In the past, that would have meant leaving their neighbours and friends too but the Zarazuns are thankful they have a new option closer by.

They’ll be living just a few miles away, in a spacious new suite at Dugald Estates, as members of Springfield Seniors Non-Profit Housing Co-op.

“We’ve reached that age,” says Bev. “We are both over 70 and we cut grass and plant a big garden. It’s time to have sort of a simpler life.”

They looked around at condos and life leases and contemplated a move to Winnipeg, she said. But where they’re going is so much more desirable, says Bev.

The Zarazuns are among 80 persons whose new home is soon to be in the 47-unit $14.5-million equity co-op housing now under construction in the village of the same name.

“It is ideal for us,” she said. “We’re still in the country.”

The housing needs of couples like the Zarazuns were exactly what those who set out to build the housing co-op had in mind — providing good-quality, yet affordable housing for area seniors.

This project started with Dugald United Church congregation members talking over both their prospects a few years ago as an aging congregation in an old building. Their old church, now 126 years old, wouldn’t last forever but it didn’t make sense to make costly upgrades, said church member Bruce Friesen. At the same time, many congregation members were looking to downsize.

“We said we’d be better off with a new facility and also that we really needed seniors’ housing in Dugald and the area. So we said, ‘let’s put money into both.’”

The church agreed to put $150,000 from its memorial fund into the project, and to subsidize one suite for a resident who doesn’t have quite enough cash to come up with the $89,610 entrance fee. They’ll eventually hold Sunday services in the common room of the Dugald Estates.

That cash and commitment from the church got this whole project going, said Lesley Thomson, chair of the Springfield Seniors Non-Profit Housing Co-op Ltd. (SSHC) that’s built Dugald Estates.

The support from the community was strong; others agreed the need for affordable housing was increasing.

“People have lived here their whole lives, including many farmers who’ve moved to town. They were looking at what’s next and there wasn’t a lot of options in this municipality,” says Thomson.

The RM of Springfield had a population of 1,600 over age 65 including 30 per cent of those past their 70th birthday. Yet, prior to this construction there were only 98 seniors’ housing units in the entire RM, many of them built in the late 1960s.

The problem is by no means unique to Springfield, adds Thomson. And that’s why they hope their co-op will be a template for others.

This is something that can happen elsewhere in rural Manitoba, she said. The key is to get organized and build partnerships. Theirs included 3.8 acres of land sold to them for a buck from the RM of Springfield, and they secured pro bono work from professionals such as architects and lawyers willing to help them out.

Tenant equity contributions of $4.2 million and a mortgage of $10.4 million from Oakbank Credit Union will fund the project while the province’s contributions include a $900,000 (Co-op) loan guarantee, subsidies of 15 of the 47 suites and qualifying the SSHC for a $500,000 grant through its Rental Housing Construction Tax Credit Program.

Murray Gillespie sees this project as sustaining the whole community. The grandson of the village founder Dugald Gillespie plans to move with his wife Eleanor to a new suite at Dugald Estates this fall too.

Seniors’ housing like this will keep the local talent and skills base and capacity for volunteerism of their older residents, he said.

“We’ve been a pretty tight-knit community over the years,” he said. “I think it is great for the community as a whole.”

More information about the housing co-op is available online.

The post Dugald housing co-op a model for meeting rural seniors’ housing needs appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Canned soups, bread, cooking oil and many other everyday foodstuffs, along with the fixings for a Christmas dinner, were the gifts of food being delivered to thousands of less fortunate families and individuals in this province’s small centres and surrounding rural areas.

Legions of volunteers worked long days sorting, packing and organizing tons of perishable and non-perishable foodstuffs in what’s estimated to be anywhere from 40 or more hamper programs operating outside the city limits. Local cheer board programs are supported by churches, community groups or combinations thereof, supported by donations from individuals and local businesses. Programs like Drive Away Hunger by Farm Credit Canada, and donations by Manitoba Pork Producers also help to fill Christmas hampers.

Some local food hamper programs date back to early last century, when hampers were put together to provide food and toys for widows and orphans of soldiers lost during the First World War.

