By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — For generations, the Hansons have served families in Davidson and area, helping them to say goodbye and honour the memory of their loved ones.

Now, funeral director Todd Lockwood is taking on a second responsibility along similar lines — providing caskets to funeral homes throughout Saskatchewan.

He and his uncle, Brian Hanson, will serve as provincial agents for Northern Casket, a manufacturing and sales firm based in Lindsay, Ont.

Lockwood and his fiancee, Erin Rohs, have purchased the former Reflections building on Washington Avenue in Davidson and are turning it into a warehouse operation with enough room to stock upwards of 150 caskets.

“We’re going to start distribution here probably by the end of the month, hopefully,” said Lockwood.

The company was looking for a central location in Saskatchewan after not having had a presence in the province for several years, he said, adding that Northern Casket wanted to work with a funeral home and reached out to Hanson.

“It was pretty lucky for us that they just pointed out Davidson on the map,” said Lockwood.

Gord Ferguson, president and CEO of Northern Casket, said Thursday that the company had previously distributed its products in the province through Colonial Caskets, based in Winnipeg, but has not been in the market here for six or seven years.

As a family-owned business, he said Northern is a good fit for Saskatchewan and particularly its rural funeral homes, many of which are also family-owned.

“There’s a certain amount of appeal there,” said Ferguson, adding that the company was also aware of the Hansons’ decades in the business, and particularly Brian’s “long and storied career” in the funeral services industry.

“We’re quite excited to be there,” he said. “We look forward to a long association with Todd, Brian and the rest of the family.”

Ferguson explained that funeral homes can save money by purchasing caskets directly from the manufacturer, rather than through a third-party distributor.

Northern Casket, established in 1926, produces its caskets individually and sells them across the country; its distribution chain extends from Fort Langley, B.C., to Moncton, N.B.

Lockwood said the warehouse will be run separately from the funeral home, and with a minimal staff for now. The operation is still in its initial stages, but about 80 caskets have already arrived from Ontario.

“Once we develop a customer base or a client base, we’ll realize what the need for employees is going to be,” said Lockwood, adding that the warehouse will not have a storefront and the front windows will be blocked off.

Lockwood and Rohs purchased the building from Don Birch in May. The store itself required little work, but the shed at the rear needed a new roof and siding.

Hanson’s Funeral Services has operated in Davidson since 1951, when Brian Hanson’s father Hank purchased the business from Burton Lytle. Lockwood took over the business in September 2014 as Brian went into semi-retirement.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — With the support of Sun West School Division, Davidson School administrators are making another push for provincial support to join the two wings of the school.

The project, with an estimated cost of more than $1 million, would physically link the elementary and high school buildings, giving the school one common entrance, as well as connecting infrastructure such as phones, bells and fire alarms.

An application for major capital funding was approved by the board of Sun West School Division at its June 23 meeting and sent on to the province, which will consider the project for funding in next year’s budget.

Principal Jason Low said late last month that the board has identified the “Davidson School Link” as a priority project, selecting it as one of the three priority items they are allowed to submit to the province for approval this year.

The budget will be released in March 2016, said Low, and “at that point, we’ll get to see whether they are going to let us go ahead with the project or not.”

The link was first proposed in 2008, when the elementary and high schools were amalgamated into one following the restructuring of the province’s school divisions.

As the two schools ceased to exist independently, becoming the singular Davidson School, it was proposed that the two buildings be joined into one.

“That was part of the official plan,” said Low, noting that the proposal was rejected by the ministry. “We let it go for a little bit.”

However, in recent years the school has revived its efforts to have the link constructed, owing to a number of factors and concerns.

Because the school’s main entrance leads into the high school, Low said, the elementary school remains “its own island.”

“There’s no secretary over there, there’s no office,” he said. “There’s no way to regulate what’s happening over there.”

As a consequence, the doors to the elementary school are all locked from the outside throughout the day, meaning anyone wanting to get inside will either have to be let in or use a key to enter.

This helps to keep the elementary wing secure, but Low said the remedy may result in problems of its own — for instance, if a younger student couldn’t get inside quickly enough on a cold winter day.

“It just poses a big safety concern,” said the principal.

There are other factors as well. Even though the schools officially operate as one, remaining as separate buildings has hampered efforts to unite them in the minds of the staff and students.

“We’ve worked really hard at combining two staffs essentially into one,” said Low. “We’re still on that journey.”

Until the schools are linked physically, he said, “I don’t think we’ll ever be fully unified.”

For the complete story, please see the July 6 edition of The Davidson Leader.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — Like most of the province, Davidson and the surrounding area were coated with a thick haze on the morning of June 29, the result of numerous forest fires raging in northern Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories.

While rain on Tuesday diminished the impact of the smoke somewhat locally, the hazy skies remained through the week, with visibility gradually improving.

Environment Canada issued alerts for most of the province on Monday morning, including the cities of Regina, Saskatoon and Moose Jaw, and the areas between them.

According to the alerts, visibility had been reduced to less than two kilometres in many areas, particularly in the northern and central regions of Saskatchewan.

The smoke also resulted in diminished air quality; alerts stated that smoke near the ground had the potential to cause health risks.

LeAnne Paproski, communications co-ordinator for Heartland Health Region, said Tuesday that the region was monitoring the smoke situation but had no plans to issue a release or advisory.

A Ministry of Health fact sheet from July 2013, made available by Heartland, indicates that smoke events can cause symptoms to worsen in patients with respiratory or heart conditions, while even healthy people may experience eye or throat irritation and shortness of breath.

