The Northern Neighbors Foundation has released details on the grants it has approved so far this year.  Earlier this spring the Foundation approved four local grants, 15 hundred dollars to the Flin Flon Arts Council for the Norva Center’s visiting artist enrichment program, 5 thousand to the SPCA for landscaping around their building, 25 hundred to Flin Flon School Division for the playground upgrade at McIsaac School and 42 hundred for the Association of Community Living to purchase a computer and desk.

The Foundation also received a donation to be used for a bursary for a student going into health and Hannah Ward of Snow Lake received the Eula and Russell Storey Nursing Bursary worth 500 dollars.

Flin Flon City Council had proposed removing the cost of fire and police services from property taxes and charging a separate fee starting this year in order to have all tax payers pay a fair share of providing these services.  The bylaw to approve the change is now before the Municipal Board to be discussed at a public hearing in Flin Flon on August 21st.

At a special meeting last night Council reported they have decided there’s not enough time to implement the fee this year so they are withdrawing the 2013 portion of the request so if approved by the Municipal Board it will not come into effect until next year.

They had proposed a per parcel rate of $536.62 this year and $550.40 next year on all rateable property for police and fire services.

At the meeting Council also accepted the Whitney Forum fee schedule with basic fees for per hour ice rental going up by about five dollars
 

After a busy July for kid’s classes the Norva Center still has two classes in early August.  The Center’s Mike Spencer says they’ve got the paper making workshop with Sally Gurba on Saturday from 1 to 3 where you can make all sorts of interesting and beautiful paper for home made invitations or cards. He add the following week they have Introduction to Photography with Daniel Dillon and that will run from 10 to 11:30 from the 5th to the 9th and you’ll learn all there is to know about the settings on your camera.

For more information drop into the Norva Center on Green Street, call 204-687-4237 or visit their web site at www.norvacentre.com.

Flin Flon Public Library Administrator Cindy McLean invites everyone to the library today, Thursday and Friday for special events including special afternoons for children starting with boys for a Ninja Adventure from 1 to 3:30 this afternoon where the kids can come and build their own nun chucks, swords and throwing stars.  Also in the afternoon from 3:30 to 4:30 Scott Gilmore will be there looking for information regarding the special map he is in the process of having developed.  McLean adds on Thursday its their fairy tale lunch from 1 to 3 for the little princesses with finger sandwiches, cookies and tea, stories, crown making and on Friday its Spa Day for the little girls from 1 to 3:30 where they’ll make their own bath salts, hair barrettes, lip gloss and more.

For more on these events you can drop in or call the library at 204-687-3397.

The Flinty Committee will be celebrating Flinty’s birthday party on August 18th.  The Committee’s Bunny Burke says they will feature an afternoon of free events. She says they’re going to again be featuring their beef on a bun with hot dogs, home fries, refreshments and birthday cake.  She adds they’ll also be unveiling another individual for the Wall of Honor and they’re hoping with the Chamber of Commerce that they’ll have the new geocache coin available along with a geocaching event.

Burke says they’ll also have their teddy bear clinic, games and bubble day events. The party runs from 1 to 4 Sunday August 18th at the Flin Flon Station Museum.

The Women’s Resource Center is planning a Blended Family Step Family workshop.  The Center’s Mary Fullerton says it will present a lot of information including topics like myths about blended families, finding a balance, the do’s and don’ts, how children may feel entering into a new blended family and much more.  She adds it is a six week program, everything is available and it is free of charge.

To register or to get more information on the workshop you can call Mary at the Women’s Resource Center at 204-681-3105.

The Northern Neighbors Foundation had applied to the Moffat Family Fund to support local area projects.  Grants approved this year include 3 thousand dollars to the Channing Recreation Association to purchase an Atco trailer to serve as a warm up shelter for the outdoor skating rink, 48 hundred dollars for the Flin Flon Ski Club to purchase trail grooming equipment, 10 thousand to the Town of Creighton towards upgrades to the Lions Spray Pool, 43 hundred to Simon House Bible Camp to purchase paddleboards, 35 hundred to Creighton Community School to purchase and install permanent wall matting in the gymnasium, 5 thousand to Flin Flon School Division towards redevelopment of Queens Park, 3 thousand to Special Olympics towards development of Bocce Courts in Flin Flon and 3 thousand dollars to Joseph H. Kerr School in Snow Lake towards the purchase of a 3 D printer.

