Margaret Puckett blows out the candle on her birthday cake. She celebrated her 101st birthday March 28. Family and friends gathered at Davidson and District Health Centre on March 27 for a birthday party.
(Contributed photo by Fran Vanghel)
Category Archives: Davidson
Optimist Dance Club considering Herb Nelson Centre
DAVIDSON—Tired of doing the Davidson shuffle, the local dance club told town council recently it has found a permanent partner: the Herb Nelson Centre.
Members of the Davidson Optimist Dance Club were at council’s March 20 meeting seeking support for their proposal to convert the lower level of the Herb Nelson Centre into two dance studios.
For years, the Davidson Optimist Dance Club has held classes in church halls, school gyms and community buildings around town.
Club president Vonné Johnson said they have 80 dancers taking lessons from five different teachers, three nights a week in three different buildings from September to May.
However, sometimes the club finds itself without a place to dance due to funerals and other unscheduled events leaving the club scrambling to find another place to hold the evening’s class.
“This year has been a nightmare for scheduling,” dance club member Karen Dieno said.
Johnson said with a few renovations, the lower level of the Herb Nelson Centre could be converted into two studios. This would allow the dance club to hold all its lessons in one spot.
As part of the renovations, she suggested moving a room designated for the Legion from the back to the front of the building so one large room could be created.
“We think we can help each other,” Johnson said. “We need space and you have it.”
She added that the dance club would pay rent.
She said the studio rooms, which will be empty except for a dance floor, large mirror and ballet bar, could be used by others outside of dancing hours.
“I think we have to discuss this with the library first,” Mayor Mary Jane Morrison said.
Davidson branch of Palliser Regional Library occupies the main floor of the Herb Nelson Centre.
Noise was the major concern, librarian September Brooke told council.
She spoke to council after the dance club’s presentation.
“There’s going to be music and lots of kids,” she said, expressing concerns that young children would be upstairs in the library, “hanging out” while they waited for their class to begin.
Coun. Mandy Tichit, council’s representative on the library board, agreed, reminding council that people go to the library to have a quiet reading time.
In their pitch to council, the dance club had said they would instruct dancers to wait for classes downstairs.
Another potential concern with the dance club using the lower portion of the building was that the library would lose a room, if the Legion room is re-located, that it uses for special programs such as the summer reading program, story hour, or if a speaker comes in.
Coun. Clayton Schneider suggested the dance studio rooms could be used for the library’s programming.
He volunteered to mediate a meeting between the dance club and library board.
“It’s got to work for everybody,” he said.
Brooke told council that she thought the library board and dance club could work together.
To limit disruptions to library patrons, Brooke asked that the dance club use the building’s back door, which has a separate entrance from the library.
Council agreed to this request.
“We don’t want to make you guys uncomfortable,” Coun. Cliff Cross said.
“A meeting between the library board and dance club will take place soon.
Cyclones win Provincial C and LLHL titles
DAVIDSON—Davidson Cyclones brought home a Senior C Provincial Championship banner after a decisive 6-2 win over the Kyle Elks in Kyle on March 25.
The Cyclones “played as good as we could,” coach Jason Shaw said of his team’s effort in the second and third games of the best of three-game series.
The Cyclones, after losing Game 1 in Kyle by a score of 9-4, had to win the March 23 game at home. They did, winning 4-3 to force the third and final game in Kyle.
Friday, March 23 in Davidson
Kyle’s Justin Williams opened scoring in the first period until Davidson’s Derek Allan tied the score at one. In the second period Danny Williams regained the lead for the Elks until Josh Sim scored to tie it 2-2. Brett Siroski put Davidson ahead 3-2 after a scramble in front. The Cyclones’ penalty kill surpassed expectations as Chase Schafer scored a short-handed goal for the 4-2 lead.
In the third period Danny Williams scored on a breakaway to put the Elks within one. Davidson managed to hang on for the 4-3 win and to force Game 3 in Kyle.
The Cyclones hit the road for the Sunday night final.