The Neepawa Christmas hamper program, which was busy filling about 100 hampers last week, dates back to those wartime relief efforts, said Darla Bradley of Neepawa’s Salvation Army, a charitable organization that has been in the community for more than 100 years.

Sometimes there’s calls for half as many again, she said, adding that a spike often occurs if it’s been an early winter and those in seasonal jobs get laid off. The greatest continuous need is among women, either single moms or grandmothers, raising small children.

The Neepawa-based program extends over a large outlying geographic area that takes in Arden and Gladstone, Bethany and Clanwilliam and south to the outskirts of Carberry where another hamper program operates.

VOLUNTEERS

Christmas hamper preparations begin weeks and even months in advance as a battalion of volunteers mobilize to raise funds, compile lists and start the annual collection.

In Melita, Donna Bell has volunteered to co-ordinate her community’s hamper program since 2002. They’ve had one operating here since 1989, begun as a United Church initiative, but now supported by many community-based groups.

About 30 hampers were being prepared last week for delivery locally and to a half-dozen surrounding communities, with

volunteers delivering hampers in round trips that can go 25 miles or more. They also note a high need among single-parent families, Bell said.

In Carman about 130 families and individuals were slated to receive a hamper last Thursday afternoon, said Carman Christmas Cheer Board chairperson Brenda Bryson.

This year they’re delighted to be including children’s toys in these hampers, all of which were donated through their local Grade 6 class’s toy drive this year. Residents give very generously and dedicated volunteers come back every year to make it all happen, Bryson said.

People do it out of a sense of giving back at this time of year, she said. “If we truly want to show love at Christmas, we give to the less fortunate,” she said.

All Christmas hampers delivered across the province come after a referral from a social service worker in the area, or from school teachers or community ministers aware of local families’ financial struggles.

Need for food aid doesn’t diminish after the holidays.

Local clergy say the need usually grows as winter wears on, with January being an especially tough month for many. lorraine@fbcpublishing.com

———

“Ifwetrulywanttoshow loveatChristmas,wegive tothelessfortunate.”

– BRENDA BRYSON, VOLUNTEER CO-ORDINATOR AT THE CARMAN CHRISTMAS CHEER BOARD

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Pull open the door to the community centre, and instead of creaking hinges and dark, musty silence, there’s the sound of merry chatter within.

No need to take fright; it’s just Lauder on a good day.

Instead of an encounter with spirits from beyond, it is in fact real, flesh-and-blood people enjoying the afternoon in the town’s only remaining coffee shop.

A dozen or so locals filled up both rooms of the centre in early October to raise money for the chemo ward at the hospital in Deloraine at the third annual “Tea for Cancer” event.

HOWLS OF LAUGHTER

Mentioning Lauder and the term “ghost town” in the same sentence, brings howls of laughter from those present. But still, it takes a few moments to round up a handful of people who still live there, ever since the population has dwindled from over 300 in the roaring 1920s to just four or five now.

Donalda Drummond, 85, remembers when the town had five grain elevators served by two railways, the CPR, which still hauls mainly grain west and coal from Estevan east, and the “Blue Flea,” which ran from Alida to Tilston, but was pulled up for salvage in the 1970s.

Community spirit is what holds the town together, she said. It’s mainly focused on Sunday services at the United Church across the street and, of course, the coffee shop, staffed by volunteers, which also doubles as the local post office.

They stopped serving meals, but it is usually filled with local farmers starting from seven o’clock in the morning each day until closing in the evening.

“We have a nice fowl supper every year, and the community gets together – even us old devils. We don’t stay on our feet too long, but we give something,” said Corinne Elliott, who makes the drive in from nearby Napinka to meet with friends.

SPIRITED AND SPRIGHTLY

Questions elicit the appearance on the table of a weighty tome, entitledThe Rise and Fall of a Prairie Town.Written by Gordon G. Phillips, the fivevolume set chronicles in painstaking detail the history of the town, which was once a big egg-grading station for the area and host to a local stockyard and livery stable. If you count the sandhills to the north, Lauder’s history goes back thousands of years – as a collection of flint arrowheads on the wall shows.

