Since I was a youngster I have always enjoyed celebrating Groundhog Day and this year’s Groundhog Day was memorable as I had the honour of meeting Manitoba Merv for my very first time.
I have to give a shout out to Oak Hammock Marsh Interpretive Centre marketing and communication director Jacques Bourgeois as he puts so much passion into his job.
Extra extra read all about it.
Manitoba Merv woke up on the morning of Feb. 2 at Oak Hammock Marsh and didn’t see his shadow, which legend has it – means there will be an early spring in southern Manitoba.
Selkirk is hosting a public hearing about the possibility of the local municipality withdrawing from the Red River Planning District
The hearing is slated for March 23 at 6 p.m. to hear representation from citizens about the potential of the City of Selkirk withdrawing from the Red River Planning District and establishing an independent department to deliver planning services such as development and secondary plans, zoning by-laws and building permits.
Following the public hearing, Selkirk council will consider the matter and will determine whether to make a formal application to the Minister of Municipal Relations to be removed from the Red River Planning District.
Adhering to current public health orders due to COVID-19, the public hearing will be held virtually and live-streamed on our website at myselkirk.ca/RRPDhearing.
According to the City of Selkirk, any person who wishes to make a presentation, ask questions or register an objection to Council during the public hearing must register online at myselkirk.ca/RRPDhearing prior to 4 p.m. on March 22.
Registrants will be contacted by email with information on how to join virtually and with a 10-minute time slot in which they may present. Those without access to online services are asked to call CitizenSupport at 204-785-4900 where arrangements may be made on a case-by-case basis.
Written statements can be submitted in advance of the hearing and sent by email to citizensupport@cityofselkirk.com, or by mail to:
200 Eaton Ave., Selkirk, Man., R1A 0W6
Submitted by the City of Selkirk
Public engagement is important to the City of Selkirk which is why communication with citizens, property and business owners over the coming weeks to provide feedback on the reconstruction of Eveline Street between Eaton Avenue and Queen Avenue is happening now.
Mayor Larry Johannson says that this will be a major infrastructure renewal project in the downtown area and the city is looking to citizens to help define the objectives of the work.
“While we must rely on engineering standards and transportation system guidelines to design the street, we look to our citizens to help define what services we want the street to provide. In December we spoke with property owners and businesses benefiting from the investment and now we are engaging the entire community,” said Johannson.
The City, using its Capital Asset Management Program (CAMP), has identified Eveline Street between Eaton Ave and Queen Avenue as being in Poor condition and requiring a full reconstruction.
Among the conditions driving this project are deteriorating road pavement and curbs, unmarked, inaccessible and unsafe pedestrian crossings, lack of pedestrian amenities and poor lighting.
The city’s CAO Duane Nicol said that “In addition to the reconstruction needs of the road, this portion of Eveline does not meet modern standards for accessibility, lighting, public safety, and other urban design best practices”.
“It’s important for us to meet these modern standards and while doing so, we plan to recapture elements of the streets natural state by reintroducing trees to the area to not only provide shade but to absorb excess storm water. Not only does this help us fulfill our Climate Change Adaptation Strategy, but it also restores the look of the street to its historic roots. Trees were a key element of the early Eveline street scape”.
The proposed enhancements on the stretch that connects Selkirk’s downtown to Selkirk Park could benefit property owners and visitors to their buildings by creating more accessible entrances into businesses and improved sidewalks.
“Every decision we make going forward adheres to our Climate Change Adaptation Strategy (CCAS). By integrating this work into our capital asset management program, we can ensure that we are using leading practices to undertake this and other projects going forward” Nicol said.
The reconstruction of Eveline Street hits on almost all points in the city’s Strategic Plan, particularly Priority 3 – safe and sustainable infrastructure, by improving the smooth operation of transportation systems. This project also supports Priority 1 – a vibrant, safe and healthy community, achieved through continued development of the city’s natural features and outdoor spaces and a revitalized downtown. Priority 2 of the Strategic Plan is a strong and stable local economy, which will be sustained by building on the city’s status as a regional service centre and building on Selkirk’s tourism potential.
