involving students after these events, Johnson said, not just in 2022, but in other years. He added that incidents happened in both communities.
The announcement generated a torrent of criticism on social media and in the community the past few days. Johnson said the reaction was what they expected, because people are passionate about sports.
“We look forward to having future events, we just know it’s not going to happen this year,” said Johnson.
There was no immediate discussion in the days after the announcement about trying to make it work this year, he said.
Johnson is hopeful that the McLeod Series can return next year.
“With some planning, and putting some additional measures in place, we can have a really … productive experience for the kids, but that’s not on the table right now,” said Johnson.
The Bruins (23-19-12) have lost four straight games. They will host the Nipawin Hawks on Feb. 10 and the Bombers the following night. Both games start at 7 p.m.
There are still lots of unanswered questions in the Big Six Hockey League as it enters the final weekend of the 2022-23 regular season.
The league was busy during the past week, with 12 games from Jan. 24-29. The Oxbow Huskies dropped a 3-2 decision to the Bienfait Coalers on Jan. 24 in Bienfait, and another 3-2 decision, this time in a shootout, to the Carlyle Cougars the following night.
Then on Jan. 27, four games were played. The Redvers Rockets doubled up the Cougars 4-2, the Moosomin Rangers trounced the KiplingWindthorst Oil Kings 151, the Carnduff Red Devils defeated the Coalers 8-4 and the Huskies romped to a 12-2 win over the Wawota Flyers.
Four more games occurred on Jan. 28. The Red Devils blanked the Cougars 9-0, the Rangers edged the Huskies 5-4, the Oil Kings knocked off the Arcola-
Kisbey Combines 6-2, and the Yellow Grass Wheat Kings beat the Flyers 4-1.
Sunday’s games saw Yellow Grass defeat the Midale Mustangs 9-6 and the Rockets blank the Combines 10-0.
The Rockets sit first in the overall standings with 34 points on a 17-1 record and two games to play. The Rangers (15-3, 30 points) sit tied for second and can still mathematically catch the Rockets. The defending league champions, the Red Devils (15-5, 30 points) are tied for second as well, but they have finished their regular-season schedule.
The Huskies are fourth (14-3-1, 29 points).
Then there’s a drop-off to the fifth place Coalers (9-7, 18 points). The Cougars (8-9-1, 17 points) are sixth, but the Coalers have two games in hand. The Wheat Kings (7-9-1, 15 points) occupy seventh spot.
The Mustangs own the eighth and final playoff spot
with a 5-11-1 mark and 11 points. The Flyers (4-13-1, nine points) are ninth.
The Oil Kings (4-15, eight points) and the Arcola-Kisbey Combines (0-17) are out of the playoffs.
A number of games still remain. Arcola-Kisbey will visit Yellow Grass on Feb. 2. Four games are set for Feb. 3: Redvers at Moosomin, Wawota at Carlyle, Bienfait at Kipling-Wind-
Estevan Web Printing is looking to fill INSERTER POSITIONS
Part Time, 20-40 hours per week No experience required Duties would include: hand inserting flyers into papers, manually feeding machine pockets with flyers, moving pallets of flyers and products. Apply by: 27-Jan-2023
jobs@estevanwebprinting.com Apply by sending your resume to:
thorst and Arcola-Kisbey at Midale. Games for Feb. 4 include Oxbow at Wawota, Bienfait at Arcola-Kisbey, Yellow Grass at Redvers, and Midale at Carlyle. All
those games will start at 8 p.m.
The regular season will conclude on Feb. 5 will be Oxbow at Yellow Grass at 7 p.m. and Bienfait at Moosomin at 8 p.m.
The Cindy Ricci rink represented the Estevan Curling Club at the Viterra Scotties Tournament of Hearts provincial women’s curling championship at Affinity Place in Estevan.
Ricci, third Kristy Johnson, second Tamara Kapell and lead Natalie Bloomfield went 1-3, bowing out in the C event semifinal. It was Ricci’s first appearance at provincials as a skip since
winning the event in 1999, and the first time they had appeared together as a team.
