Category Archives: Strongfield

Strongfield

Viterra to buy GDT

STRONGFIELD—Shareholders will decide next month whether to approve the sale of Gardiner Dam Terminal (GDT) Ltd. to Viterra.

The purchase price is estimated at between $27.9 and $30.3 million.

GDT’s board of directors announced Friday, Nov. 16 that the company has entered into an asset purchase agreement with Viterra, which already holds a 50 per cent interest in GDT as per a joint venture agreement entered into 18 years ago when the farmer-owned terminal was built. The sale of the remaining 50 per cent of the assets will terminate this joint venture agreement.

The purchase agreement includes all the assets associated with the grain handling aspect of the business and the crop inputs and production side of the business known as GDT AgServices Ltd.

GDT operates a grain terminal near Strongfield, along the CP Rail line and has crop production facilities at Strongfield, Broderick and Tullis.

The terminal’s service area covers a 60-mile radius around Strongfield, including the communities of Craik, Davidson, Kenaston, Eyebrow, Central Butte, Dinsmore, Beechy, Hanley, Outlook, Elbow and Loreburn.

Viterra has advised GDT that it intends to sell GDT AgServices and all its crop production assets to Riverbend Co-operative Ltd. under a separate agreement.

GDT and GDT AgServices currently employ 24 people.

Twenty-two out of the 24 people will be offered positions by either Viterra, in the grain handling facility, or Riverbend Co-op at the three crop input locations, said Shawn Graham, chief executive officer, GDT AgServices. He said the two exceptions are management positions.

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Davidson, Imperial, Loreburn, Sports, Strongfield

Atheltes have amazing time at Sask. Winter Games

Strongfield’s Alyssa Glubis, 16, competes in badminton at the Saskatchewan Winter Games in North Battleford.
Imperial’s Trevor Mooney and Chantelle Remlinger competed in target shooting at the Saskatchewan Winter Games.

By Tara de Ryk

Strongfield’s Alyssa Glubis and Imperial’s Chantelle Remlinger had the time of their lives Feb. 18 to 24 in North Battleford.

The high school students were amongst the province’s top young athletes competing in the Saskatchewan Winter Games.

They were members of Team Prairie Central, representing this district at the games.

Chantelle, 17, a Grade 11 student at Imperial School, competed in target shooting. She is new to target shooting, having taken up the sport three months before the games.

Chantelle said she had gone to the games hoping to do well and maybe bring home a medal.

She achieved this goal, winning silver in the target shooting team air pistol mixed event.

She was paired with 14-year-old Seth Norman of Martensville. Chantelle said they had never shot together before the games, but their combination paid off.

They each had to shoot 40 shots individually in a specific time limit to make it to the finals.

Trevor Mooney also competed at the winter games in target shooting. The 15-year-old Imperial School student finished fifth in the air rifle mixed team event and he finished eighth in the air rifle open and the air rifle super final events.

He trains with Chantelle. They practise at the Imperial rink and are coached by coach Lowell Strauss, who was also at the games coaching Prairie Central’s target shooting team.

Also on Team Prairie Central was Alyssa Glubis who competed in badminton.

She just turned 16 and faced formidable opponents. Her competitors were 18 and 19 years of age and happened to be the best teenaged badminton players in the province. Her first match was against the reigning provincial champ.

“I’m pretty sure she’s back-to-back provincial champion,” Alyssa said.

Then she played the provincial silver medalist. This match was followed by a game against Saskatoon’s club champion.

Alyssa said she won some sets here and there, however, she was no serious threat to her seasoned competitors.

“I lost, but I had so much fun,” Alyssa said, urging other kids who get the opportunity to compete in the Saskatchewan Games to take it.

To read the full story, you’ll need to subscribe. Phone 306-567-2047, email davidsonleader@sasktel.net or press the “subscribe” button.

Elbow, Loreburn, Mistusinne, Sports, Strongfield

Curlers come home to Strongfield’s new rink

League curling resumes tonight, Monday, Feb. 12 in Strongfield. This new curling rink replaces the older structure that was toppled by a July 20, 2017 windstorm.
(Leader photo by Tara de Ryk)

STRONGFIELD—Curlers along Line 19 have come home.

Monday night curling has resumed at the Strongfield Curling Rink. The season kicks off tonight in the brand new rink that was built to replace the old rink that was destroyed by a July 20 windstorm.

A “Welcome home to Strongfield” banner was hung on the inside wall, greeting curlers as they stepped on the freshly made ice.

The banner is a thoughtful touch courtesy of Ron Sabiston.

When he was sorting through the remnants and equipment of the destroyed curling rink that were stored in the ice-skating rink next door, Sabiston said he found the banner, which was from the village’s homecoming celebration in 2012.

So he brought it over to the new curling rink and hung it up.

“This is like home. We’ve lived here the last four months,” Sabiston says.

He’s a member of a crew of volunteers who have been working nearly non-stop to get the new rink ready for the season.

He is known as “Northend Ron” to differentiate him from the other Rons living in and around the community including Downtown Ron and West Farm Ron.

“I found it kind of ironic. There were four Rons in town and then I get here and found out there’s two more Rons on the farm.”

Strongfield is like most Saskatchewan towns, populated by community-minded individuals who get things done. And they all have nicknames, so it can take a minute or two for a stranger to sort out who’s who.

George “Shorty” Follick was flooding the ice last Monday night. He’s known as Shorty to distinguish him from Strongfield’s former mayor George Bristow, who was of much taller stature.

