For the second year running, the Major Pratt Lady Trojans have emerged as the MHSAA Provincial AA Volleyball Champions.

“Last year we only had one graduating player so we had six returning players and six new girls join us,” coach Tanya Thompson said “So it was very much the same girls who have been together for years.”

Throughout the provincials the lady Trojans were undefeated. In fact, this powerhouse team lost only one set in the semifinals. The Trojans entered the provincials ranked second in the province.

They played four round robin games defeating The Pas, Elton, Warren and Souris - each in just two sets. They came up against the Green Valley Pirates in the quarter finals - again, winning in two straight sets.

A win against Rosenort in three sets led to the final game where they hit the court against Flin Flon, bringing in the gold medal win in two straight sets. Kylee Peake and Alyssa Bily were chosen as tournament All Stars and Sunay Pieterse was honored as the Most Valuable Player of the provincial tournament.

Coach Tanya Thompson, who has coached them for years, said that the girls have had success throughout their entire season, coming out as the top team in all but two tournaments over the entire season - including a second place finish in a 32 team tournament in Regina.

“Most of these players have been together since grade seven and also for their club volleyball season for the rest of the year,” she said. “So they have a really good chemistry together both on and off the court - they’re just really good friends.” “They’re determined and they’re hard working but it’s more than just skill.” They bond so well on the court because they have such respect for each other and such great friendships off the court as well.”

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The Dauphin Kings are heading into their Christmas break on a five game point streak following an overtime win and a shootout loss over the weekend.

On Friday the Kings opened up a 2-0 lead in their second period with Swan Valley, only to see that advantage evaporate midway through the third when the Stampeders took a 3-2 lead.

Jakob Brook notched his second goal of the night with just three seconds remaining in the final frame to get Dauphin to overtime where Mason Smith tallied his ninth of the year on the man advantage to give his Kings a 4-3 decision and an important two points.

Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley called it a key victory, as well.

“I liked our pushback, we came back in the final minute and found a way to get it done in overtime. We can’t keep chasing games like that but at the same time we’re coming back against some pretty good hockey clubs.”

It was more of the same on Saturday night at Credit Union Place when the Kings faced a Waywayseecappo team they are also chasing in the standings.

Dauphin looked like a group that had already checked out for the Christmas break 23 minutes into the contest, but they again pushed back and rebounded from a 3-1 deficit.

The Kings took the lead in the third period on Mathew Gough’s 12th of the season.

However, with just over a minute to play the Wolverines evened things up again when Nolan Grier scored his 11th. The goal was initially called after bouncing off the crossbar despite the goal judge and crowd behind the Dauphin goal voicing their opinion that the puck never did cross the line.

Five minutes of overtime solved nothing. In the shootout both Gough and Jamie Valentino missed for Dauphin while Grier notched the winner for Waywayseecappo.

Hedley says the games right before the Christmas break are sometimes the most difficult ones to play in during the regular season.

“It’s tough. Guys know they’re leaving the next day and Wayway still has a game on Tuesday. They came at us with some good jump and we have to give them credit for that. But at the same time we weren’t skating or battling and we were getting outworked on every part of the ice in the first half of the game. Our goalie, Marko Belak, was outstanding and gave us a chance to get back in it and we did.”

Despite the Kings’ five game point streak Hedley knows his team cannot keep playing three point contests, especially against clubs they’re chasing in the standings.
“We have a really good group this year. There’s guys in the room with a lot of purpose. These last few games have been three point games but at the same time for us we almost didn’t get any and we ended up with two.”

The Kings close out 2022 with a record of 18-12-2-1 for 39 points. Entering the week they sit tied with Waywayseecappo for third in the West Division and are just two points back of the OCN Blizzard for first.

Dauphin is back from their Christmas break, Jan. 6, when they visit the Winnipeg Blues. They will return to Credit Union Place for their first home game of 2023 on Jan. 7, when they play the back end of a home-and-home with the Blues. The CJHL trade deadline looms on Jan. 10.

Dauphin District Community Foundation (DDCF) is $172,381.93 richer thanks to this year’s Endow Manitoba Giving Challenge.

As part of the annual campaign, Nov. 14 to 20, gifts to Manitoba community foundations’ undesignated funds were “stretched” by a maximum of $4,000 thanks to The Winnipeg Foundation and the Manitoba government, that each provided a maximum of $2,000 in matching funds per foundation.

During the week, DCF received 247 gifts totalling $168,381.93 which earned the maximum donation from the province and the Winnipeg Foundation.

Provincewide, community foundations received gifts totaling more than $1.68 million during this year’s Endow Manitoba Giving Challenge, the most raised during the nine-year history of the challenge.

“Community foundations are built by citizens working together to ensure their local communities have access to reliable and stable funding for their charitable activities,” Alan Goddard, director of Endow Manitoba, said.