The Ricci rink opened with an 8-4, nine-end loss to Lorraine Schneider.
Team Ricci fell behind early, trailing 3-0 after two ends and 5-1 after four. After Ricci scored one in five, Schneider rattled off single points in three straight ends to lead 8-2.
Ricci scored two in nine
and then conceded the match.
The next game was a 9-7 loss in 11 ends to Skylar Ackerman – the first extraend game at provincials. After a scoreless first end, Ackerman scored three in the second, but Ricci responded with two in the third and one in the fourth. Ackerman scored two in five but Ricci replied with two in the sixth.
Ackerman had single points in seven and eight, but Ricci had singles in nine and 10 to tie the game again.
The Ricci rink was in position at one point to get a steal and the win in the extra end, but Ackerman rallied to get the two points and the win.
Ricci’s lone victory was a 6-5 win over Amber Holland in the C event. Ricci
led 3-0 through three ends and 4-2 through five. Holland recorded single points in each of the seventh, eighth and ninth ends to lead 4-3, but Ricci scored two in the 10th. She had the hammer in the final end and was already sitting two, so she didn’t have to throw her last stone.
With the win, Ricci eliminated Holland, who won the national champi-
onship in 2011. Ricci and Holland have been teammates in the past. Her final game was a 9-3 loss in nine ends to 2022 provincial champion Penny Barker. Ricci led 1-0 after the first end, and the game was tied 2-2 at one point. Barker took over, leading 5-2 at the fifth-end break, and then put the game away with two in the seventh and two in the ninth.
The Estevan Steelhaus
U18 AAA Bears’ weekend road trip to Saskatoon was one to forget.
The Bears went 0-3 and were outscored 17-2 over the three games. They lost 4-1 on Friday and 4-0 Saturday to the Saskatoon Contacts, and then they suffered a 9-1 defeat to the league-leading Saskatoon Blazers on Sunday.
Evhan Allan had the Bears’ lone goal on Friday. It came on a power play in the second.
Kaden Perron started Friday’s game and gave up four goals on 16 shots. Riley Deck stopped all 21 shots he faced in relief.
In the following game, Estevan was down 2-0 after two periods, but the Contacts pulled away with two in the third, including an empty-net marker. Deck stopped 28 shots for Estevan.
Carter Tuplin had Estevan’s lone goal against the Blazers. Perron made 41 saves in the loss.
The Bears (8-20-5) sit 11th in the Saskatchewan Male AAA Hockey League
standings with 21 points. They will visit the Blazers on Feb. 3 and the Warman Wildcats on Feb. 4 and 5.
•••
The Estevan Apex U18 AA Bruins split their weekend games, losing 3-1 to the Regina Vics on Saturday and winning 4-3 over the Weyburn Wings on Sunday.
Declyn Henderson had Estevan’s lone goal against the Vics. Ty Fehrenbach made 22 saves in the loss.
Jordan Marcotte scored
twice, and Lucas Campbell and Henderson also scored for Estevan against the Wings.
Keagan Carley made 19 saves to get the win.
Estevan (25-4-3) will host the Notre Dame Hounds on Feb. 9 at 8 p.m. It will be their first game in Estevan since Jan. 7.
The Estevan TS&M U15 AA Bruins lost 4-3 to the Prairie Storm on Sunday. Estevan was down 4-1 in the third period, with
Boston Tait scoring, and then the Bruins rallied with goals by Austin Sawatsky and Gunner Moore.
Quinton Sliva stopped 20 shots for Estevan. Estevan (4-14-2) will visit the Weyburn Wings on Feb. 1.
•••
The Estevan Meter U13 AA Bruins split weekend road games, losing 4-2 to the Swift Current Broncos on Saturday and beating the Regina Mustangs 7-3 on Sunday.
Kaleb Crossman and Kyson Dangstorp had Estevan’s goals.
Easton Pushie made 38 saves in the game.
Owen Light, Logan Hunt and Will Sutter scored in the first period to give Estevan a 3-0 lead against Regina, and then Light, Sutter, Cooper Hale and Mason Schmidt scored the rest of the way.