“It hasn’t fallen yet,” said Drummond, with a laugh.

The reminiscing soon conjures up an exchange over who was the naughtier teenager, and as proof, a tale of a package of cigarettes stashed away in a secret smoking sanctuary – inside a culvert under the railway tracks.

That the pictures in the hefty “bible” of Lauder feature hearty, prosperous farm families and businesses that arose out of

DRAWN AWAY

Reports that the local water supply is poor are unfounded. Instead, many locals point to the loss of the town’s school in the 1960s as sounding the town’s death knell, as it seemed to draw more business to neighbouring Hartney.

What’s the secret to keeping a community together? Having a meeting place, like the Lauder coffee shop, is the key, said Elliott.

“You have to have a gathering place. And doing this like this, and using everyone’s ability – everyone’s got some ability to contribute,” she said.

Brad Coe, CAO of the R. M. of Cameron, said that aWinnipeg Free Pressstory years ago about lots for $1 each in Lauder sparked a rush of speculative buying, mainly by locals, but since then, many of the properties have fallen back to

DANIEL WINTERS PHOTOS

LAUDER’S COMMUNITY SPIRIT: Above: An abandoned business in Lauder. Left: (l to r) Evelyn Duthie, Bonnie Clark, and Donalda Drummond, volunteers at the Lauder community centre, which is also home to the town’s only coffee shop. Below left: A stately brick house, now abandoned. Below right: A newly renovated home. Bottom: A sign advertising the now-shuttered gas station outside Lauder, indicating the centennial celebrated in 1991.

CHEAP LOTS

That price still stands, he added, but only if the buyer is genuinely interested in moving into the community.

With so many empty houses, are rowdy teenage drinking parties a policing problem?

“I’d like to see enough kids to do that,” he said. “We’re short of kids out here.”

He noted that booming oil exploration in the southwestern corner of the province has breathed life back into a number of dwindling towns, such as Carnduff and Gainsborough across the border in Saskatchewan, as oilfield workers seek local accommodations and houses to rent near the oilpatch.

It’s a long shot, but the prospect of future discoveries near Lauder may reverse the town’s fortunes. In the meantime, the loyalty of Lauder and area residents is keeping the town alive, he said. daniel.winters@fbcpublishing.com

———

“Wehaveanicefowl suppereveryyear,and thecommunitygets together–evenusold devils.Wedon’tstayon ourfeettoolong,but wegivesomething.”

– CORINNE ELLIOTT

The post Ghostly, But Still Alive And Kicking appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

“We shepherds prefer to be known as sheep ranchers,” he said.

“And pig farmers prefer to be known as pork producers,” said Grant. “What’s your point?”

“Go easy on the boy, Grant,” said Andrew. “And keep in mind that human history is littered with highly successful shepherds.”

“In case I hadn’t mentioned it, Dad,” said Randy, “we prefer the term sheep ranchers.”

“Successful shepherds?” said Grant. “Like who?”

“Like King David in the Old Testament,” said Andrew. “And the shepherds in the Nativity story in the New Testament.”

“I wouldn’t call that littered, exactly,” said Grant. “And we don’t really know if the shepherds in the Nativity story were successful. They had one good role but that just made them famous, not successful.”

“Sort of like Ashton Kutcher,” said Randy.

“Ashton Kutcher is only famous because of Twitter,” said Grant.

“That’s true,” said Randy. “I wonder if I

could get famous on Twitter?” “I think it helps if you’re a twit,” said Grant. “So it’s not entirely hopeless,” said Andrew.

There was a brief pause as the waitress came by to refill their coffee cups. Grant reached for the cream and sugar.

“Sheep eh?” said Grant. “Are you sure there aren’t better options for diversification?”

“That’s what I said,” said Randy. “Like what?” said Andrew.

Grant gave that a moment’s thought. “How about ostriches?” he said.

“If I wanted to flog a dead horse,” said Andrew, “I’d just buy a dead horse.”

“Emus then,” said Grant.

