Marketplace 2023-02-17

Terriers’ captain up for the challenge

The Yorkton Junior Terriers are celebrating 50 years in the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League this season.

To mark the milestone Yorkton This Week is digging into its archives and pulling out a random Terrier-related article from the past five decades of reporting on the team, and will be running one each week, just as it originally appeared.

This feature will appear weekly over the entire season in the pages of The Marketplace.

Week #22 comes from May, 1999.

Shawn Skiehar wears the captain’s ‘C’ for the Yorkton Terriers. He says the team is ready for the Royal Bank Cup which the team begins hosting tonight.

“Definitely we’re ready. We’ve been practising hard for about a month now. All the guys are itching to play,” he said Tuesday afternoon prior to the team’s daily skate.

Skiehar said he believes Terrier coach Wade Klippenstein did a good job of trying to keep an edge on the Terriers in spite of their early exit from the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League playoffs – the team lost in the opening round to Notre Dame.

“He (Klippenstein) lined up as many exhibition games as he could. They were a good learning experience for us to get ready,” said Skiehar.

“I think the guys are in shape and ready for the games.”

Skiehar said as a veteran of the club, in his last season of junior hockey, he understands this may be his only shot at a national crown. Most players recognize that fact, he added.

“We’ve got to make the best out of our opportunity for a national championship,” reasoned Skiehar, who hails form the city he now represents on the ice.

“We talk about it in the dressing room. Everybody knows what’s on the line … what we have to go out and do.”

Asked what he expects the team has to do to be successful, Skiehar said the entire team needs to be ready.

“From the goalie up, everybody’s got to come ready to play and play 60 minutes,” he said. “We got to play tight defensively. If we play well defensively the offensive will come to us.”

Asked if starting the RBC tournament against the familiar Estevan Bruins was a benefit to the Terriers, Skiehar said the team can’t rely

50 YEARS

Looking back at the Yorkton Terriers

on familiarity to win the game.

“Even though we’ve played them six games we can’t be comfortable with them, or any team we’re playing,” he said. “We’ve got to go out there and work our butts off every game.”

Personally, Skiehar said the tournament is big, since he gets to play it on home turf.

“It’s going to feel great. It will be a big adrenaline rush, not just for me, but for everybody,” he said.

It’s the culmination of a season in which Skiehar, always noted as a tough, no-holds barred kind of player, found himself used in different situations, including both the power play and penalty kill.

“I’ve added a little more offence at times than I did in previous years,” he smiled.

And while the penalty minutes did decline, Skiehar still led the team.

“You can’t afford to lose any player for getting kicked out,” he said in reference to the SJHL rule where a fight comes with an automatic game

42nd Annual Saturday, Feb. 25 & Sunday, Feb. 26, 2023

Location:

YORKTON AGRIPAVILION 455 Broadway St. W. Yorkton, SK

Show Times:

Saturday, Feb. 25 • 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

misconduct, “but there are certain times when it happens. You’ve go to pick your spots.”

For Skiehar the season also marked his being handed the captain’s role shortly after Christmas.

“I really didn’t like to think of it as added pressure,” he said of the promotion. “More as an added responsibility. It’s a big honour to have the ‘C’.”

So does the ‘C’ mean he’s trying to be an inspiration leading into the RBC? Skiehar said that is not the role he has chosen to assume.

“I’m kind of letting it happen on its own. Each guy knows what’s going on … what they need to go out and do,” he concluded.

January job growth in Sask.

Recently released January labour force figures from Statistics Canada show Saskatchewan is off to a strong start in 2023, with 16,400 new jobs when compared to Jan. 2022, an increase of 2.9 per cent.

“Our province is off to a great start in 2023, with thousands of new jobs across many of Saskatchewan’s various and vital industries,” Immigration and Career Training Minister Jeremy Harrison said. “Saskatchewan’s economy is full of opportunity for newcomers and residents alike, and our government looks forward to strong, continued growth

that works for everyone in the coming year.”

The seasonally adjusted provincial unemployment rate was 4.3 per cent in January 2023, down from 5.6 per cent in January 2022 and down from 4.4 per cent compared to December 2022. The rate is the third lowest among the provinces, and below the national average of 5.0 per cent.

Saskatchewan saw record highs for the month of January:

• Provincial labour force reached 606,300;

• Total provincial employment reached 578,600; and

• Total full-time employment reached

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Full-time employment increased by 4,700 (+1 per cent), with part-time employment increasing by 11,500 (+11.5 per cent).

There were also increases in youth population, which rose to 3,200 (+2.4 per cent), and employment, which is up 1,400 (+1.9 per cent) compared to last January.

Off-reserve Indigenous employment was up 2,500 (+4.4 per cent) for 26 consecutive months of year-over-year increases. Indigenous youth employment was up 2,000 (+25.3 per cent) for two consecutive months of year-over-year increases.

Major year-over-year gains were reported for health care and social assistance, up 4,900 (+5.6 per cent), with professional, scientific and technical services, up 3,800 (+15.1 per cent), and educational services, up 3,000 (+6.1 per cent).

— Submitted

Shawn Skiehar

IN BRIEF

First Nation dancer performs at Super Bowl pre-game festivities

By Sam Laskaris, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, (Windspeaker. com)

Patrick Mitsuing, a member of Makwa Sahgaiehcan First Nation in Saskatchewan, played a key role at yesterday’s Super Bowl, the National Football League’s championship final.

No, Mitsuing did not suit up for either of the competing teams, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. Instead, Mitsuing was the only Indigenous performer from Canada

dancing outside the Super Bowl venue, State Farm Stadium, welcoming the 70,000 fans who attended the match, held Feb. 12 in the Arizona city of Glendale.

Mitsuing, who is a world champion powwow dancer, performed in three half-hour shows prior to the game, in which the Kansas City team rallied from a 10-point halftime deficit to register a 38-35 victory in the contest.

Mitsuing, who is 38, was provided with a ticket to watch the NFL’s showcase match from a seat that was close to the field.

“Before the game I went online and I saw the seat that I was sitting in was going for like $8,000 (US),” Mitsuing told Windspeaker.com in a Monday morning phone interview. “I just got to experience all that for free.”

Mitsuing was asked about six weeks ago if he would be interested in the Super Bowl gig. NFL reps contacted Indigenous Enterprise, a dance troupe of powwow dancers, to recommend some performers.

Mitsuing was thrilled he was asked to be part of Sunday’s performances.

Yorkton Army Cadet practices baritone horn at music clinic

“The whole experience was super insane, something I never could have imagined,” he said.

Mitsuing is known for the high-energy men’s fancy dance.

Mitsuing performed the shows with two Native American dancers from the United States.

Though he thoroughly enjoyed the experience, Mitsuing said he did not become a football convert, never having been a football fan in the past.

“I’ll go back to Canada and I’ll never watch football again,” he said. “But it was just so cool to be a part of this.”

Mitsuing was pleased NFL officials chose to include Indigenous dancers in Sunday’s pregame celebrations.

“It is such a big, big organization,” he said of the league. “Their voice reaches a lot of people throughout the world. Seeing what they’re

doing to recognize Indigenous people is a really, really big deal.”

Prior to performances on Sunday, Mitsuing said one of the highlights of his career was dancing at the New Orleans Jazz Festival in 2019.

Mitsuing has also performed numerous times at the Gathering of Nations, the largest powwow in North America, which is held each April in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Though he had limited knowledge of the two Super Bowl teams in the championship, Mitsuing said he opted to cheer for the Chiefs during the game.

The Kansas City club, which trailed 24-14 at halftime, managed to pull out the victory. Chiefs’ kicker Harrison Butker scored the gamewinning field goal from 27 yards out with a mere eight seconds remaining in the match.

Mitsuing said he was aware of another group of Native people protesting outside of the facility on Sunday.

Native American advocates were hoping to draw attention to the fact they want the Kansas City franchise to change its moniker of Chiefs. The protesters also want the squad to change their logo and put a stop to the war chant and tomahawk chop gestures regularly performed by the team’s fans.

