By Joel van der Veen

MOOSE JAW — Dustan Hlady says a dream of a better Canada, and the standard set by politicians like Tommy Douglas, inspired him to enter politics.

“I believe this is a really, really important election in Canadian history,” Hlady told The Davidson Leader last week. “I’m just excited for this opportunity to help.”

Hlady is the latest candidate to throw his hat into the ring for this district in Canada’s next federal election.

The 34-year-old was nominated to represent the New Democratic Party (NDP) as its candidate in Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Lanigan, the new federal riding that will cover the city of Moose Jaw and most of the area between Saskatoon and Regina.

The Moose Jaw Times-Herald reported that about 50 people attended the public meeting at Moose Jaw’s Timothy Eaton Gardens on Saturday, May 2, at which Hlady accepted the nomination.

He joins the Conservative Party’s Tom Lukiwski and the Liberal Party’s Perry Juttla in the race to represent this area in the House of Commons.

Hlady is an Alberta native who came to Saskatchewan to study at Briercrest College and Seminary in Caronport. He moved to Moose Jaw after graduation and lives there today with Carrie, his wife of almost six years, and their sons Reese and Cohen.

He is one year shy of finishing his bachelor of education at the University of Regina. He has worked as an educational assistant and freelance writer, and is also active in the local music scene as part of Friend Friend, an indie rock group consisting of himself, his wife and a rotating cast of additional musicians.

Hlady said he first developed an interest in politics after learning about Canadian history and, in particular, about the late Tommy Douglas, former premier of Saskatchewan and an early leader of the federal New Democratic Party.

“He was one of the most visionary politicians in Canadian history,” said Hlady. “He saw the Canada that could be.”

Hlady said he has developed a passion for politics, viewing them as a means of social change. He completed a year-long internship at the Saskatchewan Legislative Building in Regina, and also ran unsuccessfully for Moose Jaw city council in 2013.

He said he wanted to get involved with the local NDP association and hoped to support their candidate in the upcoming election, but then was invited to represent the party himself.

Hlady said he’s on board with the platform touted by New Democratic Party leader Tom Mulcair, including proposals for a $15-per-hour minimum wage and a national $15-per-day daycare program.

He also said an NDP government would work to reverse some of the Conservatives’ policies on health care, which he credited with forcing some of the provinces into adopting “two-tiered” health programs.

Hlady met Mulcair recently and said he was impressed at how the party leader displayed genuine interest during their conversations, despite his busy schedule.

“You can tell it, even (in) the way he talks to people,” said Hlady. “He’s the real thing.”

Hlady also said he sees a clear distinction between the Conservatives and the NDP, contrasting their candidates, their policies and their visions for Canada, which he described as “drastically different.”

He said he has already begun preparing for the campaign and is looking forward to knocking on doors, attending events and meeting people throughout the riding.

The federal election is expected to fall on Monday, Oct. 19, in alignment with the fixed date set by the Canada Elections Act.

Candidate Tom Lukiwski said in a recent interview that he has a busy summer planned, as he seeks to visit with constituents in his current riding, and also to begin connecting with voters in the new riding.

Lukiwski, 63, currently serves as the Conservative MP for the riding of Regina-Lumsden-Lake Centre, which will be dissolved when the new riding boundaries come into effect in time for the election campaign.

A native of Esterhazy and a businessman prior to his entry into politics, Lukiwski has held the riding since 2004. In the 2011 federal election, he was returned for a fourth term as MP, receiving 53.2 per cent of the vote.

Liberal candidate Juttla, 32, is a Regina-based businessman with a background in agriculture, commercial real estate and online marketing, according to his online biography.

He is a graduate of the University of Regina, where he earned bachelor of arts degrees in both economics and political science.

He previously ran as a Liberal candidate in the 2003 Saskatchewan provincial election, contesting the riding of Regina Walsh Acres and finishing in third place out of five candidates.

The new riding of Moose Jaw-Lake Centre-Lanigan will include the City of Moose Jaw and many smaller communities, including Davidson, Watrous, Dundurn, Lanigan, Lumsden, Regina Beach and Craik.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — Friends and families filled the Davidson School gym on Sunday, May 3 for the Davidson Optimist Dance Club’s annual spring recital.

The club’s dancers performed for more than two hours in a wide range of forms and styles, including jazz, lyrical, tap, creative movement, ballet and hip hop.

The show also included a performance of several songs from the musical Annie, including “It’s The Hard Knock Life,” “Tomorrow,” “Little Girls” and “I Think I’m Gonna Like It Here.”

Emceeing the show were Kelly Allan and Trish Boyd. The former reported that the club had done very well at competitions in Lanigan and Prince Albert, leaving with numerous awards and medals.

