The Dauphin Regional Comprehensive Secondary School Clippers football team has begun practising for the upcoming Rural Manitoba Football League season.

And while there will be some holes to fill from last year’s Murray Black Cup winning roster, head coach Gerald Lopez likes the way things are shaping up.. 

“I think we’ll be competitive,” Lopez said.

“We are probably getting on average about 25 players per practice. In the beginning there was a lot of younger players and now that the Summer Games is all done, all the veteran players are all returning.”

The team will have to adjust to the loss of graduating players Will Miner, Owen Tyschinski and Lars Gudbjartson, he added.

Miner was a  a powerhouse running back who went looking for contact. Last season he had ​87 carries for 828 yards with one touchdown and one fumble.

Tyschinski was an anchor on the Clippers’ offensive line and a force downfield on special teams while at six feet, five inches in height,

Gudbjartson was an imposing figure on the Clippers defensive line recording 18 tackles, six assists, three fumble recoveries and one forced fumble in 2023.

And while Tyschinski and Gudbjartson are now plying their trade with the Westshore Rebels in Langford, B.C., there are some talented players ready to fill the holes they left.

“Sully Fox will be returning to lead our club in this year’s campaign. His presence defensively will set the tone of our game. I have no doubt in my mind defensive coach Tomkins will transform his defensive group to be, once again, the top unit the RMFL. Blake Thacker, Jackson Cheater and Brendon Higgins are expected to be leaders on our defence,” Lopez said.

“Zach Perih and Kingston Sterling will anchor our matured offensive line while Chaynes Paziuk and Russell Pelltier will be the downhill runners.”

Lopez added there is also a good crop of rookies looking to join the program including Ronin Mouke, Chase Glover, Alex Thompson and Julien Lopez.

“They will be rookies on the football field but are standout athletes in other sports such as hockey and rugby,” he said.

“I have no doubt they will provide an immediate impact to our club.”

While the schedule is still being adjusted to account for the Transcona Nationals not being able to join the league as expected, as it stands now the Clippers will open the season at home  Sept. 6, versus the Swan Valley Tigers.

“We’ll be competitive. They’ll be learning from the start, but we’ll bring it on as the season progresses,” Lopez said.

For half a century the Dauphin Friendship Centre (DFC) has been enhancing the quality of life in the community.

Incorporated in 1974 as one of 11 friendship centres in Manitoba, the DFC celebrated its 50th anniversary as a not-for-profit, charitable organization, recently.

The organization’s mission “to enhance the quality of life for both Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people in the community by working together to provide quality programs and services to meet the needs of our membership and the community at large”, has been largely met throughout the last five decades and will continue to be the focus in the future, said Susie Secord, who has been with the DFC since the beginning and is currently volunteering as the organization’s general manager until a new executive director can be recruited.

“We have come a long way since the first few years certainly,” Secord said.

“I remember when this building was purchased and it was the Beaver Lumber building. The back area was nothing more than a great big garage where the lumber was stored and the big trucks would come in and pick up. Now it’s a hall. The front part of the building was just an open area with offices along the wall.”

That kind of evolution only comes through a lot of hard work, Secord said, and a lot of people have committed themselves to the success of the DFC over the years.

“I’m really proud of our staff and everyone involved, she said.

“Our volunteers, it really warms my heart when I see the number of volunteers that we have, particularly for our hot lunch program. They’re faithful, they come back year after year and it’s a huge commitment. We couldn’t ask for a better group of volunteers really.”

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

For 59 years Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival has been a beacon of culture, celebrated among those of Ukrainian descent and shared with anyone wanting to experience the colourful, rich traditions of music, dance and food.

And everything is in place to continue the celebration this August long weekend at the Selo Ukraina site at the foot of Riding Mountain National Park, south of Dauphin, said CNUF president Kayla Gillis.

“We’re really looking forward to festival weekend. The ticket sales have been amazing and we are so grateful that patrons keep coming back year after year and they always bring somebody new with them,” Gillis said, adding she is eagerly anticipating a new twist this year that she is sure will delight the crowd.