Nathan Quennelle made 30 saves in the victory.
Estevan (4-18) will close out the regular season by hosting the Yorkton Terriers on Feb. 10 at 6:45 p.m. and the Swift Current Broncos on Feb. 11 at 2:15 p.m. Both games will be at the Power Dodge Arena.
•••
The Estevan Ironside Energy U11 AA Bruins won two straight against the Melville Millionaires on the weekend at the Power Dodge Arena.
Ethan Phillips had three goals and an assist for Estevan. Nash Cameron had Estevan’s other goal.
Phillips then had four goals on Sunday. Andin Barlow scored the other goal.
Estevan then defeated Weyburn 11-3 on Monday.
Penn Tytlandsvik had two goals and four assists. Barlow had three goals, Cameron added two, and Phillips, Brooks Cote, Kolter Snell and Braxton Shier also scored.
Ty Blackburn was in goal for all games.
Ten members of the Estevan Figure Skating Club were in Moose Jaw earlier in January for a competition.
Rachel Duncan won a gold in Star 8 and a silver in Star 9, and Sydney Brooks won a silver (Star 8) and bronze (Star 9) at the event. Their Star 8 and Star 9 medals were in the free skate.
Madzia Szlapacka came back from the event with gold (Star 4 free skate) and silver medals (Star 4 elements).
Among the Star 3 free skaters, Madison Nielson, Harlow Ludwig, Janiyah Laforge and Danae
Schlamp won silver ribbons. Izzy Fonstad and Meeka Gedak each won a bronze ribbon.
In Star 3 elements, Fonstad, Ludwig, Laforge, Schlamp and Neilson each won a silver ribbon. Hudson Ludwig won a silver ribbon in Star 2 elements and a bronze in the free skate. Star 3 and under skaters receive ribbons based on their own performance. Everyone gets a ribbon of some colour. Those in Star four and up are scored and compared against each other only and only the top three receive medals.
IN MEMORIAM
EVELYNGCSVORKDAL
November19,1933 -January28,2022
ForeverinourHearts
Shewasthethreadthatwound throughourlives andboundustogether: strong,flexible, purposefulandelegant.
Hermuch-treasuredquiltswere carefullyconstructed.Herselected piecesofclothwerediverse andsewntogetherlike thegiftedlifethatshelived. Hersisanenduringlegacyof joy,generosityandcreativity. Sheisdeeplymissed.
Amemorialservicewillbeheldat TrinityLutheranChurch,on Saturday,August26,2023. Arrangementsareincareof Hall'sFuneralServices,Estevan.
Members of the Estevan Fire Rescue Service handled a few calls last week, including one for carbon monoxide.
WANTED
FINANCIAL SERVICES
Toll free 1-866-405-1228 www.firstandsecondmortgages.ca
LAND FOR RENT
Farmland for Cash Rent RM of Benson #35 approx 300 cultivated acres SE 08-04-08 W2 SW
Firefighters were called to the CO alarm in the evening of Jan. 24 in north Estevan. Crews responded and investigated, and de-
termined that it was possibly related to a furnace issue in the garage.
Fire Chief Rick Davies said the residents handled the situation properly.
In Memory of Avory Eagles July 27, 1917 to February 4, 1998
Friends may think we have forgotten When at times they see us smile, But they little know the heartache Our smiles hide all the while.
Love you and miss you Your Family
CARD OF THANKS
Chase A. Wanner 2005 - 2023
Thank-you
We would like to thank all of our family and friends for the support, love, phone calls, messages, food, cards, flowers, donations made in Chase’s memory and more during this difficult time. Your support is greatly appreciated and does not go unnoticed. A special thank-you to Sandy Dalziel for taking the time for us, a beautiful service and reading the eulogy on behalf of the family and making it so very special and personal. Thank-you to all our strong pallbearers.
Thank-you to the Lampman Legion and the Ladies Auxiliary for preparing the room and wonderful lunch for us all. And of course a huge thank-you to Yvonne Clark, Dustin Hall and the staff of Hall Funeral Services. You made this most difficult time in our lives much easier with your grace, love and patience every step of the way. Forever Grateful, Dayna and Deane Wanner
WANTED: SASQUATCH SKULL!