“Manitoba is the most generous province in Canada, and we have the most community foundations, per capita, in North America. The growth and success of the Giving Challenge is one of the many ways we show that we care for our communities, now and for future generations. Gratitude to all our donors, volunteers, and event partners - including the Manitoba government - for the stretching gifts made to each community foundation during the Giving Challenge.”

Endow Manitoba Giving Challenge 2022 highlights:
• $1,684,041.75 raised;
• $1,492,538.83 total gift value;
• $191,502.92 total stretch value;
• 2,828 gifts made; and
• 39 community foundations received maximum stretch.

Community foundations are charities, built by communities for communities.

Gifts are pooled and permanently invested, and the interest earned is granted to local initiatives each year. Since the capital is never spent, gifts support the community forever.

Every year, community foundations invest millions of dollars into a wide range of local charitable projects, helping ensure Manitoba communities are vibrant and thriving.

Endow Manitoba represents the network of the province’s community foundations. An initiative of The Winnipeg Foundation, Endow Manitoba works with the province’s 57 community foundations to increase their impact and to advance the movement.

By Ed Stozek
For the Herald

Attending the St. John one-room country school from 1958-64 resulted in a variety of life-learning experiences. Our daily routine always started with the singing of “Oh Canada” and reciting “The Lord’s Prayer.”

Having eight different grades in one room provided exposure to a wide range of events. Occasionally I took a break from working on my assignments and listened to Mrs. Kowalchuk teach Egyptian history to the Grade 8 class. Visions of pyramids and a sphinx spurred my interest.

Throughout my tenure as a student at St. John, recess and noon hour provided an avenue for a variety of games and tested the strategy of tag, hopscotch, dodgeball, soccer, baseball and cricket. We improvised playing cricket by using a baseball and a baseball bat. A piece of cordwood functioned as a wicket. If inclement weather occurred we stayed indoors for recess and noon hour and honed our crokinole and checkers skills.

When classes resumed after lunch Mrs. Kowalchuk read to us for 15 minutes. During my Grade 5 year we followed the storyline of Anne of Green Gables. As four o’clock approached it was time to clean up the classroom. Running water literally meant running to the well to get a pail of water for classroom use. Washing the blackboard, going outside to clean the chalk from the brushes or taking down the flag were all part of our school routine. There were certain rules to follow associated with flag protocol. We also followed the rule of law in Manitoba to sing “God Save the Queen” before we were dismissed.

A highlight of the school year included the annual Christmas concert. We practiced singing carols and perfected our acting skills for a variety of skits and plays. In Grade 5 we became the proud owners of a red tonette, an instrument similar in principle to a recorder. As an ensemble we learned to play “Jingle Bells” and “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.”

On the evening of the concert the school was “packed to the rafters.” The annual concert was equivalent to performing at Carnegie Hall. Weeks of rehearsal paid off as we presented the program on the stage constructed for the special occasion.

Our reward was thunderous applause from an appreciative audience followed by Santa Claus giving us a brown paper bag filled with an assortment of candy, nuts and an orange.

After the concert the parents and children filed out of the school and made their way to their cars, one horse open sleighs or cabooses. Under the stars on a cold winter night the Chevys and Fords moaned and groaned before their motors finally started. For the patrons who had arrived using actual horsepower, the horses were hitched up to the sleighs. Most had unhitched the horses prior to the concert and left them some hay and oats to munch on.

My sister noted that on the way home from one concert, she found out that it was not fun to ride in an open sleigh. She personally experienced the lyrics from Jingle Bells. “We got into a drifted bank and then we got upsot.”

‘A caboose or van was generally shaped much like a modern day Boler camper except that it was made from lumber. Instead of wheels, sleigh runners were used. A small box heater fueled with wood kept the inside of the caboose warm for the passengers. A set of small round holes beneath a sliding window at the front of the caboose enabled the driver to handle the reins and communicate with the horses. The horses didn’t need much guidance as they instinctively knew their way home where they would enjoy some hay and a well-deserved rest in the comforts of the barn.

The St. John School was the last school in the area to be consolidated into the Pelly Trail School Division.

It closed its doors on June 30, 1964. That September I boarded the school bus and started Grade 7 at the Oakburn Elementary School. I now had 32 classmates in one grade. During the course of my six-year experience at St. John my grade always consisted of only three students.

A new era had begun.

The Manitoba government has relaunched the Manitoba 511 highway and traffic information service following enhancements to the Manitoba 511 website, mobile app and 511 phone system.