The City is seeking input from citizens to help shape the final design. To share your input, please visit MySelkirk.ca/Eveline.
When my wife was at the dentist’s the other day, he told her he was seeing a significant increase of people coming in with jaw problems. He said that he believed many of these were being caused by people clenching their teeth and that, he said, is usually as result of stress.
I think we all would agree that we are seeing a tremendous increase in the anxiety level of many people today. A recent survey by Stats Canada had approximately 46,000 Canadians participating in an online questionnaire, “Impacts of COVID-19 on Canadians: Your mental health.” They reported that most (88%) participants said they had experienced at least one symptom of anxiety in the two weeks prior to completing the survey. “Feeling nervous, anxious or on edge” was the most commonly reported symptom (71%), followed by “becoming easily annoyed or irritable” (69%) and “trouble relaxing” (64%).
The other day, I myself received a phone call asking me to participate in a survey on the pandemic, where one of the questions asked related to anxiety. On a scale of one to five, I was to rate my anxiety level from very low to very high. My response was that it was a one.
My reason for giving that answer is because of the belief I have in God: that He is sovereign. What I mean by “sovereign” is that He is in total control over all that happens on planet earth. We read of that control in the Book of Psalms in the Bible: “The Lord has established His throne in heaven, and His kingdom rules over all” (Psalm 103:19).
Elsewhere in the Bible we are told, “For God is so wise and so mighty… If He commands it, the sun won’t rise and the stars won’t shine. He alone has spread out the heavens and marches on the waves of the sea” (Job 9:4-8).
So the reason we do not have fear but rather peace in a time of pandemic is because we are convinced that God is in total control of what happens on planet earth. And I believe that that control includes pandemics. For sure, God is not gasping as He looks at what’s happening and asking, “What on earth is going on?!?” (pun intended.)
Indeed, the very opposite is true: He has allowed this pandemic for His divine purposes. Though we may not always know immediately what those purposes are, we can be assured that ultimately He will accomplish them. Knowing the way God has worked in previous times of hardship, we can surmise just a couple of possible purposes.
One is to use troubles like pandemics to remind us of our limitedness and of our need of Him. When things are going good, most of us can live our lives almost oblivious to Him and His existence. But problems are often God’s tool to pull us toward Himself and knowing Him. It is then that we discover the true purpose of life on earth and consequently the deep fulfillment that brings.
There is one other reason why I answered with a “one”. And that is because God has promised us that He causes all to “work together for good, to them that love God.” Being reassured that in the end, this will somehow accomplish that good gives me the assurance to continue on without fear and anxiety.
So that is why we can we have peace rather than fear in a time of pandemic.
May that reassure you as much as it does me.
Submitted by Province of Manitoba
Limited changes to the public health orders took effect on Jan. 23 and last for three weeks, Premier Brian Pallister and Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba’s chief provincial public health officer, announced today, adding these modest changed balance the need to protect the health-care system while gradually restoring services and activities for Manitobans.
“We recognize the significant sacrifices all Manitobans have made throughout this pandemic and especially in the last two months, to protect themselves, their loved ones and their community,” said Pallister. “Thanks to their willingness, compassion and dedication to follow the strict public health orders, we are now in a position to cautiously and gradually reduce some restrictions, while ensuring we continue to protect and safeguard Manitoba lives. Manitobans have earned this day and Manitobans now have the opportunity to earn such days in the future.”
Previous restrictions in the orders will remain, with the following changes in effect beginning Jan. 23 for the Winnipeg (except for Churchill), Southern Health–Santé Sud, Interlake–Eastern and Prairie Mountain Health regions:
• household limits: orders will be expanded to allow increased personal connections to support the well-being of Manitobans by allowing:
– two designated people (family or friends) to visit a household under a new ‘rule of two’;
– outdoor visits of up to five people only plus members of a household on an outdoor private property; and
– funerals to have up to 10 people in addition to the officiant under clear COVID-19 protection protocols.
