Shawn Bailey
Family fund effects positive
For the last few months the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund has been soliciting support for its efforts to relocate families displaced by the war in Ukraine.
And with nine families making their way to the Parkland so far, the positive effects of those efforts are starting to show.
“Our original plan was 12, however if the funds continue and we are able to, we will support more,” said Fr. Brent Kuzyk of Saint George’s Ukrainian Orthodox Church who sits on the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund.
Nataliia and her daughter Milana arrived in Dauphin recently, after fleeing Kyiv on Feb. 24. The two made their way to Lubin, Poland, by car, unsure of what lay ahead for them.
“We couldn’t make our way right to Poland so we spent six days in our car waiting in a line,” Nataliia said. “Then we travelled around Poland to find a place to stay.”
The young family were included in a federal government chartered flight to Winnipeg.
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Bosiak enters race to become Dauphin’s next mayor
There is officially a race to become Dauphin’s new mayor as local businessman and community advocate David Bosiak registered as a candidate yesterday.
For Bosiak, the motivation for letting his name stand was simple, to ensure the progress he has seen in the community over the last number of years continues.
“We were on pause for two years with COVID and I think that the city right now has an opportunity to continue on in a forward direction or be diverted or distracted by what I would call minor issues,” Bosiak said. “And so I just want to assist in moving us forward in a method that has sort of been my process my whole career. Working with other people.”
To illustrate the effectiveness of a collaborative approach, Bosiak points to the restructuring of recreation delivery in the early 1990s and the formation of the Dauphin Joint Recreation Commission which brought together several groups which had never officially worked together in the past.
Baseball advocates wanted new fields, soccer advocates wanted new pitches, proponents of hockey wanted a new arena and swimmers wanted a new pool.
“Our strategy was let’s get people together. We have to hear what their priorities are. Because before that people had priorities, but they were never collectively shared and then prioritized,” he said, adding a community roundtable discussion brought together 50 or 60 groups, each with an opportunity to express their wants and desires.
The process resulted in a list of community priorities which were worked on by everyone.
“We held everyone accountable by saying if this is priority one for us as a community we’ll all work on priority one. And if it gets accomplished then we just won’t go away, we will then work on priority two, three, four,” he said, adding he recently looked at some old notes from that time. “We listed 20 priorities, which is a lot at any given time for sure,” he said, citing a new arena, a new curling rink, a new pool, new sports fields, new soccer pitches and new walking trails and bike paths as being all in the top 10.
“When I looked at that list a couple weeks ago, we achieved everything. Not at once and not immediately, but up to 20 community priorities from 1993, they’ve all been achieved, they exist today. And mostly because nobody ran away after their priority got completed.
“Obviously completing the project is a priority, but it’s how you get it completed.”
It is all about what is good for the community, he continued, recalling a conversation with an older resident during the time when the push was on to develop the Parkland Recreation Complex.
“He said, “I don’t swim, I don’t curl. I’m an old guy, I’m 75, 80 years old. But if this means my kids will come home more often to visit me, I’m in favor of it. It’s good for us as a community’,” Bosiak said. “That just was such a message to me . . . you may not be the primary consumer or user of that service, but if it benefits the general sense of community it’s good.
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Jaddock ready for his new role as MVSD superintendent/CEO
Stephen Jaddock is preparing to step into the role of Mountain View School Division superintendent/CEO.
The current assistant superintendent has been hired to take over from Dan Ward when he leaves the division at the end of the month.
“I’ve been three years in the assistant superintendent role, and, of course, came to that position from the ranks of being a teacher and a principal and vice-principal within the division,” Jaddock said, adding he enjoys his role in administration. “It’s the ability to make decisions that influence education and influence what happens with students and with teachers and staff involved in the system. It just gives you a little bit of a role in that.”
Born in Brandon, Jaddock came to Dauphin via Edmonton.
“Of course my dad was born in Dauphin and we’d visit my baba here. I knew where Dauphin was on the map and I spent some good times here,” he said.
Jaddock started with MVSD in the 1993-94 school year as a Ukrainian language and Chemistry teacher at Dauphin Regional Comprehensive Secondary School.
