Ryan Keown’s dream of receiving an award on Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry stage has come true and it’s a moment in his life he will never forget.

Keown beat out seven other competitors in the Best Modern Country Song of the Year category at the ninth annual Josie Music Awards held Oct. 22.

Want to know more? See this week’s Review.

Staff recruitment and retention is the top priority for Prairie Mountain Health.

That was the main message from PMH CEO Brian Schoonbaert Wednesday as the regional health authority held its annual general meeting via Zoom.

Read all about the AGM in this week’s Review.

Did you know that it is now illegal to drive on the roads when they are closed?? Road conditions can be checked on 511 mobile app, by calling 511, by following MBGovRoads on Twitter or visiting the 511 website on line.

If you drive on a closed highway, you could face a charge of $298 for light vehicles (cars, trucks, SUVs, etc.) or $672 for heavy vehicles.

More in this week’s RCMP report.

No matter where they go in their lives, Swan River connections stay strong in the Ukrainian Dance world. Alexis Denischuk with Vohon (Edmonton), Olivia Chmelowski with Zabutnyy (Regina), Myley Brunel with Zirka (Dauphin) and McKayla Hnatiuk with Bratsva (Dauphin) were all on the big stage at Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival in Dauphin from Aug. 4-6.
McKayka Hnatiuk
McKayla has been dancing with Bratsva in Dauphin for eight years. She is the daughter of Jason Hnatiuk as well as Sylvia Hnatiuk’s grandaughter.
She received four gold medals for her solo dances at different competitions and this year her dancing group was chosen from the talent competitions to perform at the grandstand on the final night of the festival.
Myley Brunel
Myley attended her first Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival as a spectator with a family friend, the summer of 2014 and fell in love with the costumes, especially the red boots and floral Vinoks, so in that fall, her parents Robert and Erin Brunel (nee Immerkar), registered her with Zirka and she has loved Ukrainian dancing ever since. Myley is the grandaughter of Evelyn Immerkar of Swan River.
Myley started dancing in Grade 2 in 2014.
Myley competed in competitions in Brandon, Yorkton, Regina and Dauphin.
She received most outstanding effort award with Zirka in 2014-2015 dance year and the Dedication Award in 2022-23 in memory of Chris Perih.
Presently Myley and her group are preparing to perform in Disney World, both on stage at Epcot and during the Disney evening parades in 2024.
Myley loves the opportunity to meet with her dance group at practices and enjoys meeting other dancers.
She is now old enough to wear the red boots that she fell in love with all those years ago.
Sara Synk
Sara is the daughter of Niomi (nee Hrappstead) and Joe Synk (former RBC Bank manager in Swan River).
Sara started dancing at the age of three with the Dolyna Dancers in Swan River.
She continued dancing, joining Troyanda Ukrainian dance group when she moved to Brandon, where she attended high school and her first year at Brandon university.
Since then she has moved to Regina to join Zabutnyy Dance Company as she finishes her education at the University of Regina.
During the Ukrainian dance festival Sara joined Alexis Denischukdancing the hopak.
Sara’s father also taught Ukrainian dancing in Swan River.
Sara enjoyed travelling to places in Manitoba and Saskatchewan to dance and still continues to love the art of dance.
Alexis Denischuk
Alexis started dancing with the Swan River Dolyna Dancers and continued on until graduating from high school.
From there she went on to continue her education at the University of Regina and danced with the Zabutnyy Dance Company for 3.5 years. The highlight of these years was travelling to Ukraine to dance at numerous dance festivals and workshops. Dancing in the famous Opera house in Lviv, Ukraine, was an amazing experience for Alexis.
Upon graduation she moved to Edmonton where she successfully auditioned for the Vohon Ukrainian Dance Ensemble. She was honoured to dance at the 50th Vegreville Pysanka Festival. She also performed in Portugal’s International Dance Festival with the Vohon dancers where she shared the stage with multiple countries.
The National Ukrainian Festival in Dauphin was where she was reacquainted with Myley, Olivia and Sara.
It was an honour to Alexis to return to her home roots and experience dancing on stage in her home province alongside so many talented dancers. Alexis is very grateful for the lifelong friendships she has made during her Ukrainian dance career.
Olivia Chmelowski
Olivia started dancing at the age of three and never looked back as she absolutely loved it from the get-go.
Throughout her years as a Dolyna Dancer, she was privileged to have incredible and dedicated instructors: AnnaLee Fuhr-Parnetta, Joe Synk, Becca and Jen Guay and Maks Zabutnyy (the latter three drove out from Regina weekly to teach them), Kelsa Unruh, and finally Amanda Yaschyshyn were all instrumental in fostering her love of dance and in her eagerness to give back, she also helped out with the instruction of the younger students in her last few years with Dolyna.
As she made her way to Regina for university, the pandemic was still in full swing, so there was no dance to pursue. By the time it was over, Olivia had fallen into a comfortable school/work routine but missed dancing, so returned to the familiar world of Ukrainian dance when she joined Regina’s Zabutnyy Dance Company. They practice twice per week and she’s had the opportunity to perform at many events in Saskatchewan and Manitoba, most recently Canada’s National Ukrainian Festival in Dauphin. When asked what she enjoys the most about dance, Olivia says she obviously loves the actual dancing, but the best part is the friendships she’s formed along the way.