Club treasurer Lynn Shaw reported that 97 dancers had been registered with the club this year, including out-of-town participants who came from Kenaston, Craik, Loreburn and Elbow.

Shaw said the performances from Annie were especially well-received. The club had performed the songs earlier, first at the Central Saskatchewan Music Festival, and later at a dessert theatre night held at the school.

The club had 10 instructors on board this year: Shantell Hoehn, Aundrea Mueller, Sharleen Knorr, Cassandra Florida, Shanna Claire Howlett, Quin Johnson, Brooklyn Read, Katelyn Riecken, Tiara Shaw and Makenna Dieno.

Special recognition was given to Johnson, Read and Riecken, who are Grade 12 students in Davidson and are graduating from the club this year. Read had been with the club for 11 years while the other two had been participating for 13 years.

In addition to the recital on Sunday, the weekend included a showcase on Saturday, May 2, a shorter event featuring solo and duet performances.

For the full story, please check out the May 11 edition of The Davidson Leader.

By Joel van der Veen

DAVIDSON — It’s been almost 40 years since the “storm of the century” wrought its destruction on Davidson and area.

The cyclone of June 3, 1976 tore through the district over the course of a couple of hours, causing severe damage to homes, farms and businesses, injuring more than a dozen and killing one.

A subsequent report in The Davidson Leader accurately noted that “residents in the area will long remember this most devastating and destructive storm.”

Decades later, the cyclone stands as by far the greatest disaster within living memory. But would the town and its citizens be prepared if another storm struck the district?

Community development co-ordinator Donna Bessey said last week that the provincial government requires the town to have an emergency plan in place — a “living document” that is continuously updated.

“You never know until a disaster hits,” she added. “That’s when you see where the gaps are.”

May 3 to 9 is Emergency Preparedness Week across Canada, an annual event that highlights the need for families — as well as governments at all levels — to be prepared in the event of an emergency or disaster.

The Emergency Planning Act, which took effect in Saskatchewan in 1989 and has been updated numerous times since then, requires that municipalities establish a local emergency measures organization (EMO) and committee, with a co-ordinator who serves as chairperson of the committee.

The committee is then tasked with establishing a municipal emergency plan that allows for the provision of necessary services and sets out the procedure for response in case of an emergency.

Trish Schilling has served as the town’s EMO co-ordinator since November 2010, taking over from Cathy Bonneau.

She oversees that plan, making sure it is ready to go into effect, should the town be struck by a major snowstorm, tornado, flood or other natural disaster.

The plan would also come into effect in the event of a chemical spill on a nearby railroad or highway, or some other form of contamination.

Schilling explained her role as being the “go-between” for emergency services in case of disaster in Davidson and the surrounding area, including the rural municipalities of Arm River and Willner.

In the last five years, the plan has come into effect only twice. In March 2013, and again in February 2014, severe winter weather forced the closure of Highway 11.

In both cases, between 150 and 175 drivers and passengers were diverted off the highway and spent the night in space provided at the town hall, at New Life Pentecostal Assembly, or with billeting households.

Talking to the Leader last year, Schilling said the process was smoother the second time around, as more advance notice was given, allowing additional preparation time.

She completed her basic emergency course and has received additional online training since then. The EMO committee also includes two deputy co-ordinators, Mary Ann Chomyshen and Flo Shaw.

Schilling acknowledged that the job description is somewhat “vague,” but added that part of her role involves public awareness, as well as maintaining the emergency plan.

“When I first started, the actual plan had not been updated in several years,” she said, explaining that it includes contact information as well as regulations and details on obtaining emergency supplies.

Bessey said that Schilling had done an excellent job keeping the plan current, adding that she fills an essential role as “one person with the working knowledge of how things are supposed to unravel and take place.”

“Heaven forbid we have a major disaster and we didn’t have someone like that,” she said. “Everybody would be standing there and saying, ‘What do we do?’”

Following the cyclone of 1976, Mayor Noble (Ted) Old issued a request that all able persons haul any fallen trees to the nuisance grounds, or to the area near the water treatment plant, as it would take the town staff several weeks to complete the work themselves.

Power went out around 11:45 p.m. the night of the storm and was restored at noon the following day in town, with extra crews being brought in to restore service and equipment. Rural residents were without power for longer periods, and many phones remained out of service even a week after the storm.

In accordance with provincial recommendations, the town was declared a disaster area — but not until June 8, five days after the storm struck. This gives some indication of how much emergency response measures have changed in the decades since.

The Leader reported at the end of June 1976 that much of the debris had been cleaned up, but estimated that thousands of man-hours were still required to build new bins, barns and other buildings across the district.