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Craik

Kids learn the bricklayers trade at Craik School

Saskatchewan Bricklayers Union training coordinator Brian Adams headed to Craik School last Monday to teach a group of interested kids a life skill.

“This is our first time (at Craik School) and this is going to be a real good partnership between the school and the educators and the trades and that’s what it’s all about, completing the cycle,” said Adams. “It works out pretty good. Kids that try it like it (and) every once in a while we get some that take it on and, in a few years, hopefully one or two of these kids, will end up in the trade working for a union bricklaying company and they’ll be journeyman bricklayers. That’s the ultimate goal.”

Adams said the kids who came out for the new Craik School Practical and Applied Arts (PAA) course began the day by building up four levels of brickwork before jointing it. He said the first class of six he would teach over the next six months ended with the students “unfortunately” taking down their work and cleaning up.

“Next month (they’ll) start again and get a little bit better and they’ll do a little bit more work,” he said. “It’s a progressive thing. There is very little bookwork in this. These kids don’t want to do that. They just want to get a trowel in their hand and go.”

This is the first year the Saskatchewan Bricklayers Union has been able to offer a masonry class to a rural school as it was only offered to students in Prince Albert, Saskatoon and Regina before. Students who opt to take part in the class earn a PAA credit that they need in order to graduate and also have the chance to try their hand at the Skills Canada Saskatchewan competition held April 10 and 11 in Prince Albert.

Gord Taylor, principal of Craik School, said they are hoping to send a group of kids to the 16th annual high school skills competition so they can show off what they’ve learned this year. He said the response from students toward the course has been “overwhelming” since they approached kids about the possibility of offering the course last spring.

“Kids want to be a part of it,” he said, noting the course includes about 70 hours of practical design and construction training and 30 classroom hours. “Our hope is to continue offering it.”

To read more please see the October 28 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Sports

Sabers knock Bulldogs out of playoffs

The Hanley Sabers senior boys football team has secured a home date against the Elrose Eagles in the provincial quarterfinals after knocking the Central Butte Bulldogs out of the playoffs Oct. 19 at the Jungle.

Sabers head coach Mark Anderson said they don’t know much about the Elrose team, which advanced to the Oct. 26 quarterfinal game after beating the Eatonia Spartans 62-45 a week earlier at Elrose. He said the Sabers have never lined up against them, but expects the Eagles to be strong.

“They have five wins and a tie, so they’re a five-win team,” said Anderson. “They came in second in their conference, so that’s why we’re playing them. Then our second place team is playing the first place team in their conference. Gull Lake will be playing Kerrobert.”

Jess Kingwell, head coach of the Eagles, said his team that is made up of players from Elrose, Dinsmore and Kyle doesn’t know much about Hanley as well, except that they have some big bodies. He said they do know the Sabers hit hard and tackle well, so they’ll have to get a few good blocks to get their balanced offence going.

We’re “quite good actually,” said Kingwell. “We do some runs, some throws and try to keep the defence off guard and catch them off guard when we can.”

Kingwell said their 62-45 win over Eatonia was a tale of two very different halves. He said they came out “really strong” in the first half, but forgot they still had to win the game in the final two quarters letting the Spartans right back into it.

“It definitely wasn’t our best second half this season,” he said. “In fact it was probably one of our worst ones. We played Eatonia twice already up to that point. We tied them our first game of the year and we beat them quite easily in our second one, so I think (our players) had that in mind and were maybe looking past them already. They definitely gave us a run for our money.”

Anderson said the coaching staff is unhappy about how the score got away in their match against Central Butte and it doesn’t reflect the strong game the Bulldogs put up. He said Central Butte marched the ball down the field most of the game, but couldn’t put it in the end zone and then his offence got rolling.

“It was 18-8 after the first quarter,” he said. “It was 38-8 (at the half), but definitely it felt different than that. They really moved the ball well. Again our depth came into (play) and they were playing multiple players both ways. We don’t do much of that and if we can stay tight with a team usually we can do well later.”

Sabers safety Mike Lohrey lead the defence against Central Butte with a combined 21 tackles and assists. Lohrey also managed to score three touchdowns when the coaches threw him in for a few running plays. Hanley also was helped on the scoreboard by offensive end Kody Rowlet who made it into the end zone twice while also racking up over 200 yards receiving.

Davidson

SCC tries to introduce fitness and art project

The School Community Council (SCC) is trying to bring in a fitness and art pilot project to Davidson School that would bridge the gap between the school and the greater community.

Marcia McIvor, chair of the SCC, said Davidson School staff decided last year they want to focus on physical activity and reading as part of their two-year plan, which is done in conjunction with the Board of Education. She said the role of the SCC is to support the school staff while incorporating members of the community with the school, so to accomplish the plan they came up with the idea to introduce martial arts, yoga, archery and artwork into the school.