“I had sent sort of an application package just blindly to every school division that had an English/Ukrainian bilingual program,” he said, adding it was the year Grade 9s were leaving Mackenzie Middle School for the DRCSS and a Ukrainian instructor was needed. “I got called for an interview and the rest is history.”
After three years teaching at the DRCSS, Jaddock moved to Smith-Jackson School where he taught for another four years before moving into the principal’s chair for a nine-year stint following which he moved back to the DRCSS as a vice-principal.
“My first year at the DRCSS they had an adult learning center, so I was also the director of the adult learning center. I just finished a master’s degree, so that was something that they were looking at having somebody look after,” he said, adding the program moved out of the school after the first year. “So then I did almost two years as a dual credits facilitator for the school division, working on getting high school students some college courses and university courses while still in Grade 12.”
And Jaddock is looking forward to putting everything he has learned throughout his career into action as superintendent.
“I’m just humbled and honoured to serve and I feel that all of the different positions that I’ve been able to have throughout my career will help me in that role as superintendent,” he said. “Right now the big thing is after coming out of COVID, learning and the mental health of students and staff is first and foremost. And making sure that we get on that firm foundation of where we want to move.”
Jaddock added the division has not been able to complete any “robust” planning in the last number of years.
“Looking at where do we want to be in the next five years or three to five years. We’ve just been able to do one-year plans the last couple of years, so what we’re looking forward to is being able to do a little bit more of the long-term planning,” he said. “Our minds were just in survival mode throughout the pandemic. When we were in the throes of the pandemic, we were just worried about one day at a time and we weren’t doing a whole lot of future thinking.”
Jaddock added the job will be made easier thanks to the firm footing Ward has put the division on and the talented staff at the division office.
“The great thing about Mountain View School Division is that there’s an excellent team in place at the division office and with all of our administrators and staff to work with students and to help them along the way,” he said.
Jaddock’s replacement in the assistant superintendent’s role will be announced soon.
Grad celebrations returning to “normal”
Graduation ceremonies throughout Mountain View School Division will have an air of familiarity this spring, as the division has cleared school to return to in-person convocations.
Over the last couple of years graduation exercises across MVSD have been “different”, said MVSD superintendent Dan Ward, with formats such as drive-through ceremonies, outdoor events or grad parades promoting the social distancing requirements of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’ve always made our decisions guided by the public health guidance of the day,” Ward said. “In reviewing the public health guidance as it stands right now, we felt comfortable moving ahead with in-person grads and really a return to normal so to speak. The grads will have the look and feel of grads pre-COVID.”
Ward added there are elements of the pandemic years grads which will have been adopted going forward. For instance, most communities will continue to have a grad parade following the ceremonies, he said.
“And some of our schools, including Dauphin, are looking at live streaming the events, knowing that there could still be some family members of our graduates that don’t feel comfortable coming to a large in-person event. Maybe they have a family member who’s immunocompromised or maybe they’re immunocompromised themselves, so they’ll still have that opportunity in particular at some of our larger schools for the live stream,” Ward said. “And we’re still going to recognize our grads in local publications like we’ve done in the past because we felt that was very well received in terms of having the grad pictures and write-ups from our six high school principals and our board.”
All six high schools in the division have decided to return to in-person convocations. Gilbert Plains will kickoff the schedule with its traditional Friday night graduation, June 17, followed the next day by Ethelbert and Grandview. The following week, Dauphin Regional comprehensive Secondary School, Winnipegosis and Goose Lake High in Roblin will have their graduations.
“Most of our communities are participating in the safe grad initiative this year, as well. By and large those safe grads are happening following the actual convocation event. That’s something that, of course, has been around for some time to ensure that our graduates are safe and can celebrate their accomplishment in a safe way,” Ward said. “We’re still going to emphasize good hand hygiene and masks are certainly welcome for those that choose to wear them. We’re encouraging any family members who are symptomatic to stay away, and if their school has that live stream option to use that option instead.”
Ward added a complete listing of graduation dates, venues and time will soon be available on the division website at www.mvsd.ca. A list of elementary and middle school year-end events will also be available.
