Category Archives: Hanley

Dundurn, featured, Hanley, Kenaston, Sports

Hanley White Sox win midget AA provincial title

The Hanley White Sox defeated the Ponteix Pirates 6-5 on July 23 to win the Midget AA Tier 4 provincial baseball championship.

By Joel van der Veen

HANLEY — The Hanley Merchants went their whole first season without a single win.

In their second year, they showed modest improvement, winning two games.

So it was nothing short of a shock when the team, now renamed the Hanley White Sox, finished its third season by winning a provincial title.

The Sox defeated the Ponteix Pirates 6-5 on July 23 to win the Midget AA Tier 4 provincial championship.

“We didn’t expect that at all,” said Jason Bellina, the team’s head coach, adding that while the win was a surprise, the boys earned it just the same.

“It’s not like we’re a bunch of schmoes out there. They’re good ball players. It was fitting for them to win the whole thing.”

The midget team included 16 players, drawing from Hanley, Dundurn, Kenaston and Clavet, and played in the Saskatoon league.

All their games are played in the city, as Hanley’s diamonds aren’t in line with the league’s regulations.

The past season had been the team’s best yet, with three wins in the regular season and a brief run in league playoffs, where they reached the second round.

“They’re such a good group of guys,” said Bellina. “You could just see them getting better and better through the season.”

Initially they hadn’t planned to go to provincials, but later decided to take a stab at it.

“We figured, ‘Who knows? Let’s just see what we’re up against,’” Bellina recalled.

Midget AA Tier 4 provincials were held in Ponteix from July 21 to 23, beginning with round-robin play on Friday and Saturday. Six teams competed in two pools.

For the full story, please see the Aug. 14 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

 

Hanley, Obituary

Obituary: Olson, Timothy

Timothy Olson
1960 — 2017

The family of Timothy Olson of Hanley, Sask., is broken-hearted to announce his passing in Saskatoon, Sask., on July 12, 2017 after a short battle with cancer. Tim was a hard-working, down-to-earth man who loved his family and would do anything for them or anyone else. Tim was predeceased by his father Kenneth Olson. He is survived by his wife Hazel Martens; his children Matt (Kellie), Amanda, Skye and Erik (Kaitlyn); his stepchildren Eric (Becky), Clayton (Jori) and Leah Martens; grandchildren Laryssa, Rylee, Preston, Addley, Jackson, Jessa, Lexi and Olivia; his mother Mary Olson; siblings Greg (Gwen), Margie (Barry) Toman, Julie (Darren) Deobald and Dan (Brenda) as well as many nieces, nephews and friends.

A celebration of Tim’s life funeral service will be held at the Hanley Centennial Community Hall on Monday, July 17, 2017 at 2:00 p.m. with Pastor Andy Gilkinson presiding.

Arrangements in care of Hanson’s Funeral Home of Davidson.

Hanley, Obituary

Obituary: Fawcett, Eva Agnes

FAWCETT, Eva Agnes (nee Sarich)
May 21, 1916 — June 29, 2017

We wish to announce the peaceful passing of Eva Agnes Fawcett, a truly amazing woman, at the age of 101. Her passing occurred on Thursday, June 29, 2017 at Extendicare Nursing Home in Saskatoon. Eva was born to Martin and Mary Sarich, their second child on May 21, 1916 at home on the farm near Hanley, Sask. It was a challenging time for her parents and siblings, but they persevered with the help of family and friends. Eva attended Crescent View School along with her brothers and sisters, and it was a time of much fun for them all. At a young age, she relocated to Victoria to work. After a few years, she thought Calgary sounded exciting and off she went with sister Anne. Not long after, Eva met the love of her life, Harry Fawcett, and they were soon married in 1956. They enjoyed travelling to many parts of the world and were together nearly 40 years until Harry’s passing in 1993. Many of those years were spent in Kelowna until Saskatchewan called Eva home. Eva has called Saskatoon home for some time now where she was recognized last year by many government officials, including the Governor General of Canada, for celebrating her 100th birthday! She was predeceased by her husband Harry, her parents, her sisters Mary (Zdunich) and Vera (Wasden), brothers John, Mike and Louis, as well as numerous in-laws and three nephews. Eva is survived by her sisters Kitty (Masich) and Anne (Sarich) as well as numerous nieces, nephews and her stepdaughter Pat of Calgary and her family. We would like to thank the wonderful staff at Extendicare for their care and compassion while Eva was a resident there. The Funeral Mass was held at Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church, Davidson, Sask., on Thursday, July 6, 2017 at 2:00 p.m. Interment of cremated ashes will be at a later date in Calgary, Alta., with Eva’s beloved Harry. Arrangements were entrusted to Hanson’s Funeral Home, Davidson, Sask., and Martens Warman Funeral Home, Warman, Sask.

featured, Hanley

Jam-packed weekend as Hanley hosts annual ag fair

Madison and Adelita Carter ride on horseback during the town parade, part of the Hanley Ag Fair festivities.

