Taking care of pets is a huge responsibility and judging by the number of stray and unfixed animals, more has to be done. The Pas and Area Animal Shelter (TPAAS) is now offering a Low Income Spay and Neuter Program to assist with the issue of pets not being spay or neutered in the tri-community.
“People apply to the Low Income Spay and Neuter Program that we offer here at The Pas and Area Animal Shelter,” said TPAAS Secretary Lynda Geswin. “Forms are available online through our Facebook page, at the vet clinic and at the shelter. This is a program that is subsidized both by the shelter and the local vet clinic. We are trying to support pet owners who want what is best for their pet but can't financially do it. There are only a handful of spaces per month. “The cost is $100 per cat neuter. $125 per cat spay and $170 per dog spay or neuter. Those costs include vaccinations. Animals must have their vaccinations before their spay or neuter, so people should start the application process early. “This program was pets have a longer life expectancy. only launched a couple of months ago,” said Geswin. “We have spayed two dogs, and have a few others going through the process.” Getting your pet spay or neutered alleviates a lot of problems that TPAAS is seeing with the overpopulation of stray animals. The benefits to getting your pet spay or neutered, far outweigh any negatives aspects, if there are any. “There are so many reasons to have your pet spay or neutered,” said Geswin. “In Manitoba, we are facing a cat and dog overpopulation crisis. There are so many dogs, and not enough homes for them all. There was a time when we were fairly successful finding placement for dogs with Winnipeg based rescues, but that time is over. Rescue placements are hard to come by, and the amount of animals in need seems to be in creasing instead of de creasing. “On a more personal level, spaying your pet can reduce difficult behavior such as aggression, marking territory, running away, and fighting are all common in unaltered pets. Spaying and neutering reduce the risks of some cancers, and as a result, “Some of the other challenges in pets who are not spay or neutered that we see are unneutered dogs packing up when there is a female in heat,” said Geswin. “Not only is it a challenge to keep un fixed animals at home, but they can also become aggressive in these situations. Female cats yowl and are very annoying when they are in heat. Male cats mark their territory by spraying on things. “Also, we get a lot of messages where people tell us they are over whelmed caring for a litter of puppies. Puppies are a lot of work.” TPAAS is fundraising to keep shelter operations going as well as looking for sponsors for the new Low Income Spay and Neuter Program. “We are currently looking for people who are interested in sponsoring a spay or a neuter in the month of February,” said Geswin. “Sponsor ship amounts range from $50 for a partial spay or neuter, to $485 to sponsor the full cost of a dog spay. “We are always looking for volunteers and foster homes. Specifically related to spay and neuter month, we are looking for volunteers who are willing to drive people to vet appointments. Many of our applicants do not have vehicles, and getting to appointments is difficult.” There are still lots of pets looking for their for ever home at the TPAAS. All adoption fees help cover costs of the first rounds of vaccinations and help offset some expenses the shelter has in keeping animals. “In the shelter, and in foster homes combined, we have 26 dogs, and 36 cats up for adoption,” said Geswin. “Adoption fees are as $230 male cat; $275 female cat; $325 male dog and $400 female dog. Costs include first vaccination series, which includes rabies for dogs, deworming and spay or neuter. “Adoption fees only partially cover the costs incurred by the shelter to do the basic vetting of an animal- vaccinations, de worming and spay or neuter. Almost all of our animals come needing all of those procedures done, and it is not unusual for us to have additional health related costs for an animal as well. “The shelter is open most Wednesdays from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.,” said Geswin. “People are welcome to come by and see the animals. We are hosting an open house during NMTF, on Saturday from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m."

