By Kevin Gilby

Fire ravaged a building at a local business in Davidson on April 15. A pallet fire spread to an adjacent structure at Panther Industries, resulting in the loss of a building. “Lots of little blessings,” said Clayton Schneider, the president of Panther Industries. “No one got hurt; that’s the main thing. “First and foremost, what a wonderful volunteer fire department we have,” he continued. “It was minutes from the call to when they got here. They are just the best team a town like David- son could ask for.” Davidson Volunteer Fire Department (DFD) responded to a call at 3:46 p.m. on April 15 to a fire in the northern commercial area of Davidson. Fifteen members responded with four emergency vehicles in efforts to put out the fire. The rapid speed of the fire forced the firefighters’ efforts to change to containment to pre- vent further damage to adjoining lumber storage. EMS was on scene.

DFD cleared the scene and returned to base just before midnight that evening. Sask Power, SaskEnergy, EMS, RCMP provided support and assistance. The building — colloquially referred to as the Arlend Building named after the previous owner — housed equipment used to prepare lumber for the production of pallets. The firm recently installed new equipment to facilitate lumber cutting, notching, and other related production tasks. Schneider said having a fire hydrant mere metres from the property line, a dugout full of water across an adjacent road, and the favourable, although rare, south-east wind were silver linings to an otherwise costly fire.

“(The wind) was absolutely a gift from Baby Jesus,” Schneider said. The wind and locality of the fire on the edge of property, in addition to the work of the firefighters, are what prevented the fire from spreading to other structures or inventory on site.   The loss of equipment and building have caused Panther staff to quickly find alternatives to prevent shutting down. Schneider said he met with staff while the fire was still being extinguished to draw up contingency plans. Schneider indicated that while they determine the long-term solution, Panther will transport product from two of its other locations based in Edmonton.

“Unfortunately, there’s nothing you can do when you’re watching things burn down,” he said. “But you have to take care of business and people’s jobs. “I assured the five people affected by this that we are going to take care of them and we’re going to get through it. There’s lots of silver linings in here; we’re going to build a building that’s bigger, better, and we’ve got the most loyal staff. “You’ve got to take care of your people. You just have to.”

By Kevin Gilby

About 80 hunters, fishermen, and those involved in wildlife preservation met on April 5 at the Bladworth Hall to celebrate their achievements and support local wildlife projects at the Arm River Wildlife Federation’s annual awards night. Vice-President Jeff Doyle provided a brief update on work being done at the Trout Pond Project west of Davidson. Among the enhancements, 40 additional seedlings will be planted this spring and an additional 1,000 trout have been ordered to replenish stocks. Doyle indicated that once the snow has receded, the organization plans to invite Davidson School Grade 6 students to assist in the planting of wildflowers. A boundary fence installation is hoped for this year, and organizers are hopeful they can have a few heavy-duty picnic tables brought in if anyone wants to donate them. “A big thank you to all the sponsors, we are trying to do projects like the gun range and trout pond, but it’s all volunteer work and it all takes money, so any help we get is greatly appreciated,” said Doyle. “Also a thank you to all that are using the pond. “We are very pleased with how the garbage has been cleaned up and just random people taking the full garbage bags and changing them. So awesome to see the area used and respected. Thank you.”

Award winners

Cory Dieno, 12.6 lbs – Walleye – Diamond A Farms Tyler Bahnman, 24.8 lbs – Pike – Hansons  Funeral Home

Jeff Doyle, 1.8 lbs – Perch – Manz Farms

Tyler Bahnman, 11.4 lbs – Burbot – T&R McConnell Farms Ltd

Ray Watkins, 9.7 lbs – Rainbow Trout – Midtown Plumbing and Heating

Cory Dieno, 8 lbs – Whitefish – In Memory of Lyndon Kenny

Jade Ulmer, 161 2/8 – Typical Mule Deer – Kelly Farms

Jade Ulmer, 161 2/8 – Primitive Mule Deer – Gord Taylor

Jade Ulmer, 161 2/8 – Youth Mule Deer – Pyra Art Studio

Zandre Botha, 156 3/8 – Typical Whitetail Deer – Taylor Tub Grinding

Zandre Botha, 179 0/9 – Non-typical Mule Deer – Kelly Dietz

Gordon Taylor, 2.14 lbs – Ringneck Pheasant – Springwella Farm

Dwight Bagg, 3.2 lbs – Mallard – Home Hardware

Lisa and Jeff Doyle – Best Hunting/fishing Photo

Paul Golphy – Sportsman of the Year – Affinity Credit Union

September 11, 1957 – April 6, 2025

It is with great sadness and celebration we announce the death of Randy. Davidson born and raised, he went from a farm boy, to the man who could keep your farm running.

