The Pas Community Renewal Corporation (TPCRC) is looking forward to bringing back the Street Festival to the tri-community again. There are lots of activities for people of all ages to engage in at this year’s Street Festival.
“This year’s Street Festival will have music, games, a bounce castle, free Zumba, face painting, bubbles, and shopping with our local vendors and home-based businesses,” said TPCRC Community Engagement Coordinator Holly LaJambe. “It’s going to be held on Saturday, August 19, and will be located on Edwards Avenue, between 2nd Street and Saskatchewan Crescent. First Street will not be closed for this event.”

The Town of The Pas has announced the hiring of a new Chief Administrative Officer. Bola Adedoyin, will begin in the role August 8 and according to a Town announcement she brings a wealth of experience and leadership to the town.
Bola Adedoyin is a statistician, researcher and a senior administrator who has served in numerous leadership roles both provincially and internationally.

Summertime is here and many people are making plans to go camping at the lake or travelling to other communities for a visit. Back in the day, the Valley had a series of cabins known as the Birch Wood Cabins that brought many tourists and visitors to the area. The history of Birch Wood Cabins is extensive and although it changed owners and names over the years, it’s a definite staple of the history of the Valley.
The Birch Wood Cabins were built and owned originally by the Tall family, and their granddaughter, Doreen Tall Pellissier shared her recollections of the history of those cabins.
“My grandparents were Alfred Tall, born in 1888 in Kearney, Ont., and Mary or Mamie (Jordan) Tall, born in 1894 in Oak Lake,” said Pellissier. “Mamie came to the Swan River Valley to teach at Avonlea School in 1914, and met Alf, who was from the Cropper Tops District. They were married on July 26, 1916, in Brandon.
“They lived with Alf’s mother and brother and in 1917, moved to their own farm, a mile down the road from the Tall original homestead which was established in 1901. The farm was in the family until 2011.
“Alf and Mamie had seven children, Gladys (Scotty Taylor); Merle (Ellery Taylor); Stan (Velma Graham); Elsie (Edwin Smith), Allan (Kay Hickman); Marg (Stan McNevin), and Aileen,” said Pellissier. “My parents are Allan and Kay. It was my dad and brother who continued the family farm until it was sold.
“Their son, Stan, had come home from WWII, so Alf and Mamie decided to leave the running of the farms to their two sons, and they retired to Swan River. Upon retiring, they felt too young to quit working entirely, so they decided to build the cabins and cater to the tourist trade. They built Birch Wood Cabins, and it was named because of the row of beautiful birch trees that lined their lot between the cabins and the cemetery.”
The Birch Wood Cabins were unique in the sense that they were in Swan River and not near a body of water or in a provincial park. Over the years the cabins saw visitors from many different places and northern tourism was beginning to take off around this time as well.
“The cabins were along Hwy. No. 10 north, about half a mile from Swan River’s Main Street,” said Pellissier. “There were seven cabins, positioned in a U-shape with swings and green space in the center. There was a small store in one building, as well as a larger building with hot and cold running water. Grandma washed the bedding in this building, which also had an iron mangle for ironing the sheets. There were no toilet facilities within the cabins themselves.
“Northern tourism was starting to boom and there were lots of people from all over Canada and the U.S. travelling through the Valley by Hwy. No. 10. Many of the activities included hunting and fishing, and many of the men would rent the cabins as a result of those trips. The by-pass was not yet thought of, so the location was ideal as there would be little else for accommodations until The Pas. For local tourism, Wellman Lake in the Duck Mountains and Steeprock Lake in the Porcupine Mountains would be the water recreational areas.
“The cabins were at least half a mile from downtown, with no store nearby,” said Pellissier. “Therefore, the small store that was part of the business was frequented by locals, as well as tourists. It appears that several people living nearby bought groceries there and it was a fantastic place for a child to buy some candy.
“My grandma loved that part of the business, but family stories indicate my grandpa wasn’t quite so patient. It could be at dinner time, or when the family was visiting, but the little bell would ring, and my grandma would tend to a customer. It could have taken quite a while for a child to decide how to spend his/her dime when there was such an array of candy available at three pieces for a penny. Those children are in their 60s and 70s today and some have been kind enough to share those memories with me and let me know how much my grandma was appreciated.”
The Tall’s owned and operated the cabins until the early 1960s, when they decided to sell, and they continued to live in Swan River.
“The property consisting of the house and seven cabins was put up for sale in August of 1963,” said Pellissier. “By that time, the by-pass was in use and these types of cabins were quickly being replaced by modern cabins and motels. As well, Alf and Mamie were getting older and quite ready to take things easy.”
Pellissier has fond memories of when her grandparents owned and operated the Birch Wood Cabins. Many others have reached out to her as well to share their memories of trips to the cabins and visits with her grandparents during those trips.
“I do remember going to grandma and grandpa’s house during their time operating Birch Wood Cabins,” said Pellissier. “I especially remember my grandma taking us across the lawn to the little store and we were allowed to pick out some candy. In later years, she moved the store to a room in the house. I do remember the swing and the yard, and the washroom. There was a fad around that time where people took old tractor tires, painted them and used them for flower beds and lawn décor. Grandma had some of those painted white and pink.
“My cousin shared with me that they remembered people coming to the cabins in the middle of the night and honking their horns to see if there was a vacancy. That was the only way to do it back in the day.
“I don’t remember my last trip to the cabins; however, I do remember my last thoughts,” said Pellissier. “When the cabins were about to be sold, my dad mentioned that maybe he should get one as a playhouse for my sister and me. That sounded perfect, and I was imagining all sorts of fun things. Alas, it didn’t happen, and the cabins became the property known as the Moon Glo Cabins located where Fas Gas is now.”
Unfortunately, not long after the sale of Birch Wood Cabins, Alf passed. The history of Birch Wood Cabins, then turned into Moon Glo Cabins, with another story to tell that was all it’s own.
“My grandparents stayed in Swan River after the sale of the cabins, as that was their home,” said Pellissier. “They bought a house on Fifth Avenue, just down the street from where Ace Hardware is now. Alf passed away in 1967 and Mamie in 1993.
“All that remains of the site now is a vacant lot at this time.”

