Category Archives: Davidson

Davidson, featured

Excitement grows for pool’s opening

Davidson’s new pool is expected to be ready for public swimming by June 19.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON —  Swimmers in Davidson are counting down the days until the town’s new pool officially opens.

Jessica Foster, a founding member of the swimming pool committee and now also a town councillor, said she’s been stopping by the pool on a daily basis to see the progress.

“Every day there’s people who’ll stop and visit with me,” she said. “I think the whole community’s been watching every step of this.”

Recreation director Trevor Ouellette said Friday that the pool’s opening, originally scheduled for June 16, would be delayed slightly due to equipment issues.

The town is aiming to have the pool ready for use for Monday, June 19.

He said Friday that the delay was due to “technical issues with the mechanical system not being ready to go,” and declined to elaborate.

Previously, Ouellette said he’s also happy to have reached this point, though he’ll feel a little more at ease once the pool has been operating for a few weeks and the proper chemistry has been achieved.

An official grand opening ceremony will be held at the Hamilton Street facility on June 30.

Workers filled the pool with water between Monday and Tuesday. Its total capacity is roughly 690,000 litres, and its deep end is 3.75 metres deep.

Sod is being laid alongside the pool, while grass is being seeded further away.

The fence around the pool, a key requirement for health and safety regulators, was completed the morning of June 2. It stands eight feet high, with a foot-and-a-half of barbed wire at the top.

The diving board, three metres high, was installed last week. Anti-bacterial, anti-slip flooring was installed in the poolhouse in May.

The facility is officially known as the Panther Swimming Pool, in honour of its largest sponsor.

Panther Industries donated $250,000 towards the project. The company’s logo has been installed on the floor at the entrance to the poolhouse.

Another major sponsor, the Kinsmen Club of Davidson, is also being recognized with its logos being placed in both change rooms, on the floor near the exits to the pool.

Guests arriving at the pool will enter through the poolhouse, which houses the office, change rooms, and the mechanical and chemical room.

From the front entrance, the office is straight ahead, along with two family change rooms. The men’s change room is to the left and the women’s is on the right.

The bright, spacious new building is a radical departure from the old poolhouse, which was small, dimly lit and not easily accessible for those with limited mobility.

The new building is fully accessible, as is the pool itself, thanks to the beach-style entry at the northeast end.

A sponsor wall will be installed adjacent to the office, providing information about the project and listing platinum, gold and silver sponsors.

The mechanical and chemical room is located at the west end of the building, taking up about 15 per cent of the overall space. The poolhouse has a total floor space of 1,731 square feet.

“We tried the best we can to have a zero-maintenance building,” said Ouellette, noting that the PVC walls inside don’t require painting.

For the full story, please see the June 12 edition of The Davidson Leader, or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

Davidson, Sports

Read wins bronze at provincial meet

Emily Read (right) of Davidson School won bronze in junior girls tetrathlon at the provincial track and field meet on June 2.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — A bronze medal wasn’t the only thing Emily Read took home from last weekend’s provincial track and field meet.

Read, who competed in the junior girls tetrathlon, scored a personal best in long jump, one of the four events.

She also gets to enjoy the feeling of accomplishment and pride that comes from competing and succeeding on the provincial stage.

“It’s an amazing experience just to go to provincials and compete there and see the different athletes,” Read told the Leader last week. “Winning a medal makes it an even better experience.”

The Grade 11 student was one of nine athletes from Davidson School to compete at provincials in Saskatoon on June 2 and 3, and the only one to earn a medal.

She said she was feeling nervous but excited heading into provincials. In training, she said, she focused on the track events, where there was the most room for improvement.

“I was hoping for a ribbon, for sure,” she recalled. “I didn’t know how it would go.”

Her first event on Friday was the 100-metre dash, where she placed second in her heat and sixth overall with a time of 14.46 seconds.

Read then threw 8.32 metres in the shot put, placing second. This was an encouraging result and she realized that a medal might be within her reach.

She recorded a personal best in the long jump, 4.42 metres, earning first place in that event.

She said the pressure was on heading into the final event, the 800-metre run. There she placed sixth with a time of 2:47.58.

The run was held just before 7 p.m. and the results weren’t announced for almost an hour afterward, when Read learned she’d be taking home the bronze.

“I was really happy,” she said. “Going into provincials, I didn’t think I’d get a medal, so I was pumped.”

Read scored a total of 1,851 points, only 31 points shy of the gold-medal winner, Ally Kosteniuk of Balgonie. A total of 16 girls competed in the event.

A banner with Read’s name will be presented to the school and hung in the gymnasium. (Her name is already up there on another banner, presented to the Davidson/Loreburn RaiTec for winning 2A volleyball provincials in 2015.)

Read played basketball and volleyball at school this past year and is also active in softball and dance.

She said she plans to continue with track and field next year with hopes of improving her results at the tetrathlon.

Read also competed at provincials last year in the midget girls long jump, scoring a personal best of 4.26 metres.

Two athletes from Davidson reached the top 10 in multiple events at the provincial meet.

