Another successful event was held by The Pas Guest List a few weeks ago. The Pas Guest List combined a superb dining experience along with music to help raise funds for projects in the community.
“The Pas Guest List held a fall dinner in collaboration with Untamed Acres Chef Delaina Parker at the Anglican Church Hall on November 16,” said The Pas Guest List President Alexis Yahnke. “We included an auction and live music by Gordi Munro, which created an exquisite evening for our community.
“We had an amazing turnout. We sold out for the event and were able to fundraise $3,000. We had two beautiful art pieces generously donated by Jackie Traverse to auction off at this event, which helped with the success of the event tremendously.”

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas with the snow falling and the Christmas decorations coming out of storage.
Soon, the Swan Valley Historical Museum (SVHM) will be all alight with the luminous and colourful displays of Mistletoe Magic will be hung from the historical buildings and outdoor equipment with care.
The preparations of the SVHM volunteers will culminate in an opening night celebration on Dec. 7 that will be the official first evening of Mistletoe Magic. From 5-9 p.m., everyone is welcome to drive through or walk through the grounds of the SVHM and view the Christmas displays, as well as join the fellowship in the main hall, where hot chocolate and hot dogs will be served, with admittance to everything free of charge, with an opportunity to give a donation if people wish to do so.
“We find a lot of people are happy to come on out and feel like they want to give something to the project,” said Mistletoe Magic organizer Candace Balbo. “We’re always happy to have donations, and people can specify whether they are giving towards the cost of Mistletoe Magic or make a general donation to the museum.”
Those that come by to visit in the hall also have the opportunity to take a picture with Santa Claus in an antique sleigh.
In addition, a horse-drawn wagon ride will be in the works, provided that the weather will be appropriate. Everyone will be welcome to take rides with their friends and family around the grounds.
For the rest of December, and up until after traditional Ukrainian Christmas, the lights will stay on and anybody is welcome to drive around the SVHM grounds on any evening, free of charge.
“We on the board of the museum do a lot of ground work and organization of putting this together, but so many people also come out to volunteer their time to decorate these buildings,” said Balbo. “And, there might not be people that want to decorate the buildings, but are willing to donate so we can get more lights. Lights last a long time, but sometimes they do break.
“Anything anybody is willing to do is a nice thing.”
While the SVHM isn’t necessarily able to collect feedback from all the people that visit Mistletoe Magic in a year, Balbo mentioned that she receives positive comments on occasion when she is around town and generally finds that people really enjoy visiting the light display in what has become a fairly new annual tradition in the last half decade.
“During COVID when people had to supervise who came on the grounds, it was remarkable how many people came,” said Balbo. “It’s a lovely event and we’re happy to do it.
“It’s a bright spot in the dark part of the winter.”

It appears that winter has unofficially arrived to stay for the season with multiple days of heavy snowfall last week, starting on Tuesday (Nov. 19) and continuing with another heavy dose on Sunday morning (Nov. 24). Temperatures are also expected to be colder than -10C until well into December.

The Manitoba government has announced a three-year West-Central Immigration Initiative pilot project that would see the government partner with seven rural municipalities and Gambler First Nation to support west-central Manitoba employers.

It is estimated the region will need 240 to 300 people to address labour shortages within the next three years.

Find out more in this week’s issue.

Justice is one of those concepts that means different things to different people.

For some, justice lies in the black and white world of the court system, while for others, a more nuanced approach is needed to arrive at a suitable outcome when dealing with crime.

Restorative justice is the process of bringing the accused, victim and the community - represented by a community justice committee -  together to resolve a crime.

Dauphin is home to one of Manitoba’s oldest community justice committees and during this year’s Restorative Justice Week, Nov. 17 to 23, hopes to add to its membership to better focus on addressing harm caused by crime and meeting the needs of those involved.

The restorative justice process works best when the victim has an empowered voice, when the accused is truly held responsible for their actions, and when community justice committee members facilitate the process, said Michelle Funk, a restorative justice facilitator with Westman Mediation Services, which supports community justice committees - including the one in Dauphin - through training committee members.

