Community Correspondents

Community Correspondents

Music and singing this summer

John Hindle 3 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

Not everyone sings in a choir, but most of us, from time to time, belt out a few tunes in the shower, the car, or some other place where we feel safe and comfortable.

I know of a place where you can sing for fun in a relaxed and positive environment. The event is called Earthsong and is held from July 13 to 17 at the United Church in Meadowood on Dakota. Registration ($350 for the week) is open until the day before the event.

I know Jeremy Vallance who co-ordinates and directs the camp. He is fun, energetic, and no doubt makes this week very enjoyable for all the attendees. I asked Jeremy why he runs this program.

“Earthsong makes music accessible to anyone who wants to sing, regardless of their background and beliefs,” he said. “Whether you’ve never sung before or are an experienced singer, this week-long day camp brings adults together in a safe, supportive community where everyone can feel confident to express themselves joyfully, together. There’s nothing like singing to unite people, to give us a daily mental uplift bringing us laughter, a sense of inclusion and child-like fun.”

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Community Correspondents

Building a stronger Fort Richmond through meaningful investments

Jennifer Chen 3 minute read Preview

Building a stronger Fort Richmond through meaningful investments

Jennifer Chen 3 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

Summer is a flourishing time in Fort Richmond. This year, it is especially exciting to see many community projects come to fruition. These investments are a testament to what can be achieved through collaboration, community partnership, and thoughtful long-term planning. Across Fort Richmond, we are already seeing the positive impact of these projects that will continue to enrich the lives of residents for generations to come.

I was honoured to join Pembina Trails School Division along with school staff, students, and families at the Bairdmore School (700 Bairdmore Blvd.) for the groundbreaking ceremony of the new play structure. This important investment of $100,000 by the Government of Manitoba is being built for the entire neighbourhood. It will become a vibrant community hub — a safe, accessible gathering place where families from all walks of life can connect. This is not only an investment in infrastructure, but also a promise to students that their physical health, social development, and joy matter and will be nurtured.

Another significant development is the South Winnipeg Recreation Campus, a major project currently underway. This new hub represents a forward-looking investment in local infrastructure and community well-being. Our government is proud to contribute $47.2 million to this project which will create a space where south Winnipeg families can learn, play, grow, and belong.

Community investments are strongest when all levels of government work together. The groundbreaking of new spray pad at the South Winnipeg Community Centre-Richmond (666 Silverstone Ave.) is a great example of how collaboration can provide meaningful benefits to local families. It will also provide a safe, engaging way to cool off during the summer while encouraging outdoor play for children.

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2:01 AM CDT

Community Correspondents

Osteoporosis: The silent thief of bone health

Carolyne Christie 2 minute read Preview

Osteoporosis: The silent thief of bone health

Carolyne Christie 2 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

Most people think of broken bones as the result of a fall, a sports injury, or an accident. But for more than 2.3 million Canadians living with osteoporosis, a simple slip — or sometimes even a cough or bend — can lead to a serious fracture.

Often called the “silent thief,” osteoporosis gradually weakens bones over many years without noticeable symptoms.

“Unfortunately, by the time a fracture occurs, the disease is often already quite advanced,” explains Tatum Apsit, Osteoporosis Canada’s community engagement co-ordinator for Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

While osteoporosis is commonly associated with older women, everyone should pay attention to their bone health. In fact, at least one in three women and one in five men will experience an osteoporosis-related fracture during their lifetime. Fractures linked to osteoporosis are actually more common than heart attack, stroke, and breast cancer combined.

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2:01 AM CDT

Community Correspondents

Summer in St. James

Adrian Sala 3 minute read Preview

Summer in St. James

Adrian Sala 3 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

Summer is one of my favourite times in our community. It’s a season to get outside, reconnect with neighbours, and take pride in what makes St. James such a special place to call home. This year, our team is focused on hearing from you, bringing people together, and celebrating the achievements of our young leaders.

Throughout the summer, my team and I will be canvassing across the community to hear directly from residents. Whether it’s at your door, in a park, or at a local event, we’re looking forward to connecting with you. These conversations are incredibly important to me. They help shape the work I do every day and ensure that your voice is reflected in the decisions being made by our government. If you see us out in the neighbourhood, please don’t hesitate to stop and say hello, we always appreciate the opportunity to connect.