The fact sheet advises members of the public, especially people with pre-existing conditions, to monitor their symptoms and seek medical care if their condition worsens. Children and the elderly may also be especially vulnerable during extreme smoke events.

Measures to protect against smoke irritation include reducing or avoiding strenuous outdoor activities, reducing or eliminating exposure to outside air, remaining indoors or going to air-conditioned public spaces, making use of a HEPA air cleaner and avoiding exposure to tobacco smoke.

A news release issued by the White Butte RCMP detachment on Monday reminded drivers there and across the province to adjust their speed according to conditions.

The statement warned that posted speed limits are given for ideal conditions only, and that the diminished visibility might make it harder for drivers to spot pedestrians, highway workers and emergency vehicles.

As of Friday morning, a total of 106 fires were burning, and many northern communities were under evacuation, according to the Ministry of Environment. The province recommended against non-essential travel to the affected areas, including the districts around La Ronge, La Loche and Pinehouse.

Like much of the rest of the province, Davidson and district was coated in a dense haze of smoke on Monday morning, caused by ongoing forest fires in northern Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories.

Environment Canada has issued alerts for most of the province this morning, including the cities of Regina, Saskatoon and Moose Jaw, and the areas between them.

According to the alerts, visibility has been reduced to less than two kilometres in many areas, particularly in the northern and central regions of Saskatchewan.

The smoke has also resulted in poor air quality; the alerts state that smoke near the ground may cause potential high health risk conditions. Environment Canada also said the smoke is expected to persist over the next couple of days.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — The owner of a building on Davidson’s main street said it’s a miracle no one was hurt after a fire broke out in one of its apartments last weekend.

The fire began in the kitchen of an upstairs apartment above the former Midway Store on Washington Avenue around 4 p.m. on June 20.

Businessman Terry Dieno, who owns the building, said the apartment’s three residents had come home after working a shift and were asleep when the fire started.

One woke up and alerted the other two, he said. All three, as well as the other inhabitants of the building, escaped without injury.

The residents extinguished the blaze before the fire department arrived, but their apartment suffered smoke and water damage.

“You couldn’t breathe in there,” said Dieno. “How they didn’t succumb to it (while) sleeping, I don’t know.”

Dieno said two apartments located below the first one also suffered water damage. The building was evacuated and its 16 residents found other places to stay on Saturday night.

He said insurance adjusters were in the building on Monday. Power and gas services were cut off after the fire but have since been restored.

The three affected apartments have been gutted, while the other residents have since returned to their apartments. Of the 16 residents, seven are still unable to return to their homes.

Dieno said the water and smoke damage was extensive, but credited the residents and the fire department with saving the building. He also said he was thankful that no one was injured or killed.

Clayton Schilling, chief of the Davidson Volunteer Fire Department, said they received the call at 4:20 p.m. and confirmed that the fire had already been extinguished when they arrived.

He said firefighters cooled down the hot spots and determined that the fire started in the kitchen near the stove.

Dieno said a burner left running on the stove was responsible for the fire. Schilling said the department did not determine the cause of the fire.

The building’s apartments are all occupied by employees working for the Davidson A&W and Fast Toys for Boys, Dieno said.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — After an intense week of learning and rehearsals, Davidson families got to enjoy the fruits of their children’s labours in the form of a stage musical last weekend.

The talents of 42 students were featured in “Rapunzel,” presented on June 20 as a production of the Missoula Children’s Theatre company, before a crowd of 150 in the school gymnasium.

Theatre employees Chelsey Campbell and Eli Halterman worked at the school throughout the week leading up to Saturday, holding workshops for students in grades 1 through 8 during the day and rehearsing for “Rapunzel” in the afternoons.

Teacher Arlene Low said the final product was outstanding and showed the hard work that students and other contributors had put into it.

“They are a wonderful group and they work and communicate with kids so well,” she said. “They (the students) learned so much about the theatre . . . So did I.”

The production was open to students in grades 1 through 12. All 42 students who auditioned on Monday were given parts in the play, which told an expanded version of the Grimm brothers’ classic fairy tale of the girl with the long golden hair.

This version moved the story to France and added a large cast of characters, including wood elves, the Billy Goats Gruff, ogres, unicorns, the Three Bears, a beaver named Bucky, mushrooms, ears of corn and a potato.

Campbell played the role of Frenchy, the narrator, while Halterman served as the director. The play featured several songs sung by the students, who were accompanied by pianist Pearl Unger of Craik.

Students stayed after school for between two and four hours each day throughout the week as they familiarized themselves with their lines, staging and directions. The sets, props, makeup and costumes were furnished by the theatre company.

At the play’s close, Halterman thanked the school and students for hosting them and working with them, and noted that after taking a week off, they would be headed overseas to lead workshops in Turkey, Portugal and Germany.

Low said that the process of bringing the Missoula, Mont.-based theatre company to Davidson took about a year and a half.

A four-member committee was established and solicited donations from local service clubs and businesses to cover the cost of the program — around $2,500 in U.S. funds, or just over $3,100 in Canadian funds.

Low said the committee hopes that the money collected at the door will allow the school to bring the company back on an annual basis.

“We have some talented kids,” she said. “I think it’s just wonderful that we have an opportunity for them to shine.”

The Missoula Children’s Theatre company (MCT) has been conducting its tours for four decades. According to the company’s promotional material, this year alone the company will work with 65,000 children in more than 1,200 communities across the U.S. and 17 other countries.