A Dundurn recreational institution is in danger of fading into history if its participant numbers are not increased in the near future.

Shannette Classen, coach of the Dundurn Skating Club, said they need more parents in the community to enrol their kids in the Club’s learn to skate classes this fall if they hope to survive. She said there are many helpful skating programs available for kids in Dundurn and people need to take advantage of them.

“There are so many new people in the area that don’t know we’re here,” said Classen, noting the long-time Club’s membership has dwindled from 37 kids in 2012-2013 to 12 kids in 2013-2014. She said the Club provides a learn to skate tot class as well as Can Skate levels one to nine classes and a pre-power early hockey skills program, but the low enrollment puts offering these lessons in the future in danger.

Classen said they plan on getting the word out about what the Dundurn Skating Club has to offer this spring and summer in an effort to improve next season’s enrolment. The coach, who has been teaching classes at the Club since 2008, said these efforts would include placing advertisements in the Dundurn community newsletter, distributing brochures at the town office and passing out handouts at the elementary school.

She said the Club is also saluting long-time helpers to show their appreciation for all those who have kept the program going strong in Dundurn since it began back in 1967.

“We made a presentation to Vera Falk (March 22) for a lifetime achievement award,” said Classen. She said they also raised almost $2,000 later that day at a steak supper fund-raiser at Big Mur’s Tavern in Dundurn, which would be used to keep future enrolment costs down.

Falk said it would be “sad” to see the club she helped start with four or five other community members over 46 years ago, come to an end. She said the Club has been great for kids in the community looking for a chance to learn how to skate over the years and it has to keep going.

“The kids have got to learn skating when they’re five and six years old, three and four years old, (and) as soon as they can stand on skates,” said Falk, whose three daughters Abby, Jessie and Natalie skated with the Club in previous years. “We had a lot of kids involved (earlier). It was a big club and we had professional skaters, teachers, come from the city. It was a good club.”

To read more please see the April 14 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

The Prairie Patches Quilt Guild is celebrating its 10^th anniversary and to mark the occasion they are inviting everyone to come to Davidson Town Hall this weekend for a colourful and interesting quilt show.

“We have just under 150 items this year that are going to be on display,” said Cathy Palmer, a member of the Prairie Patches Quilt Guild. “We are just really excited about that because this will be the biggest show we’ve had. There will be a variety of things on display from a very large king-sized quilt all the way down to lap and baby quilts as well as many smaller items that are done like little table runners and place mats and thread-painted pictures.

“Our members have really gotten to be quite diverse now in their skills and interests and so I think our community will be quite amazed at what they’ll see this year.”

In addition to the Quilt Guild member’s work, the show will also feature vendor’s booths on Saturday from Quilters Haven of Moose Jaw and 4-40 Quilt Shop out of Saskatoon. The two booths are going to be offering fabrics and patterns for sale among other things and will also be holding various demonstrations throughout the day on different quilting topics.

Palmer said Saskatoon artist Elizabeth Muirhead is also appearing at the Town Hall on Saturday to showcase her “unique” and “absolutely stunning” wool felting projects. She said the show is for everyone who enjoys art and looking at beautiful things, so people don’t have to be quilters to attend.

“Whether you’re a painter, wood-worker or stained-glass hobbyist, there is many similarities in the work we do,” she said. “We are just working with a different medium.”

The Prairie Patches Quilt Guild formed in December 2003 when 14 ladies joined together for fellowship, fun and a desire to quilt. Over the years the Guild has been very active in the town by donating many pieces to be used as prizes for the benefit of various community charities.

“We have kept a photo album as sort of an archives of what we’ve done over the years and that photo album is really kind of interesting to look back at on our work in 2003 and how it’s evolved to 2014,” said Palmer, noting the Guild now has 19 members from Davidson and area who meet twice a month at the Pentecostal Church. “Our skills and our confidence and our expertise have certainly come a long way.”

Palmer said these skills are going to be on display beginning this Friday evening when they hold a “sneak-a-peek” for interested people who cannot make it to the Saturday show. She said those people who do make it to the Town Hall on Saturday will have an added benefit of attending as the Guild is holding an all-day lunch including “to die for” homemade pies at the show.