An incredible opportunity came to Opaskwayak Cree Nation (OCN) last week that gave youth a chance to come up with a way to do business and pitch it in front of an audience. Bears’ Lair Youth Camp made its first stop in Manitoba to offer a free youth entrepreneurship camp for Indigenous youth ages 11 to 18. The concept of Bears’ Lair started out with a vision to encourage entrepreneurs.
“I was the Economic Development Officer for the Squamish Nation in British Columbia, for 13 years and provided grants for entrepreneurs of the nation through a trust grant,” said Bears’ Lair Creator and Executive Producer Geena Jackson. “I started teaching classes on how to be an entrepreneur at night and provided a catered dinner and daycare for youth from toddlers to young teens, so the parents could learn, while the youth played in the gym, played video games and were entertained outside the classroom. After two out of six classes, the youth started sitting beside their parents, participating in the class and answering questions faster than their parents. A light bulb went off in my head. “These youth are absorbing the information faster than the adults, they are more technical savvy, and they do not have the barriers or triggers of being an entrepreneur like adults. They don’t know the hard work it takes yet; they are a sponge of positivity and possibility for the future. It is amazing. “I held the first Entrepreneur Youth camp in 2015, for the Squamish Nation and it was a huge success,” Jackson. “Now that TV show Bears' Lair is a huge success and up lifts Indigenous Entrepreneurs, it was a natural progression to educate, elevate and inspire Indigenous youth all over Canada. They are the future leaders and decision makers.” Bears’ Lair facilitated their camp at Oscar Lathlin Collegiate (OLC) and had several activities to enhance the students’ knowledge and experience in entrepreneurship. “There were 22 OCN youth that participated, all 11-19 years of age,” said Jackson. “We created five teams and they gathered at the high school, OLC, from February 2 to 5, to learn about business. The youth learned about team building, social confidence, financial literacy, public speaking, media training, constructive comments, feedback and stepping out of their com fort zone. We also played icebreaker and team building games, and the youth developed strong relation ships with each other and new friends. “Goals for the youth are set throughout the camp using our curriculum of five team challenges. Those consist of building a brand, which involves choosing a busi 24023gm0 ness type, creating a name, motto, design a logo and determine core values. Then there is the target market component where youth create products and services to solve a problem and determine who their audience and market is. “With the marketing strategy, youth decide how to advertise and reach customers, and from that create a marketing plan,” said Jackson. “Then they work on a budget and financial plan and youth have to determine their start up and operational costs, and how they will use their budget and any revenue for the future. Finally, the youth pitch their business by using the business model created. The youth film and deliver a five-minute business pitch that is premiered at the graduation and community celebration event. They work together in their teams with the guidance of a coach to create their business, and learn each factor of entrepreneurship.” The youth were mentored by local mentors in the community, each one had diverse background that brought forward different learning perspectives. “The mentors and coaches for the camp were Bears’ Lair team members, as well as OCN leadership and local business owners,” said Jackson. “This included Holly Chartrand, who is a local entrepreneur and award winning author; Savanna Sayese, who is a teacher with OCN; Dean Montgomery, the executive Producer of Bears’ Lair TV and president of Indigenous Initiatives; Jay Falkus, the director of operations for Bears’ Lair Dream Camps and head videographer and myself. “The judges for the graduation and celebration event were also an inspiration for the youth, as they were community and business leaders themselves. The judges were OCN Chief Maureen Brown; Darryl Bauer, OCN Eco nomic Development Officer; Courtney Hester, OCN Councillor and Dan Quesnel, who is the Scotiabank Manager. They were all excellent judges.” Several incredible entrepreneurial ideas were born as a result of the Bears’ Lair camp. Al though all presentations were solid, only one winner was chosen. “There were five groups who came up with amazing ideas,” said Jack son. “Bannock to go was the concept of a bannock cafe. Spirit Outdoors was a facility for youth that has programming for after school to encourage kids to do something active and away from video games and spending more time with each other. Maskwa Café was a proposal to set up a cafe that serves coffee, bannock, treats and a bookstore. OCN Attracts was an outdoor play ground for summer, fall and winter with activities for families and youth to be entertained. Dancing Raven Event Planning was a party event planning business for weddings, graduations, etc. “The team that created Dancing Raven Event Planning won. The judges were so impressed by all of the youth, but Dancing Raven had a small team of two people and the judges liked that they took on all of the roles of the business. The two-team members, Layne Nabess and Alzena Lajambe, persevered. They had a really good business idea and presented it very well. The winning team won $250 each and all other participants received $100 for at tending. All of the students also received matching hoodies and backpacks. “The kids came out of their shell, developed new friendships, all improved with public speaking and social confidence and most importantly everyone showed up and supported their team members,” said Jackson. “ It’s been said that 95 per cent of success in anything is showing up and the 22 youth did. They were in credible and our team can not wait to come back again.

