As if the 18 inches or more of snow which fell in the Dauphin Valley during the latest incident involving a Colorado Low, was not enough, Mother Nature decided to add in a little mayhem and destruction this past weekend.

This car on Seventh Street Southeast was clobbered by just one of the hundreds of trees around the community which dropped large branches or fell over completely under the weight of the heavy snow.

Thousands of Manitoba Hydro customers were without power Saturday evening and throughout the day Sunday with many having to wait until Monday to have their service restored.

Temperatures are expected to improve throughout the week, in time for another Colorado Low expected to hit on the weekend.

This one, hopefully, will just be a rain event.

A Mackenzie Middle School student recently raised some money for the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund from his fellow students.

Blake Symchych, 13, visited Grades 7 and 8 classrooms explaining what was currently taking place in Ukraine. He was told by his principal that the school had already made a donation to the fund.

“But the students didn’t get to,” he said. “So after I went class to class, I went back to the principal and he said he was very proud of me for doing that.”

Over the course of four days, Symchych raised $634 from the Grades 7 and 8 students, some teachers and one neighbour. The money will go towards helping a family from Ukraine move to the Parkland. Symchych had an original goal of raising $200. It only took about a day-and-a-half to hit that mark.

“I was very surprised at how quickly people wanted to give money and how much they’d give,” he said. “One of my friends gave $70. I was so surprised, because I asked for $2 or more. That was kind of them.”

Symchych only hit the Grades 7 and 8 classrooms, because the Grade 6 students had a different lunchtime than the older students.

“We’d be having lunch when they’d be outside. So I couldn’t really do it. But I made sure to ask the Grade 6 teachers for money,” he said.

Symchych could not have done it without the support of his classmates.

“They did support me a lot and so did my friends and I appreciate them a lot,” he said.

Symchych encourages children in other schools to do what they can to raise money for the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund.

With more than 800 students attending a school designed for 250, new education facilities were more than a ‘want” for the community of Ebb and Flow, it was an absolute necessity.

And efforts to relieve that educational pressure took a huge step forward, Apr. 21, when the community broke ground on a $55 million project which will see the construction of a new Kindergarten to Grade 6 school, renovation of the community’s existing school for Grades 7 to 12 classrooms and the construction of 23 new teacherages to house school staff.

“We talk about the kids that are here and we talk about the kids that are not born yet. We have to think about that. That’s the way the elders used to think a long time ago. We have to think about our kids. What are they going to have when they grow up, what are their grandkids or great grandkids going to have,” Chief Wayne Desjarlais said during a ceremony to break ground on the project. “The school is going to be built, we’re going to start it. We have the construction crews, as you can see the material around the community and the equipment it’s going to be done right here. We’re going to have local people working.”

Speaking directly to students gathered at the ceremony, Chief Desjarlais stressed how lucky they are to be getting such top-notch educational facilities.

“I know you’re too young to think about this right now, but most of you will have kids and your kids are going to go to school here,” he said. “So we have to take care of the schools that we’re going to have. We’re going to have to take care of the teachers.”

Desjarlais added he is pleased to see the years long journey toward a new school coming to an end.

“Many years ago our first school was made for 250 students. We passed that mark probably within the first five or six years after the school was finished in 1983,” he said. “Today we have close to 800 students. We have more students in Ebb and Flow School than five schools in Turtle River (School Division). So that’s why we’re getting a new school for the elementary grades.

”The budget has earmarked $30 million for construction of the new facility and $7 million for development of the teacherages with the remainder destined for renovations at the existing school. A project of that size takes a considerable amount of time and effort to get off the ground", said Praneeth Cherukuri, a senior engineer of Infrastructure and Housing Professional and Technical Services with Indigenous Services Canada.

“It’s been five years. It may seem like a long time, but to build a big school and then do a renovation to the existing school it is a big task and we need a good team in place. So to gather all the team and have all the funding in place, that’s unfortunately how long it takes,” he said. “Soon, before you know it, you’ll have a new school here and the old school will be like another new school and you’ll have teachers here. So this whole area will be hustling and bustling and I truly think this whole educational complex will be a shining example for what can be done in a First Nation and I do think it will be one of the best schools in Manitoba once it’s done. We didn’t leave any stone unturned.”

Part of what makes the new school special is when viewed from overhead the building is shaped like an eagle with its wings, a symbol of love in Indigenous cultures’ seven sacred teachings.

Seeing the vision come to life is exciting said Victor Kolynchuk of Architecture 49, who designed the new school.

“We’ve been on this project for five years to get here where we are here today. It’s a big achievement, but there’s yet an even bigger achievement over the next two years to construct the school,” Kolynchuk said. “I believe in education. Education is powerful, it has the power to elevate individuals, communities and cultures. So this is your opportunity two years from now to take advantage of this opportunity to increase your power and maintain your culture and work together with your children that have yet to come.”