“If I wanted to flog a dead pony…” said Andrew.

“What about pigeons?” said Grant.

Randy looked at Andrew. “How long has Grant had this obsession with birds?” he asked.

Andrew shrugged. “I’m thinking it’s pretty recent,” he said. “I haven’t really noticed it before.”

“You’re not even considering my suggestions,” said Grant. “Maybe the real question is, why are you so prejudiced against birds?”

“We’re not prejudiced against birds,” said Randy. “We’re just prejudiced against your ideas.”

“How about elk then?” said Grant.

“How about chinchillas?” said Andrew. “Or hedgehogs, or aardvarks or giant sloths?”

“I don’t think hedgehogs would be viable,” said Grant. “You don’t have enough hedges.”

“The real question here Grant,” said Randy, “is why you harbour this intense animosity towards sheep. Were you attacked by a vicious lamb when you were a child or did you just watch “The Silence of the Lambs” one too many times?”

“I like sheep,” said Grant. “I just want to make sure you guys consider all your options.”

“Some things are not really options,” said Andrew. “Emus are not an option. Aardvarks are not an option. Opening a dance studio in Schanzenfeld is not an option. Sheep on the other hand, are an option.”

“The downside of sheep,” said Grant, “is the whole ‘watching over their flocks by night’ thing. It’s all quaint and picturesque when you read it in the Bible, but in real life it’s kind of cold and miserable. And I imagine it’s hard to stay awake after a while.”

“The upside of sheep,” said Randy, “is they’re not pigs or chickens.”

“You make a good point,” said Grant, “but conversely, the downside of sheep is they’re not cows.”

“Of course given today’s markets,” said Andrew, “the fact that they’re not cows is also an upside.”

“The debate rages on,” said Grant. “It’s not a debate,” said Andrew. “It’s a done

deal. Come spring we have to do some fencing and whatnot, and then we have to buy some sheep.”

“Really?” said Grant. “Your mind is already made up? Are you saying that this entire conversation has been a meaningless conversational exercise? Empty rhetoric with no point other than to fill an empty space in time? Like a throne speech or a sermon in a United Church?”

Andrew laughed. “When is a conversation with you anything other than that?” he said.

“Point taken,” said Grant. “Where are you going to buy sheep?”

Andrew shrugged. “No doubt there will be a dispersal sale somewhere. Some poor guy in the shadows of Riding Mountain maybe, who didn’t realize that an important aspect of sheep farming is an absence of wolves and cougars.”

Grant paused for a moment. “Well, good for you,” he said. “Difficult decisions have to be made.” He raised his coffee cup. “Here’s to the shepherds,” he said.

“We prefer the term sheep ranchers,” said Randy.

Listen to hear Rollin Penner and the

Traveling Medicine Show an a radio station near you.

The post The Jacksons – for Mar. 4, 2010 appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Distinctively stylish, the bags feature a variety of African

motifs including orchids, orange tigers, a striking mask collage, leopards, elephants and giraffes…

CORRECTION

The correct address to link to the website of Prairie Pens to purchase a copy of their new book From All Directions is

www.fromalldirections.com.An incorrect e-mail address

was published in the Dec. 10 issue.

For the second day in two weeks, the multi-purpose room of Fairholme Colony School was transformed recently into a sewing room with nearly a dozen sewing machines humming away as the Hutterian seamstresses snipped, sang, chatted and laughed. By 4:30 the project was complete – down to the last shiny bead – 50 handbags for the Grandmothers to Grandmothers Campaign.

Distinctively stylish, the bags feature a variety of African motifs including African adults working against a blue background, orchids, orange tigers, a striking mask collage, leopards; elephants and giraffes, zebras peeking out from a mirage-like jumble of black-and-white stripes.

The project is sponsored by Grands ’n’ More Winnipeg, which provides the materials, identifying labels and brochure for inclusion in each completed handbag. This is a unique advocacy project in support of the Stephen Lewis Foundation (SLF) working for the grandmothers and HIV/AIDS orphans of Africa. The brochure contains other stunning statistics.

