Accessibility Tools

The sounds of ceremony and celebration filled the air as shovels hit soil for the first time on a long-awaited project.

Anishinaabe Aki will be built this year in a combination of a PetroCan gas station and a Burger King franchise.

Chief Derek Nepinak of the Minegoziibe Anishinabe (PineCreek First Nation) was proud to see the work begin to pay off.

"I think one of the biggest hurdles was getting through the Addition To Reserves process. That meant extracting the land out of the city's jurisdiction, and having the land in our own jurisdiction so we could plan out on our own terms where and when we saw fit to enter into the economic venture. We decided upon Petro-Canada with a Burger King franchise."

Chief Wayne Desjarlais of Gaa-gwekwekojiwang (Ebb & Flow First Nation) was also pleased to see the progress, complimenting the community collaboration that made this possible.

"We had really good communication between both First Nations and it's really important moving on forward that we continue doing the same thing. Hopefully, we can have more ventures in the long run within the next few years. It's very important that communities also continue working together."

This work follows over a decade of work between these First Nations and the City of Dauphin.

Chief Nepinak also noted that this is just another step forward in a long line of projects.

"It is just the first of many developments we've been working on in the project area, including new commercial space, and even residential development we plan on doing in the back 80 acres. We're going to do that collectively. We've got a strong corporate governance structure that we identified to create equality of decision-making as partners."

This development has been projected to be completed by the fall, and Chief Desjarlais is excited to have everyone come by once it's done.

"I'd just like to welcome everyone to our upcoming gas station and Burger King. You're more than welcome to come after it's finished. I know we're anxious to do as we can right away, but we've got to wait for the service roads to be finished. We're working closely with the City of Dauphin."

Many people across Dauphin and the Parkland area are sure to share in this excitement, as projects like this continue to grow our economy.

A judge has found a Pine Creek woman guilty of Attempted Murder for her role in a pair of assaults last year in the south part of Dauphin.

Early on the morning of March 13th of last year, a 49-year-old woman from Pine Creek and a 66-year-old man from Dauphin were found a short distance from each other, both suffering from serious injuries. 

50-year-old Kathleen FLatfoot was sentenced in Dauphin court on Monday to 13 years in jail, with credit given for time already served. 

A trail group in Neepawa is receiving funding from the Trans Canada Trail through its annual Trail Care Grant program.

The Neepawa Langford trail is being funded for work on filling erosion damage along the trail. 

A total of $20,250 has been earmarked from the fund towards trails in Manitoba, for activities such as accessibility improvements, clean-up, debris removal, art installation, and maintenance. 

Officials with the Trans Canada Trail also noted that June 1st is Trail Care day and will include an event on the Rossburn Subdivision Trail in Erickson. 

Charges have been laid against a youth following an alleged assault with a weapon earlier this month on the Sandy Bay First Nation.

Manitoba First Nations Police say they responded on May 6th to a report of a firearm being discharged on Townsite Bay.

They found one youth male suffering from injuries and were told that two suspects had fled the scene. 

Four days later, police executed a search warrant on a home on Townsite Bay, where a firearm, ammunition, and other weapons were seized. 

A male, who can not be identified under provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, was arrested and charged with assault with a weapon and careless use of a firearm. 

 He has been released from custody on a promise to appear in court at a later date. 

An adult male at the home at the time of the search was arrested on outstanding warrants, and now faces additional charges in relation to the firearm that was discovered. 

Graduates from both the Mountain View School Division and Assiniboine Community College Parkland Campus will be honoured tomorrow during the 12th annual Graduation Pow Wow.

Organizer Wade Houle says registration goes from 9-10 in the morning, with the grand march set to begin at around 10:15.

"Our arena director will get everyone organized and all of our dignitaries and our grads in place.  People usually stand and watch all of that take part as we open the day and the ceremony and the celebration.  And then people sing and dance, and we have dancers coming and drum groups and people watch and observe."

Co-organizer Carole Shankaruk says they are also adding a community giveaway to this year's festivities.

"Alongside of honouring all of our grads, we are also going to honour our elder Bev Harvey, who has passed to the spirit world.  So we are going to have the youth giveaway to the whole community, and we have invited her family and they will be there as well." 

Shankaruk says indigenous and non-indigenous graduates will be celebrated at this event, 

There is no cost to attend the event.

It will take place outdoors on the Dauphin Rec Services fairgrounds, with a backup plan to hold it inside Rotary Arena if the weather does not cooperate. 

We continue to look back on the incredible work of the Parkland Ukrainian Family Fund.

While this is a "fund", there was a great deal more than the money offered in the way of support.

Father Brent Kuzyk worked tirelessly to help ease the souls escaping a harsh reality to come to the peaceful Parkland.

"For them to make the decision to leave their country, everything that was familiar to them behind and resettle here permanently, that has it's spiritual and emotional challenges. That is where the church and the church comes in. It provides a sense of stability, it provides faith, it provides real grounding for them, again, emotionally and spiritually."

Father Kuzyk worked closely with the Family Fund to ensure that incoming families found support from a community whenever they needed it.

Offering both means of communication and council, Father Kuzyk was filled with joy knowing he could offer his help to the Family Fund through translation and time.

Father Kuzyk says that this effort only works because of the support of the community.

"I want to thank the whole community at large. Every ethnic group in town, every peoples, every individual has been welcoming. whether it's the industries in town, those who have been hiring, whether it's the people for the past two plus years who've been donating to the Parkland Ukrainian fund, whether it's those donating furniture, vehicles, their homes, clothing, it has been fantastic."

