Soil Technician

Various Positions

By Derek Holtom
Training camps are set to open in roughly six weeks for Manitoba Junior Hockey League teams, but you’ll forgive those based on the west side of the province for being more than a little distracted.
Places such as The Pas, Swan River, Dauphin, Waywayseecappo, Virden, Neepawa, and all places in between have been hit with one bad headline after another.
Most of the bad news centres around flooding, which we’ll get into right away. But up north the Northern Manitoba Blizzard were rocked by the news that local product Isaac Tomchak has been diagnosed with Severe Aplastic Anemia, a rare blood disorder in which his bone marrow fails to produce enough blood cells. Having aplastic anemia can increase a person’s risk of developing certain cancers - most notably, leukemia. The treatment requires a bone marrow transplant.
Tomchak was slated to be a key part of the Blizzard this year, coming off a season where he scored 14 goals, 22 assists and added 119 penalty minutes. But now his top goal is getting treatment and recovering.
A GoFundMe was set up for Tomchak by his aunt to help cover costs for the family in the days ahead. The community rallied and quickly blew through the set goal, so much so that donations were paused after four days.
Tomchak posted an update on the site through his aunt, stating in part “I really appreciate all the support and love that I have received during this incredibly challenging time. It helps me as well as my family stay positive. We all believe that it’s gonna be a smooth recovery and you guys helped us do that. Thank you everybody!!"
It’s heartwarming to see a young man with so much potential have a positive outlook after being told some bad news, and it doesn’t shock me in the least to see his community rally behind him. Having spent many years in Swan River and Dauphin I’m fully aware of how communities can come together in challenging times to help those in need.
And there are perhaps no more challenging times than right now in western Manitoba. They have had not one but two massive flooding events this year. Before the floods, the region dealt with a large snowpack and a late melt. Then the first flooding happened around June 6 and 7 as seven inches of rain, flooding many areas and devastating others such as Minitonas.
That was just the appetizer as it turns out. A torrential rain blasted Western Manitoba in late June, leading to unprecedented flooding. When I saw the flooding in Dauphin on the streets in front of where the Dauphin Kings play – blocks away from the Vermillion River, I was stunned. When I saw the first home I lived in in Swan River under water, I was shocked. But when I saw the social media posts of all the people I know watching their homes get destroyed, when I saw bridges being washed away, I was saddened.
So here we are, mere weeks away from the start of training camps for MJHL teams, and the water hasn’t even finished receding in some of these devastated communities. It’s actually hard to reach many areas safely, as emergency repairs to bridges and highways continue.
While the focus rightly remains on the cleanup and the rebuilding, I wonder how all these communities are going to be in any position to do much in terms of recreation this coming winter? What kind of hit will businesses take from crops and livestock being washed away? What sort of entertainment budget will remain for people who have seen their homes destroyed?
Already we see the Swan River Valley Ag. Society made the difficult decision to not host their wildly popular Northwest Round-Up and Exhibition this year. Having covered and volunteered for this event in the past I have some idea of the magnitude of effort needed to host an event such as this. Seeing how much work is needed to get Swan River and surrounding communities back on their feet, this feels like a right call.
Operating a junior hockey team is a challenging proposition in the best of times. These could be described quite literally as the worst of times. I worry first and foremost about the people affected by these floods. But in the back of my mind, I wonder how MJHL teams in western Manitoba (and frankly any sort of amateur sports) will fare in the coming months.

The annual Beef and Barley is only possible because of the incredible support of local volunteers and community organizations. Since 2014, they've proudly given back over $120,000 to local groups and community projects, and they hope to continue investing int he people and organizations that make our community so special. Can your group lend a hand this year? If you're part of a local community organization and are interested in helping with this year's festival, they'd love to hear from you! There are many ways to get involved, and your support helps ensure the festival continues to thrive while giving back to our community. Email them at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to get involved! Join them for a planning meeting on Tuesday, July 21st in the Brad Room in the Civic Centre on Russell’s Main Street.
It’s a really fun committee to be involved in!