The legacy of the 2024 Manitoba Summer Games powered by Manitoba Hydro in Dauphin will include a new rubberized track, as well as a new multi-use athletics pad at the DRCSS.

The announcement was made Friday at the track behind the local high school.

The project will cost $1.1 million, backed by a coalition of funding partners, including the Province of Manitoba, Mountain View School Division, Sport Manitoba, and the Dauphin and District Community Foundation.

Host committee co-chair Carla Wolfenden said the new track will be a huge addition to the community.

“It’s not just a games focus. This project is going to serve our whole region for years to come. Decades. It’s an investment in our youth. And just the benefits that come out of it, there’s so many intangibles. It’s going to be really nice to have,” she said.

Construction is expected to begin in late May and will be completed in time for the summer games.

Besides a new track, there will also be a new 100-foot by 60-foot multi-use pad where the runways for long jump are currently located. It will include new rubberized lanes for long jump, as well as an outdoor basketball court.

Having multiple funding partners was important to make the new track a reality.

“We’ve had support that we’re just so thankful for. And, honestly, it wouldn’t have happened without them. We were happy with just paving the track or doing a new asphalt track. But the support was there and we kept pursuing it and now we can rubberize. It’s kind of like icing on the cake,” Wolfenden said.

The volunteer drive did well at the recent Kin Business Expo, but Wolfenden said there is still a need for more help.

“Our goal is to have 1,000 by the end of May. And we’ll still need more beyond that. So we’re by no means finished recruiting. We’re about a quarter of the way there, maybe,” she said. “We know the support is there. When we talk to people in the street, people are still saying, ‘I want to volunteer, I just don’t know when I can yet.’ We know they’ll come.”

DRCSS Principal Taylor Schmidt feels the school is fortunate to have the summer games committee working with it to upgrade the track.

“It’s in our back yard, literally. So having the opportunity to use such a elite level track to support all of our students. It’s not just for our track team, but for all of our students of our Phys. Ed. programs, all of our sports programs. To be able to have a training facility like this in our back yard, just the opportunity to have it is second to none,” he said.

Having a multi-use pad for long jump and basketball is a welcome addition.

“That was quite nice. The pad out there, it can be used as a multi-surface pad, but looking to create a basketball court, again, in our back yard, for all of our students and for everybody, that was a bonus when they were sharing that with us, as well,” Schmidt said. “It’s going to be a wonderful addition to our whole campus. It’s going to bring people. This facility is going to be able to host major events. The opportunities are endless.”

The summer games will be held, Aug. 11 to 17.

A decision by MOR council to subdivide the Children’s Legacy Park property and sell two lots has not gone over well with members of the Roblin Playgrounds Revitalization committee.

Committee member Kayla Gaber says they have been for two years fundraising to revitalize Lions Park – located in the northeast part of town – with the Children’s Legacy Park the next on the list.

Read the rest of the story in this week’s Review.

Calls for the resignation of a Mountain View School Division trustee are mounting.

People around the province are reacting to a 30-minute presentation made by trustee Paul Coffey at the board’s regular meeting Apr. 22, which many are calling hateful and ignorant.

Want to know more? Check out this week’s issue.

Getting more golfers on the links. That was the major issue of discussion for the members as the Roblin Golf & Country Club held its annual general meeting, April 22.

Seven members and six members of the executive were on hand to take a look at the year that was and at plans for 2024 and beyond.

Read all about it in this week’s Review.

The governments of Canada and Manitoba are providing financial support to Manitoba’s Livestock Predation Prevention Program, which supports the adoption of proactive on-farm measures to deter predator attacks.

The latest funding was announced Thursday by federal ag minister Lawrence MacAulay and Manitoba ag minister Ron Kostyshyn.

Check out this week’s paper for more.

The Miss Indigenous Canada Pageant will have some representation from the tri-community in its competition this year. The Miss Indigenous Canada Pageant is a three-day event to showcase young Indigenous women to celebrate their abilities and achievements in a way that promotes the work they do to serve their communities and promote their culture.
Former Northern Manitoba Trappers’ Festival Fur Queen, Gloria Ballantyne-Packo is a contestant in the running for this year’s Miss Indigenous Canada Pageant and she is looking forward to the experience.
“I learned of the Miss Indigenous Canada Pageant through Facebook after, a friend shared the original call out,” said Ballantyne-Packo. “I decided to enter, because I love the communities that I am a part of and I love being Indigenous, so this was the perfect opportunity to celebrate that.

The Tim Hortons Smile Cookie Campaign is launching this week and another local charity is going to be benefitting from the fundraiser. Over the years, The Pas Tim Hortons has seen local support for the Smile Cookie Campaign grow.
“We are launching off our Tim Hortons Smile Cookie Campaign starting April 29 to May 5,” said The Pas Tim Hortons Franchise Owner Kathryn Sanderson. “Over the years this campaign has been growing and well received. The Pas, R.M. of Kelsey and Opaskwayak Cree Nation residents have been huge supporters of it.

Students from Margaret Barbour Collegiate Institute (MBCI) who excelled at the Northern Manitoba Skills Competition, advanced to the provincial level at the Manitoba Skills and Development Competition that took place at the end of April. Four students had advanced to compete provincially at Red River College Polytech in Winnipeg.
Zoey Wright entered in photography; Namirembe Afatsawo entered in public speaking; Tyler Atkins entered in small engines and Sandra Lucic competed in hairstyling. All four did an incredible job of representing northern Manitoba students in these skill areas and once excelled to winning gold.
Namirembe Afatsawo, a MBCI grade 12 student, won gold in the public speaking category. Afatsawo has been competing in this category for a few years now.

The Dolyna Dancers wrapped up their dance season this past weekend (April 20) with their year-end show at the SVRSS Gymnasium with a great performance of their dancers to end the season. 

SVRSS students Nolan Mangin, Arden Baskier and Sammy Jo Moshenko all returned home with bronze medals from their respective competitions at the Skills Manitoba Competition that took place in Winnipeg on April 11...