Canola fields all across the Valley have been blooming brightly this past week making a drive around the countryside a beautiful and cheerful experience.

There is still time to sign up for the Battle for the Belts, taking place, July 23, at the Gilbert Plains Country Club (GPCC).

More than 40 teams have registered so far, but organizers are hoping to increase that number to more than 50, with a limit of 72 teams.

Dale Murray and Boston Karlson will be back to defend the titles they won last year.

The tournament is a two-person scramble, with a 10 a.m. shotgun start and it is open to anyone, men, women and children alike.

The registration fee is $130 per team and it includes a meal and prizes.

Registrations must be prepaid by calling Chris Todoruk at 204-648-7989 or Danny Scott at 204-572-7552. The registration deadline is July 17.

There will be a $10,000 hole-in-one, sponsored by Love and Persson Group, as well as a $1,000 hole-in-one.

All proceeds will go towards upgrades at the GPCC.

When Christine Letain went to pick up the mail for St. Viator’s parish last week, a special surprise was waiting for her.

“There was a package containing a letter from St. Dominic’s School in Humboldt, expressing their sadness and their condolences to the community, as well as Grade 2 and Grade 6 students made up a bunch of cards with messages on them saying they’re praying for us and they’re sad,” Letain said. “I just thought it was something really special, especially coming from Humboldt.”

The letter contained in the package read:

To the Community of Dauphin and the Surrounding Area,

We are deeply saddened by your recent tragedy and would like to offer our sincerest condolences on the loss of 16 community members. We continue to offer up our prayers for the 16 souls, their loved ones, for the injured and for all the people who have helped and continue to help moving forward. Please accept thses cards and distribute as you see fit as a reminder that we stand with you in your time of immense sorrow.

Much love and hugs from, St. Dominis School Students and Staff, Humboldt, Saskatchewan

_____

Right now Letain is trying to determine the best way to share the cards and the letter with the community at large.

“This isn’t just a message for St. Viator’s, it’s for the entire community” Letain said, adding the parish will try to determine the best way to share the messages with Dauphin residents.

“Right now I’ve just got them all here at the church. We actually have a funeral here on Saturday for one of those victims and so I thought it might be kind of nice if (the cards) are here for them to see. But after that I have no idea what to do with them.”

The tender for the $13.5 million Main Street South reconstruction project has finally been issued.

The province called for proposals for work on PTH 5A, the main access into the City of Dauphin from the south, as a result of expanded commercial development along the route which has brought with it increased traffic volumes and higher collision rates.

The 1.7-km project covers a section of PTH 5A from Whitmore Ave., south to Triangle Road, and includes surface reconstruction with the creation of a divided highway.

The plans call to improve safety in the commercial area by having all local accesses connect to service roads, and service roads connecting to PTH 5A at upgraded intersections. Those service roads will be constructed along both the east and west sides of highway from their existing points south to Triangle Road.

As well, a new intersection allowing access to Dauphin Market Place Mall will be developed, complete with traffic signals.

Improvements and restorations to the road will benefit the community and the region by enhancing safety and traffic flows along the high-volume, main thoroughfare that is an integral trade route to economic development in the area.

Included in the project is a new drainage system design for the south end. The plan includes the digging of two retention ponds, one on each side of the highway, which will collect spring runoff, as well as runoff from major weather events.

“They’re slow releases. So the intent is that they actually run dry in the summer months, or during drier times, but be able to fill up again in a big event,” said Mike VanAlstyne, director of Public Works and Operations, adding the installation of 830 metres of storm sewer pipe below ground is also included in the drainage plan.

“It’s a big project that’s very complicated, but it’s not really. It’s moving water from one place to another, where it wants to go. But just moving it on your timeline not nature’s.”

The cost of the drainage system has been pegged at $8.15 million which the city will debenture through the province.

The original plan called for a project extending over two construction seasons with the bulk of the construction work taking place in year one and the finishing touches being added early in the second year. That is obviously no longer the case, VanAlstyne said.