“Our Saturday night grandstand, we’re doing something we’ve never done before. We’re bringing in a projection screen for a backdrop and Rusulka is coming to perform their show Voda. They are going to be using backdrop projection to be able to help tell the story line of the dance. So we will be utilizing a later grandstand on Saturday evening just so with the darkness, the projector will work better.”

Gillis is pleased that CNUF remains such a strong attraction at a time when other festivals are struggling to attract crowds. In fact, she said advance ticket sales are up about 15 per cent over the last two years.

“I do think it has a lot to do with the community and the surrounding communities that still want to support this cultural festival. I think a lot of it is just that connection that we have to Ukraine,” she said.

“And having a lot of the newcomers (Ukrainian immigrants fleeing the war in their homeland), as well. I do believe that is a factor.”

But even with a 59-year history there are many people who have never attended CNUF.

Come once and you will be hooked, Gillis said.

Read the full story in this weeks Dauphin Herald.

With the zoning requirements now satisfied, work can progress on the development of a new child care facility in Dauphin.

At its regular meeting, July 15, Dauphin city council approved a conditional use application to allow for a 120 space child care facility on Dauphin Recreation Services land at the corner of  Sixth Avenue Southeast and Third Street Southeast.

Dauphin Economic Development manager Martijn van Luijn, who is spearheading the project for the city, said the design process is about two-thirds complete.

“We’re going to get ready for a Class B estimate. That means that the design is finalized, nothing will change, we’re meeting all the regulatory requirements, but now it’s about what nuts and bolts go where. All about the technical details, so that they can go out and tender this,” van Luijn said, adding an online call for suggestions for a facility name garnered about 45 entries and he will consult with the facility operator to decide.

Parkland Campus Kids was selected as the day care operator early in the process and van Luijn said the established child care organization has been instrumental in the design process.

“They’ve played an intergral role to decide which bench is going to go where and which toilet is needed and all that kind of stuff,” he said.

“So it’s been very neat to have them as part of that.”

Once those smaller design details have been finalized, the tender is expected to be issued sometime this fall.

“It’s all about the bid process and how quickly you can find a contractor to build it,” van Luijn said.

While that process unfolds, van Luijn hopes that site preparation can begin this fall to try and keep the project as close to the Mar. 31, 2025, deadline as possible.

“We’ve had some delays and we’re probably going to have to extend that deadline, but we have some flexibility there so we’re not worried about that. We would have loved to been ahead more at this point, but I guess with all the pressures in the industry and not having people available, it’s at a stand still at this point,” he said, adding people should expect to see some activity at the site before the snow flies.

Read the full story in this weeks Dauphin Herald.

While the excess moisture the Dauphin area has received this spring and early summer has been a nuisance for many, for agricultural producers the impact has been far more significant.

As a result, the Rural Municipality of Dauphin council passed a resolution at its July 9 regular meeting declaring a state of agricultural disaster.

“Just look outside. With the moisture that we’ve had starting prior to Apr. 1, the fact that producers couldn’t finish seeding, the fact that we’re losing crop every day, the fact that there’s a whole bunch of people under undue stress that is caused by all this, we had to make a decision,” Reeve Ernie Sirski said.

“That was the decision we made.”

Sirski said the councils of Mossey River and Gilbert Plains have passed similar resolutions.

 “We’re hoping that in conjunction with our sister municipalities . . . we could put some pressure on the provincial and federal governments, saying ‘look, there is a problem here. Let’s try and come to some sort of understanding that we need to do something’,” he said, adding what that “something” is as yet undetermined.

“What’s the something? First of all acknowledging the fact that there is an issue, that’s the first thing. The second one is, is there something that we can do within the existing programs, whether it be AgriInsurance, AgriInvest or AgriStability, to try and help the producers that are affected. The third one is an ad hoc program that government has done in the past to try and alleviate and help the producers that are affected.”

And it is not simply agricultural producers that are impacted, Sirski said, adding municipalities are seeing their budgets take a hit on roads, bridges, culverts and other drainage infrastructure.

