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Within a week of his story hitting the front page of the World-Spectator, Fabien Leclair says it looks like the help he was denied is now on the way.

Fabien Leclair has spent the coldest nights of this winter sleeping in his car, a few feet away from an unlivable five-bedroom home with a massive south-facing sunroom in the Qu’Appelle Valley just outside St. Lazare.

A cross-country relay to mark the 25th anniversary of Rick Hansen’s Man in Motion Tour is coming to the Moosomin area at the beginning of February.

The unusually warm winter weather that has marked this winter in Saskatchewan and Manitoba is forecast to continue for at least the next couple of weeks, and Environment Canada is now predicting normal to above normal temperatures for the next four months.

New data from Saskatchewan Health confirms what everyone in the area has suspected—the population in the Moosomin area continues to rise.

Moosomin Mayor Don Bradley said at last week’s council meeting that the town will purchase 20 acres of land to expand the town’s lagoon.

Lyndon Flaman got more than he bargained for in his excavator last Friday.

The Moosomin Chamber of Commerce’s kickoff to the Christmas shopping season takes place this Wednesday with Moonlight Madness.

As the Canadian Wheat Board’s monopoly control over Prairie wheat and barley sales came to an end Nov. 28 on the House of Commons floor, Welwyn’s Allan Johnston looked Prime Minister Steven Harper in the eye and gave him a resounding thumbs up.

Moosomin town council reviewed two possible routes for a Highway 8 truck bypass at Wednesday’s town council meeting.

Santa Claus is coming to town!

The Moosomin Chamber of Commerce has its Santa Day planned for this Saturday in Moosomin..

While Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall has announced that the pre-election cabinet will remain in place until after the spring session of the legislature, the future of Moosomin MLA Don Toth is up to members of the legislative assembly.

Moosomin MLA Don Toth says his seventh election victory will be his last.

Two companies with operations in the Moosomin area are finalists for this year’s ABEX Awards, the Awards for Business Excellence presented by the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce.

The 2011 provincial election’s half way point has come and gone, and for the most part the election has been congenial. In the Moosomin riding, both candidates have been pleased with the response they’ve received from the voting public.

Amber Holland’s Canadian championship curling team will be visiting both Maryfield and Moosomin in December.

When Saskatchewan Party leader Brad Wall met with Lt.-Gov. Gordon Barnhart and dropped the writ Oct. 10, he signaled the beginning of the twenty-seventh provincial election.

It’s small town Saskatchewan innovation at its best as Seed Hawk officially opened its doors on a $7.5 million expansion in Langbank.

By next summer, people in the Moosomin area will have another option for a quick lunch.

Days after Wawota’s Save Our Beds Committee met with Saskatchewan’s health minister and was told the government believes that only two beds should be added to Deer View Lodge, the Sun Country Regional Health Authority board officially approved the addition of two beds.

The RM of Moosomin council won’t be the same after Angus Turpie announced he is resigning from the position of councillor for Division #2.

After fifteen months of fighting the closure of five beds at Wawota’s Deer View Lodge, the Save Our Beds Committee has been told only two beds will be added back to the facility.

The fire that took Will and Holly Hollingshead’s home came fast, leaving nothing but a trail of devastation in its path.

Wawota’s Save Our Beds committee is appealing to Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall for help in solving a problem that has dragged on for more than a year.

September is officially here, which only means one thing . . . a new school year. Students and teachers are back to the books as usual, but there are a few new changes in area schools this year. The biggest one—a new curriculum.

For the past few years, South East Cornerstone Public School Division has been dealing with overpopulated schools in the area, and has been juggling requests for students to attend out of area schools. In light of the issue, it was decided in April 2010 that when a school hits 85 per cent of it’s capacity, the Director of Education will deny out-of-area attendance requests from the school who reach 85 per cent capacity.

The RM of Martin has decided they need to act to get the Moosomin Lake Road back in better shape. The road, which has been decimated due to the excess moisture this spring, is in shambles.

Local roads continue to be a major concern after spring flooding caused a considerable amount of damage to most provincial highways and municipal roads.

It’s been more than a year since five long-term care beds in Wawota were closed, and four months since the Sun Country Health region agreed to bring them back. But since then, not much progress has been made on turning the decision into a reality.