Sixty-three per cent of the infections and 76 per cent of the deaths occur in the sub-Saharan African countries, where 13 million children have been orphaned by AIDs, which raises the question: Who takes care of these children?

“In areas severely affected by AIDS, approximately one-half of all older people are caring for HIV-positive adults or vulnerable children.” That is why the Stephen Lewis Foundation targets these countries specifically.

“The grandmothers caring for AIDS orphans … have been called upon to parent at a time in life when they would have expected to take their ease. Their situation is often desperate.”

A logical offshoot of the quilting process, the concept of sewing handbags for this purpose was brought to the town of MacGregor from a quilting workshop in Winnipeg. Designed by a woman, each bag is lovely, lightweight and well made.

Aside from purchasing a bag or bags, people can contribute on several levels. Materials for the bags are bought at substantial discounts; others donate their time to cut and assemble them into kits, including cat-screen lining, inside pockets and bag handles, as well as a solid plastic bottom, fabric outside panels and decorative beads. Women sew them individually or in groups, but the completed bags are returned to Grands ’n’ More in Winnipeg to be sold.

The eye-catching handbags are also sold locally. On a recent Saturday morning nine MacGregor seamstresses gathered in the sunny upstairs of the United Church and again the following Wednesday evening to complete some 22 bags, all of which were sold within five days. One cheque for two bags arrived before the sewing even began!

At Fairholme Colony, the completed bags were arranged on the stairs leading to the upper level of the school before packing them in boxes for transport to Winnipeg by Roberta Stone of MacGregor. At this time of year, it’s particularly appropriate to think in philanthropic terms: a bountiful Prairie harvest and fowl suppers behind us – despite problematic spring and summer weather – as well as a Thanksgiving season of splendid supermarket and church displays,

the edible items of which were subsequently shared with others, such as a local soup kitchen or the Salvation Army.

While the plight of Africans and the HIV/AIDS-induced crisis is not new, recent statistics are particularly gruesome. At last count, 33 million worldwide, with Africa most severely stricken: tens of thousands of orphaned children whose parents have succumbed to the disease. Compelled to look after younger siblings, many children are unable to attend school because they cannot afford the uniform, which is compulsory in African schools.

Fortunately, some individuals have led the way with compassionate and creative responses. Among them is the Swede, Henning Mankell who co-ordinated a project for supplying terminal HIV/AIDS victims with the necessary materials to record some of the important elements and events of their lives in order to provide their children with concrete mementoes and family history. Mankell documents this project in his book, I Die But My Memory Lives On.

Closer to home, Winnipeg endocrinologist, Dr. Alan Ronald spearheaded crucial drug research and clinical trials to treat African HIV/ AIDS victims. Canadian statesman, Stephen Lewis used his position with the United Nations, including numerous public speaking engagements to bring the crisis to national and international attention. To finance and sponsor various projects involved in offering assistance to African HIV/ AIDS victims, the Stephen Lewis Foundation was established. The book arising from his Massey lectures (and broadcast on CBC) is Race Against Time.

Charitable organizations such as Grands ’n’ More Winnipeg enable

Canadians to contribute meaningfully in an attempt to improve the lot of African grandmothers and their orphaned grandchildren. The handbag project has so far sold 935 bags, raising nearly $28,000.

Thus, the women of Fairholme plan to continue making bags. The next shipment of 50 kits is already ordered with plans to sew during the Christmas holiday. In addition, they want to order the next lot uncut, so that more women can contribute by helping with the cutting.

“I look forward to sewing bags at the school again,” one woman said. “The lively companionable atmosphere during those hours of sewing, singing and visiting are unforgettably enriching. I love it!”

The bags, which make great Christmas gifts, are available for purchase at PDAC the Portage and District Arts Council in Portage la Prairie (204) 239-6029. They may also be purchased by contacting Laurel Garvie (204) 475-7290 or Noreen Duncan (204) 772-0631.

The post Colony Women Sew For A Cause appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

Alex became a pedigreed seed producer specializing in seed oats and Selkirk wheat. He was also actively involved in developing domestic and international markets for both crops.