We'll highlight another facet of the Parkland Ukrainian Family fund tomorrow.

Tomorrow, we take a look at the experience of leaving a home and being welcomed to a new one.

The Watson Art Centre was once again a hub of activity as the State of the City Address took place over the lunch hour.

The lunch started with introductions from the Parkland Chamber of Commerce's Stephen Chychota, a brief overview of the funding dispersed by the Dauphin and District Community Foundation this year.

Then, Dauphin's Mayor David Bosiak took the podium to talk about the current state of, and more importantly the vision for the future of, Dauphin.

"Sustained, regular growth. Manageable growth. The sense that we'd love the community to 'boom' but we don't want to get into a 'boom-bust' cycle."

As part of these collaborative goals, Bosiak spoke highly of the "boulders" of culture, and the power they hold in working together.

"We're combining the weekend experiences of Ukrainian Festival and CountryFest with the regular ongoing experience of Northgate as our three main boulders or pillars of our adventure experience strategy."

There was also a brief look at the budget, announced previously, which contained a lot of spending for community safety and cultural development.

Update: Ronal Gabriel has been safely located.

The RCMP would like to thank the public for their assistance in this effort.

___

The Dauphin RCMP has received a report of a missing man from Dauphin.

Ronald Adam Gabriel, 48, was missing. He was last seen on May 1, 2024, on Buchanon Avenue, which turns into Highway 5. He was hitchhiking from Dauphin, believed to be headed to Saskatoon.

The report came in on May 12, at approximately 11:20 am.

Standing 6 feet tall and weighing approximately 160 pounds, Gabriel was last seen wearing a grey sweater, black pants with a white stripe, and grey runners. He was carrying a bag.

Gabriel is known to travel, but it is out of character for him to not have contact with his family. His family and police are concerned for his well-being.

If you have information, please call Daupin RCMP at 204-622-5020, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477, or secure tip online at www.manitobacrimestoppers.com.

Manitoba Lieutenant Governor Anita Neville will present the annual Lieutenant Governor's Historical Preservation and Promotion awards Tuesday night to five recipients, including one from the Parkland.

Grandview Municipality Mayor Lyle Morran says he was completely surprised when he received the call about the award from the Lieutenant Governor herself.

"I almost hung up on her.  I just thought it was another one of these scam calls.  But I did notice on my phone that it did say something about government, so I just kept talking a little longer and realized that it was for real and that I was talking to the Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba."

Morran believes he is being recognized for work on the T.A. Burrows building at the Watson-Crossley Museum. 

"It is an unreal building.  Anyone that comes into it can not believe that we got that kind of a building in such a small community.  If it was not for the help of the Burrows Lumber Company and the descendants of Theodore Arthur Burrows, it would never be here,  They had a big part in it.  We definitely could not have afforded that kind of building."

Morran thinks it is great that work on a museum project outside of Winnipeg is being recognized, and he hopes this award helps promote history and museums throughout the Parkland region. 

In 2011, the provincial government instituted a new law called 'Slow Down and Move Over'.

This law is aimed at keeping emergency services personnel safe while they are on duty. Whether it be ambulance, fire, or police, safety is the name of the game. 

According to many operators, these rules are not being followed. CAA Manitoba recently conducted a survey and the results are in. 85 percent of Manitoba drivers are aware of what the 'Slow Down and Move Over' law is, but only 41 percent of those could pick out the correct definition of what the law truly is. 

The survey also found that a third of drivers confuse this law with the requirement that you pull over when an emergency vehicle is passing you from behind. These two laws are completely different, but both can come with hefty fines and even suspensions.

When it comes to the 'Slow Down and Move Over' law, Ewald Friesen with CAA Manitoba says it's an easy law to abide by.

"If you see an emergency vehicle ahead of you on the road, drop your speed by half the posted speed limit," said Friesen. 

Fines for not adhering to the laws are very serious. They can include the suspension of your license for up to one year and fines could total up to two thousand dollars. 

CAA's survey also found that 95 percent of drivers will slow down when they see a police vehicle, 93 percent will slow down when they see an ambulance, and 89 percent when they see a fire truck. This number significantly drops when people see a tow truck that is working. 

While 95, 93, and 89 percent may seem high, Friesen says these numbers are still far too low and drivers must slow down when they come across emergency vehicles.

"It is imperative that we slow down and move over, it is as simple as that," offered Friesen. "If you are doing more than 80 km/h, drop your speed to 60 and if you are doing less than 80 km/h, drop your speed to 40."

Over the last decade in North America, there have been 100 tow truck fatalities.

"These are all avoidable if drivers show caution on the road," ended Friesen. 

So the next time you're driving and spot an emergency vehicle ahead of you with its lights on, slow down and move over. It could save you your license, and your pocketbook, and most importantly, it could save a life. 

On May 11, 2024, around 4:10 a.m., Swan River RCMP received reports of a man wielding a weapon and threatening people in Sapotaweyak Cree Nation.

The suspect then took a family member's vehicle, possibly hitting someone on an ATV. Police located and attempted to stop him, but he fled, driving recklessly.

After crashing the vehicle, he was apprehended with the help of community members.

Errol Leask, 26, faces multiple charges, including Dangerous Operation of a Motor Vehicle and Possession of a Weapon for a Dangerous Purpose. No collision involving an ATV was confirmed, and the investigation continues.