An example of a sunken grave cover at Davidson Cemetery. The town intends to remove damaged grave covers and is in the midst of notifying the public.
DAVIDSON—When the snow is gone, town council intends to take a tour of Davidson’s Community Cemetery.
Coun. Todd Lockwood, who is also the community’s funeral director, suggested council go through the cemetery and look at it with a critical eye.
“The whole council should go out there and see what I see, because I’m the one who takes the heat,” he said, adding that the condition is not too bad, the biggest problem is maintenance, or lack there of.
One of the first tasks to address the maintenance issue is the removal of grave covers.
“A lot of communities have been heavy-handed and just removed them, but I think we could be more sensitive about it,” he said, suggesting that damaged and sunken grave covers be the first ones to be removed.
To read the full story, you’ll need to subscribe. Phone 306-567-2047, email davidsonleader@sasktel.net or click the Subscribe button.
Hunter Wall goes for two points, beating two Rocanville players.
DAVIDSON—The Davidson Raiders capped off a successful season with an appearance at the 2018 Provincial High School Basketball Championships in Prince Albert March 23 and 24.
The Raiders played the Middle Lake Three Lakes School Avengers in the semi-final game on Friday, March 23. The score was close at the half, with the Avengers leading 40-31. The Middle Lake team pulled away in the second half of the game as the Raiders struggled with making their baskets. The Avengers won the game 81-69 to advance to the gold medal game against Lake Lenore. Mark Rettger led the Raiders in the semi-final with 37 points.
Davidson played Rocanville for bronze Saturday morning. The score was close after the first quarter, but was 53-19 at the half in favour of Rocanville. The Raiders rallied to try and close the gap. The final score was 88-59 for Rocanville. Middle Lake defeated Lake Lenore 75-53 to win the gold.
To read the full story, please subscribe. Phone 306-567-2047, email davidsonleader@sasktel.net or click the Subscribe button.
It’s farrowing time at Cobblestone Farm. Joanna Shepherd offers Pickle, a purebred Berkshire pig, offers Pickle something to eat as her four, three-week-old piglets follow her around.
By Tara de Ryk
DAVIDSON—Of all the pigs roaming the land at Cobblestone Farm, Joanna Shepherd admits to having a favourite.
A purebred Berkshire sow named Pickle is closest to her heart.
“She’s just a really good mom,” Joanna says as the object of her affection tends to her three-week-old piglets. They are asleep on a bed of straw, soaking up the sun on the first day spring.
The pigs have free-range at Cobblestone Farm, although during farrowing season, as it is now, the sows and their piglets’ room to roam is somewhat curtailed to fenced-in corrals in the farmyard so Joanna can keep an eye on things.
Most of the sows and the registered Berkshire pigs have names. Joanna points to one sow. “She’s Bonnie—on a good day.” Joanna says, adding, “She’s not super duper smart.”
They have Gertie, a registered Berkshire who had that name when the Shepherds acquired her. Another one is called Punky because it came with three rings in her nose. Somewhere on the farm a sow named Pitter Patter is wandering around. Joanna says she named her that because when she was born, it was very cold outside and her mother laid on her so Joanna took the piglet off her and bottle fed her in the house. She called her Pitter Patter for the sound the tiny piglet’s hooves made while wondering around the house.
And then there’s Pancake, thus named a couple of years ago after she was found laying under a hay bale that had fallen on her.
Joanna figures she was under the bale for two days until they realized what had happened.
“Pigs have a will to live. They’re a lot better than sheep. Sheep have a will to die,” she says.
She was raised on a family sheep and cattle farm in England, so she has a lifetime of experience on which to base this opinion.
Pancake is due to farrow soon. Joanna checks to see if her milk has come in. It’s not there yet, so Joanna won’t be straying too far from Cobblestone Farm.
To read the full story, you’ll need to subscribe. Phone 306-567-2047 email davidsonleader@sasktel.net or click the subscribe button.
A train of loaded railcars stretches out along the siding at Cargill’s grain terminal at Davidson. One hundred grain cars arrived the evening of Saturday, March 17. They were loaded Sunday and shipped out Tuesday.
By Tara de Ryk
DAVIDSON—It’s a hurry up and wait situation when it comes to moving grain this winter.