Clay Murfitt competed in four junior boys events. He placed seventh in the high jump (1.65 m, 7/25) and ninth in the 100-m hurdles (15.93 in semis). He also competed in the shot put (10.42 m, 13/28) and the 100-m dash (12.48 s, 21/28).

Meanwhile, in the midget girls division, Jordan Matheson placed eighth in long jump at 4.78 metres (8/28) and ninth in triple jump at 9.78 metres (9/27). She also completed the 100-m dash in 13.75 seconds (16/16 in semis).

For the full story and complete results, please see the June 12 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

Davidson

Town in motion, but houses standing still

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — Davidson is billed as the Community in Motion, and by and large it lives up to that name.

Seeders are rolling in nearby fields. Business is steady. Kids are pedalling their bicycles up and down Davidson’s streets, and soon they’ll be diving into the sparkling waters of the town’s new pool.

But things have slowed almost to a crawl in one sector: the housing market.

According to an informal count by the Leader, there were 17 houses for sale in Davidson as of last Thursday, based on real estate listings, ads online and in print, and on-site advertising. (Four acreages in the area are also for sale.)

Buyers looking for a home here have a range of options — from small starter homes with asking prices under $100,000, to newer, larger houses priced between $250,000 and $500,000.

Of those 17 houses, more than half have been listed or vacant for six months or longer.

Among these is a three-bedroom bungalow on Government Road, currently the home of Carl and Doris Kochendorfer. The house has been on the market for just over a year.

“Houses aren’t moving, not in Davidson,” Doris said last week. “I know it’s a good location . . . The economy is really bad right now.”

The elderly couple moved from the farm into town eight years ago. They tried listing their house with a couple of different agents and are currently trying for a private sale.

Recently, they reduced their asking price by $15,000 and are feeling encouraged after hearing of a couple of other houses that have sold recently.

Doris said they’re hopeful that the warm summer weather will bring more viewers and lead to a sale.

Real estate agent Vanna Gay Shaw acknowledged recently that the number of listings in Davidson at present is unusual.

Shaw, who has been selling real estate locally for more than two decades, also said houses are staying on the market longer than they used to.

“Two years ago, if a house came up, it was gone . . . if it was any good,” she remarked.

Shaw said she’s not sure why houses are moving so slowly, though the asking prices are likely a factor in some cases.

While the number of properties available might seem to suggest otherwise, Shaw also said there’s no mass exodus underway.

Of the owners currently trying to sell homes, only two have moved away from town.

In other cases, the reasons behind the sales are varied — the homeowners are relocating within town, the owner of the house has died, or the house is a new build.

For the full story, please see the June 5 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

Craik, Davidson, featured

Dulle on the road for mental health

Jade Dulle stopped in Davidson May 29, taking a pit stop during her Ride for Mental Health. She’s cycling 1,300 kilometres from Consul to Creighton to raise money and awareness for the Canadian Mental Health Foundation.

By Tara de Ryk

DAVIDSON — With the wind at her back, Jade Dulle’s managed to travel at a pretty good clip in her journey to raise money and awareness for mental health.

She set out from Consul May 23. Six days later she arrived in Davidson after cycling roughly 450 kilometres, completing one-third of a 1,300-km trek called Jade’s Ride for Mental Health. The ride will end in Creighton. Jade says the objective is to get there by June 20, but if the wind keeps blowing her way, she could reach the finish line ahead of schedule.

The fundraising effort is ahead of pace as well, having raised $14,000 towards her $20,000 goal.

These funds are much needed and, according to Jade, will go to a worthy and needy cause.

Jade, 21, battles bipolar disorder. She was diagnosed a year-and-a-half ago and says programs and services offered by the Canadian Mental Health Association have been very beneficial.

“They cover the vastness of mental health. The support is ongoing. I found it very helpful to different people I know and to myself.”

She points to the CMHA’s Mental Health First Aid course as one that helped the most.

“I became more aware. It taught me how to recognize symptoms of mental illness and how to help and how to remove people from situations that could trigger. Overall it gave me more confidence about mental health,” Jade said.

She has company along for the ride. She has a support crew of partner Courtney and her parents Calvin and Tracy Dulle who follow behind in an RV, its hazard lights flashing.

Her dad and Courtney take a shift on the bike every now and then so she can take a break, but Jade says she’s doing the majority of the cycling.

To support Jade’s Ride for Mental Health, people may go to CanadaHelps.org and search for the CMHA Saskatoon branch and under the Donate option, put their donation in honour of Jade’s Ride for Mental Health. People may also follow the ride on Facebook.

For the full story, please see the June 5 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

Davidson, featured, Kenaston

Kerpan family continues campaign against impaired driving

Allan and Melanie Kerpan hold a framed photo of their late daughter Danille at their home near Kenaston. (Leader photo by Joel van der Veen)

By Joel van der Veen

KENASTON — Days before Danille Kerpan died, she had a conversation with her sister Stefanie, the kind of deep talk the sisters often had.

Danille, then 25, talked about her future goals and the things she wanted to accomplish — including her desire to help at least one person.

More than two years after she was killed by a drunk driver, Danille’s family is working to keep that dream alive.