Also BUYING ENTIRE COIN COLLECTIONS & old money! BUYING large quantities of SILVER. 999+ bullion, ALL sizes, ALL brands, bars, rounds, ingots, coins, sterling, silverware, pre-1968 coins +. BUYING ALL GOLD & SILVER coins, bars, unwanted jewelry, nuggets, dust, scrap +++
TODD 250-864-3521
Westeel10,300bushopperbins withair,skid,s/ufor$3.89busplus freight.$40,100.CallDevon@ GBD.(306)371-5444
I
EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY
EMPLOYMENTOPPORTUNITY-AreaForeman
SurgeEnergyInc.isanoil-focusedE&Pcompanythathashigh-quality reservoirs,steadyproductionandcashflow.Surgehaselite,operated propertiescharacterizedbylargeOOIPwithlowrecoveryfactors,over 950netlow-riskdevelopmentlocationsprovidingover14yearsofdrilling inventory,andnumeroushigh-qualitywaterfloodopportunities.Surge's managementteamhasinitiatedanorderly,ongoingriskmanagement/ hedgingprogramdesignedtomaintainthebalancesheet.Surge'scommonsharestradeontheTorontoStockExchangeunderthesymbolSGY. SurgeiscurrentlyacceptingapplicationsforthepositionofAreaForeman forSESaskatchewanassets.Thiskeyleadershippositionwillbebased outofWeyburn,Estevan,orthesurroundingareaandreporttotheProductionSuperintendent.Responsibilitiesincludefosteringandpromoting theEH&S/SLMSprogram,meetingprojectedproductiontargets,budget planningandexecution,dailyproductionaccountingandcoordinatingpreventativemaintenance.Itwillbecriticalforthesuccessfulcandidateto managestakeholdersandstakeholderrelationshipsandmentorcontract operators.TheAreaForemanisencouragedtotakeinitiativeintheirarea tobringcreativesolutions,recommendimprovementstoexistingproceduresandimplementnewideastoensurethefieldmeetsperformance standardsandalignswithcorporateandexternalregulatoryguidelines.
Qualificationsinclude:
-Hands-onexperienceandfullworkingknowledgeofartificialliftequipment
-Experienceworkingwithoilandgastreatingandprocessingfacilities
-AcompleteunderstandingofSCADAsystemsandoptimizationVFDs andsoftware
-Astrongsafetymindsetandabilitytoparticipateinandpromotea safetyculture
-Provenrecordofachievingproductiontargetscoupledwithstrongoperatingexpensemanagement strategies
-Workcollaborativelywithinafast-pacedteamenvironmentwiththe confidencetoopenlyand constructivelyarticulateandpromoteideas,particularlywiththeEngineers,Geoscientistsand ContractOperators
-Applicablefirstaidandsafetytraining(H2SAlive,WHIMIS,Standard FirstAid,GroundDisturbance, ConfinedSpaceetc.)
-Abilityandsuccessfulexperienceindevelopingandmanagingbudgets
-Strongtechnicalskills,includingtheabilitytouseMicrosoftOffice productsandProductionAccountingsoftware
-Self-directedwiththeabilitytoprioritizeandorganizetasksand projectswhiledemonstratinghands-onaccountabilityforwork Interestedcandidatesshouldforwardaresume priortoFebruary24,2023to:hr@surgeenergy.ca SurgeEnergyInc.
CentennialPlace-EastTower Suite1200,5203rdAvenueSW Calgary,ABT2P0R3 403-930-1010surgeenergy.ca
“They were out of the house, in the garage, waiting for the crews to arrive. They had some doors and stuff open already to alleviate any readings or any levels of CO that might have been in the house. They did exactly what they’re supposed to do,” said Davies.
The homeowners were asked to keep the furnace off and have a plumbing company come in and look at the issue.
About an hour after the CO alarm call came in, crews were called to a residential fire alarm in the southwest corner of Estevan. They responded and determined it was possibly a furnace issue.