There’s some unsettling talk about the possibility of Manitoba U18 AAA Hockey League restructuring and eliminating some teams that they feel aren’t meeting the competitive standard of the league. A competition committee was formed to determine the viability of league and made some recommendations for improvements.
“The hockey community is large, but at the same time small and extremely close-knit,” said The Pas Minor Hockey Association President Kevin Pettit. “Officially, the MB U18 AAA League has commissioned a committee in regards to competitiveness and equity in team formation. Last week, some insiders contacted numerous northern members of the hockey community to let them know that there was a very real potential for negative impact on rural and northern teams. At this time, the league has made no official decisions. Further, any recommendations by the league would have to also pass through Hockey Manitoba. “All hockey leagues flux and make changes. It’s normal for leagues to evaluate how they operate, and know the feasibility of the teams, and overall health of league. We currently have no female AAA U15 or U18 pro grams in the north, and just recently the Central Plains Capitals folded their U18 program. The threat of losing teams in rural areas is very real. “For us in the North especially, we often feel on the fringe,” said Pettit. “We can think of how we nearly lost the Blizzard, and just within the last few years a number of south ern Junior B teams decided to start their own league, leaving the Key “This would definitely have a negative impact to future hockey for northern Manitoba,” said Pettit. “The U18 program allows northerners to play for their home region, so they do not have to go to ex pensive programs in the south. For many in our region, the cost of attending these programs is quite frankly unreachable. This program maximizes the potential of all players that are accepted. It’s one of the biggest feeders to the Junior B program, and quite a number of players who developed through the U15 and U18 pro grams have went on to also play Junior A, College / University Hockey, and even the WHL and NHL. “Many of the impacts would be directly hurtful to our communities. For many youth, especially from our smaller communities and First Nations, the AAA players are huge role models in their com munities. They show the youth that hard work can get you to great places. Socially, physically, men tally, and overall community health - these would all be affected.” Based on data from Hockey Manitoba’s most current registration numbers, Parkland has a total of 698 total registered players, which is the lowest number per region. The committee then analysed data of the last 20 years for Manitoba U18 AAA playoffs by region and over that time span, Parkland had made it to the playoffs four times, which was also the lowest number out of all the teams in the region. Currently the focus has been on Norman and their competitiveness within the league. It has sparked a lot of outrage and concern that recommendations may be made to remove those teams in an attempt to make the league more competitive. Norman’s total number of registered players with Hockey Manitoba is 1,222 and based on the U18 AAA playoffs by region for the last 20 years, the team has made it to the playoffs five times in that span. “I’ve been president for Manitoba U18 AAA for five years now, since 2022,” said Manitoba U18 AAA President Don McIntosh. “I’m not aware of any other reviews, but things have changed quite a bit over the last few years. We started looking into this and doing re search, it’s kind of interesting how things popped out on paper. “We’re the highest league of hockey in Manitoba and the highest level, the next level is Junior hockey. Many of the players in our league aspire to play Junior hockey or in the Western Hockey League. Then those in Junior aspire to get a scholarship to play in the U.S. If a player is successful enough to make the Western Hockey League, the next step to that would be the NHL. Most of the kids playing in our U18 AAA league are aspiring to that. If you’re not participating in a competitive league to improve your competitiveness as a player, then we’re defeating the purpose of what we are in business for.” McIntosh denies any rumour about this being an attempt to remove rural and northern teams, but rather a move to make a stronger competitive No decisions have been made and the committee is not authorized to make decisions, but rather find solutions to remedy the inequity of the current structure. “We have other teams who aren’t competitive either and there are varying reasons for that. The non competitiveness of some teams brings down the competitiveness of other teams. That is simply what this is about. We’re not trying to eliminate all hockey in northern and rural Manitoba; that’s ridiculous.” “This would definitely have a negative impact to future hockey for northern Manitoba” - The Pas Minor Hockey President Kevin Pettit McIntosh says there are other options for teams like Norman and those that are struggling to be competitive in the league. “There is a U17 AAA and a U15 league in Manitoba,” said McIntosh. “Norman has a team in the U15 league, but there isn’t a U17 AAA team, so com bine that with the fact that the team in Thompson historically has not been competitive, the logic to us is that it would make more sense they form a U17 AAA team for the league, the players and everyone. “When the teams aren’t competitive, the argument is that players shouldn’t be expected to leave Norman, but the re “One option for Nor man is that they could join another region and bring their numbers up,” said McIntosh. “That would give them the opportunity to form a stronger team, which would bring up the competitiveness of the league. The other option could be that it would be an open zone and the players could go to wherever another team would take them in the province, so a high-level player would still have an opportunity to play at that level. Then there’s the U17 AAA option. “When we first got into this, we had 13 teams in the league, 12 in Manitoba and one in Kenora. The last three years, Central Plains has not been able to field a team, so now we’re down to 12 teams. The question is should we go down to ten teams and there has been some discussion about going down to nine team, but none of that has been decided; it’s all still being discussed.” No official or final decisions have been made as to the future of restructuring U18 AAA Hockey in Manitoba, as the Competition Committee must present some recommendations and a vote would then take place before going up to Hockey Manitoba. “It’s very important to note that our committee can’t make decisions, we can only make recommendations,” said McIntosh. “Things have to be brought forward at the league level, then if motions are approved, it would have to go to Hockey Manitoba and motions would have to then be passed at that level.” Based on Hockey Manitoba’s registration numbers by region and a 20-year summary of the U18 AAA playoffs by region, the committee feels the data speaks for itself and shows the current structure is not fair or equitable; therefore, players are not being provided the same opportunity to play competitive hockey with and against players of similar ability. The committee denies any rumour suggesting that they are abandoning Norman players or that this is based on travel. The committee feels their discussion is focused on a wholesale solution that would not only increase the number of Norman players who could play AAA hockey in the u18 age category, but also would provide an improved development path way from U15 AAA to Junior. No decisions have been made and the committee has not finalized its recommendations, but when they do, those recommendations will be to be approved by the League’s Board of Directors and Hockey Manitoba. The Opasquia Times reached out to representation from the U18 AAA Parkland Rangers and Norman Northstars and they failed to provide any comment for the story.