Her picture is prominently featured in two new campaigns against impaired driving, both of which were unveiled recently.

On May 11, SGI released a new 60-second commercial, featuring family photos of Danille and other victims of impaired drivers.

They are shown surrounded by loved ones. Then their images fade from view, representing the void left behind.

The campaign runs from May 14 to June 16, with the ad appearing online, on TV and in theatres.

A second campaign, presented by MADD Canada and the RTL-Westcan Group, was launched in Saskatoon on May 17.

Danille’s photo will appear on 40 truck trailers operated by Westcan in Saskatchewan, along with her name, her age when she died and the words, “Killed by an Impaired Driver.”

Through these campaigns, Stefanie said at the Westcan launch, her sister still has the opportunity to accomplish that dream.

“Thank you, Westcan, for giving Danille the platform to do just what she wanted — to not only change lives, but to save them,” she said.

* * * * *

Allan and Melanie Kerpan live in the same farmhouse west of Kenaston where they raised their four children: Joshua, Tyrel, Stefanie and Danille.

Family photos adorn many of the walls, and images of Danille, from childhood through adolescence to early adulthood, are everywhere.

Some of her keepsakes and possessions are also on display. One item, a description of herself written as a Grade 12 student, seems poignant now, especially in certain parts: “I worry that I will not stay young forever.”

For the Kerpans, the house itself is filled with memories old and new. They now have three grandchildren, with a fourth on the way.

Melanie, a teacher who works from the Distance Learning Centre in Kenaston, said it can be overwhelming when the rest of the family is home. Generally, though, she finds it a source of comfort.

“I feel her here all the time,” she said. “I don’t find it overwhelming. I find it comforting.”

Allan, a farmer and a former MP and MLA, said he struggled with seeing Danille’s face at first.

“The first few days or weeks, I couldn’t look at the pictures without crying,” he said. “Now I’m glad they’re here.”

Danille died Oct. 10, 2014 in a head-on collision on Highway 11 just south of Bladworth, when her vehicle collided with a truck headed north in a southbound lane.

She was one of 59 people killed that year in auto collisions in Saskatchewan where alcohol was a factor.

The driver later pled guilty to impaired driving causing death. He was sentenced to four years in prison and will be prohibited from driving for seven years after his release.

Two-and-a-half years after Danille’s death, the Kerpans face constant reminders that life has changed.

“There is no more normal,” Allan said. “You look at everything differently than you did before.”

He recalled how friends and neighbours appeared to act differently around them, especially in the first year — unsure if they could approach them or talk to them about it.

Gradually, Allan said, people seem more comfortable raising the subject with them, especially as they have stepped into the role of advocates.

In the last couple of years, the Kerpans have made presentations in area schools and become more involved with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD).

To read the full story, please see the May 29 edition of The Davidson Leader. To subscribe, contact The Davidson Leader, 306-567-2047.

Davidson, featured

Gust takes cancer fight to the streets

Erin Gust (centre) had her head shaved in March as she underwent treatment for a brain tumour. Offering their support are (from left) Jill Gust, Erin’s daughter Georgia, and her sister-in-law Erin Kinder.
(Contributed photo)

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — After she was diagnosed with a brain tumour last fall, Erin Gust began the fight of her life.

Now she’s taking that fight to the streets of Davidson, and inviting the rest of the community to join her.

Gust is organizing a fundraiser, The Movement of Hope, for June 11, with proceeds going to the Brain Tumour Foundation of Canada.

Participants are invited to walk, bike or run the route of their choice — either 1 km, 3 km or 5 km.

Registration will begin at 1 p.m. at Davidson Town Hall, with the participants leaving at 2 p.m.

Gust, 35, said she feels well enough to walk despite some continuing issues with her right leg: “I’m probably only doing the 1K.”

Seven months ago, she visited her family doctor, Dr. Lang, after experiencing weakness in that leg. He immediately referred her to a neurologist, who sent her for an MRI scan at the beginning of November.

Within a couple of days, Gust was told that doctors had found a tumour and were recommending a biopsy.

Gust underwent surgery on Dec. 5, when doctors removed an anaplastic astrocytoma, a grade-III tumour.

She began radiation treatment in February and finished on April 10.

Currently she is undergoing chemotherapy, taking medication in five-day stretches followed by three-week breaks.

Gust said she will continue on this regimen for six to 12 of these cycles, while also undergoing MRI scans on a regular basis.

She said she has handled the treatment well, adding, “Actually, I’ve been really lucky . . . I’ve been pretty much side-effect free.”

She said her family, including her husband Billy and their three children, have dealt with the situation really well.

When Gust shaved her head in March, several family members did the same as a sign of solidarity, including her sisters-in-law Erin Kinder and Aileen Martin, their cousin Jill Gust, and her mother-in-law Lorraine Gust.

“The support we’re receiving from the entire community has been absolutely overwhelming,” she said. “There’s no way we could do this on our own, and we haven’t had to.”

To read the full story, please see the May 29 edition of The Davidson Leader. To subscribe, contact The Davidson Leader, 306-567-2047.