“The homeowner was going to contact a plumbing company to come check that out,” said Davies.
Then on Jan. 26, the fire department was called for
an investigation at a house in southwest Estevan.
“Crews … found a small issue with a lighting appliance, causing a burning smell, so there was nothing major going on there,” said Davies.
The homeowner was to contact an electrician to have the issue resolved.
Firefighters have also been planning their biweekly training sessions, so that they keep their skills sharp when they are called to scenes.
Robert William Pearson
1933-2023
Robert W. Pearson passed on Thursday, January 26, 2023 in Regina, SK. He was born on August 30, 1933. Robert is survived by his daughter Robin Pearson; sons Regan and Randy (Denise) Pearson; grandchildren, Randi Nicole Pearson, Neil Pearson and Andrea Kirstein; greatgrandchildren Brianna Gelowitz, Kegan Gelowitz-Liebrecht, Aislyn Gelowitz-Liebrecht and Eva Denize Tas. He was predeceased by his wife Constance; parents Vera and William Pearson; and infant sister Shirley Margaret.
Robert grew up in the Estevan, Roche Percee and Bienfait area of Saskatchewan, where he met his wife, Connie. Robert and his family lived in both Saskatoon and Regina, and spent his retirement years in Regina.
Robert was employed for 28 years in the Co-operative Retail System including the Co-op Refinery, FCL Home Office and the Sherwood Co-op Home Centre. He worked as a Remax realtor before retiring. Robert had a brief stint in the Royal Canadian Air Force and later in life got his pilot’s license.
Robert was a man of many skills, including building his own house and many construction/home jobs and projects. He was always willing to help others in those endeavors. He enjoyed fishing, the Rotary Club, golfing and wintering in Arizona with Connie. He was passionate about helping his children. He had a great wit and was never afraid to use sarcasm as a teaching tool to the kids and friends. We will miss you, Robert.
A special thank you to the Medical Surveillance Unit at Pasqua Hospital.
A Private Family Service will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the CNIB in Robert’s memory. Online messages of condolence may be left at paragonfuneralservices.com
23021DS0
The licence of Estevan physicians Dr. Mehdi Horri is still suspended. According to Bryan Salte, the associate registrar and legal counsel with the Saskatchewan College of Physicians and Surgeons, the college’s council met on Jan. 27 and 28, “considered all of the information” and concluded that it would try to work towards some additional safeguards that would allow Horri to return to practice.
“We will be working with Dr. Horri and his legal
counsel over the next period of time to try to put something like that in place,” said Salte. “Until such time as that occurs, he will be suspended and it will be subject to the executive committee or the council reviewing and proving what the details are of arrangements that can be put in place.” He did not go into further details about possible arrangements because of the possibility of further negotiations. It’s not known how long it will take to reach an arrangement that can be
submitted to the executive committee before Horri can return to practice.
“Sometimes discussions
go smoothly. Sometimes they don’t. It will be a matter of discussion between Dr. Horri and us to try to see if we can reach an understanding that is reasonable to be submitted to the executive committee,” said Salte.
Salte noted there are two complainants in this situation. When Horri’s licence was suspended on Jan. 11, it was noted there was one complainant, stemming from an examination that Horri performed.
Horri has been in Estevan since 2012, making him one
of the longest-serving physicians in the community. His licence was revoked by the college for nine months in Saskatchewan in 2017 and 2018, after a similar action was taken by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. Horri was found guilty of engaging in a sexual relationship with a patient too soon after the termination of the doctor-patient relationship. Horri was still practising in Ontario when it occurred.
Ever since Horri’s licence was reinstated in June
2018, he is required to have a chaperone present during all interactions with female patients. The information presented to the college’s executive council recently is that was not happening.
Also, in 2020, Horri pleaded guilty to five charges under the Medical Profession Act for unprofessional conduct. He was suspended for four months. Four of those charges occurred in 2017 prior to his licence being revoked in Saskatchewan, and the other charge was from 2018, shortly after he was reinstated.