People say that the best gifts come in small packages, but for Prairie farmers, it’s just the opposite. A huge support package from the federal government was announced last Thursday—a package worth $448 million, and one that will go directly toward flood relief for farmers.

Moosomin’s Robert Mullett and his daughter Kalea found more than they bargained for when they headed to shore to take a break while canoeing on Moosomin Lake Tuesday night.

Wawota’s Brooks Laich is going to be a Capital for a long time. The 28-year-old centreman inked a six-year deal worth $27 million to remain in Washington.

Three months ago, the Qu’Appelle River consumed Susie Chartier’s property. Three months ago, Ed and Alma Houle were forced to trade in their house of 44 years for a small seniors condo. Three months ago, Ian and Jennifer Jessop declared themselves homeless.

It was classified as a one in one-hundred-year flood and now Moosomin residents affected by overland flooding this spring hope it doesn’t take that long to see their insurance cheques to start rebuilding their homes.

The living skies will not come alive this August long weekend at Moosomin Lake—the third annual “Living Skies Come Alive” fireworks competition has been cancelled. The pyromusical fireworks display was scheduled to run this July 30 and 31, but organizers have called off the event due to the extensive water at Moosomin Lake. Because of the influx of water this spring, the east side of the lake is flooded, leaving no space to shoot the fireworks from.

The town of Wapella has been trying to bring new people to town, and it’s working. The community has one of the lowest median ages in the area, as there are several families with young children in the community.

Plans to repair the road to Moosomin Lake are up in the air since Saskatchewan Highways has determined the plan does not meet criteria for funding.

A year after resigning from the Sun Country Health Region, following the release of details about his past, Hal Schmidt’s is back in a senior position in the health care system.

Souris-Moose Mountain MP Ed Komarnicki wants to bring Federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz to southeastern Saskatchewan to show him the effects of flooding on the region.

With just days until the Snowbirds land in town, Moosomin is busy with last minute preparations. The world-class aerobatics team will be coming to town this Wednesday, so event organizers are really getting down to work.

Moosomin’s municipal tax rate will remain unchanged at 21 mills for 2011.

The mill rate in Moosomin has remained at or near that level since 1998, when it was raised from 18 to 21 mills to provide the town with $125,000 a year to go toward a health care capital reserve as the town started saving for its share of the cost of the South East Integrated Care Centre.

Flood waters have peaked around the province, and levels are beginning to recede, but the biggest job is yet to come. Clean-up and recovery is a long and difficult process, so a number of government ministries are stepping in to help communities and residents with their clean-up efforts.

Mark it on your calendars Moosomin—CTV Regina is coming to town this Wednesday. As part of their Home Town Tour, which profiles communities around Saskatchewan, the news crew will spend a full day touring Moosomin and will then broadcast their evening news live from here in town.

Chris Davidson of Sharpe’s Soil Services knows just what local farmers need—but he doesn’t keep it on the shelves of his store. “It’s called sun and wind, and I don’t sell those,” says Davidson. The one thing everyone in the agriculture business agrees they don’t need is more moisture.

Jennifer Jessop flips through photos of the waterlogged rooms and hallways that she used to call home. “Our whole life has been turned upside down and everything is gone,” she says.

The town of Moosomin has applied to be designated an eligible assistance area under the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program.

Rocanville Mayor Daryl Fingas says he came away with a positive feeling after meeting with the Minister of Municipal Affairs last week to discuss the potash tax sharing.

A year after closing five beds at Deer View Lodge in Wawota, Sun Country Regional Health Authority has decided that additional long-term beds will be added to the facility.

The federal election is coming up Monday, and candidates in Souris-Moose Mountain are heading into the final week of campaigning.

All the candidates say they are pleased with the way their campaigns have gone so far.

Members of Wawota’s Save Our Beds Committee had their meeting with three members of the Sun Country Regional Health Authority, and it didn’t live up to its billing.

After almost a year of fighting the Sun Country Health Region’s decision to close five beds at Wawota and feeling ignored by the board, Dale Easton got a surprising phone call on Tuesday.

Randall Trussler is no longer principal at Maryfield School.

The Southeast Cornerstone School Division sent a memorandum to parents Monday stating that “Mr. Randall Trussler and the Board of Education have agreed that Mr. Trussler will not be returning to Maryfield School.”

The town of Moosomin issued a building permit last week for a $1.1 million, 15-unit condo development being built inside the former nursing home on Windover Avenue.