“The hope is that it would (start) this fall, or say late summer if it’s September. Construction would end next August,” VanAlstyne said, adding while the project was originally slated to begin this spring, the delay is not as bad as it might seem. “Not terrible. There’s a pretty aggressive work schedule tied to it.”

The issuing of the tender also clears the way for another long-awaited project as earth excavated to construct the retention ponds, or a portion of it anyway, will be used to construct the toboggan hill at Maamawi Park, VanAlstyne said.

“Approximately 25 per cent of the excavation material is going (to the development on the Dauphin Recreation Services grounds), the remainder is going elsewhere,” VanAlstyne said, adding the drainage project is going to produce about 30,000 cubic meters of excavation material. “These are big retention ponds.”

The Fair and Rodeo grounds in Gilbert Plains will be a beehive of activity this week as Gilbert Plains/Grandview Agricultural Society volunteers prepare for their annual Fair and Rodeo, July 14 to 16.

“We’re going to be at the grounds starting to set everything up and any evening next week, if there’s any volunteers that want to come out, there will be stuff going on every evening,” society president Kevin Boese said. “Setting up tents and getting things cleaned up and ready to roll.”

Boese said new this year there is three full days of chuck wagon racing with races getting under way Friday evening and continuing Saturday and Sunday afternoons.

“When the chuck wagons association goes around, they like to set up and be there for three days and there’s lots of places that they don’t do that. So we just wanted to give it a try this year and I think it should be a good success,” Boese said adding the races add another element to the first day of the exhibition.

“We have the parade Friday afternoon and Friday evening there was never really much going on. Everybody was in town already anyways for the parade, so we figured why not have chuck wagons on Friday evening and that gives something else to do.”

On top of the parade at 3 p.m. and chuck wagon and chariot racing at 7 p.m. Friday attractions feature a light horse show beginning at 11 a.m., a petting zoo from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. and a beer gardens featuring an open mic opportunity at 4 p.m., a DJ beginning at 9 p.m. and karaoke.

On Saturday things get underway with a pancake breakfast at the Lions Club booth at 7 a.m. followed by slo-pitch and the light horse show at 9 a.m.

A trade and craft show kicks off at 10 a.m. as does a show and shine car show.

“Last year there wasn’t a lot of cars, however, we’ve had lots of interest this year, so we’re hoping for a lot bigger show this year,” Boese said. “We thought bringing that in would maybe bring a little different crowd than the agricultural stuff.”

Kids activities such as the petting zoo, face painting and the Kinds Zone run all day , as does the Kids Sand Pile under the Fusion Credit Union Tent where youngsters can bring a shovel and dig for buried treasure. A kids tractor pull takes place on the tennis court at 12:30 p.m.

At 3 p.m. those in attendance will be treated to something completely new when the Truco Trick Riders perform some amazing feats on horseback, Boese said, adding the group will perform again at halftime of the rodeo along with the popular Wild Pony Races.

“We had a few people commenting that there just wasn’t much going on at a half times, so that’s why we’re bringing in a little bit of entertainment for the halftime show,” he said. “I can’t remember anything like that ever being (at the rodeo) since I’ve been involved. That should be very entertaining. They should put on a really good show.”

Chuck wagons and chariots get back in action at 3:30 p.m. with a special Redneck Farmer Challenge scheduled for halftime. The competition will see teams of three people attempt to complete a series of farm chore related tasks in a timed event.

“We’re hoping to get four teams. We don’t have any time teams signed up yet, but we haven’t actually done a whole lot of advertising,” Boese said. “It can be anybody, it doesn’t matter who or what age. There’ll be some laughs involved in that, that’s what that one’s all about.”
Rodeo action gets underway at 7 p.m. and the day wraps up with a Party in the Dirt featuring After Dark Xtreme.

Things get going again early Sunday with rodeo slack taking place from 8 a.m. to noon, if needed.

Slo pitch, the light horse show, petting zoo, face painting, Kids Zone and Legion bingo are all back operation and a church service and free pancake breakfast are scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Donations are welcome.

Chuck wagons and chariots get underway at 1 p.m., followed by a gymkhana at 2 p.m. and the rodeo at 4 p.m.

It is a full weekend that would not be possible without the hard work of volunteers and the support of sponsors and the community at large.

“It costs a lot of money and a lot of man hours to put these things on. Way more than the average person ever knows and way more than I ever knew before I started helping with this,” Boese said, adding it is all worth it when you experience the final product.

“I think it’s going to be a great show there’s going to be tons of stuff. There’s a little bit of something for everybody. If you can’t find something to do there, you might as well just stay home.”

The communities of Tootinaowaziibeeng Treaty Reserve, San Clara and Roblin have been spiraling since the discovery of Melinda Lynxleg’s body was found on a property in San Clara last month.

The news has sent shock throughout the communities and now many unanswered questions are floating around.

Read all about it in this week’s Review.

About 4 p.m. on June 17, RCMP received a report from Motor Carrier Enforcement in town who were dealing with a person who didn’t like it.

Members attended to keep the peace.

Find out what’s been keeping police busy in this week’s issue.