“I totally support what they’re fighting for,” Mitsuing said of the protesters’ purpose.

“In my honest opinion, I think every organization that has an Indigenous mascot should change their name.”

Mitsuing, who now lives in the Alberta town of Sylvan Lake, was expected to return to his home on Monday.

Warrant Officer Condoleezza Erhaze, a cadet with 2834 64th Field Battery, Royal Canadian Army Cadet Corps, in Yorkton, attended a Cadet Music Clinic held in Saskatoon Feb. 4. The music clinics provided specialist instruction in drill, music theory, and practice with instruments in a larger group setting to complement cadet music programs at local cadet corps and squadrons. Erhaze plays the baritone horn.

Staff Photo by Warrant Officer Second Class Akshita Jain, 702 Lynx, Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron.

Rubisch becomes longest serving Rush

Saskatchewan Rush veteran Kyle Rubisch is now the longest serving player in franchise history.

He set a team record when the team took to the floor in Vancouver Feb. 4.

Rubisch who resigned with the Rush inking a one-year deal last August, played his 171st game making him the leader of most games played in franchise history ahead of Brett Mydske at 170.

Rubisch said the record hadn’t really been on his radar going into the game.

“To be honest going into the game I didn’t know I was about to pass it,” he said, adding he realized after the game and he started to get messages congratulating him.

And then he and Mydske had a chance to talk it over after the game too, which Rubisch said was pretty special since they had been teammates

for years, and breaking the mark against his was great.

Rubisch said he added he recognizes being in the same game had to be rather unusual.

“It probably doesn’t happen very often,” he said.

Of course setting the record is testament to Rubisch staying in the Rush fold for years.

Originally from Brampton, Ont, he was drafted second overall into the league to the Boston Blazers in the 2010 NLL Entry Draft. The next season Rubisch moved to the Rush following the 2011 Dispersal Draft where GMs choose players from teams that ceased operations.

Rubisch said he recognizes many veterans opt to sign deals closer to their homes when they reach free agency, but it wasn’t the route he has chosen to take.

“I really deliberated

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about that, but I really love the Rush organization,” he said, adding that goes from management to fans.

The fans are actually a huge factor for Rubisch.

“The fans make it a fun place to play,” he said. “Every game I’m still in awe of the passion and how loud the fans are.”

Rubisch said the love affair started as soon as the team moved to Saskatoon from Edmonton in 2016, was solidified by the team’s championship the same year, and continues now.

“Us winning the championship the first year in Saskatchewan helped grow the fan base,” he said.

The current season has been a solid one too, at least so far.

The Rush now have a record of 4-2, second in the NLL West, trailing San Diego which sits at 6-1, and with the same four wins as Colorado, Calgary and Panther City, each having more losses.

“Last year we had so many tight losses –one goal games,” said Rubisch. “That doesn’t make things as fun.

“This year we’re in a way better spot than last season.”

It helps that netminder Alex Buque has steadied things defensively.

“For us he’s been the backbone of the defence for us,” said Rubisch. “He’s great on the floor He’s great off the floor.”

And while it’s early, so moves might still be made, Rubisch likes the team’s chances.

“I feel right now we’re in a pretty good position to make a run for it,” he said.

So does Rubisch see himself as a Rush player forever?

Well, the veteran is a four-time Defensive Player of the Year, sixtime All-League First Team, and two-time AllLeague Second Team, so he would seem an asset to be held onto.

Rubisch said he knows he want to continue to play.

“I’m going to play as

long as I can. I still love the game,” he said, but he is not sure how long that might be.

“I just go year-by-year, day-by-day . . . I try not to put too much thought into that, but my time with the Rush has been special.”

Groundbreaking USask research identifies key blood protein target for improving dialysis

SASKATOON

– Innovative work by University of Saskatchewan (USask) researcher Dr. Amira Abdelrasoul (PhD) into membranes used in hemodialysis to cleanse kidney patients’ blood has identified the key protein that creates big problems leading to further health complications and even death.

Abdelrasoul, an associate professor in USask’s College of Engineering, aims to use her findings to develop a new type of membrane that is more compatible with the body. This membrane will create better performance and will be less susceptible to fouling from blood proteins.

Her long-term goal is to create an artificial wearable kidney that would improve the quality of life and survival rate of kidney patients.

One out of 10 Canadians, or about four million people, have kidney disease and the rate continues to rise. Chronic kidney disease has no

cure and progresses in stages until the organ eventually fails. Nearly half of new patients are under age 65, and the number of persons living with kidney failure has grown by more than 30 per cent since 2011.

While about 43 per cent of patients receive a kidney transplant— donated organs are in short supply, and some patients aren’t good candidates—the remaining 57 per cent with endstage kidney disease rely on life-sustaining hemodialysis.

“However, this membrane-based therapy cannot exactly mimic or replicate the function of our healthy kidney,” said Abdelrasoul. “The problem is when blood interacts with the membrane, blood protein routinely gets adsorbed on the surface of the membrane, and that provokes a chain of unwanted biochemical reactions.”

A dialysis patient typically requires three sessions per week with each lasting four to five hours.

So, even mild interactions between blood and the membrane can result in patients experiencing health complications in the long-term such as blood clots, anemia, blood poisoning, heart inflammation, infections, and sleep problems, she said.

In a paper published on Feb. 11 in the prestigious high-impact journal Nature, Abdelrasoul and her team present their findings on the “competition” among human serum proteins for adsorption into the polyether membranes (PES) that are used in about 90 per cent of hemodialysis machines.

Abdelrasoul has pioneered the use of customized gold nanoparticles of different sizes and shapes to label and track the movement of specific blood proteins – human serum albumin (HSA), fibrinogen (FB), and transferrin (TRF).

Using the Biomedical Imaging and Therapy beamline at USask’s Canadian Light Source

to visualize what occurs when proteins come in contact with a hemodialysis membrane, researchers found that FB dominated both HAS and TRF in adsorption at different depths of the membrane. This happened when they were in a mixture when interacting with the dialysis membrane.

Understanding the competitive adsorption of these serum proteins is important because the adsorption of each protein leads to a different pathway of blood activation. This can ignite a sequence of coagulation or releasing inflammation, which can lead to further health problems, said Abdelrasoul.

Adsorption also means reducing the volume of important proteins returning to the bloodstream, causing issues such as anemia, she said, as well as hindering the efficacy of the membrane in filtering toxins, salts and metabolic wastes from the blood to keep the patient healthy.

Abdelrasoul is using

the research findings to develop a new generation of membrane material with different structures and chemical composition with a reduced tendency to interact and attach to the FB protein she has identified as the key source of blood inflammation leading to health complications.

“Improving the performance of hemodialysis applications will provide better quality

of life for kidney failure patients and reduce untimely deaths,” she said.

— Submitted

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Kyle Rubisch

Uncover the beauty of Mur: Go & Mancala synthesis!

Regular readers will know abstract strategy games are a definite sweet spot for this Meeple Guilder, so coming upon the 2021 designed Mur was immediately of interest.

That it comes from a Canadian designer; Desmond Davies the interest grew.

To start Mur is played on a circular board, in itself which makes it a bit different than most games.

The two player game is noted on its webpage as a “synthesis of Go and Mancala with all the tactics of chess amplified,” which you can chalk up to hyperbole without even looking at, or playing the game. No offence to those behind Mur but to start by even mentioning it in the same breath as three ancient and massively played games is really setting players up for likely disappointment. There might be some passing similarities to the big three mentioned, but a lot of games have those three in the lineage but few have ever really lived up to the trio.

So, Mur is played with 15 stones. Seven for each player, plus the mur stone, which is red and is a neutral stone.

The goal of the game is to be the first player to trap the mur stone or trap their opponent three times.

There is something of a Nine Men’s Morris to Mur – more than Go in my mind, with enough of

a twist to create interest.

To learn a bit more about Mur and its development a few questions were emailed to its creator.