We’re also excited to be hosting a series of community barbecues and ice cream events throughout summer. Our barbecues will be taking place at Leicester Square, Hillsboro House, and Issac Brock Community Centre and we’ll be hosting ice cream events at Bruce Park Place, Kiltarton Towers, Donwood West, and Colorado Estates. It’s always a pleasure to see familiar faces and meet new folks while celebrating the strong sense of community we share. For more details about these events, please reach out to my office at Adrien.Sala@yourmanitoba.ca or 204-792-8779.

Finally, I want to take a moment to recognize some outstanding students from across our schools who were awarded our annual graduation scholarships. These awards celebrate not only academic achievement, but also creativity, leadership, and a commitment to community.

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2:01 AM CDT

Community Correspondents

Summer fun is just getting started in Rossmere

Tracy Schmidt 2 minute read Preview

Summer fun is just getting started in Rossmere

Tracy Schmidt 2 minute read 2:01 AM CDT

At last, summer is here, and it arrived with a burst of creativity and community spirit!

We kicked things off with something truly special. On June 14, one of our favourite Rossmere gathering places, Scout: Coffee + Community, hosted its Mini Maker Market, filling the parking lot with colour, excitement, and the unmistakable buzz of young entrepreneurs bringing their ideas to life.

The Mini Maker Market is more than an event, it’s an experience that empowers children and youth to imagine, design, and launch their very own small businesses. From handmade crafts to inventive treats and creative services, these young makers dream big and work hard, learning what it means to take an idea from concept to customer. Along the way, they gain hands‑on skills in entrepreneurship, financial literacy, communication, and leadership, lessons that will stay with them long after the tents come down.

What makes the day so inspiring is the heart behind every booth. You can see the pride in their displays, the confidence growing with each customer interaction, and the joy of realizing that their creativity has real value. It’s a reminder of how capable, imaginative, and resilient our young people truly are.

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2:01 AM CDT

Community Correspondents

Of red pine cones and carpe diem

Debbie Ristimaki 3 minute read Preview

Of red pine cones and carpe diem

Debbie Ristimaki 3 minute read 2:00 AM CDT

I met my first red pine cone a few years ago. It was a memorable experience as I had never met one before. Sadly, I never got the chance to capture it — after all, isn’t that what one does or at least, tries to do?

I promised myself that should Mother Nature ever repeat and the opportunity to meet another one comes my way, I would make sure that my camera was ready.

Well, guess what? Nature repeated this spring. I spotted them high atop a beautiful tree on McGillivray. Needless to say, I was excited, as to me, it was a rarity.

I returned home thinking about the red pine cones and how long had it been since the last time that I saw some.

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2:00 AM CDT

Community Correspondents

Looking back at 30 years of marriage

Sonya Braun 3 minute read Preview

Looking back at 30 years of marriage

Sonya Braun 3 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Thirty years. Three decades.

That’s how long ago my husband and I got married.

Life was different in 1996. We didn’t own a cell phone, much less the smart kind. We had to make long distance calls that cost money when we were dating. In fact, calling was the thing you did whenever you needed to contact someone quickly. Texting wasn’t even a word.

In fact, email was just emerging as a form of mainstream communication.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Community Correspondents

All our relatives

Heather Emberley 4 minute read Preview

All our relatives

Heather Emberley 4 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

There is so much for us to learn during Indigenous History Month and some of the best lessons originate at the grassroots level.

Bear Clan Patrol Inc. hears the stories and the personal histories of all our relatives when patrolling the streets of Winnipeg. “We listen, we don’t judge,” says executive director Kevin Walker. Likewise, lead co-ordinator of West Broadway/Downtown Bear Clan Patrol, Angela Klassen, says “we make sure our relatives are taken care of.”

Caring for the most vulnerable involves many facets of compassion and skill. While volunteers came from a variety of backgrounds, individually or as part of workplace teams or interest groups, a common thread is the desire to help.

The Winnipeg Bear Clan model of helping has been emulated in cities such as Brandon, Man., and many locales in Saskatchewan and Alberta. The highest compliment an organization can receive is recognition by one’s peers and Ottawa did just that. Their Odawa Native Friendship Centre is learning from Winnipeg’s Bear Clan with their Makwa Dodem Patrol initiative. When the heart of the country teams with the political capital a caring community can spread across the nation with First Nations leading the way.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Community Correspondents

Butterflyways connect communities

Janine LeGal 3 minute read Preview

Butterflyways connect communities

Janine LeGal 3 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Butterflies. Beautiful little creatures with meanings and stories. Popular in art and poetry. Symbols of transformation. Butterfly season brings out those who want to make sure that butterflies continue to thrive for a long time.

