All posts by Tara de Ryk

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Kenaston and Davidson walk for cancer research

One hundred thirty-five Kenaston School students, teachers and members of the community got their walking shoes on for a good cause Sept. 19. The school, in partnership with the Kenaston Affinity Credit Union, raised over $3,500 for cancer research during the annual Terry Fox Walk.

Cathy Enns, a high school teacher at Kenaston School, said this is the eighth year the school has done the Terry Fox Walk on a school day. The group headed out for the 40-minute stroll at 11 a.m. from Kenaston School and proceeded through a pasture, around the Arena and back past the school before arriving at Affinity for a barbecue lunch.

“We’re excited about it and think it’s necessary,” said Enns. “We had the philosophy that Terry Fox would be happy that we did the walk any day of the month or at any time. It’s a good cause.”

Enns said the school got together with Affinity for the Walk because they were both looking for “a leadership role in the community” and this proved to be a great partnership. She said Affinity supplied the food for the barbecue, selling lunch meals for $5 apiece, while the school helped organize the Walk and get the students aware of a family’s journey with cancer and all the actions they can take to help out.

“Students can help by raising awareness by just participating in this Walk, by helping to raise funds for research, or by being a good community member and friend to some family or somebody who is going through cancer,” she said. “This year another way the older kids can help is through donating blood or blood platelets or by getting their names on the stem cell registry.”

Marie Nadeau, financial supervisor at the Davidson Branch of Affinity Credit Union, said the Davidson community came together to raise about $3,500 as well for the Terry Fox Foundation. Their credit union sponsored the meal, supplying all the burgers and drinks for the lunch at Davidson School.

To read more please see the Sept. 24 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Sports

Davidson brings back football

The Davidson Raiders senior boys football team opened their new home field, called The Ranch, to a big crowd all decked out in Raiders blue and white, and of course Roughriders green. They packed the stands and cheered their hearts out in anticipation of football coming back to the Midway Town.

Unfortunately, it was their opponent’s fans, all dressed in Hanley Sabres red, who had the most reason to cheer as the Sabres trounced the Raiders beating the home club easily 58-0 in the Raiders first home game in over 30 years Sept. 14.

“We knew coming in that Hanley was a strong team with great players,” said Raiders head coach Jason Low. “We knew it was going to be a strong test and again a slow start for us made it difficult. We were struggling to find the intensity and need to work on channeling our aggression.”

Raiders linebacker Jon Taylor caught the initial kickoff to start the game and proceeded to get stuffed by a swarming Hanley defence. The Raiders tried on that first play to move the ball down the field, but the Sabres were too strong and ended up taking over on offence after three Raiders downs that didn’t really go anywhere.

It was all Hanley from that point on.

Sabres quarterback Josh Anderson quickly ran the ball into the Raiders end zone for his first of many scoring plays on the night. Anderson, in his third year as Hanley’s starting QB, led the Sabres offence in every possible way running in for three touchdowns, passing for another three and even kicking the converts. The Raiders simply could find no way to stop him.

“Our defence continues to experiment with competitive formations and we need to find one that will work with the guys,” said Low.

The crowd, which was loud in their support of the Raiders at the beginning of the game, seemed to be at about the same volume as the small Hanley contingent by the end of the first quarter, with the Sabres leading 20-0. By the end of the second quarter and the score way out of hand at 48-0, the crowd on the Davidson side was mostly silent.

The second half opened just where the first half left off, with Anderson running past the Raiders defence on his way to bringing the score up to 54-0. The Sabres basically shut down their offence after that, choosing to practise their defensive formations instead.

To read more please see the Sept. 24 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Obituary

Peters

Edward Peters (83) of Hanley, Saskatchewan, met death with grace in his home on Wednesday, August 29, 2012. Edward was born on a farm west of Hanley to Nickolai and Sarah Peters in 1929. He loved the farm life, engaging in it fully and creatively. In 1954, Edward married the love of his life, Margaret Koop of Pleasant Point, near Dundurn and together they raised four children. Edward cherished his family, his church and his community and was generous and thoughtful of the needs of those around him.  He was a strong and gentle man who loved music and nature, and had an open-minded and boundless curiosity about the world around him. The loss of his eldest son, Douglas, in 2008 who farmed with him, was a terrible blow to Ed and his family and prompted his retirement from farming and their move into the town of Hanley.

Edward is predeceased by his parents Nikolai and Sarah; his brothers Nick and Henry; Henry’s wife Frieda and his son Douglas. He is deeply mourned and sorely missed by his wife Margaret; son William and wife Virginia (nee Sapsford) of Perdue; daughter Marilyn and husband Bob Gregory of Hanley; daughter Margaret of Saskatoon; grandchildren, Malcolm Peters and partner Jennifer Wist of Saskatoon; Tiffany Peters and friend Regan Schlacter of Saskatoon and Humboldt; Ryan and Sally Gregory (and great-grandson Evan) of Ariss, Ontario; Sean and Makiko Gregory (and great-grandson Julian) of Osaka, Japan; and sister Ella and husband Helmute Dueck of High River, Alberta.

The funeral service was held at the Hanley Community Centre on Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012 at 2:00 p.m. followed by the interment at the Hanley Mennonite Church Cemetery.

As Ed believed in the potential of young people, the family has established a student scholarship fund in Ed’s name. Donations can be made to the Ed Peters Memorial Fund (at the Royal Bank). Arrangements are in care of the Outlook Funeral Chapel 867-8255.

The family would like to thank the many friends and relatives who have given their support and comfort in so many ways.