“Hopefully, you’re getting to those risk factors of why the individual committed the crime in the first place, so hopefully they won’t do it again,” Funk said, adding victims play more of a role in the process than in a formal courtroom setting.

“The victim can have a say in the process and hopefully get some sort of healing out of it, because that doesn’t happen in the criminal justice system.”

While there are critics who say restorative justice is soft on crime, that is not the case, Funk said, likening the restorative justice process to a parent dragging their shoplifting child to apologize to a store owner.

“Because you actually had to face the person that you harmed and you had to actually see the effects and the consequences of your behaviour. And for me that always means more than hiding from it,” she said.

“You’re being held accountable for what you did.”

The restorative justice process is proven to lower recidivism rates, as well as reduce costs by avoiding expensive courtroom appearances.

There are also immeasurable benefits, through increased community safety and offenders who have an opportunity to be contributing members of society. The process also results in a marked increase in victim satisfaction, and victims receiving monetary restitution that they would not normally get through

Read the full story in this week’s edition of the Dauphin Herald.

A former resident of The Pas and Cormorant has spent her working career teaching others about residential schools as part of Truth and Reconciliation. Melody Dumas and her family members have been impacted and experienced residential school in some capacity. Dumas’ childhood recollections of what residential schools were have followed her in this journey.
“I lived in The Pas until I was six and then my parents decided to move to Cormorant,” said Manitoba First Nations Education Resource Centre (MFNERC) Languages and Cultures Instructional Resource Analyst Melody Dumas. “Living in Cormorant was a great experience. Swimming, berry picking, hunting, fishing, family, outdoor activities, and eating traditional foods were a huge part of my life. I loved going hunting with my family. My dad had a camp on the river. We lived in Cormorant until I was eleven years old and then we moved to Dauphin.

Opaskwayak Cree Nation’s rising star Rhonda Head is now part of a Grammy-nominated album for this year’s upcoming awards. Head collaborated with Antonio Vergara on his album The Fury and it recently was nominated for the Grammy’s Best Contemporary Blues Album.
“Antonio is from Ecuador and is a fantastic musician,” said Head. “He had messaged me through social media and asked if I would be interested in collaborating with him on his next album. I was excited and more than happy to. He sent me the final song and I sat on it awhile, listening to it before I recorded my vocals.
“Once I recorded my vocals, I sent it off to him. Next thing I know, the Grammy For-Your-Consideration nominations came up and his album was selected to be one of the nominees on the ballot. When I heard his album was nominated for a Grammy, I called him up and congratulated him. He then said to me, ‘Rhonda, you are part of the album too, so we are celebrating this together.’ This didn’t dawn on me at first.
“The days went by and Antonio started sending me things to post on Facebook mentioning this Grammy nominee,” said Head. “ Just last week, he shared with me press release information to share with local media on this. It wasn’t until I looked at the press release that it sunk in that I was part of a Grammy nomination. I was shaking, then I cried and laughed once it hit me, and I’m still processing it. It’s hard for me to accept it.”
Vergara worked with several musicians for his album and he shares his success with The Fury with every one of them.

As we roll into the last weeks of November, we all know that snow is soon upon us and with that comes winter driving and snow removal. The Town of The Pas has set guidelines for how the public works department manages and handles snow removal operations in the community.
“Our town foreman monitors the forecast with his operators and they will make the determination when crews should mobilize,” said Town of The Pas Municipal Superintendent Sam Mirza-Agha. “Obviously, forecasts can’t always be 100 percent accurate, so we must use our best judgment on when to have crews ready to mobilize. This becomes a bit more challenging when we are expecting a significant snowfall because the start of the snowfall isn’t precise.