“This whole thing goes beyond the producers themselves, the farmers. It goes into what we’ve had to spend as municipalities to try and make sure that people can get to where they’re going,” he said.

In the Dauphin area, total rainfall, according to the Hydrological Forecast Center, is officially recorded as 223 millimetres between  Apr. 1 and July 1, approximately 137 per cent of normal. Those numbers do not tell the whole story.

“We had significant snowfalls in March, which people seem to forget about and significant amounts of precipitation,” he said, adding it   added up to a late start to the crop year.

“We started the crop and our soil moisture content here locally was full and then we had all this precipitation.”

While it is hard to quantify the extent of the problem across the region, Sirski said it is reasonable to expect that many other producers are experiencing the crop year similar to his operation.

Read the full story in this weeks Dauphin Herald.

The City of Dauphin is taking a new approach to dealing with its four-legged residents and visitors.

That new approach is evident in the move away from the previous “Animal Control” program to an “Animal Service” approach with more of a proactive focus on animal welfare and responsible pet ownership.

“That includes rewriting the animal control bylaw, which is underway currently to include more progressive wording and more proactive guidelines for promoting responsible pet ownership,” said deputy city manager Lisa Gaudet, who is spearheading the project.

That shift began recently with city council  awarding a contract for a new Animal Services officer to David McInnes of Barkland Pet Resort, replacing Todd Tarrant, who served as the city’s Animal Control officer on an open ended contract since 2006.

As part of the contract, McInnes is offering space for a new city animal retention centre, solving a problem the city has had since the pound at Dauphin Veterinary Clinic closed in January.

“It’s been very difficult, because we do have a problem in the community with an overpopulation of dogs and cats running at large and we had no place to put them,” Gaudet said.

Under an agreement with the City, the clinic operated as the city pound since 1999. Recently the level of work required by clinic staff to satisfy pound requirements increased.

“Every cat or dog that was brought into the pound had to be cared for on the weekend, so they had to have staff coming in to feed the animals and to let them out because there was no runs attached to the kennels,” Gaudet said, adding people dropping off stray animals at the clinic was also becoming a problem.

“It was a huge strain on the vet clinic staff and they decided it just wasn’t sustainable.”

The proposal from Barkland solves that problem, Gaudet added.

“It’s not just one Animal Services officer, it’s a team. They have two certified dog behaviorists on staff and they have an excellent team of people who are going to be able to provide 24/7 animal services for the city.” she said.

Also new this year is a Spay Neuter Assistance Program (SNAP).

Based on a voucher system with the two local veterinary clinics the program is open to everyone who requires financial assistance with spay or neuter.

The City will cover 50 per cent of costs to a maximum of $175 for female dogs, $125 for male dogs, $125 for female cats and $75 for male cats to a maximum of $10,000 per year. 

Applicants must show proof of Dauphin residence and provide proof of a current rabies vaccination and a pet license.

To build on that, Gaudet hopes to introduce a Trap Neuter Release program in the near future.

Read more in this weeks Dauphin Herald.

Some Dauphin residents may be receivng a knock on their door as Manitoba Forestry and Peatlands Branch staff complete surveys for Dutch Elm Disease and elm firewood, as well as monitoring for invasive forest pests.

Provincial inspectors will be driving or walking around the community to look for Dutch Elm Disease infected trees and elm firewood with bark attached. Elm firewood spreads Dutch Elm Disease and is illegal to store.

But it is not just Dutch Elm Disease that is being targetted.

“I think they are looking for Emerald Ash Borer and apparently it’s not here yet, thankfully,” deputy city manager Lisa Gaudet said.

“But they do monitor for that. They’re keeping a close eye on Emerald Ash Borer.”

Inspectors will be wearing high visibility vests and government issued identification.

They will be surveying both private and public property and may not approach every resident or house before entering onto properties to conduct inspections.