The Souris Valley Museum started 2023 with many exciting programs and activities for their young patrons, and they have more coming up in February.
“There is so much happening for programs in February,” said museum’s
director/curator Melanie Memory. This month, the museum will invite their three to five-year-old patrons for History Sensory Wednesdays on Feb. 8 and 15 in the mornings. The program allows for fun learning about the past using kids’ senses with touch, taste, smell, sight and hearing. History Sensory Wednesdays also ran in January.
The museum will also have its I Am Series on Feb. 17, exploring what it’s like to be a doctor. Another program for those ages three to five, the When I Grow Up day camp, will be happening Feb. 10.
The museum will also have a No School Day Camp during the February break, from Feb. 21-23. The theme for that is Game On for those six to 10 years of age. This winter they also have partnered with the Estevan Early Years Family Resource Centre. Once a month, Briana Robinson, education and outreach co-ordinator with the museum, is running a program called History & Play. It is for children and their caregivers, and invites them to come in to learn about the past in fun and engaging ways. The last time Robinson was at the family centre, children were learning about making butter, quilt art, pottery making, and clothes washing and drying. Memory also said they are planning on bringing
back some of the themes and programs the public liked before.
“This year, we plan on bringing back some popular camp themes like Covert Op Training, Dino Dig, Lego Camp, Little Time Travellers, Pioneer Science and many more. We will also have some new camp themes in the works like Sunflower Power and Outdoor Explorers,” Memory shared.
The January schedule at the museum was also busy with activities.
First on the 2023 agen-
da was a three-day camp, The Science of Snow, for six to 10-year-olds from Jan. 3-5. The participants learned about how snowflakes form, and how pioneers travelled in the snow with snowshoes. Children were able to make their own snow crystals and even made a pair of snowshoes to try themselves in the snowbanks outside around the museum. For more information or to register a child to attend programs, parents are asked to go online to sourisvalleymuseum.com.
The Estevan Chamber of Commerce has announced that its Farmer Appreciation Evening is to be held in its traditional format this spring.
The festive night, which attracts hundreds of people many of whom are involved with the agriculture sector, will be held on March 30 at Beefeater Plaza. For the past three years, the event was cancelled, and in 2021 and 2022, the Farmer Family of the Year Award was handed to the winning local families at their farms due to pandemic restrictions and concerns.
Some details, including the guest speaker for the night, are still being finalized. Farm family nomination forms are available at the chamber’s website at estevanchamber.ca. The deadline
to submit the filled forms will be March 9, which gives the community a little more than a month to nominate the most-deserving local farmers and ranchers.
Jackie Wall, Estevan Chamber of Commerce
executive director, said the finalized details will be published on their website as soon as they become available, but in general, the night will be similar to how it used to be before COVID-19 hit.
“It’ll be very similar to
pre-pandemic, and we cannot wait to get back to that format,” Wall said. “We’re just confirming a few things.” The night will include supper, a guest speaker, the celebration of the Farm Family of the Year and more.
The chamber will consider the nominations that were submitted the previous year, but Wall said that if people who nominated farming families before want to update the submitted packages or even make sure the nomination goes forward again, they should reach out. They also hope to receive some new nominations.
“We will look at previous nominees. We have not done that yet, as we wait until we have the nominees from this year in,” Wall noted.
The nomination form is one page long, but it can go longer depending on the history of the family’s involvement.
“It just depends on the nominee and the extent of their history and their involvement in the community,” Wall said.
The form asks for the family’s name, address and the RM they are in. It also asks to provide brief information about the nominee’s farming or ranching history, past and present, as well as special awards, achievements, recognitions and accomplishments. The person nominating a family is also asked to explain why they feel the nominee should receive the Farm Family of the Year Award.
“It’s quite open, because all the nominees have a very different history and very different levels of achievements, and accomplishments, and commitment to their communities,” Wall said.
Tickets for the night, which is always a sell-out, will become available soon with more information coming as well.
The provincial and federal governments have committed funding towards a number of projects in Saskatchewan, including one in Estevan.