I was initially surprised to learn Davies doesn’t see himself as a gamer.

“I am not a gamer at all,” he stated. “For me it’s only been about one game: chess. I’ve been an unmotivated chess player all my life. Although I vaguely remember learning chess maybe a year earlier, my dad bought me my first wooden chess set when I was in Grade 4.

“In my mind, chess was the best game and so that’s what my brother and I would play growing up. We just played chess. No other game.

“Once in a blue moon I’d play Monopoly or Clue but not very often.

“I truly loved chess. My love for the game was not dependent on whether or not I won; in fact, my brother, Renaud, won for a year straight but I just kept playing because I was in love with the Staunton design and the beauty of the tactics.

“So I was not interested in competitive chess; just enjoying the game was enough for me. It was during Junior High school that I studied Bruce Pandolfini’s book Traps and Zaps. Years later, during my 30’s I would devour his other book ‘Bobby Fischer’s Outrageous Chess Moves’.

“I should mention

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that I fell in love with the simple rules of Go at that time as well. Although I didn’t take to the game because it was too abstract and not tactical enough for me, I still treasured the simple rules of Go in my heart.

“This would later play a huge part in the design of Mur.”

So, how did Davies go from a deep love of chess with it’s varied pieces to a much simpler design with Mur.

“It was the third day after Christmas in 1998 that I began to wonder what a Risk-like version of chess would look like,” he began. “You see, I had been very fond of all of the various chess sets on display at the time around the Historic Properties in downtown Halifax. They had different themes for different chess sets.

“I remember one was an Alice in Wonderland chess set with characters from the story of course and there were other themes which I can’t remember at the moment but I found it all very fascinating.

“So I thought, wouldn’t it be neat to have a chess

set with 18th-centurystyle cannons, cavalry and soldiers. But to make the game different from chess I would have an army in the middle of the board and an attacking army surrounding all along the perimeter area -- a siege!

“And since it was an army which had encircled the center army, I thought well why not have the game a circle since that would be even more unique. But then the checkered tiles just ended up giving me a headache so instead of having a completely darkened tile like in chess, I would just mark it with a pip like on a dice.

“So the first ring had alternating tiles with single pips, the second ring with alternating tiles having two pips and so on up to the seventh ring which had seven pips. Well the result looked quite amazing. It looked like a star map! So then I had to change the design to suit the new look of the board. Something that would look space-like. So I began using wooden balls of varying sizes so that the game began to look like a solar system. But then I thought that I should reduce the design of the board to its most simplest. Now the pips were necessary to keep track of rings since there were so many; I decided to reduce the number of the rings so that the pips would not be necessary. The result was three concentric rings with eight radii with game pieces

that looked like moons of varying sizes.”

Davies said he had a goal he was trying to achieve too.

“It was 1998 when news of Garry Kasparov’s defeat by IBM’s Deep Blue had reached my ears,” he said. “I decided that I would build a code of play for the concentric-ring layout I had discovered that would be AI-proof--a game where the intuitive mind of man would suffer no defeat even at the hands of a computer.

“I saw that the coming AI revolution would be a serious threat and that I should work on overthrowing the false notion of the superiority of AI. After all, God’s creation of man is greater than man’s construction of AI. Even when God creates something weak, that weak creation is greater than the strongest thing man can construct.

“Was I able to achieve what I had set out to do: create this code? No. Not at all. I had failed. I found I couldn’t do it, so I asked God for the wisdom to do it and then that’s when everything came together.

“So in 2022 after I was finally satisfied that I had discovered the best code of play possible, I realized that I had never listened to anything Garry Kasparov had said or read anything he had written regarding his thoughts about AI and why he was defeated. I began to listen to interviews of him talking about AI. He summarized that the reason why AI is dominant at chess is that AI always dominates within closed systems. This seemed to make sense. But I still felt that Mur was AI proof. Then it clicked: if you consider the way thermodynamics works, Mur is actually an opensystem game! The stones

entering and re-entering is like matter and the competing cognition of the players is like the entering and exiting of heat.”

But, what can players expect here in terms of gameplay?

“Players can expect to play the most tactically rich game they will ever play,” boasted Davies. “It has taken over two decades to find the perfect code of play that stimulates the mind exceptionally well. Players who delight in discovery attacks in chess will be thrilled to discover that Mur dynamically expands on discovery so that it becomes three dimensional rather than just linear.

“Really talented players will discover positional play and how sacrificing a trap point for a positional advantage results in amazing consequences where multiple routes result in the marching of stones into multiple traps. Players will also delight in the creativity of each game: the final game position, except for the reset of the mur stone to the center of the board, provides the beginning set up for the next game in the set. This results in a game tree which is trillions and trillions of times greater than any other abstract strategy game. The asymmetrical setups feel natural given the constellation-like aesthetics of the game.”

I will interject that while I appreciate the enthusiasm of Mur’s designer I can’t say the game grabbed me so completely, although if it hits the table often enough it might. Of course with so many games out there the need for immediate ‘Wow! Factor’ is critical in ensuring replays.

Check it out in more detail at murfederation. com

Farm Toy Show returns after two year break

YORKTON – The 36th annual Yorkton Farm Toy Show was held from Feb. 10-11 at the Yorkton Auction Centre.

The event featured 45 vendors spread out over 86 tables with various toys new and old for people of all ages. The toys on display and up for sale were mostly specific to agriculture but there were also diecast cars, Hot Wheels, antiques and other toys for collectors and attendees to appreciate.

“Basically it’s farm toy collectors from all over the prairie provinces,” said event organizer Jeremy Mehrer. Mehrer said this is his eighth year organizing the event and noted the shows absence over the last two years due to pandemic restrictions.

“We had a two year break and this is our first year back – this is a new venue,” said Mehrer, adding, “we’re

just trying some new things with the show and it seems to be working for us.”

Mehrer estimated on Saturday afternoon that over 800 people would would attend the event and noted he was “very happy” with the turnout so far.

“A lot of the people that come here are farmers – they come from a long ways to come and visit or setup,” said Mehrer, “there’s people that drive 600 km to setup at these shows.”

Mehrer — a farmer by trade — had his own tables set up at the event and estimated he had over 200 items up for sale.

“I’ve been coming to shows since maybe 1988 – this show started in ‘86 so I’ve been to just about all of them,” said Mehrer, noting that his love for toy collecting was something he was born into, “my dad collected toys and my grandpa collected toys.”

USask-led Women Plus Water Expert List to help bridge gender inequity gap in science

NEW YORK – An international initiative born out of the University of Saskatchewan (USask), featuring experts and top researchers from around the globe, is increasing diversity in sustainable water management, access, and advocacy that will lead to better decisions affecting the future of the planet.

The Women Plus Water Expert List officially launched at the United Nations (UN) General Assembly on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023, in collaboration with Cansu SITE, a program of the Royal Academy of Sciences International Trust. The launch was part of the formal event recognising the 8th UN International Day for Women and Girls in Science — led by her Royal Highness Princess Dr. Nisreen El-Hashemite.

Born out of the USask Global Institute for Water Security (GIWS) and Global Water Futures (GWF) program, the Women Plus Water Expert List aims to introduce communities, leaders, and policymakers to a new wave of leaders in water research, management, and decision-making.

The inspiration came from the more than 2,000 participants in 49 countries who attend the online Women Plus Water Lecture Series events that take on topics from water diplomacy to water modelling and more. The audience, expert guests, and hosts are from all aspects of water research, management, and advocacy and include a mix of young professionals and established leaders across academia, government, civil society, art, entrepreneurs, and the private sector.

The founder of Women Plus Water, USask’s Dr. Corinne Schuster-Wallace (PhD), said creating this network of people committed to increasing diversity and equity in water will benefit everyone.

“The climate crisis is a water crisis, and this

won’t come as a surprise to many after the destruction and loss of life we’ve seen over the past several years,” said SchusterWallace, GWF associate director and associate professor in the USask Department of Geography and Planning. “The lived experience and expertise of women, Indigenous People, people from the global south, racialized people, and people in equity-deserving groups are systematically on the margins of developing the solutions necessary to address the climate crisis.”