Another winner went home with the Chase the Ace jackpot after Sharon Pierrepont picked the Ace of Spades in the Royal Canadian Legion Br. 39 Swan River Chase the Ace fundraiser on Feb. 3. With eight cards remaining to choose from, Pierrepont walked away with a bonus of $35,490. Pierrepont said she plays fairly regularly and has not yet decided what to do with her windfall. A representative from Swan River’s Legion said that the Chase the Ace fundraiser – along with the meat draw that runs alongside it – brings in substantial funds from the club that allows for numerous upgrades to the Legion clubroom. In the last few years alone, the Chase the Ace funds will enable the Swan River Legion to upgrade to a brand new serving area, new flooring, a kitchen upgrade, and other building upgrades. The funds from the weekly meat draw has provided opportunity to purchase a new glass washer, new chairs, a refurbishment of the pool tables and a new TV and lounging area. The Swan River Legion Chase the Ace is held every Saturday, with a jackpot of $10,243 available with 53 cards to draw on Feb. 17.

The Swan Valley Junior A Stampeders partnered with Amara’s Amigos last Friday (Feb. 9) to raise funds for the PROFYLE Program, through the CancerCare Manitoba Foundation, so that children living with cancer in our province receive the treatments they so desperately need. More than $19,000 was raised during the event...

The U15 Dauphin Clinic Pharmacy Kings won the Tournament of Champions in Brandon over the weekend.

The Kings began the round-robin with a 5-4 win over Melville, with Josh Beyette scoring twice and Brody Kaminski, Alex Lopez and Dominic Chartrand adding singles.

Dauphin then beat the Minot Wolves, 6-2, with Hayden Billet, Bodhi Bloomer, Riley Durston, Slade Nepinak, Beyette and Lyric Smith providing the offence.

In the semifinals, Dauphin defeated the Regina Blues, 4-2, with Beyette, Chartrand, Lopez and Smith scoring.

In the final, Dauphin faced the Saskatoon North Stars, needing a shootout to score a 5-4 victory to claim the tournament title. Ethan Zalischuk, Lopez, Bloomer and Smith scored in regulation, while Jordan Height had the shootout winner. Ben Miner was in goal for every game.

It was an emotional win for the team, which extends its heartfelt thanks and dearest condolences to the DCP family on the passing of Myles Haverluck.

On paper, it was a good week for the Dauphin Kings.

The local Manitoba Junior Hockey League squad picked up five of a possible six points, actually gaining a point on the second-place Blizzard Junior A Hockey Club.

But the Kings did not make it easy on themselves.