Dominic LeBlanc, the federal Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Infrastructure and Communities, and Saskatchewan Government Relations Minister Don McMorris, announced more than $19.7 million in joint funding
for 25 infrastructure projects across the province.
The initiative for Estevan will include the rehabilitation of the Estevan Leisure Centre’s rooftop for increased sustainability, and the replacement of the heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems.
The federal government will contribute $542,094 towards the project, with the provincial government adding $451,700
and the City of Estevan’s share coming in at $361,441.
By investing in infrastructure, the Government of Canada says it is growing the economy, increasing the resiliency of communities, and improving the lives of Canadians.
“The investments announced today will create opportunities for Saskatchewanians to build a better future for themselves, their families
and their communities,” LeBlanc said in a news release. “We will continue working with our partners to support rural and Indigenous communities across Saskatchewan.”
“Our government is invest-
ing nearly $9 million in provincial funding toward these 25 vital infrastructure projects,” McMorris said. “These investments will increase Indigenous cultural learning opportunities, provide recreational op-
portunities, improve our rural transportation system and support our environment. We will continue to build a stronger Saskatchewan that is home to a strong economy, strong communities and strong families.”
Estevan city council received an update on snow removal in the community during its most recent meeting on Jan. 23.
Norm Mack, the manager of roads and drainage for the city’s public works division, noted the City of Estevan removes snow on 165 kilometres of streets and roadways, and plows back lanes, cityowned lots, designated sidewalks and pathways. Over the years, Mack said roads and drainage has tweaked and improved snow removal operations to increase speed and efficiency.
Typically, it takes the city five to six days, depending on breakdowns and weather conditions, to clear snow after a larger snow event.
After the initial cleanup, some touch-ups and blading of ruts will be required by inhouse staff
“The roads and drainage main objective during a snowstorm is to ensure that all Priority 1 streets are passable for emergency vehicles. Loaders and graders will patrol the city
to open blocked streets and drifts,” Mack said.
Mack noted the snow removal arrangement with the Ministry of Highways and Infrastructure has changed, adding more responsibility to the city’s snow removal routes. The city will be responsible for plowing and maintaining Highway 47 north from Wellock Road to the north city limits, and Highway 39x from 16th Avenue to Sister Roddy Road.
To the east, the city used to stop at Kensington Avenue, but it will eventually plow to Sawyer Road at the east city limits. At some point, the city will be responsible for the overpass.
“Highways has said in 2023, they will maintain that until we can get some equipment, and we’re in the process of getting a plow.”
And to the south, the city will have to maintain to the junction with Highway 18, whereas before their jurisdiction ended on Perkins Street.
“Under the contract, we agreed upon the price of con-
tracting that back to the highways department, so their portion is, for this year, is Highway 18 to Collins Road, and all the way to the river,” said Mack.
Mack also recommended a couple of changes to the city’s Priority 1 routes. All of Wellock Road is now Priority
1. Previously it was a Priority 1 road from Souris Avenue North to Mayfair Drive due to the presence of the Estevan Regionl Nursing Home, and Priority 2 from Mayfair to Sister Roddy Road.
“Wellock Road is a … route to the hospital, and secondly, we’re usually there first thing, battling the snow, because that’s the first road
that blows in, in the northwest corner of the city,” said Mack.
Also added to the Priority 1 list is Souris Avenue North from King Street to Seventh Street, due to the amount of traffic accessing the road for the Estevan Leisure Centre and Affinity Place.
“We think that’s the crown jewel of the city [Affinity Place], so we’d like to do Priority 1 from King Street to Seventh Street,” said Mack.
Also, in the event of a major snow storm, they want to have gravel roads for the industrial areas plowed to the ditches early so that people can access their businesses.
The city has nine snow
dump sites throughout the community. Sites are located in every quadrant of the city to cut down on travel time for the trucks.
“Double the distance of a truck to dump its load of snow basically doubles the cost and time of snow removal,” said Mack. They might spend a day or a day and a half at a dump site during and after a storm.
Two dump sites push over the valley edge, and the city is fortunate to have valleys to take away snow melt.
