Category Archives: featured

Davidson, featured

VBS program sees jump in attendance

Children play an outdoor game involving a giant parachute, a large ball and lots of water at Vacation Bible School in Davidson on Tuesday.
Children play an outdoor game involving a giant parachute, a large ball and lots of water at Vacation Bible School in Davidson on Tuesday.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — Being overrun with local children was “a good problem to have” for organizers of this year’s Vacation Bible School (VBS) in Davidson.

Liza Dahl reported that 72 kids showed up for the first day of VBS last week, up to 78 the second day.

Last year, by comparison, the event drew between 45 and 50 children each day.

“We have quite a bit more this year,” said Dahl. “It’s been fantastic . . . We’re excited to have that many kids.”

VBS was held at New Life Pentecostal Assembly, running every afternoon from Aug. 15 to 19.

The annual summer program, for children ages four through 12, is a joint effort of the Pentecostal church and Davidson Community Bible Church.

VBS is an outreach program aimed at sharing the Christian faith with local children, using crafts, games and Bible stories.

This year’s theme is “Submerged,” with the subtitle “Finding Truth Below the Surface,” using materials from LifeWay Christian Resources.

For the full story, please see the Aug. 22 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe.

featured, Hanley, Sports

Hit ’em with your best shot

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Family, friends and neighbours gathered at the home of Don and Deb Suttie northeast of Hanley on Friday morning to watch proudly as their daughter Taryn competed for Team Canada in the shot put event at the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Taryn (shown in inset) made all three shots with a top throw of 16.74 metres, but did not qualify for the final round.

(Leader photo by Joel van der Veen)

Craik, featured

Further delay granted in Craik fraud case

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By Joel van der Veen

MOOSE JAW — The lawyer representing Craik’s former administrator has requested another month’s delay as they continue to review the dozens of fraud charges laid against him earlier this year.

Jeffrey Todd Murray, who worked for the Town of Craik between 2010 and 2014, faces a total of 33 fraud charges, representing more than $41,000 in misspent funds.

His lawyer, Gail Wartman, made the request during an appearance at the provincial courthouse in Moose Jaw on Aug. 3.

“We’re still getting some more disclosure,” she told Justice Margaret Gordon.

Crown prosecutor Rob Parker said he did not object to the adjournment, noting that other parties had agreed it could not be counted in any future claim of unreasonable delay. The judge granted the request.

No plea has been entered and the charges have yet to be read in court.

Speaking outside the courtroom, Wartman said they were waiting on disclosure from the Town of Craik itself, including minutes from past council meetings. She said she anticipated full co-operation from the town.

“It’s all public material,” she said. “I don’t expect there to be a problem.”

Wartman had previously appeared on Murray’s behalf on June 1, requesting matters to be adjourned until August. The accused himself was not present for either of the two appearances.

Murray, 41, has been accused by police of defrauding the town “by deceit, falsehood or other fraudulent means” to the tune of $41,079.81, according to court documents.

Thirty-one charges of fraud were laid against him in March, each of them related to personal purchases allegedly made using a Royal Bank Visa card issued in the town’s name.

Two additional charges followed in May, in which Murray was accused of overpaying himself for hours worked at the Craik Water Treatment Plant, and for his own salary as the town’s administrator.

Murray is scheduled to return to provincial court on Sept. 7.

Bladworth, featured

Prpick family barn “razing and blazing”

The remains of the Prpick family's barn are destroyed by fire on July 29 after being demolished.
The remains of the Prpick family’s barn are destroyed by fire on July 29 after being demolished.

By Sean Prpick
Special to The Leader

BLADWORTH — It shouldn’t have been, but it still was a shock when my cousin Heidi Prpick Schneider copied me on a mass family Facebook message at the end of July.

Heidi apologized for the short notice, but explained that an important piece of our past was going up in flames. And if we wanted to see the last of the Prpick family barn, now more than a century old and dilapidated, we should come out the following day.

Heidi told us we could expect a big barn burning — or “Barn Razing,” as I quickly dubbed it — since it was to be destroyed by fire on July 29.

Other family members did me one better, however, and called the “Barn Blazing.”

Everybody who was CC’d on this message had their own memories of the old barn.

In my own case, the barn was there literally for as long as I remember. When I was born in 1958, my parents Joe and Sharon Prpick brought me to the farm a few miles north of Bladworth, which is operated now by my aunt Janet and her sons Barkley and Jason.

I recall being very small and chasing barn cats around on the main floor, climbing up the ladder to the hayloft which looked so vast and spooky, my dad harnessing up our Clydesdales in the stalls on cold winter days, and more.

We left the farm when I was about five and moved to a new one a few miles away.

Not long after that, my uncle Jim Prpick married my aunt Janet and took over the old homestead and raised four kids, including the two boys and their younger sisters Heidi and Brandi.

The barn remained a central part of their lives.

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

featured, Sports

Ranch rodeo draws hundreds to Findlater

Lane Robertson takes part in the mutton bustin' competition at the Findlater Ranch Rodeo presented by K+S Potash Canada on Aug. 6.
Lane Robertson takes part in the mutton bustin’ competition at the Findlater Ranch Rodeo presented by K+S Potash Canada on Aug. 6.

By Joel van der Veen

FINDLATER — Close to 1,200 people flocked to Findlater last weekend for a day of rodeo competition and fun for the whole family.

The Findlater Ranch Rodeo, presented by K + S Potash Canada, featured 10 teams competing in the main event on Aug. 6.

Taking home the championship buckles was the Guenther ranch team, consisting of captain Cheryl Guenther of Lanigan; Amber Guenther and Adam Siebold, both of Kelvington; and Tyrel Fousche, a former CCA champion who now lives in Regina.

The teams took part in five events, including team doctoring, team branding, the wild horse race, trailer loading and wild cow milking.

Organizer Shannon McArton said the last event in particular lives up to its name.

“These guys have to catch them and milk them,” she said. “It does get pretty crazy in the arena.”

McArton is one of six serving on the board of directors, which includes representatives from Findlater, Dilke, Holdfast and Bethune.

Beautiful weather on Saturday helped to ensure a strong turnout, she said, adding that some guests stumbled upon the rodeo after seeing the tents from the highway and wondering what the commotion was.

The rodeo is now in its eighth year and organizers seem to have hit upon a winning formula, as attendance has averaged around 1,000 people for the past five years.

The wild horse race was a new addition this year, but McArton said that generally the events stay the same from year to year.

Competitors have told them that the Findlater ranch rodeo draws the highest attendance in the province, she added.

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