“We’re hoping to bring it in as a pilot project in the elementary to middle years in the school just to see how it goes,” said McIvor, noting the SCC has already or are planning to approach members of the community, who are involved with these activities, to come into the school to teach the students. “If it goes well that it is something that maybe we can continue. That’s where we’re going with that, (to) try and bring in yoga and martial arts and archery to just expose the kids to something different and give them a little bit of variety.”

McIvor said introducing art would be a way of bringing the students who don’t excel in sports into the community. She said the SCC is thinking about buying some frames and going to local businesses and asking them if they could hang the frames with the student’s artwork in them throughout the community.

That way “any business you go into you might be able to see a couple different students’ artwork,” she said. “Artwork could be a poem, it could be a picture (or) it could be a (creation) of leaves. It doesn’t have to be a drawing. It’s any form of art that the student feels they can do.”

Laura Willner, a Grade 2 teacher at Davidson School and secretary of the SCC, said these activities were decided upon through conversations around the SCC table between parents, community members and teachers. She said the consensus is that this pilot project is a good opportunity for the kids to experience non-traditional activities while building connections with the community.

“There is no question that kids are open to try so many new things,” said Willner. “It is really key (that) often in the early years (when) exposed to something the more open you are to trying it and it may well turn out to be something you love for a lifetime. The more experiences for kids the better for them and we’ve got great community resources here to access and hopefully cultivate interest in these different things for the kids.”

To read more please see the October 28 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Craik

Craik and Palliser Co-ops merge

Palliser Plains Co-op is expanding its reach after members of the Craik and Palliser Plains Co-ops showed their desire for amalgamation in votes last Tuesday and Wednesday.

Terry Vanmackelberg, general manager of the Palliser Plains and Craik Co-ops, said 100 per cent of Palliser Plains voters and 97 per cent of Craik Co-op members voted in favour of the merger, which takes effect Dec. 1.

Amalgamation “strengthens the whole association, so for Craik especially the buying power (has increased) being part of a larger organization,” said Vanmackelberg. “Most of our members will have access to facilities in four communities.”

With the merger, Craik Co-op would be added to the Palliser Plains coverage area of Tugaske, Central Butte and Shamrock. The Co-op would have around 2,400 members, 56 employees working at the four branches and projected sales of $35 million in five years time.

Vanmackelberg said an important part of the amalgamation is the Craik Co-op is not currently in the agronomy business as far as chemical and seed, while Palliser Plains is heavily into these commodities. He said this merger then helps open “Craik territory for our agronomy services and chemical and seed.”

Craik, Sports

Craik School’s Sky Stinson runs to provincials

The Craik School cross country team completed a successful season earlier this month with three of its nine members qualifying for provincials.

Senior boys runners Aiden Sanden and Drayden Selinger and midget girls athlete Sky Stinson all qualified for the Provincial Cross Country Meet held Oct. 12 at Little Loon Regional Park near Medstead. Aiden and Drayden, who declined the invitation to attend, made it to provincials after a seventh and a 10th place finish respectively at the Oct. 2 District Cross Country Meet in Moose Jaw while Sky qualified after winning a silver medal at districts.

Sky, 14, said she finished 51st out of 100 runners who competed in the provincial three-kilometre midget girls race. She said the competition was diverse at provincials and she is happy with her results.

“Some of the girls were extremely fast because they train for it,” said Sky. “Then there were other people who, they qualified for provincials, but they weren’t as fast. It seemed they didn’t train as much.”

The Craik School Grade 9 student said she began training about a month before the provincial meet running every three days after school. She said her routine depended on how tired she was, but it usually consisted of rotating back and forth between running three kilometres one session and one-kilometre the next.

Lindsay Shaw, who coaches the Craik cross country team with Charla Edwards, said they are encouraged with the team’s results this year and each runner’s dedication to the sport. She said the coaches approach the sport with a focus on instilling a life-long love for improved fitness among the team members and also a training method for other sports in the student’s life.

“Since our goal is for life-long fitness, we encourage students to run every day, but it is a personal choice to how rigorous their training is,” said Shaw. “Sky is a dedicated runner and that was revealed in (her) placement at both the district and provincial level.

“I am happy for Sky and her achievement, but it was her achievement. I am just pleased that I was able to provide the opportunity for her to represent Craik School and (the) Prairie South School Division.”

Sky said winning the silver medal at districts and then competing at provincials was a great experience and all her hard work training during the preceding month was worth it.

Davidson

Manz leaves generous donation to community

Hilda Manz has generously left $7,000 to the Town of Davidson as a gift in her memory.

In her Last Will and Testament Manz identified her desire to bequeath $1,000 to the library, $1,000 to the campground, $1,500 to the swimming pool, $1,500 to the Cemetery Trust Fund and $2,000 to the Fire Department as a thank you to the community for being a part of her life.

Clayton Schneider, mayor of Davidson, said town council is “very appreciative” of the bequest and wants Manz and her family to get recognition for their generosity. He said council is now looking for a way to show their appreciation to Manz and other members of the community who have helped the town.

“We (have been) talking about coming up with a memorial, like a memorial wall of some sort,” said Schneider. “That is definitely something we are going to discuss.”