The final months of the year are often a busy time, and that was certainly the case in 2018. There were numerous events associated with Christmas, and fundraisers, meetings and other events in the community.
October:
Dustin James Whitrow received a 40-month prison sentence on Oct. 1 in Estevan Provincial Court, after he pleaded guilty to several charges, stemming from a collision with a semi-trailer unit near Stoughton a few days earlier. The 34-year-old from Yellow Grass pleaded guilty to possession of methamphetamine for the purpose of trafficking, impaired driving by drug and driving while suspended. Other charges were stayed.
The Estevan Police Service announced arrests in early October, stemming from an alleged assault at the Estevan Comprehensive School (ECS) at the end of the previous month. A male youth allegedly assaulted another male youth in a washroom, and a third male youth used a cell phone to record the entire incident. All three are students at the school. The boy who committed the assault and the youth who recorded the incident were apprehended.
An Estevan chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) was launched Oct. 2 at City Hall, with a large crowd in attendance. Connie Hagel, a long-time resident of Estevan, will be the chapter’s volunteer community leader, and views MADD as a great opportunity to take a stand against a serious issue in the community. The chapter has already been active in the city through its annual Project Red Ribbon campaign, and by presenting small gifts at checkstops to those who aren’t drinking and driving.
A reception was held at St. Joseph’s Hospital on Oct. 2 for Lindsay Richels, who is in Estevan through the longitudinal integrated clerkship physician training program. A student of the College of Medicine at the University of Saskatchewan, Richels is spending 42 weeks at the hospital to further her skills in the different departments. It has been shown elsewhere to increase the learning of the physicians, and it has also helped bring physicians to rural communities.
The former organizers of the Savour the Southeast food and beverage festival announced on Oct. 5 that the Estevan Family Resource Centre would be taking over the event. The previous organizers had stated they wouldn’t be hosting the event again, and the family centre wanted to keep it going, and use the event to raise funds for its programs.
Members of the Estevan Fire Rescue Service, Estevan Police Service (EPS) and Estevan Emergency Medical Services were called to a collision on Oct. 10. A southbound semi-trailer unit had been struck by a train as it was passing through the crossing. Part of the fiberglass pipe load from the truck’s trailer fell and struck a northbound pickup that was stopped for the train. No injuries occurred.
Members of the Estevan Police Service (EPS) were involved in a low-speed chase on Oct. 10. They were informed that a woman had allegedly been pushed out of a moving vehicle in the Hillcrest area. When they attempted to stop the vehicle, it didn’t stop right away. Cowan said there were no dangerous speeds involved in the pursuit, but the vehicle did turn off of Perkins Street onto an area adjacent to Park Drive, and went down the hill, causing damage to all four tires. The pursuit ended near the intersection of Souris Avenue South and Fourth Street. The vehicle was stolen from Medicine Hat, Alta. Blake Dunstall, a 34-year-old B.C. man, is facing several charges.
Premier Scott Moe was in Estevan on Oct. 13 for one of the first times since winning the Saskatchewan Party’s leadership race in January and becoming the province’s premier. Moe was in attendance at the Saskatchewan Party’s southeast regional meeting, and spoke at a social. During a press conference, he discussed the future of the Boundary Dam Power Station and coal mining in the southeast, the price differential facing oil producers and other issues.
The 31st annual Estevan Model Engineer Show, the longest-running event of its kind in North America, was held in Estevan on Oct. 13 and 14. Four clubs and 46 exhibitors were on-hand for the show, and 214 engines were among the items on display.
A business summit, hosted by the Estevan Chamber of Commerce, at the Southeast College’s Estevan campus on Oct. 18 looked at issues facing local entrepreneurs, now and in the future. The summit offered several speakers and two panel discussions. The first panel discussion looked at issues of branding and marketing in an online world, and the other examined the future direction of business in Estevan.
Ironside Energy Services was recognized for its growth since opening nearly two years ago. The Estevan oilfield company was presented with the award for the top new business venture during the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce’s Achievement in Business Excellence Awards on Oct. 20 in Saskatoon. Dan Blackburn and Chad Himmelspeck are 50-50 business partners on the company, which celebrated its two-year anniversary Nov. 15.
A story that received a lot of attention in the spring came to a sad end in October, when the remains of Carlyle’s Ruby Barnes were found near Esterhazy. The Saskatchewan RCMP found a vehicle that belonged to Barnes, with human remains inside, on Oct. 22. Four days later, an autopsy confirmed that the remains belonged to Barnes. She was last seen in Carlyle on June 18.
Rock legend John Mellencamp performed in front of a nearly sold-out crowd on Oct. 26 at Affinity Place. The show began with a video that lasted nearly 30 minutes, and as the video faded out, Mellencamp and his band took to the stage and performed for more than 90 minutes. They played many of his biggest hits and some of his more recent songs.