Schuster-Wallace said Women Plus Water keeps her hopeful.

“A new generation of leaders is stepping up to the challenge to increase diversity in sustainable water management for equitable decisions that leave no one behind and protect the most vulnerable to water-related extremes. Diversity benefits everyone. The time is now to take action for a more inclusive future.”

Having experts from diverse backgrounds

is essential at the decision-making level, said Dr. Andrea Rowe (PhD), USask equity, diversity and inclusion specialist for GIWS and GWF.

“Increasing the role and representation of women and other marginalized people when it comes to water is critical to our future,” said Rowe. “There is a significant opportunity for governments and decision makers at all levels to engage with experts and to ensure that there is a diversity of people from different backgrounds making meaningful decisions.”

Rowe points to recent climate conferences that only highlighted global inequities in access to water decision-making and power.

“COP 26 in Glasgow was called out by activists and journalists as the most exclusionary climate conference in history because of the high cost of accommodation, lack of travel visas, and low representation of women, Indigenous People and people from

the global south. This was repeated at COP 27 in Sharm-El Sheik in 2022,” said Rowe.

“It is for reasons like this, that a network like Women Plus Water is so important for everyone,”

she said. Visit: www.womenpluswater.org — Submitted

The Yorkton Farm Toy Show featured 45 vendors at 86 tables and was held at the Yorkton Auction Centre Feb. 10-11.

A Good Grandma — When I Want to Be

A few weeks ago I saw a meme that read “Happy Grandma Day! Here’s a Smile For All You Crazy Grandmas”. I don’t know if this is an actual date to celebrate but since someone thought up “Old Rock Day” (yes — that’s listed as a holiday I’m sure a disgruntled geologist made up), I suppose we grandmothers can have our twenty-four hours too.

I admit that there were many times I could’ve done better as a parent. It started when they were young. Yes … I was one of those mothers who let my babies cry. Of course, when they were very wee I’d let them get away with waking to eat at night, even until they were eight weeks old, but after that they learned that nighttime was for ignoring. Oops! I mean — sleeping. Oddly, there were no “sleep-training” books back then but we figured it out and, miraculously, everyone survived.

Our eldest daughter was just over a year old when she woke up one morning to her mother being the only adult in the house. I was still asleep when, in a dream-like state, I heard a voice from the distant crib down the hall, saying, “Mommy”. (Parenting Rule: park them far away so you’ll only hear when they get really worked up.) As I slowly came to, I heard this same word repeated over and over in the cute little sing-song voice of my tiny daughter, thoughtfully waking me at five in the morning.

“Mommy’s coming,” I groaned. But too many twelve hour shifts in a row left me dozing again, until

PATTIE JANZEN

Laugh at Life... Revisited

this progression of words shot me out of bed like a bullet. In increasing volume she yelled, “Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! Pattie!”

I won’t divulge the worst of my parenting mistakes but suffice it to say it got much worse from there. Fortunately, I believe in selective forgetting and then — moving on. Being a grandmother is a great and wonderful privilege. It’s the joy that comes … after all that work. It’s the happiness that occurs … after years of agony. But mostly … it’s the time to fulfill a moral obligation to be nicer to my grandkids than I was to my own! Sympathy for my own children usually didn’t kick in until a bone was showing or blood was spurting from a place other than their circulatory system. If their fever hit high enough that I suspected a

seizure might be forthcoming, well … that got my attention too. But the grandkids? One little boo boo and this grandma runs for the most colourful bandaid available. Or, more accurately, I pretend to care more quickly. I’m still not all that soft and mushy (speaking only of my mental state here) but I do sympathize a tad more with the fresher leaves on the family tree.

I’ve been blessed with grandkids who are enthusiastic and who wish for me to join in playing interactive games with them. This requires effort on my part which I may or may not wish to give. Incidentally, that is the reason I had three children — so that they could entertain one another. My grandchildren did not get that memo. This leaves me no choice but to occasionally pick a favourite — the kid who wants to stuff his face with popcorn while sitting like a lump and watching a movie!

I do enjoy, however, giving my grandchildren gifts. Admittedly, this is where I shine. My daughter texted me a huge thanks for the candy and toy bags I gave her children just before their four hour trek home one Christmas. Her text read … “I particularly enjoyed the kazoos you threw in. They were exceptionally entertaining during our looooong trip home.”

I was pretty proud. “See?” I texted back. “I can be a good grandma — when I want to be.”

(Feel free to sign up at pdjanzen.com - blog and draw for a free book every two months!)

but drop Game 1 to Swan Valley

Courtesy of Canora Courier

The Canora Cobras began the opening round of their playoff series on the road in Manitoba against the Swan Valley Axemen in Minitonas on Saturday, Feb. 11.

The game started well for the Cobras, and they were fully deserving of

a 2-1 lead over the home team after the first period, according to Coach Darren Schwartz.

“We played just about a perfect road period and really stuck to the game plan. They scored first and we got down by one, but our guys stuck to our plan and hemmed them in their own end.”

Unfortunately, those

were the only two goals the Cobras would score in the game. Swan Valley scored twice in the second period and took a 3-2 lead.

“We had the momentum, but we just kind of sat back instead of continuing to take the play to them,” said Schwartz. “We were on our heels and made some mental mistakes for

some reason.”

In the third period, the Cobras gave a strong effort, but couldn’t regain the lost momentum.

“We were pressing and got some chances, but couldn’t get a goal,” continued Schwartz. “When you press, the other team usually gest chances, we couldn’t stay out of the penalty box, and they scored some goals.”

Josh Tripp of the Axemen scored three goals in the final period to round out a four-goal game along with one assist, and close out a 6-2 win and a 1-0 lead in the best-ofthree series for Swan Valley. Carter Cockburn

added a goal and assisted on all four of Tripp’s goals.

“We have to be on guys like that,” emphasized Schwartz. “In the first period, we took away their time and space, but later in the game we gave them too much space.”

Goal scorers for the Cobras were Austin Severson and Colby Jacob. Assists came from the sticks of Vaughn Wilgosh and Kody Rock of Canora, and Tanner Mak.

Game 2 in the series is set for Friday, Feb. 17 in Canora, a game that the Cobras need to win to prolong their season.

“If we stick to the game plan, we can win,” said

Schwartz. “If we play three periods like we played in the first in Game 1, we can win. Swan Valley didn’t win that game, we lost it.

“We need all the fan support we can get, the guys would love to have a packed barn Friday night. Let’s pack the Civic Centre and show them what we’ve got. Our guys usually play better in front of a loud crowd, they love that, nobody in the league draws crowds like we do.”

If the Cobras pull out a victory in Game 2, the third and deciding game of the series goes Sunday night, Feb. 19, back in Minitonas.

Viðarneistí brings unique sound to city

By Tyson Off Staff Writer

YORKTON – A unique sound is headed to the stage of St. Andrew’s United Church this coming Feb. 17 in Prairie Debut’s latest concert for Yorkton Arts Council Presents.

Viðarneistí — pronounced vee-thar-nest-ee — will be visiting the city for the last stop of their Sask. tour.

Viðarneistí is the “Icelandic term for ‘wood spark’ [and is] an apt description for what happens when the rich, sultry tone of the clarinet meets the percussive punch of marimba,” according to the group’s Prairie Debut bio.

The musical act consists of Catherine Wood on clarinet and Victoria Sparks on the marimba, who say the goal of their performances is to showcase the capabilities of their two instruments.

Yorkton This Week spoke with Wood and Sparks ahead of their scheduled performance.

“What we bring is a unique instrumentation — we play marimba and clarinet which is definitely an unusual pairing — it’s hard to say what kind of music [it is] because we’ve borrowed from all different kinds of eclectic styles — we commission

new pieces that are written for us – we’ve also adapted other pieces that were written for piano or guitar or flute... to work on our instrumentation,” said Wood.

