By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — An audience of close to 100 people was treated to a double bill as Davidson School hosted a dessert theatre night on May 4, featuring the junior and senior drama clubs.

Up first was the junior club’s performance of “10 Reasons You Should Have Stayed Home Sick Today,” by E. M. Bell.

Directed by Jason Low, the one-act comedy play featured a cast of 10 students in grades 7 through 9.

The 10 reasons included getting stuck with an awkward bus seatmate, facing an impossible pop quiz, and slipping in mud that leaves a suggestive stain on the victim’s pants.

Following was the senior club’s performance of “Storied” by Bradley Watson, directed by Arlene Low, with a cast of 12 actors in grades 10 through 12.

The surreal play follows three teenagers — Tatum (Katherine Cool), Becky (Geena Heinrich) and Kevin (Jacob Schilling) — who find themselves trapped in an alternate universe.

There, they encounter many fictional characters — some they recognize, like Alice (Emily Read) and the White Rabbit (Chase Lyn Dean), and others they don’t, like the Big Blue Metal Thing (Sarah Bublish) and the Sniper in a Tutu (Justin Sandsbraaten).

They eventually find themselves caught in a conflict between “Good Ideas” from classic stories, and “Bad Ideas” that originate in lesser works.

The teens encounter a pair of witches, Brittany (Sarah Allan) and Colleen (Tia Shaw), who explain that they drew them into this dimension by casting a spell.

For the full story and more photos, please see the May 15 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — When she and her husband Peter pulled up at Davidson Town Hall the night of April 25, Betsie Leach figured they must have gotten the date wrong.

“I thought there might be a wedding on, with all the cars parked there,” she told the Leader last week.

As it turned out, hundreds of people were there for them.

“We are still speechless about it,” she said. “We can’t believe it.”

The Leaches were the guests of honour at a steak supper held that night, which raised more than $8,200 to support them.

The husband and wife, who reside in Davidson, have both been off of work for the last several months as they deal with ongoing health concerns.

Dana Billett, who organized the event with Lindsay Cross, said they began planning for the fundraiser in late March.

“We just thought they could use a little bit of extra support,” Billett explained.

Co-workers, friends and other residents stepped up, donating food, auction and raffle items, and volunteering their time and effort.

Western Sales donated the food for the main course, Homemade Goodness donated macaroni salad and the United Church ladies contributed the desserts.

The Kinsmen donated the use of their barbecue while Riverbend Co-op provided the propane. Many others volunteered to set up, clean up and run the event. Dozens of items were donated for the silent auction and raffle tables.

Billett said 240 tickets were pre-sold, while many who couldn’t attend made donations in support of the Leaches.

“There isn’t a person that Lindsay or I sold a ticket to who didn’t mention how sweet or kind or caring Betsie is all of the time,” said Billett. “Everyone was willing to help out and support them just on that alone.”

The Leaches, originally from South Africa, moved to Davidson in October 2014 after Peter accepted a position at Western Sales.

For the full story, please see the May 8 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — Judging by the constant sirens, Railway Avenue must have sounded like a disaster area last Saturday afternoon, but it was all in good fun.

Dozens of kids took their turn at sitting in the fire truck, trying on a firefighter’s uniform or spraying the hose during an open house at the Davidson Fire Hall.

Most popular was the blaring siren, said deputy chief Don Willner, adding that the firefighters like it for the same reason.

“We like making noise and flashing the lights,” he said with a laugh.

The open house on April 22 drew a steady crowd with all ages represented. There were grey skies overhead but the rain and snow held off for the afternoon.

The fire department had all four vehicles on display, including the two fire trucks, a pumper and a rapid rescue unit.

The hose was set up on McGregor Street along with a prop house with wooden flames in the windows. Guests were invited to take a turn holding the hose, directing the spray to knock down the flames.

Hamburgers, hot dogs and pop were served free of charge, and a silver collection was taken to benefit the hose fund.

The event was an opportunity to the public to take a look behind the scenes at the fire hall, meeting the volunteers and seeing the tools they use.

Willner said the department is also continuing its appeal for new members.

Three people have joined in the last two months, taking the number of active members to 14.

“That’s pretty good, considering it’s a small department,” said Willner, adding that the target is set at 20 members. “Like any volunteer department, we’re constantly looking for new members.”

Anyone interested in joining or learning more can call fire chief Clayton Schilling at 561-7597 or Willner at 567-7390.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — The books are back in town.

In the face of public protests, criticism and a petition with thousands of signatures, the provincial government has announced that it will restore $4.8 million in funding for Saskatchewan’s libraries.

“Our libraries are very important to people all over the province,” Greg Brkich told the Leader on Wednesday. “We didn’t realize that the funding would affect them that much.”

The Arm River MLA said library funding was a hot topic for his constituents in the weeks following the budget’s release on March 22.

“That’s what we had the most calls on,” he said. “I didn’t think that would be the top priority for a lot of the callers, but it seemed like it was.”

Library staff and patrons were quick to denounce the cuts, saying the reduced funding would cripple many of the most popular services, leading to decreased usage.

The SILS program, which allows patrons to borrow books and materials from any public library in the province, was among the anticipated casulaties.

In an April 24 announcement, education minister Don Morgan conceded the government had erred in cutting the libraries’ budgets.

“Premier (Brad) Wall has always said that we would be the kind of government that would admit its mistakes and then fix those mistakes,” he was quoted.

Saskatchewan’s seven regional libraries had their funding cut in the budget by 58 per cent, from $6 million to $2.5 million.

That funding has since been restored, along with $1.3 million in funding for the municipal libraries in Regina and Saskatoon.

Brkich echoed Morgan’s comments, saying that the province perhaps should have consulted with the libraries before releasing the budget.

“It was probably a mistake to cut them that much without prior warning,” he said. “We probably should have worked with them a little earlier to see what could be done.”

Morgan said his office will begin a consultative review with libraries and municipalities, working on a long-term strategy.

For the full story, please see the May 1 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — For more than half a century, Soviet officials denied and suppressed the truth about the Holodomor.

As a result, the deliberate, man-made famine that took the lives of millions of Ukrainians in the early 1930s is sometimes called the “Forgotten Genocide.”

Last week, students at Davidson School had the opportunity to learn about the Holodomor in a way they won’t soon forget.

The Holodomor National Awareness Tour brought its mobile classroom to Davidson on April 24. Students in grades 6 through 12 boarded the 40-foot RV in groups, each taking in an hour-long interactive lesson led by facilitator Stephanie Bailey.

The name “Holodomor” — meaning murder by starvation — is used to refer to the intentional death of millions of Ukrainians in 1932 and 1933, carried out by Soviet authorities under orders from Joseph Stalin.

Authorities sought to suppress any movement for independence, first by arresting, deporting and executing many of Ukraine’s cultural, religious and political leaders.

Efforts were also made to collectivize Ukrainian agriculture. Later, high grain quotas were put into effect and crops were confiscated, even seed grain, along with other household staples like potatoes. Much of the confiscated grain was sold on the Western market.

Many of the victims starved slowly to death in their homes. The death toll of the famine is believed to be between 7 million and 10 million.

The fourth Saturday in November is marked internationally as a day of remembrance for Holodomor victims, and is also recognized as such by the Canadian government.

For the full story, please see the May 1 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.