Obituary

Barrie R. “Duke” Storey 1928 – 2012

The local family of Barrie “Duke” Storey regrets to announce the passing of Barrie on September 15, 2012 in Calgary, Alta. Barrie was born on the farm east of Girvin to Andrew and Eleanor Storey on December 19, 1928. His family included brothers Lorne Storey (Dorothy), Randy Storey (Irene) and sisters Lois Podratz (George) and Milan Puckett (Danny). Barrie married Bonnie McCosh also of Girvin. They farmed on the family farm until moving to Calgary around 1970 where Barrie began a career in the oil industry. Barrie and Bonnie were blessed with two daughters, Lynn and Lorraine, who both live in the Calgary area. Left to mourn Barrie’s loss are his wife Bonnie; daughters Lynn and Lorraine, all of Calgary; brother Randy (Irene) of Regina and sisters Milan Puckett of Davidson and Lois Podratz of Saskatoon. Barrie was predeceased by his parents Andrew and Nellie Storey; brother Lorne Storey and brothers-in-law Danny Puckett and George Podratz. Of course, Barrie was better known by his nickname Duke. He was a man well-known in the Girvin area for his good humour and ability to tell a good story. Duke was a big part of the golden age of the Girvin community. His personality brought gatherings of the Girvin community to life. We will all miss him. For all those who shared in Barrie’s life, a brief memorial service in celebration of Barrie’s life will be held at 2 p.m. on Sunday, September 30, 2012 at the Davidson Seniors’ Centre. A coffee and dessert social will follow. Barrie’s nephew, Clark Puckett, will lead the service. May God bless Barrie, the “Duke” of Girvin.

Obituary

Sampson, Georgina

 

Georgina passed away peacefully in Saskatoon on Thursday September 20 at the age of 93. She is predeceased by her husband Ken and is survived by son Norm (Lynne), daughter Tress (Monte), grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Funeral services are pending. Hanson’s Funeral Home of Davidson in care of arrangements.

Obituary

Firby, Chris

It is with great sadness that the family of Barry Firby announce the sudden and untimely passing of L. Christine “Chris” George Firby of Kenaston, Saskatchewan on August 29, 2012. Chris is lovingly missed by her husband Barry; children Chad (Regan), Renée, and Mackenzie; grandchildren Haley, Jackson, and Summer; her mother Phyllis George; mother-in-law Lorraine Firby; brother Don (Gloria) George; sister Norma Nordquist; nieces and nephews Deanne (Al) Bleackley, Jason (Shauna) George, Blaine (Susan) Nordquist, Jonathan (Candace) Nordquist, and Adrienne (Stuart) Harrop; great nieces and nephews Denver, Laken (Terrance), Dielle, Taron, Gregory, Kealin, Thaniel, Dawson, Carson, Connor, Wil, Isaac and Kayson. Chris meets in heaven her father Peter George; father-in-law Fred Firby and brother-in-law Jerry Nordquist.

We would like to thank the First Responders, Paramedics, Cardiologists, nurses and staff at RUH for their life-saving efforts. Thank you to the hundreds of people who have visited, sent communication, brought items to our homes, made donations to the church and multiple charities, and extended their thoughts and prayers. It is a true testament to the degree of which Chris impacted thousands of lives.

Chris was born on February 25, 1952 to Phyllis and Pete George. On July 10, 1971 she married Barry Firby. Together they built their home and family residing east of Kenaston.

Chris had a charismatic nature, touching each of us in an extraordinary way. She had a natural ability to do things for others, making each and every person she met feel like they were the most special and important person. Chris shared many of Barry’s interests and together they built an empire of friendships across the country. These friends were drawn from sports to the realm of politics. People were instantly attracted to Chris and her infectious personality. It didn’t matter if it was a salesperson, or the Prime Minister of Canada, she made an instant impression on everyone.

Each of us who were touched by Chris undoubtedly have fond memories of her love of hospitality and entertaining, from her passion for cooking, to the beautiful home and yard she created. It brought her most joy to host a dinner party or take food to anything she was attending.

Travelling was upon many of Chris’ favorite pastimes. She was fortunate to have spent many vacations with her family and friends travelling throughout North America, Central America and Europe. She loved spending time with people and these memories she shared were amongst her most treasured.

The joy that the church and community involvement brought Chris was immense.  She was always the first to lend a hand and offer assistance anywhere that was needed. This coming October she will be recognized with the honour of receiving the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for her volunteer commitment.

Chris had an exceptional faith in God. She did not fear death and always said that dying was a part of life.  There is a piece of us that is irrevocably broken, but we find comfort in knowing she rests in peace in eternity.

She was a true model on how to live life in faith, charity, selflessness and generosity. Everything she did for her family and others she did in an effort to either make the everyday occurrences special and more memorable, or make things easier for everybody else. Too often she took on extra to make other’s burdens lighter.

Of all of Chris’ accomplishments, her family was her proudest and most precious. She dedicated her life to being a wife, mother and grandmother. She always looked forward to family days, in particular, those with her grandchildren. We thank her from the bottom of our hearts for being the matriarch of our family and for her love and support in everything we did.

Our family will forever have lost a piece of us and the spirit in which Chris lived was genuinely inspirational to all who knew her. We thank God for sharing her with us and thank her for the beautiful memories. We love you with all of our hearts and miss you greatly. May you rest in peace.

Memorial donations in honour of Chris may be made to the Kenaston Evangelical Missionary Church, PO Box 271, Kenaston, Sask., S0G 2N0.

Hanson’s Funeral Home of Davidson was in care of arrangements.