In April, Flaman Sales and Rentals will take ownership of Wayne’s Rental in Moosomin, and the company has major expansion plans for their new Moosomin location.

If you’re one of those people who just can’t live without your Timmie’s fix, you’ll be happy to know that Tim Horton’s is weeks away from a final decision on whether to proceed with a Tim Horton’s in Moosomin.

It has been 10 months since five beds were closed at Wawota’s Deer View Lodge but the Save Our Beds Committee is still working hard to try to have the beds reopened.

The reinspection of properties in Moosomin by the Saskatchewan Assessment Management Agency will result in some big changes in assessments for businesses in the community.

Moosomin town council would like any review of the potash tax sharing formula to include a review of the area within which municipalities share in the potash tax.

After years of planning, studies, negotiations, and environmental reviews, after a petition by local landowners, a review by an RM of Martin committee, and a court challenge, the Red Lily Wind Farm is producing power.

Wawota area residents are still furious over the closure of five beds at Deer View Lodge last year, and they’re inviting Saskatchewan’s premier to Wawota to present their case, including new information that shows the Wawota area is below the provincial average for nursing beds per capita.

Moosomin town council is looking into the cost of pedestrian crossing lights on Main Street and McNaughton High School hopes to reinstate some form of safety patrol until the lights can be installed.

Bison and sheep are not making for good neighbors in the Fairlight area.

The chair of the Sun Country Regional Health Authority says the region has come to an agreement on severance with fired CEO Cal Tant, and says the payment is less than $200,000, but will not release the exact amount to the public for another month.

The group organizing the performance by the Snowbirds in Moosomin in June has been informed that the Moosomin event has been officially approved.

People in Maryfield take their curling seriously, so Olympic gold medallist Russ Howard should fit right in when he comes to town in March.

The Pipestone Villas Apartment Complex is one step closer to reality with an agreement between the town of Moosomin and the developers for the purchase of land for the complex.

The local area continues to experience growth, according to the latest population figures from Saskatchewan Health.

The health ministry keeps track of population based on health cards issued.

Rocanville town council would like to see the formula for municipal potash tax sharing reviewed. Councillors believe other towns may feel the same way and took the first steps to address the issue last week.

Buying a Lotto 365 ticket has become an annual tradition for a lot of people.

Buying a Lotto 365 ticket has become an annual tradition for a lot of people.

Quick thinking on the part of Kendra Lawrence saved her life and that of her daughter on Dec. 13.

The board planning a new apartment complex for Moosomin has confirmed a name. The new company will be known as Pipestone Villas Inc.

Moosomin Town council rezoned three properties Wednesday night—two for new motels and one for a multi-family residential complex.

Just before students filled the gym for an assembly at Rocanville School last Thursday, a number of senior students worked together to hang a large poster on the wall of the gym.

Saskatchewan’ provincial auditor, Brian Atkinson, has slammed the Sun Country Health Region for its lack of adherence to its own hiring policies and inconsistent practices.

When he was growing up in Kitimat, in northern B.C., Aaron Pritchett didn’t know a lot about country music.

The Community of Rocanville is in shock after six people were killed in an accident on Highway 8 on Sunday, Nov. 21.

When I walked into the Tigers dressing room for the season opener just a few weeks ago, I never thought it would be the last time I would see some of my teammates—the four youngest smiles in the room and four close friends.

Wawota’s Save Our Beds Committee took its fight to the Saskatchewan legislature Tuesday.

Just a few months after Moosomin’s Canalta Hotel opened on Lake Avenue, Moosomin town council has heard from two other companies that would like to build new motels along the same roadway facing the Trans-Canada Highway

The clock has started ticking toward the 2011 provincial election, when voters may or may not have a chance to vote on a topic so contentious politicians don’t want to talk about it.

The politicians who represent the Moosomin area in Ottawa and Regina welcomed the decision by Industry Minister Tony Clement Wednesday to block BHP Billiton’s hostile takeover attempt of Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan.

While five beds remain closed at Deer View Lodge in Wawota—in the Sun Country Health Region—a Moosomin physician says the the Regina Qu’Appelle Health Region is taking patients who cannot be handled in Sun Country.

Wawota’s Save Our Beds Committee travelled over icy roads to Weyburn Wednesday to meet with the Sun Country Health Region’s board. The group’s hopes fell as quickly as the temperature last week, however.