“We’ve got a group of men that come out and help us in the morning set up our big stands for the displays,” said Palmer. “We couldn’t set up without them because it’s really heavy, but I’ve heard some of them say they also come for the pie.”

The Quilt Show sneak-a-peek runs from 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Friday and the main show goes from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. A silver collection donation is appreciated.

A new crop of corn growers learned the ABCs of planting corn at a recent corn planter clinic in Regina.
Among the more than 100 farmers at the clinic was Davidson’s Rob Stone, a farmer and sales rep. for DuPont Pioneer, the company that put on the clinic.
A mainstay in crop rotations in Eastern Canada and the American Midwest, corn is becoming an option for farmers around here thanks to the development of hybrids that have earlier maturing dates and can handle the Prairie climate.
Because it’s such a new crop in Saskatchewan, Stone said Pioneer conducts the clinics to teach new growers the basics of planting corn and how to properly use their planting equipment.
“They say the best time for big yields is right before you open the bag of seed,” Stone said. “It all starts with the seed and how you put it in the ground.”
Corn is a row crop and requires specific seed spacing, precise seed depth and farmers need to know how to properly set, use and maintain planting equipment, he said.
“I tried some (corn) last year and I probably did everything wrong,” he admits.
He intends to try again this year and plans on doing a corn trial on his farm.
Corn is a different type of crop to plant than cereal, canola and pulse crops.
Stone said the clinics were an “eye-opener”.
“Our focus is large acres and going fast. Corn, it’s a different focus. You have to take time and make it work.”
Besides DuPont Pioneer reps and agronomists, clinic participants heard from Bill Lemkuhl, an independent crop consultant and farmer from Ohio. He led participants through a planter overview from “hitch pin to closing wheels” making sure a poorly adjusted planter can be identified and understanding the impact of poorly set planters.
Implement reps were also at the clinic, advising farmers on developments in planting equipment.
Stone said farmers are well advised to do their research before buying a corn planter so they buy the right implement for their situation. He said if it’s used, it may be worn out or it could have components not suited to Saskatchewan soil conditions.
Stone said he encourages people to consider corn as a crop, particularly farmers who raise cattle and can grow corn for silage.
To read more please see the April 7 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

A large group of talented performers from Craik, Elbow, Loreburn, Bladworth and Davidson entertained a delighted crowd of spectators last Wednesday at the Central Saskatchewan Music Festival Grand Finale held in Davidson’s Parish Hall.

Davidson Mayor Clayton Schneider welcomed the young musicians and speech artists along with an eager throng of family and friends at the beginning of the evening by reciting a Music Festival story involving his family. Schneider said his son Noah approached him a day earlier to express his nervousness of playing the guitar in front of a crowd, as he’s only a beginner with the instrument.

Schneider said he told his son that nervousness ‘is a sign that you’re pushing yourself, it’s a sign that you’re growing.’ He added it is the same with all the brave performers who took the stage during the 54^th Annual Central Saskatchewan Music Festival.

“This teaches kids how to grow as individuals,” he told the crowd. “It is lessons like this that the Town of Davidson will always support.”

The Davidson School Kindergarten class kicked off the Grand Finale performances with the songs “Rise and Shine” and “Four Hugs a Day.” The song-and-dance numbers thrilled the crowd of appreciative parents and grandparents and even had one young girl dancing along in the middle aisle.

A piano duet of “Rhythm and Boogie” by Elbow’s Emmitt Hundeby and Baylee Batza followed before Hayla Herback jumped on stage to play “The Balloon Man and Stepping Up and Down.” The first of many speech arts performances followed when Rhett Gust told the funny tale of “I Eat Kids Yum!  Yum!” that helped earn the performer two scores of 93 during the judging part of the three-day festival.

“We have to thank the ladies (Linda Haas, Laura Willner and Arlene Low) who were instrumental getting speech arts going in Davidson School,” said Grand Finale emcee Sharon Riecken.

Baylee then took the stage again to perform “Carefree Boogie,” which was followed by Craik’s Cohen Ter Heide playing a wonderful piano solo of “Spooks.” The guitar duo of Gavin Arend and Noah Schneider followed with the tune “Love Somebody” before Noah left the stage for Rosa Lee to come up and help Gavin play “When the Saints Go Marching In.”