The United Way Estevan’s 42nd annual telethon was one of the best ever, as the 33-hour broadcast on Oct. 26 and 27 at the Royal Canadian Legion’s Estevan branch raised $372,290 for the United Way’s 15 member agencies and two community partners. People supported the event by making pledges, providing entertainment, volunteering and donating hand-crafted items and other items.
Hundreds of firefighters from across the province were in Estevan from Oct. 26-28 for the Saskatchewan Volunteer Firefighters Association’s training weekend. They attended classroom and practical training sessions to further their skills and to better protect their communities. There were also social opportunities that allowed the firefighters to interact.
The New Estevan Regional Nursing Home Committee (NERNH) received a detailed report in late October on the business case options for the replacement of the new nursing home. The report calls for a 72-unit, three-story building to be constructed next to St. Joseph’s Hospital, and that would cost about $30 million. The committee presented its findings to the provincial government in November, and the findings were reportedly well-received.
November:
The provincial government announced Nov. 1 that the next municipal and school board election would be pushed back to Nov. 9, 2020, which is nearly two weeks later than normal, to accommodate the date of the next provincial election, which will be Oct. 26, 2020. There had been discussion of having the next civic election in 2021, which would have meant a five-year term for the current council.
The Petroleum Services Association of Canada (PSAC) released its 2019 Canadian Drilling Activity Forecast on Nov. 2. PSAC expects a total of 6,600 wells (rig releases) to be drilled in Canada in 2019. That’s down slightly from the 2018 forecasted number of 6,980 wells. In Saskatchewan, PSAC expects 2,422 wells will be drilled in 2019, down 110 wells.
Nalco Champion, an Ecolab Company, had a third and final Occupational Health and Safety charge under the Saskatchewan Employment Act dismissed in connection with the death of one of its workers, Michael Bunz. Bunz died on May 22, 2014, due to exposure to hydrogen sulphide (H2S) at an oilfield separator site near Kipling that was owned and operated by Harvest Energy Corporation. A ball valve had failed while Bunz was preparing to take a fluid sample, causing a release of high and lethal levels of H2S, killing him.
Weyburn’s Regan Lanning was announced as the winner of the Estevan Arts Council’s Ev Johnson Memorial Adjudicated Art Show on Nov. 3. The Weyburn artist and curator’s pottery exhibition of small portraits of herself or her family was selected as the top submission from the nine entries received.
Estevan’s Remembrance Day service was held in the Estevan Comprehensive School’s gymnasium on Nov. 11. The service is traditionally held at the school’s cafetorium, with the cenotaph service to follow at the courtyard, but due to the 100th anniversary of the end of the First World War in 2018, and an expected larger crowd, the decision was made to have the ceremony in the gym. Local military historian Craig Bird was the guest speaker. Later in the day, people gathered at the permanent cenotaph site in downtown Estevan for the Bells of Peace service, in which church bells rang 100 times.
Erin Thomson, the national president for Kin Canada, was in Estevan on Nov. 15 to meet with members of the Kinsmen and Kinettes Clubs. She visited St. Joseph’s Hospital, which Kin members have supported in the past. Thomson toured the community to see the contributions of local Kin clubs, and helped set up for the Kinettes’ Craft Sale.
Cannington MLA Dan D’Autremont, who is the longest-serving MLA in the Saskatchewan legislature, and a founding member of the Saskatchewan Party, announced at a Nov. 15 party function in Arcola that he will not be seeking re-election in the upcoming 2020 provincial election. D’Autremont was elected to the legislature for the first time in 1991, and has consistently had among the most decisive victories in the province in recent elections.
Five people were charged on Nov. 20 following an investigation into the trafficking of methamphetamine and other street-level drugs. Methamphetamines, cocaine, hydromorphone pills and an imitation handgun were seized. Five Estevan residents – Landon Boutin, 21, Rosslynn Knudsen, 28, Robbie Shiels, 37, Zachary Gessner, 25, and Heather Birdsell, 30, were charged.
The Government of Saskatchewan announced on Nov. 24 the appointment of Michelle R. Brass as the new judge for the Estevan Provincial Court. Brass received a law degree from the University of Saskatchewan in 1997, and began her career as a lawyer with the Ministry of Justice. Brass is replacing Judge Lane Wiegers, who is moving to the Provincial Court in Regina.
The history of health care in Estevan was celebrated on Nov. 26 during the 80th anniversary celebrations for St. Joseph’s Hospital. A pair of appreciation walls and a historical display were unveilled. Other highlights included a celebratory mass, tours of the building and a social for current and former staff members.
A former southeast Saskatchewan resident received a life-saving gift. Ryan Mclennan, who resided in Estevan and Alameda before moving to Calgary, gained national attention early this year when he and his wife Shakina launched a billboard campaign, looking for a donor who could supply the kidney that he desperately needed. Tony Timmons, a truck driver from nearby Airdrie, Alta., saw the billboard and decided to see if he was a match. He was, and on Nov. 28, the transplant occurred that gave Mclennan a new lease on life. The two have developed an incredible bond since the transplant.