The week began with a 3-2 win over the Neepawa Titans, Tuesday in Dauphin, in a game which they led 3-0 entering the third period.

On Friday, the Waywayseecappo Wolverines came to town and escaped with a 3-2 shootout victory to keep their playoff hopes alive.

On Saturday, the Kings had to overcome a 3-0 deficit versus the last-place Winnipeg Blues, scoring a 4-3 overtime win on Cayden Glover’s second power-play goal of the game, 2:50 into the extra frame.

Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley said ever since a 6-1 win over the Winnipeg Freeze, Feb. 3, they have been out worked and out shot and out hit.

“And it’s all a choice. We’ve got a great group in the room and I believe in them. I really think we can do some good things this year, but they’ve got to believe in themselves and they’ve got to be prepared to work,” he said. “When talent works hard, it’s tough to beat you. Hard work is going to beat talent every time, unless talent works hard. We’ve got talent. We know we do, but we’ve still got to work and we’ve got to be tough and hard to play against.”

That is something the Kings need to do more of, especially on home ice as Hedley feels the Kings don’t get physical enough when teams come to play in Credit Union Place.

“We don’t make it a tough place to play. And I think once we started being physical and finishing checks all over the ice, we started getting opportunities,” he said. “When you have games like we did against the Freeze, when you don’t play well but you still win 6-1, you’re playing risk hockey, or you’re hoping instead of coming from behind pucks. The best offence is below pucks when you come from behind with speed, in the right place, D side of battles, the right side of pucks. When we do that, we’re a good team. And we started doing that in the last half of the game.”

All three teams the Kings faced during the week are below them in the standings. Hedley said you still have to respect your opponent, no matter where they are in the standings.

“You still have to out work them. You have to come ready to play and it’s not a point night, it’s still a team thing. It’s team buy-in. Short, hard energy shifts. At times we stay on the ice too long and then we wonder why we don’t have energy and we’re changing at the wrong times,” he said. “There’s just little things we can get better at. But I think if we can just stay with that identity that we want by playing fast with our speed, playing physical and be hard on pucks, it becomes habit and we can do some good things this year. We’ve just got to stay more consistent.”

Dauphin improved its record to 27-13-1-1 for 56 points, two behind the Blizzard, with three games in hand.

This week, the Kings travel to Waywayseecappo for a rematch with the Wolverines, tonight at 7:30 p.m.

On Friday, the Kings host the league-leading Steinbach Pistons at 7:30 p.m. On Saturday, they are back on the road to face the Swan Valley Stampeders in Swan River at 7 p.m.

Going forward Hedley said awareness and communication are the two most important things in the defensive zone.

“A lot of times we’ve been really happy with the mobility we have on our backend, but some of the time, our D-men want to jump into the play too soon,” he said. “That consistency and that communicating and awareness is huge. We’ll be okay. We’ll get better and we’ll get back on our toes.”

On the injury front, forward Kyan Grouette is day-to-day with an upper body injury and forward Ethan Williment is not expected back from a shoulder injury until the end of the month. Defenceman Karson Raymond is ready to return from a rib injury.

Kings court: The Kings have signed head coach and general manager Doug Hedley to a two-year contract extension, through to the end of the 2025-26 season.

The City of Dauphin is well into the process of setting its 2024 financial plan, but it is still too early to say what that might look like in the end.

Mayor David Bosiak said there are many factors to consider. With major infrastructure projects such as the Main Street South reconstruction and the Buckwold Bridge rehabilitation underway and the lagoon expansion on tap, there are a lot of moving pieces to consider. Add to that continuously increasing costs, new union agreements and more upcoming negotiations, and it becomes quite a juggling act.

“When we talk about the overall process, we are looking for every possible opportunity to either reduce costs without reducing service,” Bosiak said.

On the positive, the City has an extremely good relationship with the new provincial government, having had several meetings with the premier and cabinet ministers with more coming up.

“There’s a window of opportunity there, possibly. We’re sort of reading the tea leaves about the positive relationship that the current provincial government has with the federal government and the, I would say, tremendously positive relationship that our municipal government has with our provincial government. The support we’ve received from our MLA and the premier himself and other ministers, I think, is all positive for us as a community.”

This budget provides an opportunity for the current council to begin putting its mark on the future of the community as its previous focus was more managing and completing initiatives put in place by the previous council.