As a Select Seed Grower, Alex was a member of both the Manitoba Seed Growers Association (MSGA) and the Canadian Seed Growers’ Association (CSGA), on which he served as president for two years. In recognition of his contributions, Alex was elected a Robertson Associate, the highest award the CSGA can bestow on a member. Alex introduced pulse crops such as peas, lentils and edible beans to his farm operation and later grain corn, sugar beets and potatoes – crops which are now commonplace in his district.

He was the first to apply for and receive water rights for irrigation – a key risk management practice on the highly erosive and drought-prone Almassippi Soils in the Graysville area. On his farm, Alex established field shelter belts, sponsored fertilizer trials and introduced new and innovative machinery and cultural practices. His leadership helped transform the surrounding community into a highly diversified and productive farming area.

Production diversification led to the establishment of Stow Seed Processors and the building of ultra-modern grain-handling and seed-cleaning plants at Graysville, Elgin and Cardale. New markets were found: flax and Glenlea wheat for frozen bread and pizza dough in the U. S.; yellow peas in South America; cleaned and ground flax in Germany, Netherlands and Denmark; canola in Japan; and lentils in Turkey and the Middle East.

Alex and Pam were also involved in 4-H and the Dufferin Agricultural Society. Alex served as a trustee on the local school board, a steward and elder of the local St. Paul’s United Church and a member of the Carman Kinsman Club. The Stows were generous financial contributors to community projects such as the University of Manitoba Carman Campus; Carman Area Foundation; Carman Medical Clinic; Carman Golf Course; and the Boyne Regional Library. In 1997 Alex and Pam won the Manitoba Good Roads Association Shield for Best Home Grounds, Country Residence, as well as the Western Culvert and Metal Shield.

The Stows’ contribution to agriculture is significant – locally, provincially and nationally.

Alex’s philosophy of life is “to work hard, have fun and be honest with yourself and others. Be considerate and refuse to be mean.”

The post Agriculture Hall Of Fame – for Sep. 17, 2009 appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

“A past generation did it because they had to. I’m not doing it because I have to. I like the challenge.”

– SPERLING FARMER AND HOME GARDENER JOYCE NICOLAJSEN

Ki tchen counters are stacked with cutting boards, glass jars, colanders, bags of sugar and pickling salt. Out in the garden, or piled on the back steps, is another haul ready for shelling, chopping, puréeing, fermenting, freezing, drying or canning.

The harvest of the home garden has begun in earnest and for those in the midst of it it’s a time of year that, like the harvest in the fields, has its own narrow window to get it all done before nature’s best-before date.

And it’s a pile of work, oh yes. Ask anyone who’s spent the day or evening or worked into late nights shelling a big box of peas or putting up dozens of jars of this or that. Yet, those who undertake this task every year, speak more about the pleasure associated with this end-of-summer job.

A CHALLENGE

“A past generation did it because they had to. I’m not doing it because I have to. I like the challenge. I wouldn’t be doing it if I didn’t like doing it,” says Joyce Nicolajsen, a mother of four who farms with her husband near Sperling.

Joyce is a renowned home baker in her community and is found every summer at the Carman Farmers’ Market selling both her baking and other home produce. These days she’s harvesting the farm garden, which is about an acre in size. Some she’ll sell. Most she’ll put away for home use. It is deeply satisfying to feed one’s family this way, says Joyce. “And this is something I was raised with.” She’s making sure her kids are too.

Down-the-road-neighbour Karen Tjaden echoes similar sentiments. Karen takes a break each summer from her duties as a United Church minister to tend to a large backyard garden. From it she harvests a mountain of fresh, homegrown vegetables that feeds her own young family of three. She, too, grew up helping take off a home garden and grew to love the taste of homegrown food. That’s what’s most rewarding about doing this, says Karen, who was shelling peas last week.

A BITE OF SUNSHINE

“I always like knowing we’ll have this bite of sunshine later on,” she says. Karen freezes virtually all her fruits and vegetables. “It’s pretty pleasing to look in the freezer later on and see everything in there. It’s like a work of art,” she adds with a smile.