The Moosomin Shrine Club wants to bring one of Canada’s top attractions to Moosomin in 2011.

The Southeast Cornerstone School Division announced last week that it will be moving ahead with changes to student report cards, which will no longer include percentages, but will instead be “outcomes based.”

As sixteen wind towers rose above the prairie just west of Moosomin last week, a Saskatoon judge issued a decision dismissing an application for an injunction to stop the project.

Saskatchewan’s population grew at the fastest rate of any Canadian province over the past year according to the population figures released Thursday by Statistics Canada.

Moosomin town council has agreed to sell 12 lots on Lake Avenue to a developer who wants to build a new motel.

The application by David McKinnon to have an injunction granted against construction of the Red Lily Wind Farm west of Moosomin has been adjourned to this Thursday, Sept. 23.
Lawyers for Red Lily filed their materials in the case last week. A hearing had been scheduled for last Wednesday, but was postponed in order to give McKinnon’s lawyer, Bradley Jamieson of Saskatoon, a chance to file materials in response.

Cal Tant has been fired as chief executive officer of the Sun Country Health Region.
Tant was fired Thursday after the board received a third-party report into hiring practices in Sun Country. The review was ordered based on information uncovered by the World-Spectator about former Sun Country vice-president of finance Hal Schmidt—specifically that he had been fired from a previous job for falsely claiming to be a chartered accountant. While the review was ongoing, the World-Spectator uncovered additional information about Schmidt—that he had borrowed $75,000 in public funds from a hospital, failed to pay it back, was sued by a B.C. health authority, and had never paid the outstanding judgement—and Schmidt resigned.

Work stopped for six days on the Red Lily Wind Farm just west of Moosomin as a temporary injunction was granted against any further construction on the wind farm, then lifted a week later. The $60 million 25 megawatt wind farm is being built in the RMs of Martin and Moosomin. The project has been in the works for several years. It has passed all environmental reviews, and construction was approved by the two RM councils earlier this year.

The independent review looking into hiring practices in Sun Country Health Region will have more to look at than the hiring of a vice-president of finance who had been fired from a previous job for lying about his credentials.

Australian-based global mining giant, BHP Billit made a cash offer directly to the shareholders of one of Saskatchewan’s premier fertilizer companies, PotashCorp, in what is being described as an “aggressive hostile take-over bid.”

Organizers are pleased with the second annual “Living Skies Come Alive” fireworks competition. For the second year, the event attracted thousands of people to Moosomin Regional Park for two nights of fireworks.

Wawota and the senior administrators and board members of the Sun Country Health Region over the closure of five beds at Deer View Lodge, a public meeting Wednesday did nothing to bridge it.

Sun Country CEO Cal Tant says the Sun Country Health Region is taking the latest information uncovered by the World-Spectator about vice-president of finance Hal Schmidt seriously and has asked its lawyers to look into the matter.

Court documents indicate that Hal Schmidt—the Sun Country Health Region vice-president of finance and corporate services—borrowed $75,000 from St. Mary’s Hospital in New Westminster, B.C. when he was CEO, and never repaid the loan.

Wawota’s Save Our Beds committee is planning a public meeting for Wednesday, July 28 at the town hall in Wawota in order to give local residents a chance to question officials about the closure of five beds at Deer View Lodge.

Organizers have invited Sun Country board members, senior administrators, and local MLAs Dan D’Autremont and Don Toth.

The Saskatchewan Ministry of Health wants to set up a meeting with the Sun Country Health Region to discuss the hiring of vice-president of finance Hal Schmidt.

Schmidt had been fired from IWK Health Centre in Halifax for falsely claiming to be a chartered accountant. His tenure as CEO of St. Mary’s Hospital in New Westminster, B.C. was the subject of a forensic audit into administrative expenses, including Schmidt’s use of his credit card and personal loans made to Schmidt from hospital funds.

The five beds slated for closure at Wawota’s Deer View Lodge have now been closed.

Last week the three long-term care beds and two respite beds were closed and a “Do Not Enter” sign was placed on the doorway leading to the wing that is no longer in use.

The Sun Country Health Region has closed the beds to save $110,000. It also cites concerns over patient safety and risk of infection.

NDP Health Critic Judy Junor said if she was health minister she would force the firing of Sun Country Health Region vice-president of finance Hal Schmidt.

