Since the pandemic took away its customers, Countryfest Community Cinema in Dauphin has been struggling to lure them back and, as a result, is fighting to keep the lights on.

And while the community has not been buying tickets to the same extent it once did, the cinema’s board of directors is asking for a different kind of commitment to help get it through this tough stretch.

As part of a three-pronged approach to raising an urgently-needed injection of capital, the cinema has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help raise the $30,000 needed to support operations and the $80,000 board chair Ron Hedley said is needed in the long term. The other two prongs are a corporate fund-raising drive and the sale of new monthly cinema memberships.

“The most exciting thing for me, I’ve been trying to do for five years is to have a monthly membership, a $10, $20 or $30 membership. It’s on our website now. We’re just kind of finalizing the touches of it,” Hedley said, adding the program is modeled like memberships to Netflix and other streaming services, which most people already purchase.

“So people can get one seat for $10, two seats for $20 and a family, I think for $39. But the whole idea is that it will help make us sustainable because it’s just going to be a recurring income.”

Hedley said an extra $7,000 to $8,000 per month is needed to keep the cinema viable.

“As far as extracurricular income, like away from the movie screen,” he said.

“If you want a theater, that’s what we need to do.”

Hedley said the cinema was operating smoothly when it was presented with a series of obstacles.

“We were doing well and had some financial reserves and then we were hit with hurdles such as the pandemic, the actors guild strikes in Hollywood, and the rise of streaming services,” Hedley said, adding those reserves were burned through during that period.

On top of operating costs, the cinema has a remaining mortgage of $1.139 million, reduced from the original $2.5 million in 2011, which, Hedley said, represented only half the actual value of the building.

Hedley added he has heard comments that the cinema has always been a  losing proposition, but that simply is not true.

“We’ve held our own for a long time. We just need to get over this little hump,” he said, adding the entire board is committed to the future of the cinema.

“We need a short-term lift to get us back on track. Recently, there are days you can come to the movie theatre and it feels like a private screening. This building was meant to bring people together, but right now we’re struggling to convince people to show up and see a movie.”

As part of the drive, the board has decided to change direction when it comes to day-to-day management of the business and is searching for a new general manager, a task made more difficult by the current financial challenges.

Hedley said existing staff and the board will guide the transition along with some help from City staff.

“We have 13 employees there that we want to look after, so that’s our first priority right now, to make sure there’s enough for them,” Hedley said, adding with the recent moves that have already been made, he is confident the campaign will be a succes.

“It’s a new kind of wave. I like it. A new kind of breath.”

While the Cinema is a non-profit organization and cannot issue charitable tax receipts, there are still many ways to help:

• Donate directly to the GoFundMe campaign online at gofund.me/994e7d428.
• Share the campaign with friends, family and colleagues.
• Reach out to the cinema board with partnership or fund-raising ideas.

“This is your cinema,” Hedley said.

“It’s where we’ve celebrated birthdays, fundraisers, community events, first dates, and countless family nights. If you have ever made a memory here, please help us make sure the next generation can, too.”

To discuss how you can help, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Being a part of 4-H gives youth many opportunities to build and grow essential skills that are needed in everyday life as a part of learning. 4-H stands for Head, Heart, Hands and Health, all components which we need for survival. Local 4-H The Pas Helping Hands Leader Cheryl Antonio has been involved with 4-H ever since she was a child and started out as a member whose mother was a 4-H leader.
“My first involvement with 4-H was in the late 70s,” said Antonio. “My mom was a 4-H leader and taught us sewing. My mom is an extremely talented seamstress and it was important to her to pass along these skills to her daughters. Learning something fun was even better when you could do it as a group and thus we attended the 4-H sewing club.”
Watching her mother be a 4-H leader and knowing how valuable the program was led Antonio to also become a leader and her own children became interested in it as well.

The Pas Roadrunners Swim Club hosted a memorable weekend of competition, community, and inspiration at this year’s Brent Lechelt Invitational, held on Saturday, November 8, 2025.
The annual meet brought together swimmers, families, and volunteers from across the tri-community and beyond to celebrate the sport of swimming and honour Brent Lechelt, a beloved member of The Pas Roadrunners family.
This year’s invitational featured strong performances, great sportsmanship, and an atmosphere of excitement and encouragement both on deck and in the stands. Following the competition, swimmers had the rare opportunity to take part in a stroke clinic led by Canadian Paralympic gold medalist Katarina Roxon.

Swan River’s Royal Canadian Legion Br. 39 facilitated one of countless Remembrance Day services on the morning of Nov. 11, honouring those who have fought in Canada’s Armed Forces since World War One. (TOP LEFT) Swan River’s oldest surviving veteran, Max Dick (centre), attends the service, representing the Korean War... 

The Northern Lights were astounding on Nov. 11, as a powerful solar storm provided an impressive display of colours lighting up in the night sky. The Northern Lights continued to be visible days after, but not as bright and vibrant as on Nov. 11.

The Remembrance Day ceremonies at Binscarth school on Nov 10 had a special addition when, after the school event, students and adults walked west from the school toward the cenotaph carrying the absolutely beautiful shroud of 2,100 crocheted poppies.
Pat Orsak who had seen mention of crocheted poppy shrouds in Minnedosa and Niverville along with the grand mat of poppies showcased at the Manitoba Legislature, brought the idea to Toon Cozens this past January. Soon Angela Arran - whose son Darryl had served in the military, Joy Toole and Robin Robinson set about coming up with ways to accomplish the task.
In true Binscarth style, it didn’t take long for the community - including the students at Binscarth school to jump on board.
“People from here in town, and other communities, people from afar who have a connection to Binscarth and school age students from Binscarth School worked and made 2,100 poppies”, Robin Robinson said in the presentation made to the students of Binscarth during their Remembrance service.