• retail operations: orders will be expanded to eliminate the essential items list, allowing all stores to open for the sale of products provided they maintain physical distancing and occupancy limits of 25 per cent only or a maximum of 250 people, whichever is lower.
• health and personal services: orders will be expanded to allow for the operation of basic services that promote physical and mental health for Manitobans:
– non-regulated health services, such as pedorthists and reflexologists, to reopen with adequate physical distancing and requirements to collect information for contact tracing purposes; and
– barber shops and hair stylists to reopen at 25 per cent capacity with adequate physical distancing and requirements to collect information for contact tracing purposes.
Given the high case counts in northern Manitoba communities, the changes outlined above will not apply to that region or Churchill. Household restrictions, retail operations limited to essential items only, and health and service operations will remain limited to regulated health professions.
“Our collective progress in bending the COVID curve means we can undertake these careful, measured openings,” said Roussin. “Butwe must stick to the fundamentals of physical distancing, washing hands and wearing a mask in our daily lives to keep this success going.”
Roussin explained that current high COVID case numbers and test positivity rates in northern Manitoba where the virus continues to affect remote and isolated communities, including First Nation communities, means Manitoba is not yet in a position to ease restrictions in this region.
As steps are taken toward a safe, gradual reopening to protect Manitobans, the province will continue to engage Manitobans to provide their feedback via EngageMB, Pallister noted.
Manitobans were invited to provide feedback on the proposed reopening plans and from Jan. 19 to Jan. 21, 35,052 responses were provided, and included:
• 62.1 per cent of respondents agreed that household limits should be increased to allow for two people with whom you regularly interact to visit your residence and up to five people outdoors on private property and that funerals should be permitted to have up to 10 people, in addition to officiants;
• 73.1 per cent of respondents agreed reopening non-regulated health professions, hair stylists and barbershops is an appropriate next step in a gradual reopening; and
• 76.4 per cent of respondents agreed eliminating the essential items list and limiting retail capacity to 25 per cent or 250 patrons, or whichever is lower, is an appropriate next step in gradual reopening.
Pallister reiterated the province will monitor COVID-19 developments carefully and will make further adjustments to ease restrictions or re-impose restrictions depending on Manitobans’ collective success in keeping COVID-19 at bay.
For up-to-date information on COVID-19 in Manitoba, visit www.manitoba.ca/COVID19.
Submitted by Sean Grassie
The Selkirk native tied for third at the 2000 B.C. (Broome County) Open in New York and two weeks later tied for sixth at The International in Colorado. The tournaments represented two of his six career top-10 finishes on the PGA Tour. Hnatiuk won more than $2.4 million on the tour from 1997-2005.
Another highlight for Hnatiuk was playing in the 2000 World Cup of Golf in Argentina. Each of the 24 countries that took part were represented by teams of two golfers, with Tiger Woods and David Duval teaming up to win the title for the United States. Canada, which tied for 10th, was represented by the duo of Hnatiuk and 2003 Masters champion Mike Weir.
Hnatiuk was named the 2000 Manitoba Male Athlete of the Year by the Manitoba Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
His journey to the PGA Tour began at the Selkirk Golf & Country Club. A street adjacent to the club was renamed Glen Hnatiuk Drive in 2015.
“The junior program there was phenomenal,” said Hnatiuk, who lived two blocks away from the club and started golfing at the age of nine. “We had a ton of kids.”
A skilled hockey player growing up, Hnatiuk helped the Selkirk Fishermen win the 1983 Keystone Cup as junior B champions of Western Canada.
In 1986, he won the Manitoba men’s amateur golf title at age 21.
“That was huge for me,” said Hnatiuk, who played on the University of Southern Mississippi golf team. “At the time I was in college, so it was kind of a confidence booster when I went back to play there.”