“The style includes some jazz, some tango, definitely some new music of different styles and very lyrical things — some more unusual things — it’s really quite varied and eclectic,” added Sparks.

“The bars [of the marimba] are made out of Honduran Rosewood so they have a beautiful, warm resonant sound and it really blends so wonderfully with the clarinet,” said Sparks, adding, “the first time we heard these sounds together we were like, ‘we’re on to something here’.”

The duo — who have been performing together since 2015 — are both of Icelandic descent and credit Nordic, Scandinavian and Icelandic heritage as their inspiration.

“We’re both of Icelandic descent – my grandfather came over from Iceland to New Iceland in Manitoba,” said Wood, adding, “we tell some of their stories — not just through the music but verbally — it’s not just a come on stage and play music – we talk quite a bit and tell stor-

ies.”

“The culture really is very strong [in New Iceland] and people come from Iceland to visit Manitoba in this New Iceland area and they say, ‘it feels like Iceland around here’,” said Sparks.

Sparks said she had the same sentiments when the duo visited Iceland for a performance.

“You walk around in a place you’ve never been and think, ‘I feel very comfortable here – I feel at home here,’” said Sparks.

“We’ve also worked with several IcelandicCanadian composers – so we’ve actually worked with composers who have a similar heritage to us and given them a chance to tell some of their stories, memories and impressions through

our instrumentation – so we’ve commissioned a few pieces to different Icelandic Canadian composers,” added Sparks.

The duo has taken the stage in Belgium, Iceland and the Faroe Islands to name a few, but this will be their first time performing in Yorkton.

“This is our first multistop tour,” said Sparks, adding, “we love getting a chance to share what we do.”

“We’re really excited about having a chance to get welcomed into all of these communities – everybody has been so kind, welcoming and accommodating,” said Wood, adding, “that prairie spirit is really obvious — we know it – we’re prairie girls — it’s being confirmed for us on this tour.”

The duo said they enjoy interacting with the audience even after the music has ended.

“We often — at the end of a concert — will do a Q and A if people want to stick around,” said Wood, adding, “we’re pretty approachable.”

Viðarneistí is set to perform at St. Andrews United Church Feb. 17 at 7:30. pm. Tickets are available through the Yorkton Arts Council’s website at, https://yorktonarts. ticketpro.ca/en/pages/ YorktonArtsCouncil_2022.

$619

Sq. Ft.

Gray Slate

Style: Dark Gray Slate

Style: Dusky Shale

Courtesy of Prairie Debut

Catherine Wood (left) and Victoria Sparks (right) make up Viðarneistí, a unique musical combination of a clarinet and marimba with music influenced by Nordic, Scandinavian and Icelandic heritage.

French carnival at St. Michael’s

By Tyson Off Staff Writer

YORKTON – St. Michael’s School held a French Carnival on the afternoon of Feb. 10 to celebrate the conclusion of French-Second-Language Education Week in Sask.

“We are hosting our French Carnival for all of our French Immersion students from grades one to eight,” said Nicki Hoffman, French Immersion teacher at St. Michaels School.

“Our grade sevens are running the stations while our grade eights are actually leading the students around and speaking with them in French – just trying to encourage a lot of French and participation for this afternoon,” said Hoffman, adding, “it’s a chance for the students to put into practice speaking in French.”

Students were encouraged to speak in French for the duration of the carnival.

“We really want to encourage them to speak in French as much as possible because we’re an English speaking community – so when we offer some of these activities this is such a great chance to just have those moments to

speak in French and converse with others in French — it really helps your confidence and your speaking — it’s a great opportunity,” said Hoffman.

The school’s carnival was what Principal Steven Boucher referred to as their own version of Carnaval de Québec, a popular festival held in Quebec City in February. The festival features multiple events ranging from outdoor sports to snow sculptures.

“We’re trying to have some of those fun activities that you might see at different festivals and some of those traditions,” said Hoffman.

French-Second-Language Education Week took place Feb. 6-10 and was participated in by FSL schools from across the province. The week featured virtual Keynote Addresses from JUNOnominated musician Peter Katz and Stéphanie Morin-Robert a multi-award winning and multi-disciplinary artist. The virtual sessions were attended by thousands of FSL students, according to Hoffman.

“We’re just lucky that we have supportive administrators that help us with this and promote it – a real opportunity to build that French community with out students.”

French immersion students partake in a tug-of-war, one of several activities setup for students to participate in at St. Michael’s French Carnival.

The carnival concluded French-Second-Language Education Week in Sask.

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In Memoriam

1050 In Memoriam

MACDONALD – Margaret – who passed away February 14, 2022

GAWRYLIUK — Elaine. In lov-

ing memory of a dear sister who entered God’s Heavenly Kingdom on September 26, 2011.

Of all the many blessings

However great or small

To have had you for a sister

Was the greatest gift of all

The family chain is broken now

And nothing seems the same

Though her smile is gone forever And her hand we cannot touch. We still have so many memories, Of the one we loved so much. Her memory is our keepsake, With which we’ll never part. God has her in His keeping, We have her in our hearts.

But as God takes us one by one

The chain will link again.

Forever in our hearts and always loved….Margaret’s family Prayer Corner

— Lovingly remembered and sadly missed by brother Ed, sisters Sylvia & Lorraine and their families.

ONLY JESUS CAN SAVE

WEGNER — In loving memory of Albert Wegner, February 14, 1921 to September 23, 2009.

John 3:16

Do you need prayer?

He had a nature you could not help loving, And a heart that was purer than gold., And to those that knew and loved him, His memory will never grow old.

Please call: 306-516-0038 or 250-217-5294 or 306-783-8540 Visit heavenlanguage.com

— Ever remembered, forever loved, Elsie and family

1100 Cards of Thanks

Adult Personal Messages

LOOKING FOR honest and sincere gentleman, aged 75-85 years, as friend and companion. Please mail Box JJ c/o Yorkton

This Week, Box 1300, Yorkton, SK S3N 2X3

The family of the late Dennis Kuzek would like to thank everyone who supported us through Dennis’s illness and after his passing. The gifts of food, cards, phone calls and donations will never be forgotten. Thank you to Father Mel Slashinsky, cantor, choir, pall bearers and the Orthodox Ladies for serving the lunch after prayers, Ron Sebulsky and Cheryl Bilokreli for preparing the lunch in Theodore after the funeral and a thank you to Garry Gawryliuk for the eulogy. Also a special thanks to the staff at Bailey’s Funeral Home for their caring and professional matter for getting us through a difficult time.

SWM seeking female 65-70 years old for companionship. Someone who likes country and western music. Preferably a non-smoker, nondrinker and is easy going. If interested please reply to Box 1642, Yorkton, SK, S3N 3L2

— Val & Family

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RoyalLePagePremierRealty 306-743-7761

Apartments/Condos for Rent

2 BEDROOM apartment in quiet adult apartment block in Melville, SK. Call 306-728-1048 or 306728-2294.

2 BEDROOM main floor unit. Heat supplied, water to reasonable amount. References and damage deposit required. $800. Text or call 306-621-9584

RENOVATED SUITES available. Good location. First Choice 306621-5050

Houses For Rent

HOUSE FOR RENT Springside Sk 6 bedroom,3 bathroom, attached 2 car garage, fenced backyard. Call 306-621-8754. $1500.00/ Month

The family of the late Kirk Neibrandt wish to extend our heartfelt thanks for the numerous cards of sympathy, flowers, gifts of food, the generous donation Education Trust Fund, visits, phone calls and support from relatives and friends following the loss of my husband and our father. Thank you to the Doctors, Nursing Staff of ICU and 1st West, Home Care Treatment Nurses and Palliative Care of the Yorkton Regional Health Centre. The Doctors and Nurses of the Allan Blair Cancer Centre, Regina, Regina General Hospital and the Foothills Hospital, Calgary, Alberta, for their care of Kirk. A special thank you to Dr. van Heerden and staff and Louck’s Pharmacy also. We also wish to express our thanks to Vern and staff at Christie’s Funeral Home for their professional service, Pastor Dan Moeller for officiating the service, Jackie Guy - soloist, for her special songs, the Rhein Lion’s Club for the use of the hall and the many people who helped with set up of hall, lunch and clean up. Thank you to everyone who shared with us and our families, Kirk’s Celebration of Life on August 15, 2012. Your support was overwhelming. “You can shed tears that he is gone, or you can smile because he lived; Smile, open your eyes, love and go on.”