By Joel van der Veen

HANLEY — Two days of events at the Hanley fairgrounds made for a fun-filled weekend for local families.

The Hanley Agricultural Fair kicked off with a parade through town on Friday night, and continued through Saturday with dozens of events, activities and attractions.

Andrea Townsend, who serves as treasurer on the Hanley and District Ag Society board, reported that more than 500 people attended on Friday, June 16, followed by another 300 on Saturday.

Attendance was down slightly from last year, Townsend said, attributing the drop to the off-and-on rain that fell throughout the weekend.

“Up until now, it’s just gone up and up and up,” she said, adding that the events went smoothly apart from the weather.

This was the eighth year for the revived fair, which received support from close to 50 local and regional sponsors.

For the full story and more colour photos, please see the June 26 edition of The Davidson Leader or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

Hanley, Sports

Back-to-back bronze for Hanley pole vaulter

Jadyn Reiber (right) of Hanley Composite School won bronze in the midget girls pole vault at the provincial track and field meet on June 3.

By Joel van der Veen

HANLEY — Flinging your body around with the help of a long, narrow pole might seem daunting, but fortunately it gets easier with time.

“It can be a bit scary hurling yourself into the air, I guess,” said Jadyn Reiber, a pole vaulter and a Grade 10 student at Hanley Composite School.

“It was hard at first . . . Once you get over the fear factor, then it gets a lot easier and your confidence grows.”

Having won two provincial bronze medals in two years, Reiber knows what she’s talking about.

She won bronze in the midget girls pole vault last year, with a height of 1.90 metres.

On June 3, she repeated the feat, increasing her height to 2.25 metres. Both years, she was the only Hanley athlete to return home from provincials with a medal.

Reiber said she participates in other events but has focused on the pole vault in the last couple of years.

“Honestly, I’d see people doing it and I thought that it would be kind of fun,” she recalled.

She and other rural students practised at the field house on the University of Saskatchewan campus once a week, giving them an opportunity they might not otherwise have at smaller schools.

In recent weeks Reiber has been suffering from a virus, which weakened her somewhat on the day of the event. She said she’s still curious to know how she would have done had she been in perfect health.

“I was hoping to do better, but that didn’t happen,” she said, adding, “I’m happy with the way it turned out.”

She has avoided injury so far in her pole vaulting career, though she had a close call while warming up at provincials this year when the mat was harder than she expected.

“My first jump was kind of a surprise,” she said. “I kneed myself in the face.”

Reiber plays volleyball at school and has also played on various club teams. Her other sports include curling and badminton.

“I do pretty much everything the school has to offer,” she said.

With a couple of years to go, she plans to continue her efforts on the field, with the aim of improving her results and perhaps taking home a silver or gold.

“A lot of the girls do club track in the city,” said Reiber. “I think if I push myself, I can hopefully reach that goal.”

For the full story and complete results, see the June 12 edition of The Davidson Leader, or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

featured, Hanley

Street party raises funds for Hanley rink

Dustin Laventure (left) and Noemi Tews fight for the ball in a practice game of street hockey in Hanley on the afternoon of May 27. Also pictured at the back are David Tews and Case Hammond.

By Joel van der Veen

HANLEY — Summer in Hanley kicked off in fine form with a street hockey tournament and dance last weekend.

Between 20 and 30 players took their sticks to the street on May 27. A small section of Lincoln Street was fenced off for the games, which attracted both teens and younger kids.

Four games were played during the tournament, but the hockey continued until well after dark, with players remaining on the street till around 11 p.m.

At 8 p.m., Billy Bob, a three-piece band from Saskatoon, took the stage, playing a variety of fun music.

Organizer Cindy Prosofsky said the dance continued till shortly after midnight, ending after an equipment malfunction.

She said they were happy with the results and hope to make it an annual event.

“It was a good time and we learned a lot,” said Prosofsky. “Hopefully next time we can make it bigger and better.”

The events were organized to raise funds in support of the Hanley rink. The town is planning various upgrades to the facility, including the installation of artificial ice.

The arena, which was completed in 1981, currently relies on natural ice and is usually in operation for two months or so each year.

Organizers began fundraising in 2014, initially setting a goal of $1.5 million and later scaling back that target.

Prosofsky said they have raised around $150,000 so far and will soon begin work on some of the upgrades, including renovations to the penalty box and players’ benches.

The committee has been approved for a Community Initiatives Fund grant of $25,000, which Prosofsky said may be applied toward the purchase and installation of an overhead door.

Organizers are also looking at the purchase of a used artificial ice plant. Prosofsky said they plan to make a decision shortly.