The Parkland Crisis Centre and Women’s Shelter in Dauphin was among the recipients sharing $750,000 courtesy of the province’s  Criminal Property Forfeiture (CPF) Fund.

A grant of $35,000 was provided to the organization, which provides support services to women and children escaping intimate partner abuse, a 24-hour crisis line, emergency shelter, counselling, child and youth programs, support groups, referrals and advocacy.

“The Parkland Crisis Centre and Women’s Shelter is excited to announce the newly-formed partnership with Victim Services to improve service accessibility within our community,” said Kari Prawdzik, executive director of the Parkland Crisis Centre.

“The shelter is passionate about empowering individuals to break free from the cycles of violence and building healthier futures. Our organization’s goals are to assist in providing life-changing support to those affected by family, intimate partner and gender-based violence.”

Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said the money  provided last week is meant to support victims and surviving family members of serious crimes, including homicide, sexual assault and intimate partner violence,

“November is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and our government is strengthening its support for victims of intimate partner violence and other serious crimes throughout the province,” Wiebe said.

“Our public safety strategy commits to supporting Manitobans victimized by crime and we are able to help victims and their families rebuild their lives by redirecting the proceeds of criminal activity in Manitoba to valuable community programs.”

The Parkland Crisis Centre and Women’s Shelter and WMWC are receiving CPF victim services grants for the first time, the minister noted.

The CPF Fund distributes proceeds from the sale of seized criminal property to organizations in the province that focus on community safety.

The CPF Fund also includes a funding stream for the Manitoba Justice Victim Services branch, which offers support to all individuals under the Canadian Victims Bill of Rights. Last year, the province increased the fund to $750,000 from $500,000 in previous years.

Read the full story on this week’s edition of the Dauphin Herald.

The Arts for Manitoba Indigenous Youth Choir has been accomplishing great things in a short span of time. The choir consists of Rhonda Head as the Choral Director, Ava Meconse from Pinaymootang First Nation, Avery Pelletier from Skownan First Nation, Georgianna Blacksmith from Opaskwayak Cree Nation and Ja’Keira Lynch from Skownan First Nation. The talents from this group of young choir singers have really grown since they started, with more opportunities on the horizon.
“I started the Arts for Manitoba Indigenous Youth Choir three years ago,” said Choral Director Rhonda Head. “Since then, the choir members have gone through so much personal development. Last year, we went to Carnegie Hall and performed there.

As we wait for the snow to arrive, planning for the 2026 Northern Manitoba Trappers’ Festival (NMTF) is well underway. Many of the events are in the process of being planned.
“The NMTF Board of Directors are in full planning stages,” said NMTF Vice Chair Jenn Cook. “With so many different events, each director is working diligently to ensure that we are bringing the community the festival they have become accustomed to. One of the key pieces at this point is lining up volunteers to assist with all the events, including the Dog Races, Trapper events, parade, ice bar and more.
“This year, we are happy to announce the stage and talent who will return. Full details on that event will be coming soon and we are extremely excited to have the event back in our Festival line-up. We will also be continuing with the Ice Sculpting Contest, which saw some incredible pieces of work created last year.