Fire chiefs gather for MAFC conference
For the first time since 2019 fire chiefs from departments across the province were able to gather in person for the Manitoba Association of Fire Chiefs Annual Conference and Trade Show this year and they did so in Dauphin, June 2 to 4.
“We tried to run some virtual conferences over the past two years, but everybody meeting in little squares, Hollywood Square style, wasn’t the greatest,” said Dauphin fire chief Cam Abrey, who hosted the convention on behalf of the Riding Mountain Mutual Aid District. “The opportunity to bring in important speakers like we lined up this year was something that we’ve missed out on the last few years with our virtual conferences. We were only doing the business side of things, we didn’t have that opportunity to learn with each other and the networking opportunities.”
Whether it is over a meal or on the floor of the trade show, it is the unstructured times that offer the best connections.
“People are talking about their recent purchases, or different training opportunities,” Abrey said. “Do you really pay attention online? Now you have a chance to listen to somebody’s first-hand experiences and then network with each other and share that information back and forth.”
With more than 100 delegates registered, the MAFC offered several information sessions with speakers such as Laura King of the National Fire Prevention Association speaking on cancer prevention strategies and two firefighters from Winnipeg who have both experienced a cancer diagnosis sharing their personal journeys.
“It’s one of the things we want to share amongst the delegates in attendance. What can you do to better protect your firefighters? What can you do for your records maintenance so that if somebody does get a diagnosis in 20 or 30 years that there’s actually records maintenance for your department,” Abrey said.
Other speakers included Vince MacKenzie, chief of the Grand Falls-Windsor Fire Department in Newfoundland talking about how fire departments can recover post-COVID and Lionel Crowther, a Winnipeg firefighter who survived the 2007 fire which killed his colleagues, Captain Harold Lessard and Captain Thomas Nichols.
But the weekend was not all “heavy” as a comedian was hired to lighten things up Saturday night.
“Some nice clean comedy and a chance for everybody to break bread and just sit around and rehash old friendships,” Abrey said, adding holding the annual conference outside of the major urban areas is important. “It’s an extreme honour to be able to host this event . We allow our members to take in some of the sessions, as well, so it’s not just us sending out one or two representatives to bring the information back. More people have the opportunity to hear it,” he said. “We’re not only looking at Riding Mountain Mutual Aid District, our 11 departments, but all the departments of the Swan River Valley Mutual Aid District are able to attend, it’s less travel distance for them. The Lake Winnipegosis Mutual Aid District, those departments are able to attend. So keeping those transportation costs down is beneficial for the municipalities, as well, which is why we try to rotate the conference throughout the province. So each area can catch that same feeling. And bringing 200 people to the community for three or four days it is a financial boon.”
Local historians honoured for their efforts
Two Parkland residents have been honoured for their commitment to the preservation and promotion of local history and heritage.
Edward Stozek of Dauphin and Josephine “Jo” Bunka of Winnipegosis were both recipients of the The Lieutenant Governor’s Award for Historical Preservation and Promotion, during a ceremony at Government House, last week.
The award, initiated in 2011, is presented in consultation with the Manitoba Historical Society (MHS) to people who have rendered prolonged, meritorious service in the preservation and promotion of Manitoba’s history and heritage.
The awards are presented annually in a ceremony at Government House around Manitoba Day in May.
“The individuals selected to receive awards this year represent the many dedicated individuals throughout Manitoba who take such care in preserving and promoting this province’s rich and vibrant history,” Lt.-Gov. Janice C. Filmon said. “Whether through stewardship of the province’s historic buildings, museums and archives, the writing of books or creating programs to engage and inspire future historians, these outstanding Manitobans care deeply about the communities in which they live. It is a pleasure to recognize their efforts and achievements.”
A retired high school history teacher turned newspaper columnist, musician, and filmmaker, Stozek is active in promoting local history in the region. Stozek has authored three books to his credit including The Sawmill Boys, P.O.W.’s and Conscientious Objectors: Stories from the Parkland as well as A Slice Of The Parkland and Triumph And Tragedy From The Heart Of Manitoba. For more than a decade, Stozek has also contributed a biweekly column to the Dauphin Herald, “A Slice of the Parkland”, which earned him the Wes Rowson Memorial Award as Best Columnist from the Manitoba Community Newspaper Association.