He was a father of four, his three sons Jeff, Jason and Jordan, and his stepson Matt.

He leaves behind his loving spouse, companion and caretaker Debbie, brothers Lorne and Brian and sisters Arlene, Beryl, and Terry and six grandchildren.

Celebrations will be held Tuesday April 15th, 2:00 pm at the Davidson Town Hall. Lunch to follow.

For the fourth consecutive year, the Kenas- ton Blizzards are the top team in Saskatchewan Senior A hockey. The Blizzards won the title with wins on March 29 and March 30 against the Round Lake Bears in the best-of-three final. The Blizzards took it to the Bears in the deciding game, scoring an 8-3 victory. The Blizzards won 7-5 on March 29 to prolong the series. They had dropped the opener 8-4.

In the series-clinching game, Kevin Dulle, Kade Kehoe and Carson Stadnyk each had two goals for the Blizzards. The others were scored by Shane Collins and Jordan Tkatch. Levi Cable had four assists in the win. Tyler Peterson was in goal for the Blizzards. Scoring for the Bears were Kenrad McKay, Colton Yellowhorn and Ryan Stanton. In the Blizzards’ 7-5 win, Levi Cable and Kade Kehoe each had two goals, with singles going to Carson Stadnyk, Jordan Tkatch and Logan McVeigh. Tyler Peterson tended the net. Tyler Fiddler and Brady Keeper each had two goals for the Bears. Ryan Stanton scored the other one. The Blizzards also won the Saskatchewan Valley Hockey League.

The Davidson Cyclones are the provincial B senior hockey champions. The Cyclones defeated the Moosomin Rangers by scores of 4-2 and 6-4 in the bestof-three final. Scoring was spread among Tory Allan, Braden Olzsewski, Jesse Shynkaruk, Bryce Prpick, Brenden Kemp, and Blair Jones in the 6-4 win. Mark Zoerb was in goal for the Cyclones. Drayson Skulmoski had two goals for Moosomin, with the others going to Rykr Cole and Monty Driver. In provincial A play, the Kenaston Bliz- zards dropped the first game of their best-of-three final 8-4 to the Round Lake Bears. Scoring for the Blizzards were Kade Kehoe, Kenton Dulle, Shane Collins and Eric Asbjornhus. It was a frustrating game for the Blizzards, who outshot the Bears by a 47-36 count, and hit posts four times. Nine hundred fans turned out for the game in Kenaston. The second game was scheduled for March 29. The third, if needed, was scheduled for March 30. Earlier in March, the Blizzards swept a best-of-five series against the Kyle Elks to win the Saskatchewan Valley League cham- pionship. The Blizzards have played 18 playoff games over the past two months, with at least one game to go.

With heavy hearts and profound love, we share the passing of Dale Eugene Grainger on March 16, 2025, at the age of 80.

Dale was born on May 23, 1944, in Herbert, SK, to parents Edward and Mabel (Dahl). He grew up on the family homestead outside of Hodgeville, SK, where he spent his childhood with boundless curiosity and a touch of mischief, swimming in the dugout, playing with the dogs, and doing his best to stay out of trouble at school.

In 1980, Dad and his beloved wife, Edith (Gibson), moved to Davidson, where they built a life together, Edith as a dedicated Grade 2 teacher and Dad as the proud owner of Reg-Win Auto, his car dealership. Later in life, they embarked on new adventures, spending 10 years teaching English in China and creating countless memories along the way.

Dad leaves behind a legacy of love carried on by his children Morgan, Jason, Chelsey, and Jillian; daughter-in-law Marie-Angela (Allan); his cherished granddaughters Emma, Willow, Harmony, and Chloe; his sisters, Nancy (Keller) and Maureen; sister-in-law, Mariann (Gibson), and their families, along with many cousins, nieces, nephews, and extended loved ones.

He was predeceased by his beloved wife, Edith (Gibson), his sister Dawn (Oelke), his brother Ted, and his nephew Steven.

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to the incredible nurses and staff at the Davidson Health Center for their kindness and compassion during our time of need.

A private ceremony will be held at a later date. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to the Davidson Health Trust Fund, cheques payable to the Town of Davidson. Hanson’s Funeral Home in care of arrangements.