Read the full story in this week's Russell Banner .

Members of Roblin Branch #24 of the Royal Canadian Legion hosted the community’s Remembrance Day service Tuesday at the Community Centre to remember those who paid the ultimate sacrifice and to those who served their country during war time and in times of peace.
Goose Lake High principal Kirk Wilson did a great job as emcee and his daughter Maya offered a wonderful rendition of that famous poem “In Flanders Fields”. The Roblin Elementary School Choir under the direction of Rita Collins sang two selections – Light A Candle for Peace and All I Ever Wanted.
Check out our pictorial coverage in this week’s paper.

A new optical place has opened up and is ready to serve the tri-community when it comes to vision needs. Aurora Optical held its grand opening on Wednesday, October 5, at its location in the Otineka Mall.
“When I started exploring the idea of Aurora Optical, I spent a lot of time listening to people who know this community well – organizations like Beatrice Wilson, our local audiologist, pharmacists, and advisors at Scotiabank,” said Aurora Optical Owner and Optometrist Yi Zheng. “They helped me understand not just the numbers, but the lived reality of getting healthcare in and around OCN and The Pas.

Business has gotten a little more hairy in downtown Swan River this year, but actually in a good way!
If you haven’t checked out their new storefront 520 Main Street, Roaring River Fur has established themself in a new permanent location this year, giving opportunity to their client base to reliably find them and their products at the Roaring River Gift Shop.
Not only that, Roaring River Gift Shop has opened their space up to other small business makers, leading to a wide variety of foodstuffs, crafts and gift ideas produced by local people and filling their shelves with an assortment of treasures to discover, some of which are not found in any other permanent storefront location.
Roaring River Gift Shop opened at the beginning of July this year, right before the crowds of the NorthWest Round-up and Exhibition filled the town.
“I figured we’d get our feet wet before the rodeo in case it got really busy,” said Roaring River Owner/Operator Clayton Block, who operates the business and the gift shop with his wife, Andrea. “We’ve both worked retail before, so we’ve got a pretty good idea (of how it’s supposed to work), but it’s a little different when it’s yours. There’s a lot more things to think about that you don’t normally think about.”
Blocks found the summer to be fairly successful for a new business, and their shelves became quickly full of vendors’ products in the reasonable-sized retail space.
Word of mouth and having a significant presence in a busy part of town has led to more traffic in their store, just in time for the Christmas shopping season.
“This is a better opportunity (for our customers) because our stuff is always out, instead of packed away in tubs waiting for the next craft show,” said Block.
Ever since Roaring River Fur started about five years ago – with Clayton having been trapping for closer to 10 years – both Blocks envisioned having their handmade fur-based products in a store. The trouble, of course, is the retail space that their furs take up, more than what might be available in existing stores, but perhaps not enough to fill an entire retail store.
“We thought there would be enough small business people here who put their product away in tubs waiting for the next craft sale, that perhaps they would want to join us in our space,” said Block, noting that the idea has worked out well, with more than 40 vendors putting their products on the shelves in Roaring River Gift Shop, perhaps even getting close to 60 in the near future, which he noted would be about the maximum capacity, to avoid the store getting too cluttered and difficult to navigate.
“The more vendors, the better, because everybody’s paying rent, so it only helps us out even more,” said Block. “We had to hire one staff to help us because we can’t always be here, so it helps with that as well.”
Roaring River Gift Shop also uses a vendor relationship business model that is non-traditional but also not brand new. Instead of purchasing inventory from vendors and pricing up the product to profit the store, or taking a commission when vendors sell the products on their shelves, Roaring River Gift Shop simply charges their vendors $30 per month for their shelf space, allowing vendors to charge the same prices they would if they sold to their customers directly, leaving them the responsibility to manage the inventory on their shelf.
It’s a business model that’s been done before, but in other instances where this has been done, such as in large urban centres, rents on these retail shelves can sometimes be hundreds of dollars.
The lucrative business model that benefits both parties has led to a diverse mix of products, ranging from nature-based artwork, handmade cosmetic products, delicious treats and appetizers, jewellery, spreads, clothing, and so much more.
Having the business of Roaring River Fur taking up a plurality of the retail space also serves an anchor that draws customers in to discover the other treasures that they may not have known exists there.
Blocks are also pleased to be able to move into a downtown space in an era where Main Street seems to have continually more vacancies popping up than new businesses.
“It’s nice to see signs coming back up on buildings,” said Block.
Andrea Block added that their family used to spend Saturday afternoons wandering Main Street and checking out the Swan River stores, which is something that’s become more difficult.
“This was one of those things where we wanted to do this and offer an opportunity to people who would love a storefront, but can’t do it on their own,” she said. “This gives people an opportunity to have their products showcased.
“I think we’re all in the same boat and can’t do it on our own.”
Roaring River Gift Shop is open currently from Wednesday to Saturday every week, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.. Stop on by while on your Christmas shopping travels to perhaps find your favourite local product, or discover something new and unique.

Two vehicles ended up in the ditch on Hwy. No. 10 south of Bowsman on Thursday evening (Nov. 6). Swan Valley Fire Department and Swan River Emergency Medical Services conducted the appropriate rescues, and Swan River RCMP continues their investigation of the incident.