Stozek has also produced four documentary films for MTS Television’s “Stories From Home”, serving as writer and narrator, on subjects ranging from German POWs in Riding Mountain National Park to Ukrainian settlers around Olha, Man. His films have been screened at Dauphin Culture Days, Dauphin’s Countryfest, Riding Mountain Film Festival and The Bend Theatre at Strathclair, Man. In addition, Stozek writes and performs original songs about Manitoba history at schools and public events, and is an active board member with Fort Dauphin Museum.
“I was really excited to have gotten the award. It was kind of a surprise,” Stozek said, adding he does not know who nominated him for the honour. “I feel honoured that I have received the award. All of the years of researching and doing the documentaries for the love of preserving the past.”
For Stozek, the ceremony, which included the presentation of the award and a luncheon, in the historic setting of Government House, was a highlight.
“It was just an amazing evening for me anyways because of the formalities and the governor’s house is sort of steeped in history, too,” he said, adding he was able to share the occasion with six guests. “I was kind of in awe of the building itself inside with all of the paintings and the tapestries. It was a really exciting evening. The Lieutenant Governor, she was a very hospitable host and very easy to talk to.”
Also a retired school teacher, Bunka is currently the curator and president of the Winnipegosis Historical Society (WHS) and has been a tireless volunteer for many years. Her museum duties are diverse, ranging from the organization of tours to the hiring of summer students to the acquisition of grants to managing the museum’s Facebook page and its weekly blog entries. An indication of her dedication to the north Parkland’s history, to better curate and care for the museum’s artifacts, Bunks received training from the Association of Manitoba Museums. Bunka also presently serves on that organization’s board as one of two Parkland regional councillors. The association has also recognized Bunka with two Awards of Excellence.
In addition to her duties with WHS, Bunka mentored a community group, which in 2015, compiled the history book More Reflections from Little Muddy Waters: A History of Winnipegosis. Right from the initial call from Filmon to the ceremony at Government House, Bunka has been overwhelmed and humbled by the award. It is an honour she believes belongs to the WHS as a whole.
“This award, though it came to me personally, I sincerely believe it belongs to the Winnipegosis Historical Society board,” Bunka said. “I have been with them since 1985 and working together we have been so fortunate. We have preserved two marvelous buildings that are now our museums, the CN Station and the Medd House.”
To be honoured for something she loves so much is almost surreal for Bunka.
“I am passionate about history and I have made it something that I have always been involved in. It comes from my own family. I grew up in a family that tells and retells its history and stories,” she said. “I know that I am passing it on to my children and grandchildren because it is part of me, wanting to preserve that history.”
And the Parkland has a rich history that is being preserved by dedicated individuals for the future, so people can get a real sense of where they come from, Bunka said.
“I look at what Ed has done and it is just marvelous. What a talent to be able to preserve the written stories. And what I am trying to do is also preserve the stories, but it is artifacts and photos and research papers and those types of documentation,” she said. “We have such a strong Indigenous story here and we are fortunate that we have been able to work together and preserve that story.”
Like it was for Stozek, Bunka found the ceremony at Government House a highlight of the whole experience.
“Seeing the Governor’s house, 1883 it was built. I wanted to explore every nook and cranny. I was so excited. It had a beautiful curved staircase. I knew I couldn’t go up it, but I was dying to,” Bunka said, adding she invited fellow WHS board members Loretta Dyck, Terry Wood and Ruth Wright to be part of the evening, along with colleagues from the Association of Manitoba Museums. “The ceremony was beautiful. Her Honour was so gracious. She made us feel at home in her home. She spoke from her heart and truly I felt she was honouring us in such a kind and thoughtful way. Having the president of the Manitoba Historical Society there, Gordon Gouldsborough there really added to the ceremony. I was just so overwhelmed.”
The Manitoba Historical Society (MHS) receives award nominations from the public and recommends up to three people to receive awards each year. Nominations are welcome at any time. This year, Elva Simundsson of Gimli was also honoured with an award.