Also part of the volunteer crew are Ryan Glubis, Strongfield Mayor Jeff Vollmer, Ronny Follick, Dave Wirth, Devon Ellscheid, Ernie Pryor, Jessica April and Amanda Glubis.

To read the entire story and see more photos, you will need to subscribe. Phone 306-567-2047 or email davidsonleader@sasktel.net

featured, Strongfield

Wind delays work on Strongfield curling rink

The frame for Strongfield’s new curling rink (pictured on Nov. 28) is now complete. The addition of tin roofing and siding is expected to wrap up this week.
(Photo courtesy of Brandy Losie)

By Joel van der Veen

STRONGFIELD — Once again, prairie winds appear to be conspiring against Strongfield’s curlers.

A July 20 wind storm flattened the village’s curling rink, a popular gathering place for more than 50 years.

Before long, plans were underway to build a new rink, a simplified structure that would allow curling to continue.

Inclement weather has delayed construction, but organizers are hopeful that the rink will be ready in time for curling season.

Amanda Glubis, who serves on the recreation board, said she has her fingers crossed that curling will be able to start the first Monday in January, as per tradition.

“If the wind would co-operate, they’d have been done a long time ago,” she said last week. “It’s getting into a busy time of year for everything and everyone . . . The crunch is on.”

Construction on the rink began in early fall. The wooden frame was finished in mid-November, and crews installed tin on the roof last week.

Strongfield’s mayor, Jeff Vollmer, said they hoped to have tin siding in place this week.

“Every time it gets nice out it gets windy,” he said Wednesday. “Hopefully in the next few weeks they can get a lot done.”

Wind is especially problematic when workers are handling large sheets of tin, Glubis said, adding, “It’s not a fun job.”

The new rink will measure 52 feet wide by 154 feet long and stand 16 feet high.

It will look significantly different from the old rink, which featured a curved wooden roof, but it will serve the intended purpose.

“We’ll be able to use it for suppers and curling, and that’s what we wanted,” said administrator Brandy Losie.

Contractors had to adjust the size slightly when they came up against the concrete pilings from the old rink, which had been installed at an angle.

An insurance payout from the old rink is expected to cover the cost of the basic structure, at around $120,000.

For the full story, please see the Dec. 4 edition of The Davidson Leader, or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

featured, Strongfield

Strongfield to rebuild curling rink

The Strongfield curling rink was destroyed in a wind storm on July 20.

By Joel van der Veen

STRONGFIELD — If you rebuild it, they will come back.

That’s what organizers in Strongfield are hoping, as they press forward with plans to replace the village curling rink, weeks after it was knocked down in a windstorm on July 20.

The rink, a popular destination for more than 50 years, drew crowds each week for curling and community suppers during the winter months.

Village officials say the insurance payout from the old rink should largely cover the cost of building a simple structure that is roughly the same size, allowing curling to resume for the coming season.

The council and recreation board have both indicated their support for the project, as have the volunteers who keep the rink running each year.

“They’re completely in favour to rebuild,” said Amanda Glubis, one of six members on the village rec board. “They know it’s an important part of our community.”

A public meeting to discuss the rink’s future on Aug. 24 drew about 30 people, many of them from other communities on Line 19.

Mayor Jeff Vollmer said most in attendance were in support of rebuilding, though others questioned the long-term viability of a curling rink in Strongfield.

Some were under the impression that the village would be taking out a loan to pay for the new structure, the mayor said, adding, “A lot of people were thinking that their taxes were going to go up.”

He said the insurance payout should pay for the building itself, while fundraising will pay for finishing touches further down the road.

For the full story, please see the Sept. 4 edition of The Davidson Leader, or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.

 

featured, Loreburn, Strongfield

Hundreds flock to Strongfield for festivities

Randy Urlacher gives spectators a refreshing blast from the fire hose during Strongfield’s parade on July 15. Randy was riding on the back of the Loreburn fire truck along with Luke Glubis, Taylor South and Victor Dutkiewicz.

 

By Joel van der Veen

STRONGFIELD — Serving three meals for hundreds of people last Saturday made for a busy day for volunteers at the Strongfield hall.

“It just seemed like we went from one meal to the next,” said Brandy Losie, adding that the atmosphere elsewhere in the village was more relaxed.

“It’s small, so people just want to walk around and look where they used to live.”

Strongfield celebrated its 105th anniversary, as well as the 150th anniversary of Canada’s Confederation, with a full day of events on July 15.

A pancake breakfast on Saturday morning drew close to 200 people, with around 180 returning for a barbecue lunch and 165 enjoying a pulled-pork supper.

Losie, the village’s administrator, said Strongfield usually has a small summer parade to celebrate Dick Tastad’s birthday, typically held on a weekday.

This year, she said, they decided to hold the parade on a Saturday in hopes of drawing a larger crowd.

They picked July 15, knowing that the Hutchinson-Taylor family reunion was happening the same weekend, with around 60 people expected to attend.

Losie said the scheduling worked out well, adding, “I was happy to see so many people.”

The village received some sprucing-up for the occasion, including flowers planted by organizer Holly Vollmer.

Dozens of kids joined the bike parade, led by Sgt. Mark Langager, a native of the area and now commanding officer at the Outlook RCMP detachment.

They were followed by roughly 30 entries in the vintage car, truck and tractor parade. George Bristow, a former resident and longtime mayor of the village, introduced each entry.

For the full story, please see the July 24 edition of The Davidson Leader, or call 306-567-2047 to subscribe today.