The long-lasting memory of Amara Campbell has created a ripple effect that has touched the Swan Valley and created a movement to help fight cancer. The creation of Amara’s Amigos, a group of dedicated volunteers who help raise funds in the fight against cancer, was formed five years ago and has grown in many ways.
“The creation of the first Amara’s Amigos group was a very special symbol of support for Amara, Joel, Blair and me,” said Amara’s mother Lee-Anne Campbell. “Amara was a quiet, 13-year-old, who preferred not to have much attention on herself. Her cancer diagnosis took away her ability to blend in with the crowd.
“Our son Joel was 15 years old at the time. His sister’s cancer diagnosis was very tough on him as well. The shirts, events, and donations gave Amara a place to find comfort in her new identity. Also, a new type of identity for our family, I suppose. The love and support that continues to be shown for Amara’s Amigos is humbling and heart-warming for all of us.
“The Amara’s Amigos group, name and first shirts were created by Amara’s Minitonas school friends and teachers in 2019, following her cancer diagnosis,” said Campbell. “This first amazing team supported Amara by participating in the 2019 Swan River Canadian Cancer Society Relay for Life. The team name and colours were perfect, so it has remained.
“We decided to continue to raise awareness about childhood cancer and fundraise in memory of Amara. The first Amara’s Amigos Garage Sale was a success, so it has continued as an annual event. September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, as well as the month in which Amara passed away, so it has been meaningful to host the garage sale during that month.
“Then, in 2021, I approached the Stampeders to support Cameron Coulthart, a local 17-year-old boy who was fighting cancer,” said Campbell. “Cameron had spent some time with the team earlier that season before he had a big surgery. We did a small event collecting money for him, shared a brief update on his cancer, and his sister dropped the puck. In the 2023/24 season, was the first year that we bought Hockey Fights Cancer team jerseys. This event has just completed its third year.”
Over the years, Amara’s Amigos has raised money for the fight against cancer in many ways. It sparked a much bigger movement in the Valley, with more people and organizations getting involved by creating new fundraisers and helping the existing ones to raise more money than in years prior.
“The money collected from the garage sales, Ride Inside events, lemonade stand, cookie sales and the Hockey Fights Cancer event with the Swan Valley Stampeders is entirely donated to the CancerCare MB Foundation (CCMB), PROFYLE Program,” said Campbell. “The name stands for PRecision Oncology For Young peopLE, those living with rare and hard-to-treat cancers. The program provides genetic testing for these kids, searching for alternative treatment options. Amara’s oncologists were able to access PROFYLE for her treatment plan. She was able to take some additional oral chemotherapy that we think allowed her more months of life.
“Amara’s Amigos have also participated in the annual Swan River Terry Fox Runs since 2019.
“The newest fundraising event started in 2024, the annual Minitonas School Memorial Lunch Fundraiser for PAC improvements for their school,” said Campbell. “This event is in memory of both Amara and Joel.
“Our core group of Amara’s Amigos has remained pretty similar in size. These family members and friends continue to jump into action to assist Blair and me with the events. However, we also recognize our much wider group of Amara’s Amigos as every person and business that has supported us. It’s very special to continue seeing more purple shirts/hoodies, with the addition of a blue heart for Joel, around town, as we partnered with the Stampeders hockey team in 2023.”
At this past Amara’s Amigos Garage Sale Fundraiser, the group not only received a lot of donations to put towards the sale, but also raised slightly more in funds than the year prior.
“A total of $5,810 was raised at the 2025 garage sale,” said Campbell. “A bit higher than last year. The garage sales have been successful in various ways. We have provided a venue for our items to be repurposed by others, offering an opportunity for a wider variety of people to contribute to our fundraising, even if it was only an extra $2 they could afford. Each year, I have been pleasantly surprised at how many people stop in at the garage sale simply to drop off their annual donation cheque for CCMB. It has also developed into an opportunity to connect with community members who still support us as we live in grief.”
The total funds raised from the Hockey Fights Cancer event have not been totalled yet; however, the money raised from both this event and the garage sale will be presented to CCMBF at the Winnipeg Jets HFC game on November 23.
“The community support from the Swan River Valley has amazed us since 2019, right from the time of Amara’s cancer diagnosis,” said Campbell. “Blair and I have been humbled by the outpouring of support.

Last week (Nov. 17-23), Tim Hortons was once again raising money for a local charity with their Holiday Smile Cookie campaign. Swan River’s Tim Hortons managed to raise $14,134, to be divided equally between the Swan River Lions Club and Tim Hortons Children’s Foundation.

The Russell Lions Club have held their annual Christmas Craft show for about the last decade or so. And, depending upon the weather, it’s always been well attended, both by shoppers and vendors. This year’s event was no different as the 2025 show drew 46 vendors from as far afield as Melville, Yorkton, Dauphin, Roblin, Elkhorn, Shoal Lake and Minnedosa. The Russell Lions Club wishes to thank all the supporters who came out to shop and purchase tickets, all the crafters who show up year after year to support the local Christmas event. The Wayway Wolverines hockey team who, despite having returned from a game at 4 am, showed up to help out. As always, the Lions spouses were on hand too - even one of their grand daughters volunteered too. The Russell Chicken Chef also supplied all the ingredients for the soup sold in the kitchen.

Passion 4 Paws board and committee members; (l-r back row): Marg Fraser, Brent Rosnoski, Carrie Burton, Shallon Fowler, Julia Renz, Amanda Drebit, Chantell Senchuk, Erin Hamilton, Cheryl Collins and Kevin Tomsha. (Front row l-r) Andrea Glasman, Samantha Diores, LaVerne Rosnoski Tomsha, Tori Tomsha, Sherry Sabeski and Michelle Gambler had reason to smile as Waywayseecappo First Nation came through with a $50,000 donation to buy a building for a much needed building for a dog rescue centre in Russell. The council of Waywayseecappo is also taking care of moving the building from Altona to whatever land is secured here in Russell. To that end, the committee has asked for the help of Russell Binscarth council in securing land on the vacant property surrounding the Russell Vet Clinic which is owned by the municipality. After their delegation at the last council meeting last week, the board and committee await their reply.