According to commentary by “feedmill” on the website Long Lake Hockey League Talk, “I think Kyle thought they would wrap it up easily on home ice, and that cost them as the Cyclones knew that anything less than a solid effort on the road would not cut it.”
About six minutes into the first period, Kyle’s Tom Williams scored for the 1-0 lead. It was short lived. A minute later Davidson’s Chris Babiy, while on the powerplay, scored to tie the score. Zach Sim scored to put Davidson up 2-1 to end the first period.
In the second, after back and forth action, Steve DaSilva scored midway through the period to make it 3-1 for the Cyclones. Then, Colton Allan scored and DaSilva banged in his second of the night to end the period 5-1 for Davidson.
In the third, Derek Allan scored to stretch the lead to 2-1. With about four minutes remaining, Kyle managed to sneak one past Cyclones’ netminder Mark Zoerb, but that was all.
Davidson won 6-2.
This is the Cyclones third straight provincial title.
The 2011-12 Senior C banner will join two Senior D banners won by the Cyclones in 2011 and 2010 as well as a Senior C banner the Cyclones won in 1989.
Cyclones are Long Lake Hockey Champs
The Cyclones, last Tuesday, won the Long Lake Hockey League final with a 2-1 win over the Drake Canucks.
In the first period, Davidson’s Carter Smith scored the first goal of the game. It would be the only goal until the third period when the Cyclones, who were down two men, received a much-needed cushion courtesy of Josh Sim. The score was 2-0 for Davidson. Then late in the third, Drake finally found the net to make it a one-goal game. With seconds remaining, Drake scored to tie the game, or so they thought. The goal was disallowed because it was batted into the net by a player’s hand.
The Cyclones won 2-1 to win giving them a 3-1 lead in the series and the league championship.
The Cyclones’ season may be finished, but some of the team’s players are still playing hockey.
Steve DaSilva, Derek Allan and Josh and Zach Sim will be lending their talents to the Lloydminster Border Kings who are hosting the Allan Cup. The six-team, round robin tournament for the National Senior Hockey Championship runs from April 16 to 21.
A fifth member of the Cyclones, Carter Smith, may also be playing for the Cup. Smith plays with the Rosetown Redwings, who are in the midst of Provincial A finals against Balgonie. If Rosetown wins, then Smith may have a chance to play against his Cyclones’ teammates.
Pioneer to buy Davidson’s Viterra grain terminal
DAVIDSON—The Viterra grain-handling terminal in Davidson is one of 19 country elevators that Richardson International will buy as part of a $6.1 billion deal to sell Viterra to Glencore International, a Swiss commodities conglomerate.
Last Tuesday, Richardson International, a Winnipeg-based grain company, announced it will buy in excess of $900 million worth of Viterra assets, including grain handling, crop input and processing facilities, that Glencore plans to divest.
In a news release, Richardson stated that after the successful acquisition of “these assets, current employees at the selected locations will be offered the opportunity to join the Richardson team.”
In cases such as Davidson where there are both Viterra and Richardson grain elevators, the company encourages people to continue working with existing contacts.
Until the deal goes through, Richardson has not determined what’s going to happen in communities where there is a duplication of assets, a company spokesperson said.
Richardson International’s announcement came just after Glencore International and Viterra ended a week’s worth of speculation by announcing that Glencore International would purchase Viterra for $16.25 per share.
Also in the news release, Glencore stated it had agreed to sell Viterra assets to Agrium and Richardson International, which the company expected “to result in the creation of a more robust competitive landscape for Canadian farmers.”
Calgary-based Agrium will acquire the majority of Viterra’s retail agri-products business for $1.8 billion.
Each of the deals requires regulatory approval to proceed.
Perhaps to head-off any concerns in Saskatchewan about the loss of head office jobs in Regina, Glencore stated it will consolidate Viterra’s executive offices in Saskatchewan, making the Regina head office its platform for Glencore’s North American agricultural operations and for expansion into the United States.