Enhancements include faster and more interactive map features, new customized notifications and hands-free audio alerts, as well as:

• up to three route options with corresponding travel times and hands-free audio alerts for selected routes when a destination is entered in the mobile app;
• notifications for traffic incidents and road closures with registered accounts; and
• interactive voice response on the 511 phone system to allow hands-free access to road conditions and traffic alerts on preferred routes.

Manitoba 511 is a free traveller information service operated by the Manitoba government. The service is available by phone, computer and mobile device. In 2021, there were approximately six million visits to the Manitoba 511 site and telephone line.

Manitoba 511 can be accessed on a computer or mobile device by visiting the Manitoba 511 website at www.manitoba511.ca or by downloading the app to a mobile device. It can also be accessed toll-free (within Manitoba) by calling 511.

Travellers should always check the Manitoba 511 website for current road conditions to ensure safety prior to making the decision to travel.

The website is updated regularly by road patrol, but conditions can change in a matter of minutes. Manitobans can also follow @ MBGovRoads on Twitter for closures or incidents.

Council of the Municipality of Roblin held its inaugural meeting Nov. 7 and made its appointments to boards and commissions for a one-year term or until a successor is appointed.

Council also made its citizens appointments at a subsequent meeting.

Find out who’s where in this week’s Review.

There’s nothing like a good scam to catch people off guard and ruin the holiday season. For some reason, there never seems to be a shortage of scams going around, but this latest one is more deceptive than the average run-of-the-mill ones.
If you’re thinking about giving a gift card this holiday season, you need to be aware of the latest gift card scam that is hitting Canadian retailers all over. Retailers who have racks of gift cards to different department stores, restaurants, and online gaming platforms seem to be the hot spot for this scam. Scammers have been tampering with these gift cards by placing a sticker that has a fake barcode on it over top the original.

The community of Swan Valley demonstrated its lasting legacy when the Community Foundation of Swan Valley (CFSV) held their 18th annual meeting and grant night on Wednesday (Dec. 7) in the banquet room of the Westwood
Inn. During the evening, more than $140,000 in grants and scholarships were announced...

The Swan Valley Community Band presented The Music of Christmas on Friday (Dec. 9) at the ESRSS Gymnasium. The band played a selection of tunes with a brief intermission by the Highly Strung ukulele group.

The Parkland Rangers missed a chance to close the gap on a playoff spot with a pair of losses to the Eastman Selects over the weekend.

The Rangers couldn’t overcome a 3-0 first-period deficit, Saturday, dropping a 4-2 decision, before falling 4-3 on Sunday.

Parkland (6-17-3-0) now trails the eighth-place Selects by 10 points. Eastman (12-11-1-0) is one point ahead of Interlake (11-14-1-1) and seven up on Kenora (8-17-2-0).

Rangers head coach Tyler Carefoot said the Rangers deserved a better fate in both games.

Parkland, he said, ran into penalty problems right off the bat in Saturday’s game, which resulted in two Eastman power-play goals.

“I thought we did a pretty job of trying to get back into the game. We hit a couple of posts and might have had an opportunity to make it a little bit closer,” he said.

The Rangers wanted to play a strong third period to build momentum for Sunday’s game, which they did. The Rangers could have pulled the goalie, Carefoot said, but they decided to focus on winning the period.

“Sunday, we were the better team. I think we hit two cross bars and then, with 10 seconds left to tie it, we hit a post,” he said. “I thought we played five solid periods of hockey this weekend. For the most part, I’m pretty happy.”

There are games where teams have to contend with questionable calls by the officiating and that was the case on Sunday, according to Carefoot.

“We had to persevere, not only through the Eastman Selects, but we had to beat the stripes. I just didn’t like some of the calls,” he said. “I just thought some of the calls were far too soft.”

It didn’t help that the Rangers were shorthanded with some players out of action due to injuries.

“So I was proud of how everybody competed and just didn’t quit,” he said.

The Rangers have just one game this week, Sunday on the road in Souris against the Southwest Cougars. Then they play the Yellowhead Chiefs, Dec. 20, in Shoal Lake.

Carefoot hopes the team can enter the Christmas break on a high note.

“We always say that the rural teams are the teams we’re supposed to compete well against and we beat both of them this year. So I feel that the guys will be up for it. If we can find a way to get four points going into the holidays, everybody will be feeling good about themselves,” he said, adding the Rangers will face the league power houses in the new year.

Defenceman Bo Eisner had a tremendous weekend for the Rangers.

“He’s one of those guys who, not only does he produce offensively, but he’s a tremendous defender,” Carefoot said. “He logs a lot of minutes and he does a tremendous job in the O zone and defensive zone. He’s a quiet leader. He just goes out and does his job. He’s a low-maintenance kind of guy. For him the journey is just starting and he’s got lots of recognition throughout, not just the Manitoba Junior Hockey League, but also going west, as well. I just feel he’s a guy that goes under the radar.”