Councillor Shelly Veroba noted that Regina and Saskatoon could only wish to have the snow removal of Estevan. But she wanted to know what
After an exciting Scotties, please come out and take in the Tankard which should be equally exciting.
position.
Guard/Matrons provide constant observation of persons held in custody at the Estevan Police Service Detention Center. Hours of work can vary and will include night shifts. Length of shifts vary from three to eight hours to a maximum of 40 hours per week. Successful applicants may also be called upon on short notice. Training will be provided. Application packages can be picked up in person or downloaded from our website at www.estevanpolice.ca
Completed packages are to be forwarded to the attention of;
Murray Cowan Deputy Chief of Police Estevan Police Service 301-11th Avenue Estevan, Saskatchewan S4A 1C7
306-634-4767
Anyone interested in this position may also contact Fern THIESSEN fthiessen@estevanpolice.ca or call 306.634.1510 for further information
The Council of the City of Estevan pursuant to the Cities Act that the Council of the City of Estevan, gives notice of its intention to implement a bylaw to dispense with the mailing of assessment notices under section 184 (2) of the Cities Act for the City of Estevan
On January 23, 2023 meeting the first reading of the Bylaw 2023-2066 was passed and the final readings is expected to be on February 13, 2023.
The proposed Bylaws 2023-2066 may be inspected by any person in the City Clerk’s Office, on the main level of City Hall, between the hours of 9 am and 4 pm, Monday to Friday.
Dated this 24th day of January, 2023.
Judy Pilloud
1102 4th Street
Estevan, SK S4A 0W7
PLEASE
time crews start in the morning. Mack said it depends on the extent of the storm.
“For the most part, our snow removal operations run from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.,” said Mack. “And we try to stay in that timeframe.”
During a blizzard, if there are roads blocked, they might start as early as 3 a.m.
She was also pleased the city had sand available for people to pick up at sites in the community.
Mack said the city has a good system that is wellrehearsed and well-oiled, and crews won’t stop unless absolutely necessary. Contractors have been great to work with when needed.
A dozen employees work on snow removal for the city, he said, and after a big storm, they need 30-40 people.
They also co-ordinate with leisure services on removing snow from pathways and sidewalks. The city has about 22 kilometres of pathways, including all of the connectors. The pathways are cleared when time allows.
The Estevan Police Service is seeking applications for the position of Police Constable.
The Estevan Police Service offers a competitive salary and benefits package, ongoing professional development, and a range of career opportunities.
Currently serving and trained Canadian police officers are encouraged to apply.
All candidates must possess minimum qualifications, including the following:
18 years of age
Grade 12 Diploma or equivalent
Excellent physical condition and health with no medical conditions that would prohibit your ability to safely complete recruit training and perform all aspects of police work Canadian citizen, landed immigrant, or have a permanent residency at the time of application
Valid driver’s license (unrestricted for a minimum of one year) and good driving record
Good moral character Exemplary employment record
Excellent communication skills, both written and oral
Computer skills
For more information on the requirements, selection process, and the application package, please visit our website, www.estevanpolice.ca (Employment Opportunities). A fully completed Personal Disclosure Form must accompany each application. Please submit completed packages, including an up-to-date resume, in a sealed envelope to:
Chief of Police Estevan Police Service
301-11th Ave. Estevan, Sask.
S4A 1C7
Thank you for your interest in the Estevan Police Service. No phone calls, please. Only successful candidates will be contacted. The closing date is March 31, 2023.
Traffic Bylaw 2016-1963
Depositing Substances
53. (1) No person shall deposit any natural substances on any highway, public sidewalk, boulevard or ditch within the City of Estevan (3) The occupier of property in the City of Estevan shall remove any snow, ice or other obstruction from the public sidewalk adjacent to such property within twenty-four (24) hours of the time such snow, ice or other obstruction appears on such public sidewalk.
* In the event that this subsection is not complied with, the City may remove such snow, ice or other obstructions at the expense of such occupants or owner, and in the event of the non-payment of such expense, such expense may be charges against the property as a special assessment to be recovered in like manner as and with the taxes.