As soon as grain railcars arrive at local grain handing terminals, they’re quickly filled, freeing up space in the terminal so farmers can haul in more grain.
One hundred railcars arrived at the Cargill grain terminal in Davidson the evening of Saturday, March 17.
Facility manager Mike Hoehn said when the cars arrived, they brought in a crew Sunday to load them. The five workers started at 6 a.m. and were finished loading 17 cars of durum and 83 cars of canola by 4:30 p.m., in time to return home for Sunday dinner.
Hoehn said this freed up more space in the terminal, with the 100 cars holding about one-third of the elevator’s capacity. A Canadian National Railways (CN) train moved the cars out of Davidson around mid-day Tuesday. Hoehn said they expected to receive another 100 cars on the weekend.
He expected a line of grain trucks at the terminal Tuesday morning.
“As soon as we make space, everybody wants to haul,” he said.
At Gardiner Dam Terminal (GDT) at Strongfield, which is on the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP) line, grain movement has been challenging, however, grain has been moving. The terminal hasn’t been sitting with empty bins this winter.
Last Week the terminal loaded a train with a string of 112 railcars that was about three weeks late, said Randy Haugen, marketing and logistics manager at GDT.
“We think it’s challenging, but knock on wood, it’s not doom and gloom,” he said of the situation in this area compared to other parts of Western Canada that haven’t been receiving trains.
He expected another train to arrive Monday or early this week and is hoping to have a train every week for the next month.
To read the full story, you’ll need to subscribe. Phone 306-567-2047 email davidsonleader@sasktel.net or click the subscribe button.
The ringman keeps an eye out for bids a the Palmer Charolais bull sale.
By Tara de Ryk
BLADWORTH—Over 100 bulls were sold in a few hours at the Palmer Charolais with Nielson Land & Cattle Co. Bull Sale on March 12, culminating weeks of work and effort.
Buyers from near and far filled the bleachers set up in the shop at Palmer Charolais’ farm west of Bladworth. Others submitted their bids online or phoned them in.
It was a good turnout that created an exciting atmosphere as auctioneer Brent Carey talked up the bulls with colourful descriptions such as “Here’s a bull made for travel. He’s got a wheelbase. Wow!” and then rattled off the prices as the ring men kept track of the bids.
Carey even broke his gavel, when emphasizing the “sold” status of a two-year-old Charolais bull that goes by the name HVA Vermont.
This has become a yearly event and is the seventh time Palmer Charolais of Bladworth and Nielson Land & Cattle Co. of Craik have teamed up to sell their purebred bulls.
Helge and Candace By of By Livestock managed the sale for them.
Before the auction Leah Herback of Palmer Charolais thanked everyone for coming out and for supporting the sale.
“The guys have been working seven days a week to make this happen,” Leah said, acknowledging the efforts of family and friends who worked long hours to get ready for the sale.
To read the full story, you’ll need to subscribe. Phone 306-567-2047, email davidsonleader@sasktel.net or click on the subscribe button.
Members of the Davidson Peewee Cyclones celebrate their league championship win.
By Tara de Ryk
DAVIDSON—Davidson Peewee Cyclones last Wednesday won the East Central Hockey League championship with an 11-2 win over Wynyard 1 in the final and deciding game of the best of three games series.
The series was tied 1-1, after Davidson won Game 1 by a score of 9-2 in Davidson on March 15, but recorded a 9-5 loss in Wynyard on Monday, March 19.
After the first period in last Wednesday’s game, the Cyclones left little room for doubt over who’d win the game. The Cyclones dominated the game and had a 4-0 lead after the first period and held a 7-0 lead by the end of the second.
Wynyard used its man advantage early in the third period to score a powerplay goal. Davidson responded to score three more goals for a 10-1 lead. With 11:45 remaining, Wynyard scored on the powerplay, but that was all the outmatched team could do.
The Cyclones scored their final and 11th goal of the game for the 11-2 game and league championship win.
Hayden O’Brien led the Cyclones with four goals and an assist. Zack Prpick had two goals and three assists, Parker Ackland had two goals, Kale O’Brien and Mason Palmer each had one goal and an assist and Cameren Rudniski had one goal. Quayden Dean and Evhan Allan each had a pair of assists, and Carson Palmer, Aiden Pasher, Kaden Berry, Dylan Hryniuk and Morgan Tastad each had assists in the game