Municipalities receive more funding due to growth
DAVIDSON—Thanks to population growth, many Saskatchewan municipalities learned last week they would receive increases in their revenue sharing grants from the provincial government.
The unconditional grants from the province are distributed on a per capita basis and are based on the most recent Canada Census population figures. The 2011 Census shows that Saskatchewan grew by 65,224 people between 2006 and 2011, so municipalities’ funding is growing too.
This year, the Town of Davidson will receive $207,017 from Municipal Affairs, an increase of $15,547 from the $191,470 it received in 2011-12. The increase is largely due to the fact Davidson’s population rose by 67 people, according to the 2011 Canada Census.
The revenue sharing grants are unconditional, meaning they may be spent however a municipality sees fit, said town administrator Gary Edom.
Last year’s grant of $191,470 was distributed by a formula comprised of a basic grant of $2,025 plus a per capita grant of $197.75 per person based on Davidson’s 2006 census population of 958.
With the exception of using the most recent census figures, this year’s funding formula has stayed about the same, said Jeff Welke, spokesman for Municipal Affairs.
In the 2012-13 provincial budget, released Wednesday, the government pointed out that Saskatchewan municipalities would receive record revenue sharing of $237.4 million, a 9.5 per cent increase from the previous year.
Most municipalities within The Davidson Leader’s coverage area saw their revenue sharing grants rise, provided their population increased.
Thursday, Municipal Affairs launched a website where people can check out revenue sharing totals for individual municipalities, whether it be a town, village, resort village, city, or a rural municipality.
The website boldly highlights the fact that in the past five years most municipalities have received substantial increases in their unconditional revenue sharing grants.
In 2007-08, Davidson received $99,329 and received healthy increases in funding from 2008 to 2011 when the 2006 Census population figure of 958 was used.
Over the last five years Davidson’s revenue sharing grant has gone up 108 per cent to $207,017 for 2012-23.
Most municipalities have seen increases in their revenue sharing grants.
However, some municipalities such as Aylesbury, saw a significant reduction in their revenue sharing grants due to the 2011 Census. Aylesbury this year will receive $4,025 because the 2011 Census population figures have the village’s population pegged at 10 people, a steep decline from the 35 people recorded in the 2006 Census.
Bladworth’s grant also declined, down to $14,0125 this year from $15,868 in 2011.
Davidson bans recyclables from landfill
DAVIDSON—Curbside recycling has arrived in Davidson.
Effective April 1, the Town of Davidson is implementing a curbside recycling program for residents, which means the green recycling bins on Railway Avenue will be removed.
As a result, town council, at its meeting last Tuesday, decided to stop accepting recyclable materials, including cardboard, paper, newsprint, catalogues/magazines, tin cans and plastic at its landfill, effective April 1.
“Since we made all Davidson residents go to recycling for cardboard, we should ban cardboard from the dump,” Coun. Cliff Cross said. “I don’t know how the residents of Davidson can be expected to keep building pits.”
The town has sent a letter to the rural municipalities that use the landfill, notifying them of this change. In the letter, the town states: “We further advise them to notify their ratepayers of this change, as any form of verbal abuse towards the waste disposal site custodian or any town employee(s)
will not be tolerated.”
In the letter, town council invites members of R.M. councils to an April 2 meeting to discuss the waste disposal site.
Lorne Willner, Reeve of the R.M. of Arm River, said Thursday he hadn’t yet seen the letter.
“This is the first I’ve heard of it,” Willner said.
He said the R.M. will have to look at the options and see what comes from the April 2 meeting.
“We’ll see what Davidson’s proposal is and react to what they are telling us to do,” Willner said.
Digging their own garbage pit or looking at a bulk bin program could be possibilities the R.M. will have to look at.
He said what he doesn’t want to happen is people in the R.M. throwing garbage on their and or in ditches, which is why the R.M. contributed to the costs of operating Davidson’s landfill so that ratepayers would have a place to dispose of their garbage.