SPRINGSIDE HOUSING Authority is currently accepting applications for a 3 bedroom home. Fridge and stove included. Well kept, clean and quiet neighborhood. Rent is based on income. No Pets. For more information and applications please call Morlie at 306-792-2222 or 306-621-7815.

— With healing hearts, tears in our eyes, Wendy, Brandi and Dana Neibrandt.

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The family of the late Pauline Spelay wish to extend their heartfelt thanks for cards of sympathy, mass cards, flowers, gifts of food, donations, visits, phone calls from relatives and friends following the loss of our mother, grandmother, and great grandmother. Thanks to the doctors and nursing staff at the Yorkton Regional Health Centre, Pasqua Hospital - Regina, St. Peter’s Hospital - Melville for their care. Also a special thank you to St. Paul Lutheran Care Home, Melville for your excellent care during this past year. We also wish to express our thanks to Larry and staff at Bailey’s Funeral Home for their professional services, Father Ray Lukie, Father Peter Pidskalny, Father Joakim Rac for officiating the services, the cantors, choir and the Knights of Columbus for leading the holy rosary, the grandchildren and great grandchildren for being pallbearers, crossbearer, epistle reader, and giving the eulogy, the luncheons as served by the St. Mary’s Cultural Centre after the prayers, and the Royal Canadian Legion after the funeral service.

— Dennis, Michael, Trudy, Dave and Family

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Advertisements and statements contained herein are the sole responsibility of the persons or entities that post the advertisement, and the Saskatchewan Weekly Newspaper Association and membership do not make any warranty as to the accuracy, completeness, truthfulness or reliability of such advertisements. For greater information on advertising conditions, please consult the Association’ s Blanket Advertising Conditions on our website at www. swna.com.

PROVINCE-WIDE CLASSIFIEDS. Reach over 550,000 readers weekly. Call this newspaper NOW or 306-649.1405 for details.

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tickets available at the Door). All proceeds will go to replacing the playground equipment that was destroyed in the 2010 flood. 1140 Companions

LOOKING FOR a female companion between 55 and 65. I enjoy dancing, dining, cooking, and shopping. Please respond to Box E, c/o Yorkton This Week, Box 1300 - 20 Third Ave., Yorkton, SK, S3N 2X3

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NEW YORKTON - 2358 ACRES: 1589 cult., ~12 quarters fenced for Bison, 1 quarter paige, balance electric, 63,000bu. grain storage, 3 homes, great mixed operation with Bison setup, West of Yorkton

The proposed bylaw Z2/12 will: A) Rezone proposed twelve (3.5 acre) parcels on the NW 24-25-42, from A-Agricultural to C1 - Highway Commercial and Light Industrial. Affected Land The affected land to be rezoned is legally described as NW 24-25-4-2 twelve proposed 3.5 acre parcels shown within the bold dashed outline on the following map.

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Now Hiring a Chef / Cook

Public Inspection

Must be able to Prepare and cook complete meals or individual dishes and foods.

Any person may inspect Bylaw Z2/12 at the municipal of ce in Yorkton, Saskatchewan during regular of ce hours between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday. Copies are available at cost.

Written Submissions

Must be able to speak Cantonese and /or Mandarin to be able to communicate with the head chef. Must be able to prepare and cook Cantonese meals, Chinese/ Canadian food, the ability to make Dim Sum is an asset and make appropriate changes to suit the allergy requirements.

Any person(s) may make a written submission to council regarding proposed Bylaw Z2/12. Submissions will be accepted either by mail or at the public hearing. Mailed submissions should be forwarded to: Rural Municipality of Orkney No. 244 26 - 5th Ave. N., Yorkton, SK

S3N 0Y8.

From time to time, you will be required to plan menus, makes changes to menu if necessary, estimate food requirements and costs, Inspect kitchens and food service areas, team work and able to supervise kitchen helpers.

Public Hearing Council will hold a public hearing on October 11, 2012 at 10:30 a.m., at the R.M. Of ce at 26 - 5th Avenue North, Yorkton Saskatchewan, to hear any person or group that wants to comment on the proposed Bylaw Z2/12. Council will also consider written comments received at the hearing, or delivered to the undersigned at the municipal of ce before the hearing.

Maintain inventory and records of food, supplies and equipment, Clean kitchen and work areas, Manage kitchen operations. Minimum of 3 years of experience required, must have professional training of a cook or chef, must be flexible to work from lunch hours to evenings, weekends.

Business opening hours are 11am-7:30pm, Sundays 8pm. Please email mayliang4965@gmail.com with your resume, qualifications and proof of experiences to apply.

Issued at the R.M. of Orkney No. 244 this

Mid-winter pickleball event in city

Pickleball Yorkton

Club hosted its second Annual Mid-winter tournament this past week-

end at the Gallagher Center Flexihall. The club members David Weiman, Ken Kolisnek

Part-time/Full-time Work Available

Long-time certified organic grain farm located 15 driving minutes north of Melville or 30 driving minutes (25 miles/40 km) southwest of Yorkton along Hwy 47 North has openings for experienced farm workers for the upcoming growing season.

Must be reliable, highly motivated, display common sense and work well alone and with others. Knowledge of operating and maintaining farm equipment from the late 90’s/early 2000’s essential. Welding experience would be an asset.

Part-time and full-time positions available. Competitive wages between $22.00 - $32.00 hr. based on experience and performance.

Retirees are also welcome to apply.

Please contact:

Rolling-Hills Farms P.O. Box 347 - Melville/SK. - SOA 2P0

Phone: (306) 728-3732

Email: benefarms@sasktel.net

Seasonal Tractor/Mower operator & other municipal equipment & various duties.

The R.M. of Calder No. 241 is accepting applications for Seasonal Utility Operator.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Operating and maintaining heavy equipment such as backhoe, tractors, mowers, gravel truck.

• Installing signs, culverts, etc.

• Ability to work with other employees, as well to work alone safely.

• Communication and positivity.

• Communicating with Council, Administration, municipal employees and ratepayers in a positive manner.

The Candidate is required to :

• Have a valid class 5 drivers licence; But class 3A is preferred.

• Operate heavy Equipment.

• Mechanical background and skills.

• Certifications in Power Mobile Equipment, WHIMIS, First Aid, Ground Disturbance and First Aid is an asset; or the candidate would be willing to obtain.

• Be willing to take direction from Council.

The R.M. offers a competitive salary, benefits package and Municipal employee’s pension plan. For more information, contact the RM Office at 1-306-742-4233.

Interested Candidates are invited to submit their resume by March 30th, 2023, including qualifications, experience, salary expectations and 3 work related references to: R.M of Calder No. 241 • Box 10, Wroxton, Sk S0A 4S0 Email: calderrm@sasktel.net • Fax: 306-742-4559

Seniors,

• Weight bonuses

• Sales bonuses

• Any age welcome

• Only 2 days or less per week

If you would like a route, please e-mail us at: circulation@yorktonthisweek.com or telephone circulation at: 306-782-2465

and Brad Ouart were confident that by going into a larger facility, we would be able to expand the number of teams to break into two categories. Players entered the tournament based on their self rated skill level of 3.0 and under and 3.0 and above.

Forty-five teams entered. 11 Mens, 12 Womens and 22 Mixed. With teams coming in from Regina, Swan River, and our surrounding area the 45 teams entered had the five pickleball courts hosting non stop action from 9 am till 5 pm. Many teams were evenly matched and every point gained was a result of fast played volleys and slams.