He was named Manitoba Amateur Golfer of the Year in 1987.
Hnatiuk won four titles on the Nike Tour, including a victory at the 1996 Carolina Classic where he went into the last round trailing by five shots before shooting a 64.
By placing in the top 15 on the Nike Tour money list in 1997, he earned his PGA Tour card for the first time. Hnatiuk had previously been unsuccessful at PGA Tour qualifying school five times.
“I had status every year on the Nike Tour at the time from winning out there, so I always had a place to play during that whole time that I was failing to get my card,” he said. “I made it to the finals a lot and I missed by a shot or two a couple of times. The tour school thing was brutal. It was hard.”
Hnatiuk was inducted into the Manitoba Golf Hall of Fame in 2012.
Submitted by Sean Grassie
Even before the opening faceoff of the 2007 World Women’s Hockey Championship, the city was impacted by the event. In February of 2007, two months before the tournament, the Nine Nations Female Peewee Hockey Festival was held at Selkirk Recreation Complex and Selkirk Memorial Arena. The one-day festival was presented by Hockey Manitoba and the host committee of the world championship. Each participant was assigned to play on one of nine teams, named for the nine countries that were represented in the championship.
The United States, China and Kazakhstan formed one group at the world championship, and their preliminary-round games were all played at Selkirk Recreation Complex. More than 4,000 fans in total attended the three games.
All other games in the tournament were played at MTS Centre in Winnipeg. The event had a total attendance of 122,152, breaking the tournament record of 94,000 set at the 2004 championship in Halifax and Dartmouth.
“Our goal was to get over 100,000,” said Greg Paseshnik, event manager for the tournament. “To get over 122,000 was phenomenal for us.”
The three Manitobans on Team Canada’s roster were forward Jennifer Botterill, defenceman Delaney Collins and goalie Sami Jo Small. Canada beat the U.S. 5-1 in the gold-medal game. Collins was named to the tournament All-Star Team.
“I would say that she was before her time,” Small said of the five-foot-four Collins, who was named the 2007 Manitoba Female Athlete of the Year by the Manitoba Sportswriters and Sportscasters Association.
“She played at a time when she was so incredibly skilled and so quick and deft with the puck and had that ability to make that first pass breakout every time on the stick. In her era, the majority of the defencemen were putting it high and hard off the glass without the intention of starting that breakout. She, I think, saw the game like a coach would see it, and that’s I think why she’s so successful now as a coach.”
Botterill won three Olympic gold medals and one silver during her career.
“She had a great skating background with her mom (Doreen Botterill) being an Olympic speed skater,” Small said. “However, she made it look effortless and so you never really knew the speed that she was going.”
Small called the 2007 tournament in Winnipeg and Selkirk “a huge transformation for the province to see so many people be so gravitated” to the women’s game.
Submitted by Sean Grassie
In 1920, the Selkirk Fishermen won the Abbott Cup as Western Canada champions by defeating the Calgary Monarchs. In the Memorial Cup final at Arena Gardens in Toronto, the Toronto Canoe Club Paddlers beat the Fishermen 10-1 and 5-4 to win the two-game total-goals series 15-5.
In senior competition, the Selkirk Fishermen played in the 1924 Allan Cup final for the Canadian amateur championship. A 6-2 win by the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds was followed by a 1-0 Fishermen victory, giving the Greyhounds a 6-3 triumph in the two-game total-goals series. Cec Browne scored both of Selkirk’s goals in the first game. The multi-sport athlete was named Manitoba’s Athlete of the Century (1870-1970), an award presented by the Manitoba Sports Federation.
In 1974, the Selkirk Steelers captured the Centennial Cup as Canadian junior A champions. Many of the team members had played for the Selkirk Fishermen squad that won the 1973 provincial junior B championship.