Loreburn’s Nicole Yakimoski then sang a great rendition of “My Favorite Things” from “The Sound of Music” that came before first-time violinist Stephanie Elliott played “Au Clair de la Lune,” Jasmine Hundeby performed “Big Teddy Little Teddy” and Davidson’s Bailey Smith cracked up the crowd with “Bad Case of the Giggles.”

“We had so much talent in our speech arts this year it was unbelievable,” said Riecken after Bailey’s show, noting the young artist received a score of 90 during adjudication.

To read more please see the March 31 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

A loving husband is keeping his wife’s memory alive through speaking about how he was able to prepare for her death along with sharing vital information with others on how to successfully develop their own plan just in case something happens.

Harold Empey, who lived in Craik at one time with his wife Betty, will be presenting his free Davidson Library hosted seminar on the “Just in Case” binder April 8 at the Parish Hall. The “Just in Case” binder is a 12-section plan he created that others could use to make the decisions relative to and provide the information for all that is necessary in the event of death.

People “can expect to hear a presentation as to what needs to be done in order to give the individual peace of mind and provide information for their loved ones in the event of someone dying,” said Empey, noting the “Just in Case” binders would be available at the talk for $25. “The session will be provocative, suggestive and somewhat humorous because I can’t talk about the death of my wife (and) always be serious because it would be too hard to do. It’s a 45-minute presentation followed by questions and discussion.”

Empey said his “Just in Case” binder began in 2006 when he was sent home from the doctor and told to make funeral arrangements due to a serious heart condition. He said his wife expressed her concerns at the time that she did not know what to do about the family’s finances and other important matters if he was to pass away, so they decided to sit down and put all the information together into a comprehensive plan.

“Unfortunately my wife predeceased me, (but) everything was all prearranged because it was the same arrangements for her as for me,” he said, adding that when a friend approached him after Betty’s November 2012 death to ask how they could be so prepared a spark was created to build a plan for others. “I did it as a legacy to my wife, the gal I loved for 57 years. I’ve done over 125 seminars and gone through over 5,000 binders and Harold Empey doesn’t get one penny from it. It’s all a legacy to Betty, so (the $25) goes to recover the costs or to charity.”

September Brooke, branch librarian in Davidson, said she first heard about Empey and his presentation about a year ago, but it wasn’t until a friend’s husband passed away last fall that the importance of hosting this information session struck home. She said the young man’s death showed her that anything can happen to us at any time, so we should all be prepared to make things easier on the ones who are left behind.

To read more please see the March 31 print edition of The Davidson Leader.

Riverbend Co-op marked 100 years of the Co-operative retail movement in the community by paying tribute to the Davidson Co-op’s 100th anniversary.
“Co-op has had a long history in Davidson and the board felt it should be here to celebrate it with you,” Dale Firby, general manager of Riverbend Co-op, said at the Co-op’s annual general meeting in Davidson March 20.
The event was a sort of homecoming for Firby. He currently resides in Outlook, but Davidson is his hometown. Firby began his career with the co-operative system 30 years ago, April 9 with the Davidson Co-op as a fuel truck driver.
“Davidson Co-op has weathered many storms over 100 years both real and financially,” Firby said.
Incorporated on April 14, 1914 as Davidson Co-operative Association Ltd. its first activities involved buying goods by carlot to share among members. Over the next few years its enterprises grew rapidly beginning with fuel supplies, farm implements, hardware, home furnishings, dry goods, groceries and a bakery, one of the first to be operated by a retail Co-op. In 1928 the Co-op built a new grocery and dry goods building.
The Davidson- Co-op weathered the Great Depression and set up an emergency benefit service for its members during these hard economic times of the 1930s. In the 1940s the Co-op continued to expand its services including egg candling station, distribution of pasteurized milk as well as adding a spur track to accommodate increased carload shipments of fuel and other goods. Each decade the Co-op grew and expanded, adding new buildings and storage sheds.
The windstorm of 1976 that blew through Davidson didn’t leave the Co-op unscathed either and the Co-op had to spend much of the year rebuilding.
To read more please see the March 31 print edition of The Davidson Leader.