Inspectors will knock on doors prior to taking branch samples, marking Dutch Elm Disease infected trees, or marking elm firewood for removal under the Dutch Elm Disease Management Program and The Forest Health Protection Act.

Gaudet said the surveys are part of a city and provincial partnership to combat urban forest threats.

“They identify the trees and they provide a list for the rapid removals later this summer. We usually remove about 18 to 20 trees via rapid removal,” she said.

“Then in the fall they give me the full list of Dutch Elm Disease trees that need to be removed. I release an RFP (request for proposals) in the fall and contract someone to remove them in January and February each year.”

Dauphin residents are advised inspectors may be working in the evenings and on weekends.

Dauphin city council held a special meeting, June 27, to approve the 2023 audited financial statement.

In the opinion of auditors Meyers Norris Penny, the City’s consolidated financial statements, “present fairly in all material respects the consolidated financial position of the City as at December 31, 2023, and the results of its consolidated operations remeasurement gains and or losses, changes in net financial assets, cash flows and supporting schedules for the year then ended in accordance with the Canadian Public Sector Accounting Standards.

“I’d like to acknowledge both Scott Carr and the folks in our finance department that did a tremendous amount of work, considering some backend glitches in how the system worked for this year. And also just a thank you to Meyers Norris Penney for sort of stepping in the breach and helping Scott and the folks here at the city to get this in on time,” mayor David Bosiak said, adding changes to the taxation system around education levies added a wrinkle this year and made timelines tight for city staff to provide the audited books to the province.

“Just to re-emphasize the notion that we have a clean audit with no adjustments, that speaks volumes of the tremendous work that our administration does here at city hall to keep council in line and operating under good financial practices. So again, congrats to those folks.”

The special meeting also provided council an opportunity to take care of some other pending business.

Council authorized the purchase of a new heavy duty utility truck accounted for in the 2024 financial plan after a request for proposals closed, June 21.

Two proposals were received from local dealers with council choosing to purchase a 2024 Dodge Ram 3500 at a cost of $72,570 plus applicable taxes. Council had originally budgetted $80,000 for the purchase.

While gathered, councillors also gave second and third readings to, signed and sealed Bylaw 04/2024, appointing Robert Dodds as a special constable for the City of Dauphin, allowing the community’s new bylaw enforcement officer to begin his duties.

Dauphin Regional Comprehensive Secondary School honoured the 139 students making up its Class of 2024 at a convocation Saturday.

But before they went their separate ways to begin life after high school, valedictorian Maddison Garton gave her classmates one last test.

After introducing herself to those gathered in the school gymnasium - telling them teacher Andrew Coombs is her best friend, she has a pretty cool stepmom, her favourite colour is blue, and she believes classmate Kendel Marie Gibbs is the funniest person alive - Garton asked graduates to name the top five wealthiest people they know, the last five winners of the Stanley Cup and the last six  decades of world series winners.

“How did you do?,” she asked, following up with a quote from Peanuts creator Charles Schultz.

“The point is that none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. There are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their field. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten.”

Garton followed up those questions to her classmates with some easier queries, providing her own answers along the way.

Read more in this week’s Dauphin Herald

Fire Chief Cam Abrey provided Dauphin city councillors with an update on his department’s activities in the first quarter of 2024 as part of the city’s regular meeting, June 10.

In the first four months of the current year, the local fire department responded to 65 calls compared to 84 in 2023.

And with May added in, the department is sitting at 85 emergency responses in 2024, compared to 99 in the same time frame of the previous year.

False alarms continue to make up the bulk of the department’s responses, followed by kitchen fires and motor vehicle collisions.

“Some of our false alarms that were identified are either due to humidity or construction dust. In the past we’ve had some malicious false alarms, but there haven’t been too many of those this year,” Abrey said.

“We are trying to identify where those alarms are coming from and trying to come up with some sort of preincident education for everybody, so that we can cut down on those calls.”

Abrey also ran down the department’s training activities and gave an update on the construction of the new pumper truck that was ordered in 2023. The hope is the truck will be delivered in early 2025.

Read more in this week’s Dauphin Herald