Construction is set to begin immediately and the project is expected to take two years to complete, said project manager Phil Cesario of PM Associates, who act as project manager. The project, he said, offers tremendous opportunity for community involvement.

“We’re going to be making a lot of noise and mess for the next two years, but the end result will definitely be worth it,” Cesario said. “There’ll be lots of opportunities for the community to participate in terms of labour work, but even for the students, there’ll be lots of opportunities in the building for artwork to truly make this school your own and we look forward to sharing those opportunities with you. I’m looking forward to the ribbon cutting ceremony two years from now.”

Getting the community to that point is NDL Consruction, a Winnipeg-based company with experience working in northern and First Nations communities. Company president Peter Barg said his team is excited by the opportunity to bring the community’s vision to life.

“Not only are we excited to build a beautiful building which the architects have designed and to work with this team, but we love working in northern and First Nation communities,” he said. “It’s not just about building a big building or a beautiful building and doing business. Yes, those are wonderful things, but bringing integrity and trust and respect to that process is something that we value as a family-owned business and we’re looking very forward to working with your community with your chief, council and the workers that are going to be coming from this community.”

The local committee formed to celebrate Manitoba’s 150th birthday is gearing up to celebrate this summer.

The “Roblin Celebrates Manitoba 150” Committee was planning a Doc Walker concert for the summer of 2020 but the pandemic forced the cancellation of that event.

Check this week's Review for more!

A locally talented artist from Tootinaowaziibeeng Treaty Reserve (TTR) is having her artwork recognized on so many different levels.

Recently the Southern Chiefs’ Organization acknowledged Sikwun Reign Lynxleg as a talented multi-media artist.

More in this week's Roblin Review!

The Canadian Wildlife Health Cooperative (CWHC) has confirmed the presence of avian influenza in two different wild bird samples in Manitoba.

Samples from several snow geese were collected in southwestern Manitoba near Waskada and a single sample from a bald eagle was collected in the Dauphin area.

There's more in this week's Roblin Review!

Despite a year of challenges and changes, 2021 was another successful year for Fusion Credit Union.

Fusion held its annual general meeting  – live in Roblin  and online in Brandon, Dauphin and Hamiota – to reflect on the past year and to celebrate its “outstanding performance”, in the words of CEO Darwin Johns.

Check this week's Roblin Review for more!

A spring craft sale was held at the Elbert Chartrand Friendship Centre on Saturday (April 16) with a number of vendors coming out to showcase their wares to the many customers who came through the door.

The North Western Marquette Festival held its first Festival session since March of 2020 on March 22, 2022.

As is the way with Murphy’s Law (anything that can go wrong will go wrong) when the committee and dance schools finally found their way through the COVID complications to hold the Dance portion of the NWMF, weather interfered on the scheduled date of March 8th and the Dance Festival was re-scheduled for March 22.

With the co-operation of everyone involved, the afternoon of March 22 turned into a beautiful afternoon of dance! 19 dance classes were adjudicated by the wonderful and talented Tamara Hicks of Brandon.

The awards of the day went to:

Outstanding Solo Performance: Brenna Dalman
Outstanding Group/Duo Performance Ages 12 and under: Wade Dance Centre with “Lovely”
Outstanding Group/Duo Performance Ages 18 and under: Wade Dance Centre with “Help”
Most Promising Solo Performer: Mya Bonchuk
Most Promising Group/Duo Ages 12 and under: Wade Dance Centre with “Breakin’ Dishes”
Most Promising Group/Duo Ages 18 and under: Wade Dance Centre with “3326”

The NWMF committee so appreciates everyone who made this small but wonderful Festival a success. First, and most importantly because these two women are passionate instructors of dance in our communities, Belva Zentner and Giny Hillman.

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

Thanks to the efforts of so many volunteers, A Dinner for Ukraine - a cooperative effort between Westman Immigration Services, the Rossburn Ukrainian Catholic Pastoral District and the Russell Silverton United Church - raised an astounding $90,000.

The money raised will go to the Canada -Ukraine Foundation to help directly with humanitarian aid in Ukraine.

One of the most touching parts of the stellar evening came when MC Len Derkach brought up his longtime friend Jim Cote - an elder and longtime council member from Waywayseecappo First Nation - who presented Olga Stronko and her two children with a Star Blanket from the First Nation. Like so many, Olga and her children have escaped the war in Ukraine and come to live in Binscarth.

As she waits, she’s with her brother Oleksandr Rusiaieva (also in the picture) his wife Nataliia and their baby daughter Sofia.

Star Blankets are among the highest honor in the indigenous culture given as a sign of respect, friendship and protection.

Check this week's Russell Banner for lots more!