The Pickleball Yorkton Club had 18 of its members stand on the podium receiving medals.

“We are very proud of what our club has accomplished in the short while since we became a formal club in 2020. The skill level of the players that entered this tournament was outstanding! Everyone played incredibly well and with unwavering stamina! Many of the games were over quickly while others became a real battle of the paddles!” stated David Weiman, founding member of PBY. Having to win by a 2 point lead, each serve was calculated and returns were aimed strategically so as to not get it sent back. All the games were exciting to watch and by the time the finalists came to the last game, only the ones with patience, and the ability to place the ball where it needed to be, won that winning point. “It was amazing to see the level of skill each player displayed, the spectacular slams and the impossibly fast returns some players accomplished. It was a fantastic tournament and

Pickleball Yorkton can be proud of all of its members that played in this tournament,” president Ken Kolisnek stated, “we will definitely host another tournament here at the Gallagher Center.” The comments heard from our out of town guests was unanimous, we have a terrific facility to host a pickleball tournament and they would be very happy to return for our 3rd annual Midwinter tournament. Many were very impressed by the whole building, “hosting a hockey rink, curling rink, lap and recreational pool plus the multi use flexihall, and a food court! It’s a wonderful place, Wow! Yorkton is very lucky!”

The PBY executive is very happy with the results of the tournament, the number of teams, the support we had from our volunteers and the support from our community. We have to thank Remax Blue Chip Realty, The Bentley by Revera, Supplement King, Tapp’s, Sport Chek for sponsoring our raffle prizes. Plus we have to thank all those families and friends that came to watch the games. The Executive dreamt big and forged forward to take on a large tournament like this and are already planning for 2024th Midwinter tournament

What’s next on the PBY’s schedule? The club is hosting another “Learn to Play Pickleball” Saturday Feb 25th at the Gloria Hayden Community Center. The clinic starts at 1 pm and runs through till 4 pm. This clinic focuses on the basics of the game. The serve, the return and the rules and scoring of the game. It’s a fun filled afternoon learning pickleball with others that are just beginning

too. Registration is open on the Pickleball Yorkton webpage.

Next on the calendar is the PBY’s “Ladies Only Spring Fling” Tournament. The date set for this tournament is Saturday, April 1 2023 and is located at the Gloria Hayden as well. Time of the event is from 10-4 pm. Registration for entries will open by the end of February. We hope to have several of our club members participate as well as local area clubs. This will be the second Ladies Only Tournament the PBY has hosted and the club is planning on making it an annual event on Lady pickleballers calendar.

The PBY Club continues to grow with every “Learn to Play” clinic we host, people just fall in love with the game! They enjoy the fellowship they find among the other beginners and quickly pick up the skills to become confident on the courts. The club stands at 135 members and our Drop In Sport spots during the day at both the GHCC and the Gallagher Center are busy. The Club also has two evenings booked, Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 5:30 till 7:00pm. These times were booked to address the needs of our working club members and they have proved to be very busy as well.

The Pickleball Yorkton Club is excited about the future of Pickleball in the City of Yorkton, we know as the sport expands and numbers increase that the demands for courts space becomes more and more important. We have been in discussions with the City’s Parks and Recreation Department to review the current courts in use and the future plans for more

courts. “It’s an exciting time for the sport of Pickleball, and we in PBY want to play a part in growing this sport in the City of Yorkton as well as in our surrounding local towns.” comments David Weiman. Ken Kolisnek President of PBY extends an open invitation to anyone interested in learning the game of Pickleball to contact the Club at pickleballyorkton@gmail.com or by calling 306-621-8926 or check out the webpage at Pickleball Yorkton. These are the event winners from our Tournament held Saturday.

3.0 and under

Womens Gold Sheryl Byczynski-Linda Vaughan

Silver Anne StupakKim Hladun

Bronze Karen DelongAnnalissa Ubongen

Mens Gold Brian Jelinski-Scott Behrns

Silver Patrick DuffyRob Mcdonald

Bronze Jim LeeMichael Yaremchuk

Mixed Gold David

Weiman-Brenda Serfling

Silver Hassan SeifKim Dobko

Bronze Alvin SiebenDanica Smith

3.0 and Over

Womens Gold Janece

Gaudry-Teresa Hrbachek

Silver Marlene Schrader-Brenda Serfling

Bronze Carla

Desnoyers-Donna Loran

Mens Gold Craig

Zamzow-Kevin Fisher

Silver Ken KolisnekGerard Osicki

Bronze Hassan SeifJeff Templeton

Mixed Gold Lonnie

Donna-Jennifer Hogan

Silver Kevin FisherMarlene Schrader

BronzeJeffTempletonJanet Simpson — Submitted

National Chief RoseAnne Archibald visits Keeseekoose

Courtesy of Kamsack Times

The National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) RoseAnne Archibald visited Keeseekoose First Nation on the third of February for a meetand-greet about the state of First Nations affairs. Discussion topics included: unmarked graves, intergenerational trauma, and a proposed national healing plan occurring.

Towards the beginning of the meeting, Archibald explained, “I really wanted to come here to Keeseekoose because, almost a year ago, you had the announcement of the little ones that were found through ground penetrating radar. At that time, I couldn’t make it here. And I did connect with the chief at the time.

“I’ve been sending my prayers to this community. You’ve been in my heart, you’ve been in my mind.”

She went on to discuss how many of these unmarked burials have been recovered around former Residential Schools. She found difficulty calling them schools as she believes they were built for an ulterior purpose; Archibald regarded the buildings as “Former institutions of assimilation and genocide.” She went on to say, “Their purpose was to assimilate us and they were a tool for genocide against our children. They were there to destroy our families and to tear apart the social fabric of our communities.”

However, Archibald would mention that while First Nations people may still be traumatized from the after-effects of Residential Schools, there are survivors who have the strength to keep moving forward. “We might have intergenerational trauma but we also have intergenerational strength. We also have intergenerational healing,” she said, adding that despite her challenges as the National

Chief, she has always been able to move forward thinking about the sanctity of water reflecting that, “Water never stops moving. It goes around objects, it goes over obstacles, it goes under obstacles, never stops moving, it keeps moving forward. And that’s all of us really, we are all always moving forward as people.”

Archibald stated she is advocating a national healing fund for First Nations communities. Each community would have a base fund to find and create a healing project that would benefit their people, saying that, “People have a way of healing that is specific to their language, their culture and their land.”

She has found success with Governor General Mary Simon, who has shown interest in the fund, who Archibald has said, “really wants to help with this idea in her world and so it’s going to be something that we’re going to continue to work on.”

Archibald believes this national healing plan will help solve the addiction crisis that faces First Nations communities. Healing the intergenerational trauma

First Nations communities face, she believes will be part of the efforts to help end the opioid epidemic facing these communities.

“We have to get to that core and heal this core of our wounds. And until we do that, the symptoms will persist. This national healing fund, I believe will be a part of the answer to that.” Toward the end of the meeting, the floor was opened for the community to voice concerns and ask questions of Archibald. Concerns regarding genocide, poverty, and First Nations sovereignty were raised. Former Chief of Keeseekoose Ted Quewezance also raised concerns that Archibald has been distracted by the media, saying that she needs to “Stick to what you committed when you made your national speech.” Archibald then took the time to address the concerns raised by the people of Keeseekoose before she left to visit an unmarked grave in Keeseekoose.

She started her response by commenting on Ted Quewezance’s statement, “I want you to

know that despite these difficulties Ted, I have not been distracted. The media wants people to believe that there’s a distraction happening, but it’s not distracting me. It’s not distracting me. Every day we show up. And we do we’re doing good work for the people. Every day. We don’t let anybody slow us down.” Going on to the topic of a universal income process for First Nations peoples, Archibald said, “I

support that and the elimination of poverty, which also needs a strong economic plan”

She then informed the people of Keeseekoose that a prosperity table on the topic of lands and waters that they believed to be First Nation’s birthright was being established at the AFN. “Land and waters that are your birthright. Somebody else has benefitted from, non-Indigenous peoples. And through this prosperity table, we want to make sure that First Nations are getting a piece of that wealth that’s being generated from your lands and waters.”