In Game 7 of the best-of-seven Centennial Cup final, Gord Kaluzniak scored in overtime as the Steelers beat the Smiths Falls Bears 1-0. His brother and linemate Garry assisted on the goal. The brothers led the Steelers in regular-season and playoff scoring.
Smiths Falls still had a chance to tie the game after Gord scored. The goal came just over seven minutes into extra time, and the full 10-minute overtime session was played. Andy Stoesz, who was named the Manitoba Junior Hockey League’s top goaltender that season, made 30 saves to earn the shutout. He was selected in the 10th round of the 1974 National Hockey League Amateur Draft by the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Steelers were presented with medals and coins by Winnipeg city councillor Slaw Rebchuk at Winnipeg International Airport upon their return home from Ottawa with the Centennial Cup, which kicked off a day of festivities for the team.
“It concluded in Selkirk, where hundreds of placard-bearing fans lined the streets and then crowded into Selkirk Memorial Arena to pay tribute to their favourite sons,” the Winnipeg Free Press reported.
That day (May 15) Selkirk Mayor Frank Malis declared June 1 as Selkirk Steeler Day, sparking more celebrations in the city.
The Steelers added Anavet Cup titles in 1975 and 2007 with victories over the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League champions. The team played in the 2007 Royal Bank Cup in Prince George, B.C. but didn’t advance to the playoff round of the Canadian junior A championship. The tournament was won by the Aurora Tigers.
Submitted by the Province of Manitoba
The Manitoba government is amending public health orders to put formal restrictions on interprovincial travel to protect Manitobans from COVID-19 and to help prevent importation of possible variants from other jurisdictions, Premier Brian Pallister announced today.
“Manitobans have worked incredibly hard over the last two months to flatten our COVID-19 curve, which has allowed us to take a cautious, measured approach to reopening some services in our province,” said Pallister. “Out of an abundance of caution, we are implementing more formal travel restrictions to protect Manitobans from the risks of COVID-19 being introduced to us further by travel including any new COVID-19 strains from other jurisdictions.”
The public health orders will be amended on Jan. 29 to specify that anyone entering Manitoba from anywhere in Canada will be required to self-isolate for 14 days. This includes those entering from northern and Western Canada, and from west of Terrace Bay in Ontario, which under previous health orders did not require self-isolation.
Current exemptions to self-isolation measures are still in effect including those traveling for essential interprovincial work and people travelling for medical purposes. There will also continue to be exemptions for people who regularly travel to and from communities near the borders for essential purposes.
“Let me be clear – Manitobans should not be traveling, either internationally, interprovincially or within our province except for essential reasons. This will help reduce the spread of COVID-19, including cases of new variants, which have been found in other provinces,” said Dr. Brent Roussin, Manitoba’s chief provincial public health officer. “This revised order formalizes that measure and lays out clear requirements for Manitobans. We must all work together to observe these self-isolation requirements as well as other public health fundamentals, including physical distancing, frequent handwashing and mask wearing, to continue to keep our COVID-19 numbers at bay.”
Manitobans currently out-of-province will have until 11:59 p.m., Thursday, Jan. 28 to return to the province without being required to self-isolate. If they arrive after that time, they must self-isolate as appropriate on their return.
Failure to self-isolate in accordance with public health advice is a violation of the order and is enforceable under the Public Health Act. Individuals could be subject to fines for non-compliance. Visit www.gov.mb.ca/covid19/restartmb/prs/orders/index.html for full information on travel and self-isolation requirements.
The restrictions complement the other limited changes to the public health orders that took effect Jan. 23 and will last for three weeks. These changes balance the need to protect the health-care system while gradually restoring services and activities for Manitobans, Pallister said.
The province will keep monitoring COVID-19 developments carefully and will make further adjustments to ease restrictions or re-impose restrictions depending on Manitobans’ collective success in keeping COVID-19 at bay, Pallister reiterated.
For up-to-date information on COVID-19 in Manitoba, visit www.manitoba.ca/COVID19.