SaskPower and Lehigh Hanson Materials Limited signed an agreement to give Lehigh exclusive rights to market and distribute fly ash from the Shand Power Station. This expands on an existing 10-year agreement signed in 2012 to market fly ash from the Boundary Dam Power Station. Fly ash is a fine powder by-product of coal combustion used in ready mix concrete and other purposes.
The City of Estevan and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) Local 726 reached a new collective bargaining agreement that includes a four per cent wage increase spread out over four years. The deal was reached before the previous pact expired on Dec. 31, 2018. Negotiations started in the middle of October, and the two sides met three times before reaching an agreement in mid-November. There won’t be a wage increase in 2019.
December:
Students from the Estevan Comprehensive School staged their musical Footloose from Nov. 30-Dec. 3, with capacity crowds packing the school’s cafetorium for each performance. The show earned rave reviews for the performances of the students, the music and the production values. About 100 people were involved with Footloose through the cast, the crew and the volunteers.
Carlyle was once again transformed into a Victorian-era community for the 2018 edition of the Dickens Village Festival on Nov. 30 and Dec. 1. Large crowds turned out for the activities that were offered. They enjoyed a variety of activities, the majority of which were on or around Main Street.
The St. Joseph’s Hospital Foundation’s Festival of Trees took place from Dec. 1-3 at Affinity Place, and generated about $160,000 for the foundation. Highlights include a seniors’ tea, a desert and beverage social, a gala supper and auction, and Santa’s Breakfast with the Bruins, sponsored by Estevan Mercury Publications. It was also a chance to build awareness of the foundation’s work in the community.
The Estevan Police Service carried out another drug bust on Dec. 1 for trafficking cocaine and methamphetamine within Estevan. A total of 29.5 grams of cocaine, 21.7 grams of methamphetamine, $830, one firearm, eight knives, and four hatchets were seized. A vehicle was also seized as offence related property. Philip Williams, age 41, Daniel Panteluk, 46, and Simon Menard-Flatfoot, all from Estevan, have been charged with multiple offences.
Two people were charged after multiple pursuits in the Bienfait and Roche Percee areas. The final pursuit lasted approximately 17 kilometers from Roche Percee to a farmer’s field near Highway 39, not far from North Portal. The pursuit ended when the fleeing vehicle was struck and forced to stop by an RCMP vehicle. David William Arsenault, 32, of Edmonton, and Jason Sawchuk, 32, of Invermere, B.C.
Much of the province was left without power Dec. 4, as transmission lines in southern Saskatchewan were weighed down by heavy rime frost accumulations. Between 175,000 and 200,000 SaskPower customers across the province were left without power when Units 3-6 at the Boundary Dam Power Station, the one unit at the Shand Power Station and the two units at the Poplar River Power Station tripped. Estevan was without power for less than 30 minutes, but many communities were without power throughout the day. Oxbow and Carnduff were among the last communities in the province to have power restored.
The St. Joseph’s Healthcare Auxiliary presented a cheque for $80,588.60 to the hospital on Dec. 5 during the auxiliary’s annual Christmas tea and bake sale. They have now paid off their commitment to the hospital’s laboratory, and can begin work on their next project – the purchase of beds for long-term care. The current long-term care beds have been at the hospital for nearly three decades.
The Yellow Vest Movement made its way to the Energy City on Dec. 15, with more than 50 protestors gathering in front of City Hall to say they’re fed up with many of the policies of the federal government. Many protesters toted signs articulating their concerns. Similar protests have been held in Western Canada to support the oil and gas sector, voice opposition to the carbon tax, and criticize the government’s support for the United Nations Migration Pact.
The Canadian Pacific Holiday Train rolled into Estevan on Dec. 16. A large crowd turned out on a nice afternoon to meet with Santa Claus, see the brightly decorated rail cars, and to listen to music by The Trews and Willy Porter, who played a mix of holiday classics and a few of their own songs.
The Community Hamper Association received record support for the hamper program and for the Angel Tree program. The hamper association filled 304 hampers this year. The hampers were delivered from Dec. 21-23, and ensured that local families had a healthy meal on Christmas Day.
The Angel Tree was set up at Walmart and Mr. Mike’s Steakhouse Casual from Dec. 5-15, and people dropped by with gifts of toys and cash, which could be used to purchase more toys. But there were also a number of toy drives during that 11-day span that also generated excellent support. Nearly 800 toys were collected this year.
A week after the first Yellow Vest Movement protest, Estevan was the site of a truck convoy protest to support the energy sector. Organized in less than 48 hours, the protest featured 427 trucks, most of them semi-trailer units, and it spanned 15 kilometres from start to finish. It took about an hour for the protest to make its way past city hall, where 170 Yellow Vest protesters were there to cheer it on. Bert Baxter Transport was the start-finish point.
Southeast Saskatchewan folk group Hook and Nail finished fourth in the SaskMusic Best Albums of 2018 contest. Their debut album, Ghosts of Taylorton, was released in September. It was included in a 40-album long list for the SaskMusic competition, and finished fourth based on public support.