Ryan Keown got his dream come true at this year’s Josie Music Awards, as he got to deliver his acceptance and thank you speech on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry Circle...

A pair of Dauphin defenders push a Virden player out of bounds in the Murray Black Cup, Saturday.

The Clippers overcame the cold, snowy conditions to score a 31-18 victory, to win the Murray Black Cup.

The Doug Steeves Cup will be played, Saturday, featuring the top two teams in the league, the second-place Interlake Thunder facing the number-one ranked St. Vital Mustangs in Winnipeg.

After seeing their four-game winning streak snapped at the hands of the Niverville Nighthawks during the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s annual Showcase, the Dauphin Kings have started another winning streak, this one reaching three games going into this week.

The Kings rebounded from last Monday’s loss to Niverville with a come-from-behind 3-2 shootout win over the previously unbeaten Winkler Flyers.

Dauphin then made it two wins in a row with a 7-2 win over the Waywayseecappo Wolverines, Friday in Dauphin and made it three straight wins with a 7-2 win over the Winnipeg Freeze, Sunday in Winnipeg.

Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley felt the players were a bit nervous heading into the Showcase, which resulted in the loss to the Nighthawks.

“The guys want to get to the next level. We’ve been playing outstanding and we’ve been playing as a team. And we just got caught up in a little bit of the atmosphere there and the talk about schools coming up to watch,” he said. “I think we just got onto an individual page a little bit. We started doing things that we weren’t accustomed to doing all year, making an extra move before we pass the puck up, trying to beat guys with toe drags. And our rush defence wasn’t very good.”

Austin Seibel got the start in goal and played well, according to Hedley.

“He made some big saves. You can only give up so many odd man rushes before it kills you. And I thought we learned from it. We had a really good third period,” he said.

Dauphin fell behind Winkler, 2-0 after the first period and tied the game in the second with a couple of power-play goals.

“We sure never quit and the guys stuck together and found a way to get it done. It was a huge win for us,” Hedley said.

The Kings carried the momentum of that win into Friday’s contest against the Wolverines, building a 5-1 lead before the game was 10 minutes old.

“The way we started the game tonight was a direct result of that game in Winnipeg. We were on our toes and we set the pace right off the hop against Wayway,” Hedley said.

Dauphin’s power play, which struggled early on, is on fire as of late. In the last five games, the Kings have scored 13 times in 30 tries with the man advantage, a 43.3 per cent clip.

As a result they now have the best power play in the league, with a 31.4 per cent success rate.

Hedley noted all four goals at the Showcase came on the power play.

“Guys are starting to move pucks and we’re starting to get some breaks in front of the net,” he said. “The guy that’s in the right spot a lot of times net front is Walks (Logan Walker). He’s making a big difference and he’s getting some big goals for us.”

The Kings will look to extend their winning streak when they host the Wolverines, Friday, at 7:30 p.m., before heading south to take on the division-leading Virden Oil Capitals, Saturday.

Kings court:

The Kings moved up two spots in the Canadian Junior Hockey League’s Top 10, coming in at no. 10. After two weeks at no. 1, the Winkler Flyers dropped to no. 5 this week, while the Steinbach Pistons come in at no. 8.

Dauphin’s Countryfest, has announced its first round of performers for 2024.

And with some of the biggest acts from throughout country music history set to take the stage, organizers say the 35th anniversary festival will take those in attendance on a nostalgic journey back to the roots of Countryfest, featuring “an incredible honky-tonk, two-steppin’ lineup that will have country fans reminiscing about the good ol’ days in Dauphin.”