Archibald then reflected on the topic of First Nations genocide, saying that the AFN has connected with a reporter from the United Nations in hopes to have a report on genocide in Canada created. She then went on to commemorate Quewezance for his speaking, his strong voice and his strong representation of the First Nations communities in the prairies.

“I hope you keep

going, that you keep speaking up and keep calling for this unified approach for survivors because you’re right. Every day we lose survivors, every day we’re losing elders and knowledge keepers. So I want to commend you for your work.”

The meeting was then closed shortly thereafter, and a lunch was held with traditional foods such as bannock, and various soups and stews being offered.

RoseAnne Archibald left the meeting with a handmade blanket presented to her by Cindy Straightnose on behalf of the Keeseekoose Chief; Lee Kitchemonia and council, the health council, the children of Keeseekoose, and community band members. She was also presented with a ribbon skirt from Stella Ketchemonia and Eunice Ketchemonia-Cote. Eunice KetchemoniaCote made the skirt. Archibald was honored with the ribbon skirt as it’s “An Expression of love, character, and resilience.”, said Chief Lee Ketchemonia.

Municipal Affairs critic makes Yorkton stop

By Calvin Daniels Staff Writer

Official opposition Municipal Affairs critic Erika Ritchie was in Yorkton Thursday for a series of meetings she said were all about lis-

tening to local concerns.

In a brief meeting with local press on the steps of City Hall ahead of meeting with members of Yorkton Council, Ritchie said the visit was part of a broader NDP initiative that has leader Carla Beck and other members of the NDP Caucus travelling out to communities.

“What we know … (the current government) has stopped listening to the people of Saskatchewan,” said Ritchie.

Rather than just offer positions on possible issues, Ritchie said they want to hear what people say they need.

For example, in speaking with local business people, Ritchie said she heard that locally there was a feeling “of hope and optimism,” but also concerns.

One such concern was the impact of property assessments, with challenges arising from the assessment process.

Asked if that meant it was time for a change in how SAMA does the assessments, Ritchie said that will certainly be studied and discussed, but offered no commitment to change.

Other concerns arose around health care, especially in terms of the impact staffing shortages can have on services being maintained. Ritchie noted that in the last five years Saskatchewan has lost 36,000 people.

“That’s twice the population of Yorkton,” she added, pointing out 600 of those were health care workers which reflects back on the concerns over local services being maintained.

The National Chief of the Assembly of First Nations (AFN) RoseAnne Archibald was welcomed to Keeseekoose First Nation on Feb. 3. From left, were: Teresa Ketchemonia, Roselle Musqua, Angel Keshane, Claire Straightnose, Martha Quewezance, Bernice Keshane, Ashley Straightnose, Assembly of First Nation Chief Rosanne Archibald, Lorenz Keshane; councillor, Cindy Straightnose and Lee Ketchemonia; Chief of Keeseekoose First Nation.

Norquay team off to National curling championships

Courtesy of Preeceville Progress

The Norquay curling team skipped by Ken Newell and members, Evan Rostoski, third, Jason Lukey, second and Jared Lukey, lead earned the exciting opportunity to travel to Charlottetown, PEI for their shot at the National Fire Fighter Curling championships on March 22 to April 2.

The team advanced after winning the 62nd annual Fire Fighter Provincial Championships on home ice in Norquay on Feb. 4 and 5.

The Newell rink defeated other Fire Departments from Prince Albert, Saskatoon and two teams from Borden to win the champion-

ships. There was one other rink from Norquay entered with team members: Kevin Ebert, Robin Holinaty, Jordan Mitchell and Rob Dyck.

The rinks were all escorted into the rink by bag piper Ferne Katzberg of the Yorkton Pipe Band and welcomed by Canora-Pelly MLA Terry Dennis and Ken Newell,

the Deputy Fire Chief for the Norquay Fire Department. All members entered had to be a current or retired member of any fire department.

“It was great weekend of curling and socializing,” stated Newell.

“We won three straight games to win the championship. We took on the Tyler Harrison rink from

Prince Albert for our first game, then faced the Jason Wainwright rink from Borden and faced the Harrison rink in the finals. It was great to be able to host this caliber of a tournament in our small town and we were encouraged by the numerous fans that came out to watch and support us.”

“We as a team are very excited and a little nervous to curl in the nationals but we are looking forward to the challenge. We will also be doing some fundraising to help with the financial costs and hope the public will support us in this search for gold challenge,” he added.

The Norquay Curing

Rink has boosted the sport of curling with encouraging school-aged children to get involved and get out the ice to try the sport, The rink offers a incentive of free curling to children eight years of age and under. “We are hopeful that curling will make a comeback and once again become popular,” concluded Newell.

Lamplighter Loppet held

Good Spirit Cross Country Ski Club’s Annual Lamplighter Loppet was held Feb. 11 under a star lit sky and mild temperatures.

This was the second year that the Loppet was held at the warm up shelter at Good Spirit. Hotdogs and hot chocolate was served for all participants.

The bonfire was lit and the shelter was filled to capacity.

The cross country ski trails were in top notch condition thanks to the recent snowfall and the work of the groomers

from the park and the volunteers of the Good Spirit Ski Club.

Skiers stayed for the fireworks display at seven and then slowly skied back to their cars.

Many skiers put on more than the trip out to the shelter, with the nearly 20 km of trails out at Good Spirit skiers could ski to their fill.

The trails this winter have seen a record breaking amount of skied in visits to the shelter. The club appreciates the people that sign our guest book

and leave comments about the shelter and the beauty of the trail system.

“It’s good to see skiers coming to the park from all over the country and enjoying all that our area has to offer.” stated Darryl Stevenson President of the GSSC.

“We are proud of the shelter we built and take pride in maintaining our trails. We invite everyone to come out and explore our trails, stop in at the shelter for a warm up or snack. We would love to meet you!”

Kevin Ebert. skipped the second rink entered from Norquay in the 62nd annual Fire Fighter Provincial Championships. Team members from left, were: Ebert, Jordon Marshall and Rob Dyck. Unavailable for the photograph was Robin Holinaty.

The Norquay championship curling team, from left, are: Ken Newell, skip, Evan Rostotski, third; Jason Lukey, second and Jared Lukey, lead. The local foursome earned the exciting opportunity to travel to Charlottetown, PEI for their shot at the National Fire Fighter Curling championships on March 22 to April 2.

Evan Rostotski, threw his rock down the ice with Jared Lukey sweeping during the 62nd annual Fire Fighter Provincial Championships held in Norquay.

Ingrid Grywacheski of Norquay built a curling rock snow sculpture to welcome all provincial fire fighter curlers.

The Norquay Curling Rink played host to six Fire Departments in the 62nd annual Fire Fighter Provincial Championships.

A warm fire and warm temperatures were ideal for skiing. Submitted Photo

Nancy Johnson nancjohnson@me.com

306-745-7578

Residential Specialist

Esterhazy, Yorkton and Area

Gladys Secondiak

Gladys.Secondiak@outlook.com

306-620-9700

Residential, Agriculture Specialist Yorkton, Canora, Preeceville, Kamsack and surrounding area.

Jeff Chapple chappleremax@gmail.com

306-740-7161

Commercial/Agriculture Specialist Eastern Saskatchewan

Ray Nordin r.nordin22@gmail.com

306-730-8151

Agriculture, Residential Specialist Eastern Saskachewan

Personal, professional service.

Whether buying or selling, if it’s a residential property in smaller communities you’re interested in, acreages out in the rurals, recreational properties, investment land or a complete farming operation, I’ve handled the transactions for all of them and would be honoured to help you with your Real Estate needs. Give me a call and we can discuss your particular situation, what’s most important is “you”.

Marcel DeCorby mhdecorby@gmail.com

306-745-7755

Agriculture Specialist Eastern Saskatchewan

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