“Now as a new council we have a three-year window to present our projects and have them included in budget discussions so that we can move on some of those that seem realistic or reasonable or fit with what we want to do as a municipality,” Bosiak said, adding just last week the City was advised by the province that it’s new Plan Dauphin was approved.

“So we will now, as a council, look very strategically at the items that the last council and our current council included in that, those things that were important to us as a community moving forward. And I would suspect that we will have some movement on some of those initiatives.”

Any movement, Bosiak stressed, will take place responsibly, with the benefit to the community weighed against the cost.

And while the news has been filled with reports of increases in the mill rates of other urban centres around the province, Bosiak said that will not necessarily be the case in Dauphin.

“One thing I will tell you is that this council has basically stated we will not hold taxes if that means a reduction in services to our residents,” Bosiak said. “We all appreciate that inflation is still running at over three per cent, that there are still some supply chain and other issues from post COVID still affecting supply and distribution of materials and other things. We’ve seen that in the projects that we’ve tendered in this last year, they’ve all come in higher than budgeted. So we understand that and as we go through this process we will certainly inform the public on where we’re at. But I can’t say that a tax increase is off the table and I can’t say right now how big it might be if there is one.”

Bosiak added Dauphin residents can rest assured that everyone involved in the budgetting process will do what is best for the community.

“We really trust our administration and I get the sense that administration really trusts our council and I doubt that we’ll be suggesting any kind of crazy projects that are going to significantly increase taxes,” he said. “We’re getting tremendously good advice from our administration on what is possible. We, like everyone else has, have challenges with costs and we’ll do the best we can to handle them. I trust the council and I trust the administration that they will do the right thing.”

The community of Dauphin is mourning the loss of one of its biggest supporters following the death of Myles Haverluck, Feb. 9.

Known primarily as an intelligent and successful businessman, the Dauphin Clinic Pharmacy founder nurtured what has become a legacy of consistency and reliability through a customer-first philosophy.

Armed only with a vision of creating “something special,” Haverluck opened his business in 1979, employing only himself and one support person.

“The first couple or three years it was a bit of a grind. Dauphin already had several well-established and respected pharmacists, or druggists as we were called back then, and I think back in those days there was even more loyalty than there certainly is today,” Haverluck said looking back at the early years at the time of DCP’s 40th anniversary in 2019. “I think it was a little scary back then, but we just kept plugging away, doing what we were doing, and we grew slowly. We didn’t try to be really big, really fast. When I first started, it was just myself and one other lady that worked with me. Eventually we hired additional staff members, and we just kind of went along like the turtle, slow and steady.”

But it was not all about business for Haverluck, who took pride in supporting community events and projects, both through his business and personally.

If you attended any community events in the past, throughout the Parkland, chances are that Dauphin Clinic Pharmacy played a role in its success.

“I have always believed that you should, and you need to support your community. And everybody is going to do it at different levels,” Haverluck said of his desire to give something back to the community. “The bottom line is community is important to us. We want to see things succeed and we want to support it.”

Propping up that philosophy, Haverluck, personally and through his business, supported numerous community events such as the Dauphin Kings Hockey Club, the Dauphin Clinic Pharmacy Cashpiel, Countryfest, the MS Bike Tour, Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival, Jesus Manifest and the Myles

Haverluck Clinic Pharmacy Classic Golf Tournament. Youth groups, sports teams, church groups, service groups, music festivals and community special events have also benefitted from that generous community spirit.

Development of community facilities such as the Parkland Recreation Complex and sponsorship of its walking track, as well as Dauphin Countryfest Community Theatre were also a priority for Haverluck.

And Haverluck’s approach earned him and the business numerous accolades throughout the years such as, but not limited to, the 1997 Dauphin and District Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year Award, the 1998 Chamber of Commerce Community Appreciation Award for Outstanding Community Service, a 1999 Recognition Award from the Province of Manitoba for outstanding contributions to seniors of Manitoba and the 2005 Whitehall Robins’ Bowl of Hygeia Award, in recognition of time and personal sacrifice devoted to the welfare of the community.

Currently, there is a petition going around Roblin calling on the provincial government to do something about the number of elk in the area, the damage they are causing and the potential risk they pose in spreading TB.

Pine Creek First Nation harvester Phillip Chartrand feels there is a solution that could work for multiple parties and not cost tax payer dollars.

Read all about it in this week’s issue.