Did he or did he not, that is the question. If you still follow “Groundhog Lore” then you will know what that statement means. This wide range of winter events has everyone a little confused as we’ve ranged from minus 40 temps to plus temps within a 24-hour period and then the odd blast of snow storms have been mixed into this; making everyone tire of winter and wonder when we can expect winter to be coming to a close.
Another success story made itself evident these past few weeks in Unity. The Lions held their first ever Chase the Ace fundraiser, which started in late spring 2018 and finished with excitement when a winner was awarded over $20,000 in December. The Lion’s share of the proceeds were presented as follows: $8,658 to the new Outdoor Rec Venue, $8,658 to the Town of Unity’s walking path development; and $6942.34 each to both Unity Minor Hockey for a portable ice/arena divider and Unity Minor Ball for a new score clock. The Lions gave back $31,200.70 to their community, thanks to those who supported this fundraiser. It was a fun event and folks are looking forward to the 2019 version of this ongoing fundraiser. Congratulations to our Lions club, the jackpot winner and the community groups and organizations that benefitted from this fundraiser.
Lots to talk about in Unity this month. Last week included the northern men’s curling playdowns with no results yet known by press time. The Unity Wildlife Federation celebrated their annual awards and banquet as well on Feb. 2.
Feb. 4, Unity women supported the Prairie Women on Snowmobiles, who ride across the province raising money for breast cancer research, at a lunch held in their honour. A poignant survivor pinning ceremony was one of the notable parts of this event.
Coming up at St. Peter’s school today, Feb. 7, is the Grades 4-6 funspiel. Tomorrow, Feb 8, the school is hosting a popcorn sale to raise money for Telemiracle and thank their local theatre for helping supply this delicious treat. The school choir will be singing at the 11 a.m. mass on Feb. 10. The week before the break will be busy, as in addition to celebrating Teacher/Staff appreciation week, Grades 4-6 will be taking in their ski trip at Table Mountain. Feb. 14, the school hosts their own mass at 1 p.m. St. Peter’s Grade 3 class is collecting tabs from cans for Silver for Gold, which is an initiative raising funds and awareness for Childhood Cancer. Please help them donate to this worthy cause by collecting tabs and dropping them off at St. Peter’s School, as they will be collecting tabs until the end of this school year.
Coming up at UCHS, report cards have been sent home for semester one. UCHS senior high curling will host Battlewest district playdowns at our home rink, with both boys and girls teams competing for a spot at upcoming regional playdowns. Basketball season continues full court in both gyms and upcoming after the break is the annual senior girls basketball tournament and pink game to benefit breast cancer awareness and fundraising. Senior robotics will spend their spring competing at various events across the province. UCHS is also very excited that three of their students will be part of Canada Winter Games as Presli O’Donnell will be part of opening ceremonies and other events dancing with Team Red; and Alexis Elder and Ashton Brebner will be competing with Team Sask Alpine Ski team. This event starts Feb. 15 and runs to March 3.
At Unity Public School, they are gearing up for some teacher/staff appreciation activity the week before February break, as they know how much they appreciate their staff and teachers. Students held a mini bonspiel with some other schools in the district on Jan. 29, which was a great experience for everyone involved. Students continue their Telemiracle fundraising activities this month, which includes lots of fun, some food and some camaraderie working together for this great cause.
This weekend the Knights of Columbus are hosting their provincial bonspiel event that will include opening ceremonies on Saturday morning at 11. As well, curlers and K of C members will be enjoying banquets both Friday and Saturday. Remember, curling action is free to watch so feel free to come on down and support the Knights of Columbus and local curlers. The curling club will continue to be busy for the remainder of the season with various bonspiels, additional practices for competitive curling, and they are anxiously waiting to hear if their entry into the Provincial Curling Day of Saskatchewan won any of the top prizes. Stay tuned.
Jeffrey Straker is in town this weekend. As part of their Telemiracle fundraiser, Friday, Feb. 8, the Unity Kin Club is hosting a Treat Your Sweet event that includes supper, entertainment by Straker and a dance to follow.
Next week is Valentine’s Day. There are multiple options in town for treating your valentine that include several dining out options, a movie at our local theatre and plenty of gift card and gift selections at local businesses as well as several options for a floral arrangement right here in Unity. Show your best love to the local businesses that grow and support this community all year.
Our town might be slightly less busy during Family Day long weekend and school break, but rest assured once everyone is back in session there are multiple activities coming up. These include: Celebrate Unity, March 4, K of C Pattison Kids hospital fundraiser, March 8; and Ducks Unlimited, March 16. The rink will also be hopping with several bonspiels upcoming at the curling rink, as well as the hockey rink side will be full bore into playoffs for teams in league and provincial playdowns. March also brings annual general meetings for Delta Co-op and Unity Credit Union. And, we all know we will be glued to Saskatchewan’s only telethon as Telemiracle takes place in Saskatoon the first weekend in March. Watch for Jennifer Deuchar from UCHS who will be performing.
Speaking of Telemiracle, if you haven’t contributed to one of the many fundraisers our local schools have held you can send your donations in with the local Kin Club who have booked an on-air presentation or you can buy some helping hands at Delta Co-op.
In case you are looking down the road for what is coming up in Unity, you should know there will be no slowdown as April brings a spring trade show and another Indoor RV and ATV Show as well as the annual Delta Co-op Easter Egg Hunt for kids. Music Festival is also held each April so there will be plenty of venues showcasing all this terrific talent in piano, musical theatre, voice and much more, with showcase held on the Sunday closing festival week. May 4 brings the 2019 banquet and event inductions for the Unity Sports Wall of Fame
While hockey season will be in the latter part of their season, ball players have registered for their season and some players have been in training programs all winter, while others have started their own “spring training” programs attending local clinics or those clinics held in other communities.
Hockey scheduling is a blizzard of activity so you’d be best to check posters around town, the Town of Unity website, or the TVs in the arena lobby for what’s on tap for games at the rink, as all teams, including the Midget AA and the Unity Miners are into playoff mode, whether it is provincial or league playoffs.
Coffee row folks have certainly had much to talk about with this continued fluctuating winter weather; the weather is definitely their hottest topic. But on the upside, this delightful daily gathering of folks at various venues will certainly be reviewing all activity that has taken place as well as adding their enthusiasm for all that is on tap to happen in the weeks and months ahead in Unity. Curling and hockey events also come up on their topic tables. So you can see life is full of fun and activity in Unity and our friends at coffee row sharing this traditional part of our community culture. Until next time…
