The members of The Pas Helping Hands 4-H had the opportunity to showcase their skills earlier this month at the Manitoba 4-H Council’s Communications Extravaganza. The members had been working on presentations and delivering them, leading up to this event.
“The Pas Helping Hands 4-H Members traveled to Brandon on April 15th to compete in the Manitoba 4-H Council’s Communications Extravaganza,” said The Pas Helping Hands 4-H Leader Cheryl Antonio. “The 4-H program in Manitoba, and across Canada, delivers opportunity for youth to develop personally in areas of self-confidence, responsibility and leadership. Life skills are gained through many hands-on project offerings, in addition to communication, leadership, problem-solving and goal-setting skills.

Last week The Pas Rotary Club honoured one of their members for his 40 years of service by presenting him with the Lifetime Member Award. Gary Morrish has dedicated many years to serving as a member of The Pas Rotary Club, along with other members of his immediate family.
“My father, Clarence, had served as a rotary member here in the Pas for 40 years,” said Morrish. “It was through his example which led me to joining. I remember my dad being a faithful member as I was growing up.
“At one point and time, my dad, myself and my son, Brent, were Rotarians with the The Pas Rotary Club. It was my dad’s proudest moment to see three generations serving the same Rotary Club.”

University College of the North (UCN) is proud to announce the official launch of the Computers for Schools (C4S) Manitoba location in The Pas, Manitoba. In partnership with UCN's Information Technology Readiness North (InTeRN) Program, funded by the Future Skills Centre, this ground-breaking initiative aims to support education, skills development, and environmental responsibility through providing affordable technology.
C4S Manitoba is committed to providing refurbished computers to eligible clients, including schools and non-profit organizations. UCN students recently tested and refurbished 30 computers. The units will be donated to local Kelsey School Division and Opaskwayak Educational Authority schools. This work ensures more community members and students can access affordable technology in the north.
"We have always had historical challenges in serving the northern region due to geographical constraints," said Justin Menard, Executive Director, Computers for Schools Manitoba,

The Swan River Curling Club hosted Where’s Waldo, a fundraiser for the Swan River Community Centre that consisted of search for living ‘Waldos’ around the community as well as a supper and backyard party filled with fun and games. There were 48 teams (220) people that participated in the Where’s Waldo with another 100 that attended for supper or the backyard party.

The northern lights were out in full force Sunday night (April 23) with a nearly 360 degree show happening that was visible to the naked eye. All shades of green and even some purple exploded and danced across the sky for several hours starting around 10 p.m..

There is something about playing on their home court that brings out the best in the Parkland Vipers volleyball players.

The 15U Vipers became the program’s third team to win its home tournament, this past weekend.

Parkland finished second in its pool after round-robin play, opening with a 26-24, 7-25 and 8-15 loss to the Westman Wave.

The Vipers rebounded with a 25-8 and 25-20 win over CW Smash, followed by a 26-27, 25-20 and 15-11 win over Vision Elite Blue.

Parkland opened the playoffs with a 25-15 and 25-17 win over the Kenora Lakers in the quarterfinals and advanced to the championship match with a 23-25, 25-21 and 15-12 win over the CW Rage.

The final was a battle of the Parkland with the Vipers coming out on top over the Predators, 25-22, 20-25 and 16-14.

Vipers coach Nicole Yarema said the team played well throughout the tournament.

“It feels like things are finally coming together. This was their last tournament before provincials and it feels really good to end things on such a positive note,” she said.

The team has been consistently improving with every tournament they’ve played since the start of the season, Yarema said.

“This tournament especially, they were playing like a team. They were playing strategically. You could see the things that they’ve been learning in practice. It was really, really good for everyone,” she added.

Yarema hopes the team can carry the momentum from this tournament win into provincials, May 6 and 7, in Winnipeg.

“Our ranking is pretty low, so our goal is to come out in the top half,” she said.

Winning their home tournament is a special moment, Yarema said.

“As a coach, it’s definitely one of those moments that makes you super proud. All the girls worked really hard and they definitely deserved the win,” she said.

As for provincials, the expectation is to keep playing they way they have in recent tournaments.

“They’ve definitely shown me that they have got it in them to win. The team that we beat in the final, the Predators, are ranked quite a bit higher than us, so I’m hoping that they can really show everything that they’ve learned,” Yarema said.

Branch and Riley Langevin, who will soon turn three years old, enjoy an ice cream treat from A Scoop of Happiness, Dauphin’s new ice cream shop.

A Scoop of Happiness opened for business on Friday, serving soft and hard ice cream treats, just in time for summer.

It will be open seven days a week from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Braving unseasonable weather, local members of the Public Service Alliance of Canada whose jobs were deemed nonessential, were on the picket lines last week as the union seeks  a new contract with the Government of Canada.

Among other things the union is seeking wage increases and a deal on working remotely.

As the strike drags on across the country, the union is preparing to ramp up by moving picket lines to more “strategic locations.” 

A special concert will take place later this week in support of the Ukrainian army’s defense of their homeland.

Ukrainian artist Kozak Siromaha will perform at the Ukrainian Orthodox Hall, Apr. 30.

Those attending the special evening will be immersed into the authentic lifestyle, music and singing of the Cossacks.

Living according to ancient Cossack traditions, which includes not consuming alcohol or meat, Siromaha is a free Cossack who lives on the banks of the Dnipro River in a Cossack settlement, bringing up his children according to Cossack traditions, and teaching them Cossack art.

Siromaha knows the hopak martial dance, which is more than 1,000 years old, and uses the dance in his performances.

He also fences with Cossack sabers and creates a proper shamanic ritual on stage.

Siromaha is the only Ukrainian Cossack who plays the harmonium and he performs his compositions in an authentic Cossack style.

In addition to music and vocal compositions, a lot of Cossack legends, interesting facts, and stories will be shared during the event.

Doors to the hall open at 4:30 p.m. and the concert gets underway at 5 p.m.

Tickets are $30 for adults and can be purchased at the door, online at www.eventbrite.ca/e/kozak-siromaha-in-dauphin-mb-tickets-620479349437, or by calling Oleksandra Berdnyk at 431-738-8996.

Those 17 and under will be admitted free.

All proceeds from the event will be used to support operations of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

The clubhouse of the Russell Flying Club was absolutely packed with kids and their parents this past Saturday. In just a few hours, seven members of the Russell Flying Club worked together to have 82 kids taken up for flights around the area.

As they have (almost) every year for more than a couple of decades, the members of the Russell Flying Club took kids up in their personal planes, donating their gas and their time.

Bruce Christopher, a long time member of the club explained that every year, the grade six students of Major Pratt take a Theory of Flight unit in school. “We go in and have a chat with the kids who are taking the class,” he said. “The idea is to get kids interested in flying and these flights give them a practical application to the theory they’ve learned in school which is why we have an age limit on the kids we take up.” Whenever possible, the kids who have taken the flight training at school are put up in the front seat, next to the pilot, giving them a hands on take at what they’ve learned. This year, the addition of another pilot, Bruce said added a special element. “We had a young lady from Roblin flying this year,” he said. “Which was really nice to have the young girls seeing a female pilot.”