Jennifer Engbrecht has lived in Wolseley for more than 25 years, but some of her Red River Métis ancestors have lived in the area for generations along the Assiniboine, so she’s always felt a connection to the neighbourhood.

For the past 31 years, the music teacher has been employed at École St. Germain in the Louis Riel School Division, where there’s a lot going on related to her interest in connecting learning on the land with music and the arts and deepening the love and care for nature.

“We have a pollinator garden, a vegetable garden that we grow to give back to Harvest Manitoba, and a medicine garden,” said Engbrecht, adding that for the last 11 years an environment club has been part of transformative learning at the school.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Community Correspondents

U.S. border fears don’t always match reality

Helen Lepp Friesen 4 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Canadian travel to the United States dropped by roughly 30 per cent in 2025. This sharp decline reflects growing discomfort about border crossings. The reasons could be based on political climate, what people hear on the news, or what friends have heard or experienced.

In late December, the U.S. government announced it would begin mandating photographs of non-citizens at all land borders and airports. The measure, reported by CBC News in December, 2025, instantly caught the attention of Canadians who regularly cross the border for various reason such as shopping, family visits, or vacations. While the policy was presented as an administrative update, it added to that sense that border crossings are becoming more intrusive and tightly monitored.

Canada has been using facial recognition technology to verify the photos of travelers by air, both citizens and noncitizens, arriving from international destinations since 2019. This policy has largely faded into the background of routine travel. Yet the U.S. announcement reignited the conversation about surveillance, privacy, and what travelers might be exposing themselves to simply by crossing into another country.

Stories about border officers accessing personal information on laptops and cell phones and advice about wiping devices before travel have become common. The stories are usually fueled by warnings circulating among friends, families, online forums, and news sources. It may have happened to some people, but most border crossings are smooth and without issue. But for some Canadians, these warnings have been enough to cancel trips or decide that crossing the border simply isn’t worth the stress.

Community Correspondents

Connecting with neighbours across Southdale

Renée Cable 3 minute read Preview

Connecting with neighbours across Southdale

Renée Cable 3 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Summer is one of the best times to connect with neighbours across Southdale. As the weather gets warmer, it’s an opportunity for me and my team to spend more time listening to the folks who make our community such a wonderful place to call home.

That’s why our summer canvassing team is already out knocking on your doors. These conversations are one of the most important parts of our work. They help us understand what matters most to neighbours and ensures that your voices continue to shape the decisions we make in the People’s Building.

Our NDP government also just wrapped up our very busy spring legislative session. We recently passed Bill 53, the Budget Implementation and Tax Statutes Amendment Act, helping deliver Budget 2026 and our commitment to making life more affordable for Manitobans.

A key priority for our government continues to be rebuilding and strengthening health care. For the third year in a row, we are making record investments. Since forming government in 2023, we have added 4,054 net new health-care workers to the front lines and expanded access to care across Manitoba. Thousands of appointments are available every month at minor injury and illness clinics through medinav.ca, primary care clinics have expanded their hours, and Manitobans now have the best access to a family doctor in Canada. We are also building a new emergency room at Victoria Hospital to better serve families in our community.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Community Correspondents

The summer of reconnection

Mike Moroz 3 minute read Preview

The summer of reconnection

Mike Moroz 3 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

What an incredible summer it’s already been in River Heights. With beautiful weather and so many opportunities to gather, reconnect, and talk about the future of our neighbourhood, this season has already reminded me how strong, caring, and engaged our community truly is.

For me, summer always begins in one of the very best ways — with graduation ceremonies at our local schools. These moments remind us just how bright the future is. As a former theatre teacher, graduation season carries special meaning for me. I know how emotional it is to watch students you have cared about, and learned from, head off to new adventures. I’ve often said that graduation is both the happiest and the saddest day of the school year. More than anything, it’s deeply moving to see the genuine affection and gratitude shared between students and teachers, and to be reminded how much they shape one another along the way.

Early summer is also picnic and barbecue season, and I’ve been lucky to take part in many of them. These events don’t happen by accident — dedicated volunteers spend weeks planning, organizing, and showing up for their neighbours. Whether it’s the energy on Academy Road, the free concerts presented by the Corydon BIZ, the Corydon Community Centre barbecue, or school picnics and fairs, each event creates space for people to come together and celebrate what makes River Heights such a special place to call home. They’re also powerful reminders that community is built through participation, generosity, and shared effort.