“Join us in Dauphin as we put the Country back in Countryfest, and we celebrate 35 years of incredible music, unforgettable moments, and community spirit,” said Countryfest promoter Rob Waloschuk. The June 28 to 30, 2024, festival takes place at Selo Ukraina and has been dubbed “35 and Still Alive.”

Confirmed for the main stage at this point are Alabama, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Jo Dee Messina, Mark Chesnutt, and Diamond Rio, along with the Great Canadian Roadtrip package featuring Michelle Wright, Jason McCoy and Doc Walker.

Another main stage surprise for festivalgoers is the super group The Frontmen, featuring Larry Stewart of Restless Heart, Richie McDonald, formerly of Lonestar, and Tim Rushlow, formerly of Little Texas. The three will come together to perform decades of chart-topping hits.

And Waloschuk said it wouldn’t be a proper throwback without some ‘90s queens of Canadian country music such as Patricia Conroy, Lisa Brokop, and Beverley Mahood, all of whom are confirmed for the main stage to deliver “some powerful performances that will keep you dancin’ all day long.”

Weekend passes, VIP packages, camping and reserved seating go on sale, Nov. 13, at 10 a.m., and can be purchased online at www.countryfest.ca or by calling toll-free to 1-800-361-7300.

A new payment plan lets customers reserve their ticket packages for only $100 down.

A presale for Countryfest members started, Oct. 23, and runs until Nov. 3.

Dauphin RCMP would like to have a conversation with the community.

And to begin the dialogue, a Community Policing Town Hall has been scheduled for the Aspen Lodge in the Parkland Recreation Complex, Nov. 14, at 7 p.m.

“The detachment has not been able to actually just have a discussion with the town, the residents in the community about what we do,” Sgt. Scott Linklater of the Dauphin RCMP detachment said, adding the event was originally scheduled for this past June, but was cancelled following the Carberry bus crash. “Policing has changed over the years and I’m not sure if people get that. So we want to be able to say what we’re doing, who we are, how many members we have here, what the state of detachment is and the services that we’re doing.”

On top of discussions about area crime trends and policing priorities, Linklater said they will be sharing some crime reduction strategies and will set aside some time for a question and answer period.

“I want to make some time for that so I can hear what they have to say,” he said. “I’m not going to talk about specific investigations, but if they want to know about issues that we’re dealing with or what’s going on.”

A key message Linklater wants to share is that community safety is an issue which requires a response from the entire community.

“I want to be able to explain that there’s a lot of things that are put on our plate that are more of a community issue that we all have to work together on, he said. “Finding resources for the homelessness and the mental health in the community and addiction, so there’s more resources for people to keep them out of the justice system.”

There is a perception that the justice system will not hold people to account, he said.

“So if we can do more programs outside (the justice system), I know there’s a lot of good people out there doing some different things,” Linklater said, adding supporting existing social services organizations and groups will go a long way to improving the situation for everyone. “Hopefully, employ the community to help these people out so that they’re not doing it alone and getting burned out, so that we do it all as a community. We’re all here for the safety of the community, the betterment of Dauphin.”

Ultimately, Linklater wants the public to be aware of issues in the community so they can make some informed decisions about getting involved and the role they might play.

RCMP members, he added are doing a good job in their role and he hopes being open about issues will help people to realize that.

“I think our members here do a great job. We’re not perfect, we’re human. We have members with two months service all the way up to 20 and 25 years service,” Linklater said. “I just don’t think the community is aware of what we’re doing, so I think this is a good opportunity to say what we’re doing, how we’re doing things, what’s changed, some of the trends that are going on and how they can help. At the end of it, I think it’s just going to be a good conversation. Hopefully some people see that we are doing something. Hopefully, they realize that they can help out, as well, and policing isn’t just the members of detachment, it’s a community thing to make everyone safe. That’s my hope anyway, just engage them at least. I don’t think it’s been done in a while and it’s kind of good to hear.”

A Rivers entrepreneur was declared the winner of Fusion Credit Union’s third annual Community Infusion live event held Oct. 18 in Brandon.

Danielle Pilatic of Danielle’s Studio 12 was declared the winner, receiving $20,000 in grant monies to help expand her business ideas.

Read all about it in this week’s issue.