Travelling to Canada has become a highlight and a must for many foreign travellers. If you recall a story that ran back in March of this year, in the Star and Times, a couple from Chile were travelling from their home country to North America. Macarena Orozco and her family fell in love with the Valley so much that they made Birch River their home. Through connections, they had a friend travel from Argentina to come and visit them while documenting the journey here.
“I’m originally from Patagonia, Argentina, and a couple of years ago, I started a project to restore a 1970s Ford Falcon, which is a vehicle made and very common in Argentina, and undertake a road trip from Ushuaia in Patagonia all the way to Alaska,” said Fabián Viaja.
“I went to Birch River because I knew that a family of Chilean travellers was living there. My plan to reach Alaska is divided into two stages. These Chilean travellers have spoken highly of Birch River and the Swan Valley, so in the past few days, I have been exploring the area and getting to know more about the local community. I have been documenting the entire trip on my YouTube channel, FABIANVIAJA, which to date has nearly 50,000 subscribers.
“The first stage is to reach Canada and leave my Ranchero, that’s what I call my Ford model, in Wadena, Saskatchewan,” said Viaja. “This is where there is another family of Argentine travellers residing and they will take care of the vehicle during the winter. After leaving the car, I will return to Argentina and then fly from Argentina to resume my journey to Alaska when the weather permits.”
Viaja has been on this journey for quite some time and has gone through five countries, from Central America to North America.
“I have been travelling for almost a year,” said Viaja. “My journey has taken me through Chile, Peru, Ecuador, and Colombia. Then, I crossed Central America by boat to Mexico and subsequently travelled through the United States, where my wife joined me to explore various places across the country.
“After that, I entered Canada through Saskatchewan and stayed a couple of days in Wadena at my Argentine friend’s house. Later, I coordinated with La Maca and El Gabo, the Chileans, to reach Birch River and get to know the area. It took me nearly a year to arrive at the Valley.”
There has been so much for Viaja to see and take in as he made his way to Birch River. He has had nothing but positive experiences in his interactions with Canadians.
“Overall, it has been a very pleasant journey without major setbacks, only some mechanical issues that I have been able to resolve along the way,” said Viaja. “I have been pleasantly surprised by Canadians. They have been very kind and friendly. They have shown great interest in getting to know my vehicle, and despite my limited English, I have managed to understand their good wishes for my adventure.
“This is my first time in Canada. Although I have only been here for a couple of weeks, I have a lovely and positive impression. People are truly friendly and always willing to help. They have been very curious about my car and have stopped me more often than in other countries. The forests I have encountered are truly beautiful. While I have visited very small towns in Canada, my stay has been very pleasant, as there is a sense of tranquillity and silence, something highly desired in large cities.
“I have visited many towns and cities that have caught my attention,” said Viaja. “Due to the uniqueness of their landscapes, I could highlight the Atacama Desert in Chile, the Grand Canyon in the United States, and the Canadian Prairies, which remind me of the Patagonia region in Argentina because of their vastness and sense of solitude.
“I have spent very little time in the town of Swan River,” said Viaja. “I have been mainly in Birch River and its nearby lakes. Although it is a very small town, the neighbours have been very kind and affectionate with me. Some have even come to where I have been staying just to greet me and welcome me. Such a lovely gesture!
“Additionally, I have participated in some antique car shows in the United States, where I won the Most Unique Car Award, and also in the Sturgis motorcycle shows in the USA. Regarding Canada, although I have travelled little, the lakes north of the Swan Valley are very beautiful, complemented by their lovely forests with autumn colours.
“In the second stage of my trip, I plan to explore more of Canada,” said Viaja. “My car is not prepared for winter, so I hope to return to Birch River in April next year to continue my adventure when the weather conditions permit.”
Viaja’s stay in Birch River seemed like a short one, but he vows to return next year.
“I stayed in Birch River for one week and then returned to Wadena to prepare my car for the winter, and subsequently travel back to Argentina,” said Viaja. “In Argentina, I will continue with another project I have. I’m remodelling an old Mercedes-Benz motorhome and will be travelling through Patagonia. As winter ends and the good weather returns to Canada, I will come back and visit the Valley again with the Ranchero.
“I hope to return in April to resume the second stage of my journey. Perhaps around that time, you might see the Ranchero parked somewhere in the Valley.”

The Swan Valley Farmers’ Market hosted their annual Christmas market on Friday (Nov. 15) at the Swan Valley Historical Museum, with plenty of opportunities for holiday gift shopping.