Further details of the award program, along with a nomination form are available on the MHS website at www.mhs.mb.ca and can additionally be accessed through the website of the lieutenant-governor at www.manitobalg.ca.
Imagine
Students a Ecole Macneill spread a message of love and peace to an appreciative audience during a noon hour performance to mark Music Monday, Monday.
Students from Kindergarten to Grade 5 performed a variety of songs including “Imagine” by John Lennon and “Blowing in the Wind” by Bob Dylan.
A silver collection was accepted prior to the performance with proceeds earmarked for the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund.
First Ukrainian families arrive
The first three families from Ukraine to be sponsored by the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund have arrived in Dauphin.
Two families arrived last Tuesday and the third on Wednesday, said fund founder and member Don Tarrant (Right). All three, he added are comprised of mothers and their children as the fathers are all still in Ukraine fighting with the country’s armed forces.
“They just said whenever the war is over they’re going to come, but right now we don’t know when that will be,” Tarrant said. “What we’ve done is they’ve gone to local families for a few weeks here to get them integrated. They have to get the kids in school and get their medical stuff up to date. We’re going to have a session about meeting employers, getting skill levels figured out, getting their language levels figured out. This is where the (local) families are trying just to get them settled properly.”
Tarrant expects the families, who are all planning on staying in the area permanently, will be in their own homes by the end of the month.
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City waiting for word on province’s one-time road repair funding
While the details are few, the City of Dauphin is expecting to receive somewhere around $90,000 under a one-time provincial grant program aimed at road rehabilitation.
Premier Heather Stefanson announced $15 million will be distributed on a per capita basis, providing municipalities with financial support for road reconstruction, rehabilitation and preservation projects.
“Manitoba municipalities are facing significant road infrastructure challenges as a result of this year’s extraordinary weather conditions,” Stefanson said. “Above-average precipitation and colder-than-average temperatures have caused a substantial increase in the number and severity of potholes on roads throughout the province, and inflation and supply chain issues have also added to this challenge. In addition to our Budget 2022 investments in highways and municipalities, we are pleased to offer this extra support to reduce the financial burden.”
As part of this grant program, the province will distribute the pot of money to all of Manitoba’s 137 municipalities on a per-capita basis, with the City of Winnipeg to receive nearly $9 million of the total.
Get all the details in this week's Dauphin Herald!
RCMP report drop in calls for March
The Manitoba RCMP West District saw a year-over-year decrease in calls for March according to statistics released last week.
The district, which includes Dauphin, reported decreases in all main categories.
The following sub-category increases and decreases were highlighted by police:
• Common police activities - This category had an overall decrease of 19 per cent, from 569 calls in 2021 to 459 this year. The largest decreases was in suspicious people, vehicles or property, which dropped from 232 calls last year to 158 this year, a drop of 32 per cent, and breach of peace, which was down 33 per cent from 146 calls to 98. Wellbeing checks were up from 67 calls last year to 83 in 2022, an increase of 24 per cent.
• Crimes against the person - Overall, the category decreased from 381 calls for service last year to 346 this year, a drop of nine per cent, with a 15 per cent decrease in assaults, which were down from 232 to 198.
• Crimes against property - The category had a minimal decrease overall from 550 calls in 2021 to 547 calls this year, a drop of just one per cent. Theft under $5,000 increased from 112 requests for service to 136, an increase of 21 per cent, and fraud increased from 64 calls in 2021 to 71 in 2022, a rise of 11 per cent. Theft over $5,000 decreased from 42 to 29, a drop of 31 per cent.
• Drug enforcement - Overall drug enforcement decreased from 62 calls last year to 34 incidents this year, a drop of 45 per cent, with a notable decrease in trafficking, which was down from 42 to 17, a drop of 60 per cent.
The Manitoba East District also reported an overall decrease in incidents for March, dropping 13 per cent from 6,607 calls in March 2021 to 5,722 this past March.
The Manitoba North District, however, reported a 14 per cent increase in call volume climbing from 5,590 last year to 6,399 this year.