There may be no better example of Winnipeg at its summer best than Folklorama. Since 1970, the festival has given us a unique chance to experience the rich cultural diversity of our city through food, music, dance, and conversation. What stays with me most, however, is the spirit of connection that runs through it all — the conversations with pavilion organizers and festival-goers, and the shared sense that we are strongest when we continue building a community that is closer, kinder, safer, and more welcoming. Community isn’t just something we talk about — it’s something we build, one conversation, one shared experience at a time.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Community Correspondents

More doctors, better access to care

Wab Kinew 3 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Earlier this year, Manitoba celebrated a huge health care milestone: over 3,700 doctors in our province, more than we’ve ever had before. Since 2023 alone, more than 350 net new doctors have joined Manitoba’s hospitals and clinics.

Our government has worked to train the next generation, retain the doctors we have, and recruit from across the country and beyond, all with the goal of making sure more Manitobans can connect with the care they need close to home.

Part of that work has meant looking beyond our borders. We have actively recruited health care professionals from across Canada and internationally, including doctors from the United States and the United Kingdom. These professionals are choosing Manitoba because they want to work in a strong public health care system and be part of communities that value their skills and expertise.

The work we’re doing alongside our partners to train, retain, and recruit is having a real impact. Our province has gone from the worst to the best in Canada when it comes to access to a family doctor, and we lead the country in access to same day care. Communities across Manitoba, including right here in Fort Rouge, are benefiting from new doctors joining local clinics, hospitals, and emergency rooms.

Community Correspondents

Ramblin’ with … Body Measure, again!

Weldon Rinn 4 minute read Preview

Ramblin’ with … Body Measure, again!

Weldon Rinn 4 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

We’re going back to visit Melina Elliott and Erica Henderson at Body Measure, because recent ads I’ve seen on TV informed me of a few new procedures to sculpt and shape your body while also, I believe, aiding weight loss and control.

This will be our third Body Measure column, which speaks to the dynamic nature these ladies bring to their business and helping their clients with a multitude of body and health related ways to feel and look their best. Following our usual routine, I’ll posit a few questions and let their replies write the column…

Recent TV advertisements, and your website, introduced us to a new and exciting procedure. Could you please share some information about this procedure with us?

At Body Measure, we’re always looking for ways to bring the most advanced, evidence-based technology to our clients — and one of the treatments you may have seen recently is Emsculpt Neo. This is a completely non-invasive treatment that helps build muscle and reduce fat at the same time. It uses a combination of high-intensity electromagnetic energy and radiofrequency to stimulate powerful muscle contractions — far beyond what you can achieve in a traditional workout — while also targeting stubborn fat.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Community Correspondents

Time to move for a good cause

Ryan Palmquist 2 minute read Preview

Time to move for a good cause

Ryan Palmquist 2 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

On Saturday, June 27 at 8 a.m., volunteers and participants of Move for H20 will gather at St. Vital park again this year.

Partner events led by groups across Canada raise funds each year for causes and projects around the world to provide fresh water access to those in need.

This year, funds raised will go towards Sitio Toruyan; a remote community in the Marilog District of Davao, Philippines. Thanks to charitable initiatives and local volunteer efforts, life-giving water systems have been successfully completed to support its residents.

Participants pledge to walk, roll, cycle, or run a route around the park as individuals, as part of a team, or with other event participants. The format is casual, welcoming, and family friendly.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

Community Correspondents

Time to reflect on the past, start a new adventure

John Orlikow 3 minute read Preview

Time to reflect on the past, start a new adventure

John Orlikow 3 minute read Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

It’s always been clear to me why River Heights-Fort Garry is one of the most beloved and popular wards in the city — it’s the people.

I am deeply humbled to have earned the dedicated support of so many of your over the past 17 years as your city councillor. It has allowed me to represent you and the other residents of our ward to make our community and city a better place.

The importance of public service and giving back has been a core belief in my family for as long as I can remember. I have been proud to follow in the footsteps of my uncle David, a school trustee, city councillor and Member of Parliament from 1945-88 and father, Lionel, who was a school trustee from 1988-98. Combined, there has been an Orlikow in elected office in Winnipeg for nearly 80 consecutive years.

Personally, it has truly been an honour serving in political life for nearly three decades, first as a school trustee for the Winnipeg School Division and then as your city councillor.

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Wednesday, Jun. 24, 2026

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