(UPDATE: Regina police reported Monday afternoon that Skylar Murray has been located unharmed and returned to her family, thus concluding the investigation. Police thanked the public and the media for their attention and assistance.)

By Joel van der Veen

CRAIK — Police are asking for the public’s help in locating a 17-year-old girl from Craik who has been missing since Tuesday.

Skylar Murray, a Grade 11 student at Craik School, was last seen in Regina’s Heritage neighbourhood around 6:30 p.m. on June 16.

Skylar’s mother, Karla, told the Leader that she’s hopeful her daughter will be found again soon.

“It’s been tough,” she said, adding that she’s encouraged by the support of friends and the community. “It makes me feel good that people care and are helping.”

Skylar is the daughter of Jeff and Karla Murray of Craik; she also has a brother, their older son Cole.

A report issued by the Regina Police Service stated that there is no indication she has come to harm, but police are anxious to find her given recent concerns for her health as well as her recent activities.

She is described as Caucasian, about 5’ 8” tall, weighing 140 lbs. with an athletic build, with long, straight, red hair, brown eyes and glasses.

According to the police report, she was last seen wearing black Lululemon leggings and a burgundy hoodie. She also has a tattoo on her left wrist, depicting an infinity circle with a blue heart.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Regina Police Service at 306-777-6500 or Saskatchewan Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477.

By Kevin Gilby

CRAIK — The Town of Craik is facing a “severe water shortage,” town foreman Jo-Anne DuBeau told councillors during last Wednesday’s town council meeting.

DuBeau told council that daily demands on the system have soared upwards of 85,000 gallons per day, up from a normal rate of about 40,000 gallons per day. She expressed grave concerns that the system will not be able to sustain that rate for more than a few days and that watering lawns was responsible for the situation.

With May having the second lowest recorded amount of rainfall in the last 10 years, council moved quickly to implement water restrictions aimed at curbing excessive demands on the water plant.

From 6 p.m. June 12 to 6 p.m. June 16, the town has placed a ban on all outside water usage including watering lawns and gardens as well as the washing of automobiles,

Once the temporary ban has been lifted, a rotating schedule will be initiated. Residents on the west side of the railway line are permitted outdoor use on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. Residents on the east side are permitted on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays with Sunday being a “day of rest” where outside use is prohibited for both sides.

A typical garden hose delivers about nine gallons of water per minute, or 540 gallons per hour. The increased demand is equivalent to roughly 35 households watering lawn for two hours on a given day.

For the complete story, please see the June 15 print edition of The Davidson Leader, or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe.

By Kevin Gilby

CRAIK — David Ashdown won the Craik byelection for town council on June 3.

Ashdown took 97 of the 171 votes to win the council seat ahead of Mark Wegner and Mike Erlandson.

His experiences include serving in small town churches in Wolseley, Gull Lake and Craik before holding the position of Archdeacon of Athabasca and Archdeacon of Keewatin. In 2001, he was elected Bishop of Keewatin in 2001 and later elected Metropolitan of Rupert’s Land with title Archbishop in 2009.

Since moving back to Craik in 2014, Ashdown has kept his administrative experience and communication skills honed by being a vocal member of the community’s health care task force, writing various letters to government and health region officials, as well as speaking at rallies both in Craik and in front of the legislature building in Regina.

Before the byelection, Ashdown expressed his belief that there is a “need for more engagement by the council with the citizens of the community. People need to know what the council is doing, be consulted about priorities, have access to relevant information, and when for sound reasons information cannot be made available, the reasons should be given.”

“Open and transparent government is critical.”

In addition, Ashdown said he believes that civic pride is essential to growth. He said, “Properties in town need to be well-maintained and contribute to the sense that this is a good community in which to take up residence. Council needs to develop and implement strategies that ensure this happens.”

With only days before his first town council meeting, the new councillor expects to spend the first few sessions learning the dynamics of the meetings. Ashdown intends to quickly learn how to work with Mayor Rick Rogers and other councillors while pursuing the objectives that are important to him and, he believes, to the community.

By Kevin Gilby

CRAIK — A year-long school project dedicated to giving aid and comfort to people receiving cancer treatment has come to an end.

Inspired by a presentation given by a former student and ovarian cancer survivor Ashley Luther, members of the Students Representatives Council and the School Community Council set about following her lead and decided to help others by creating “chemotherapy bags.”

Throughout one’s treatment for cancer, chemotherapy sessions often last four to five hours or more the students learned. During that time, patients are unable to leave the facility for snacks or distraction and, if not prepared, boredom can quickly set in.

Each grade of the school was tasked with compiling a list of items that would be helpful to the patients.

With a little bit of imagination, and a lot of empathy, the students quickly determined the bags would need to be stocked with hard candies, water, juice, socks, books, lotions, and sometimes, toys among other items.

Lists in hand, students went home to ask for donations from friends, family, and community members to get the items needed and even obtained donations from some businesses.

Each bag was tailored to be specific for the needs of patients at different ages and interests. While some of the bags were earmarked for people known to the school, the majority of the bags were donated to accepting patients at the Allan Blair Cancer Centre in Regina.

Familiar with the hardships and loneliness treatment can cause, Grade 12 student Drayden Selinger surprised his mother Arlene when he informed her of what the school was planning to do.

Arlene Selinger, a cancer survivor herself, was overjoyed to learn of the care packages and quickly volunteered to add an extra special contribution.

During her treatment, she wanted to thank the volunteers that spend each day walking through the cancer centres giving patients and family members free coffee, juice and biscuits. While her initial offering of a financial contribution was declined, Arlene’s offer of homemade pillows was gladly accepted.

“Making these pillows gave me a purpose when going through my treatments,” Arlene said. “It was uplifting to receive thank you cards and notes from people I didn’t even know, but going through a similar experience as myself.”

Asked if the school would donate chemo bags again, Drayden said, “I don’t really hear a lot of people helping out with chemo bags or giving out extra stuff for people going through this, so I think it’s a really good idea to keep continuing this idea in the near future and further.”