Schmidt was fired by the IWK Health Centre in Halifax for misrepresenting his qualifications by claiming to be a chartered accountant when he wasn’t.

Schmidt told the World-Spectator he never claimed to be a chartered accountant, and that, despite board records and dozens of news reports, quit from the job at IWK rather than being fired.

Heather Birnie couldn’t hold back her tears as she pleaded with the Sun Country Regional Health Authority to reverse the closure of five beds in Wawota’s health facility.

“These seniors have worked hard their whole lives for us to have what we have today” she told the board members, some of whom appeared to be moved. “At this point in their lives they need us, and we’re ripping them away from their homes, their communities, their families. That’s what they’re living for. This will kill them.”

A week after Wawota residents took to the streets to protest Deer View bed closures, Sun Country announced that two respite beds have been reopened on a temporary basis.

The announcement was made last Thursday to staff at the facility by vice-president of primary and integrated care, Marga Cugnet.

Cugnet could not be reached for comment.

The Sun Country Health Region board is standing by a senior executive who was fired from a position with a health centre in Halifax for claiming to be a chartered accountant when he wasn’t, and who ran a hospital in B.C. that was the subject of a police investigation and a forensic audit following his tenure as CEO.

The World-Spectator became aware of the allegations against Sun Country vice-president of Finance and Corporate Services Hal Schmidt last week, and calls were placed to newspapers in Halifax and Vancouver, where the incidents occured.

Local residents, armed with protest signs, gathered outside Wawota’s Town Hall last Thursday to protest the closure of three long-term care beds and two respite beds at Deer View Lodge.

More than a hundred people braved the rain to express their anger over the permanent closures. They hoped to get their message across to Sun Country Health Authority representatives arriving for a meeting with local municipalites.

Taxpayers in Moosomin will be paying a little more in municipal taxes this year.

Moosomin town council passed a budget that includes an increase in the mill rate of one mill, from 20 to 21 mills.

Mayor Don Bradley voted against the tax increase. “I think we could have made it work with what we had,” Bradley said in an interview.

Holly Hamilton wasn’t planning to stay in Moosomin long when she applied for a position with the Rural Municipalities of Martin and Moosomin in 1991.

Hamilton’s intentions were to accept and hold the job as RM secretary for five years, the amount of time left before her daughter’s graduation from high school.

Nineteen years later, Holly McFarlane—she has since married Moosomin accountant Layne McFarlane and established firm roots in the community —has been recognized for her substantial contributions to the town that was supposed to only host her for the short-term.

A 94-unit seniors housing development that had been proposed for Moosomin is off the drawing board.

Caleb Group has decided to cancel planning for its Caleb Village Moosomin project because it hasn’t sold enough units to make it viable.

“We wish to advise that, as a result of insufficient commitments, we will no longer be pursuing the development of a Caleb Village for Moosomin,” Caleb chair Darrell Remai wrote to Moosomin Mayor Don Bradley last week, “and are allowing our option to purchase agreement with the town of Moosomin to lapse.”

The outpouring of support for Matt Wilkie’s family has been so overwhelming that it has surprised even those who were closest to him.

“We have had our ups and downs, and we have had our moments, and there are certain things we have to do at this time that are not pleasant,” said Matt’s mother Norma last week. “But we have found great comfort in seeing the impact that he has had . . . I don’t think even we realized how much of an impact he has had on the community and the surrounding communities.”

We’ve all heard the story again and again. A senior from Moosomin, Rocanville, or a nearby community has to go into a nursing home, and is assigned to Wolseley, Grenfell, Broadview—somewhere far from the family, friends and communities that have always been part of their lives, just when they need the support of their family, friends and community more than ever.

It can be six or seven months before a space may become available at the Southeast Integrated Care Centre and they can move home, but it has been as long as a year. Dr. Michael Plewes has had to tell a lot of people that they will have to leave their community to enter nursing care “down the line,” but he said it is always difficult to do.

On March 17 the RM of Martin council unanimously agreed to issue a building permit to the Red Lily wind farm, which will build 16 wind towers north of the Trans-Canada between Moosomin and Wapella.

The building permit was all that was needed for the wind farm, which has been under development since 2004, to commence construction. Work will begin on the site within a month, and the wind farm is expected to be fully operational by the end of the year.

Local contractors have already begun bidding on the foundation work.