Read the full story in this weeks Russell Banner.

Brayden Dube and his Prince Albert Raiders of the WHL are hitting the golf course this Thursday for supper and a meet and greet, if you’re so inclined.
Dube is the son of the club house manager Christie and her husband Garth and the team is on its way to Brandon for a game against the Wheaties on Friday.
Want to go? Find out what time in this week’s Review.

Since the pandemic took away its customers, Countryfest Community Cinema in Dauphin has been struggling to lure them back and, as a result, is fighting to keep the lights on.

And while the community has not been buying tickets to the same extent it once did, the cinema’s board of directors is asking for a different kind of commitment to help get it through this tough stretch.

As part of a three-pronged approach to raising an urgently-needed injection of capital, the cinema has launched a GoFundMe campaign to help raise the $30,000 needed to support operations and the $80,000 board chair Ron Hedley said is needed in the long term. The other two prongs are a corporate fund-raising drive and the sale of new monthly cinema memberships.

“The most exciting thing for me, I’ve been trying to do for five years is to have a monthly membership, a $10, $20 or $30 membership. It’s on our website now. We’re just kind of finalizing the touches of it,” Hedley said, adding the program is modeled like memberships to Netflix and other streaming services, which most people already purchase.

“So people can get one seat for $10, two seats for $20 and a family, I think for $39. But the whole idea is that it will help make us sustainable because it’s just going to be a recurring income.”

Hedley said an extra $7,000 to $8,000 per month is needed to keep the cinema viable.

“As far as extracurricular income, like away from the movie screen,” he said.

“If you want a theater, that’s what we need to do.”

Hedley said the cinema was operating smoothly when it was presented with a series of obstacles.

“We were doing well and had some financial reserves and then we were hit with hurdles such as the pandemic, the actors guild strikes in Hollywood, and the rise of streaming services,” Hedley said, adding those reserves were burned through during that period.

On top of operating costs, the cinema has a remaining mortgage of $1.139 million, reduced from the original $2.5 million in 2011, which, Hedley said, represented only half the actual value of the building.

Hedley added he has heard comments that the cinema has always been a  losing proposition, but that simply is not true.

“We’ve held our own for a long time. We just need to get over this little hump,” he said, adding the entire board is committed to the future of the cinema.

“We need a short-term lift to get us back on track. Recently, there are days you can come to the movie theatre and it feels like a private screening. This building was meant to bring people together, but right now we’re struggling to convince people to show up and see a movie.”

As part of the drive, the board has decided to change direction when it comes to day-to-day management of the business and is searching for a new general manager, a task made more difficult by the current financial challenges.

Hedley said existing staff and the board will guide the transition along with some help from City staff.

“We have 13 employees there that we want to look after, so that’s our first priority right now, to make sure there’s enough for them,” Hedley said, adding with the recent moves that have already been made, he is confident the campaign will be a succes.

“It’s a new kind of wave. I like it. A new kind of breath.”

While the Cinema is a non-profit organization and cannot issue charitable tax receipts, there are still many ways to help:

• Donate directly to the GoFundMe campaign online at gofund.me/994e7d428.
• Share the campaign with friends, family and colleagues.
• Reach out to the cinema board with partnership or fund-raising ideas.

“This is your cinema,” Hedley said.

“It’s where we’ve celebrated birthdays, fundraisers, community events, first dates, and countless family nights. If you have ever made a memory here, please help us make sure the next generation can, too.”

To discuss how you can help, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

Being a part of 4-H gives youth many opportunities to build and grow essential skills that are needed in everyday life as a part of learning. 4-H stands for Head, Heart, Hands and Health, all components which we need for survival. Local 4-H The Pas Helping Hands Leader Cheryl Antonio has been involved with 4-H ever since she was a child and started out as a member whose mother was a 4-H leader.
“My first involvement with 4-H was in the late 70s,” said Antonio. “My mom was a 4-H leader and taught us sewing. My mom is an extremely talented seamstress and it was important to her to pass along these skills to her daughters. Learning something fun was even better when you could do it as a group and thus we attended the 4-H sewing club.”
Watching her mother be a 4-H leader and knowing how valuable the program was led Antonio to also become a leader and her own children became interested in it as well.