A peek into kitchens across the province right now would find many more like Joyce and Karen.

In Manitou, farmer and municipal councillor Brenda Seward is putting away jar after jar of wild chokecherry jelly. “We pick the berries from the nearby Pembina Valley,” says Brenda, who makes time to harvest her garden each summer in the midst of her other duties as a farmer, municipal councillor and business owner.

The Sewards’ farm is where Manitou residents Joe and Dorothy Kozak, who helped found a local food festival, come to plant their stash of garlic every year. The Kozaks make a huge array of pickles and spreads to sell at the Pembina Valley Honey, Garlic and Maple Syrup Festival’s farmers’ market each September. Joe anticipates they’ll have about 100 lbs. off their plot this year. He and Dorothy have been putting every waking hour into drying, cleaning and braiding garlic in recent days.

ONE THING AT A TIME

They do it for the flavour and abundance of the food they’ll have afterward, home preservers say. This evokes a sense of security, self-sufficiency and independence unlike anything else can. And this is work done equally well both by those good at multi-tasking and by those who prefer to do one thing at a time – you pick, you wash, you chop, you stir, all the while listening to your own thoughts.

Plus, if there’s anything left over – and there always is – they’ve got plenty to share. And they do.

lorraine@fbcpublishing.com

The post The Harvest On The Yard appeared first on Manitoba Co-operator.

“Conservation efforts were very, very important to D. J. and he spent countless hours working with the Pembina Valley Conservation District.”

– DONALD ORCHARD

Don (D. J.) Alexander, one of Manitoba’s conservation leaders, died January 20 at his farm home near here following a brief illness. He was 74 years old.

Alexander, chair of the Pembina Valley Conservation District from 1989 to 2007, also chaired the Manitoba Conservation Districts Association from 1997 to 2001.

“D. J. impacted the lives of many people over his nearly three-quarters of a century of living and did so because he wore so many hats,” said local farmer and former MLA Donald Orchard in his eulogy for Alexander.

Some of those hats included farmer, high school science teacher, high school pr inc ipa l , muni c ipa l councillor, reeve and chair of the Morden, Stanley, Thompson and Winkler planning district.

Alexander’s work could not have been done without the support and help of his wife of 50 years, Thelma, Orchard said.

“Conservation efforts were very, very important to D. J. and he spent countless hours working with the Pembina Valley Conservation District,” he said. “And he was very supportive of the establishment of our Deerwood Soil and Water Management project, which has emerged as a leading North American conservation soil and water management project.”

Alexander’s favourite quote was from United States president John Kennedy: “Ask not what your country can do for you, but what you can do for your country.”

And he did just that, volunteering for countless local organizations from the curling club and local United Church, to the Trans Canada Trail and the South Central Cancer Resource (centre).

“He had an amazing capacity

to work for the common good and a commitment to people, land and family and friends,” United Church Minister

Allison Halstead said during a celebration of Alexander’s life Jan. 27.

Alexander’s deep understanding of, and commitment to agriculture, helped him come up with ideas to deal with some of the challenges farmers face with taxation, water management, soil conservation, animal husbandry and municipal planning, Orchard said.

Late last year the Pembina Valley Conservation District named a park three miles west of Miami on top of the escarpment “Alexander Ridge Park,” in honour and memory of Alexander’s dedication to conservation and the

environment. It will be officially dedicated at a ceremony in June.

Besides his wife, Thelma, Alexander is survived by four children and six grandchildren.

allan@fbcpublishing.com

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“I got to thinking maybe we could unite all of our churches in telling an old story.”

– Linda McNabb, United Church Choir Director

A burst of laughter rolls down a snowy street, then fades away under a darkening sky.

The sound has come from just outside the doors of the United Church where men, women and children, wearing turbans and tunics over their tuques and parkas, huddle around a big bonfire with an assortment of live sheep and donkeys.

Keeping watch and trying to keep warm, they are among a cast of characters here Dec. 7 to transform their small Parkland town to another place in time – Bethlehem on the night of Jesus’ birth.

They’re awaiting word from an angel.

. . .