The 595 Prevention Team and the Play It Safer Network are holding a Manitoba Harm Reduction Conference, Working With Unique Populations Northern Style on August 26th and 27th at Bakers Narrows Lodge.  The Programs Carrie Pockett says there will be a lot of information for any health care and service providers, people who work in schools and others interested.  She says their keynote speaker is going to be Margaret Bryans speaking on the beginning of caring including mothering, harm reduction and pregnancy, they’ll also showcase a number of harm reduction programs that are active in the north such as AFM and the Insight Mentor Program.  She adds they are also going to have speakers on aboriginal cultural approaches to sexually transmitted and blood borne infection prevention, treatment and care as well as conversations on overdose prevention and the Manitoba HIV program.

You can register or get more information by calling Carrie at 204-687-8856 or email carrie@the595.ca.

The Nuclear Waste Management Organization has again visited Creighton as the town continues to look into hosting a nuclear waste storage facility.  The Organization’s Communications Manager Mike Krizanc says they are reviewing their list that includes Creighton and other communities who are half way through the third step of the siteing process.  He says the idea is to begin narrowing down the number of communities in their siteing process.  He adds there are 21 communities in Canada that are involved and eventually only one will be selected to host the deep geological repository. He notes they are looking for an informed and willing community, the project will not be imposed on any community and they anticipate it will take them another seven or eight years before they’re at the point where a community might be asked to demonstrate willingness.

Krizanc says they will be reporting to the Community Liaison Committee on what they have learned about Creighton and how this project may impact the community over the long term.

VMS Ventures reports the Reed Lake Copper Project near Snow Lake continued to move forward last month.  The project is owned 30 percent by VMS and Hudbay owns 70 percent and is the operator.

In June ramp development advanced to 819 meters.  The escape and ventilation raises from surface, the camp expansion and construction of the diesel fuel and surface oil containment area were completed.

Chief Operating Officer Neil Richardson states the project remains on time and on budget and they are impressed with their partner Hudbay and its ability to keep the project on schedule while maintaining a strong safety record.

The project is forecast to be completed by the end of March next year.

Honey Wagon has recorded their first CD and will officially release it tomorrow night.  The band’s Mike Gobeil says the title of the CD is 20 Years Late.  He explains they were sitting around one time and they didn’t have a title for the album but the album concept was there and it popped into his head that if they had done this 20 years ago they would have chased it much harder.

The CD was recorded in Saskatoon and mastered and packaged in Toronto taking about a month.  Doug McGregor says they will perform and release the CD at Johnny’s Coffee Shop on Green Street tomorrow.  He says they are going acoustic and will do some covers and some songs off the CD and hopefully people will come by and have a visit.

The doors open at 7 with music at 7:30 with a five dollar admission.  The CD will be available for ten dollars.

Callinan Royalties Corporation has received a payment of just under 5 million dollars from Hudbay Minerals which includes interest and represents the remaining balance of payments for 2012 to Callinan and brings total royalty payments from the 2012 calendar year to almost 20 million dollars.

Interim quarterly payments were made throughout the year estimated by Hudbay to represent 75 percent of six and two thirds percent of net profits from the Triple Seven Mine and Triple Seven North Mine plus 25 cents per ton of ore mined.  This payment represents the remaining 25 percent which is paid with interest in July.

The payments are derived from Callinan’s royalty interests on lands that include these two mines in Flin Flon.

On September 7th last year the Flin Flon RCMP Detachment Commander initiated an investigation when an allegation surfaced that a male prisoner had been mishandled by one of the detachment officers on August 30th.  Once the investigation was completed the finding were forwarded to Manitoba Justice for review by a Crown Attorney.

This past Monday based on recommendations from Manitoba Justice Constable Jamie O’Brien was charged with assault causing bodily harm and assault with a weapon. He will appear in court in Flin Flon on October 3rd.

Constable O’Brien has been suspended with pay while the internal RCMP investigation is ongoing.

Creighton Community School is holding literacy camps for students in Creighton and Denare Beach next week.  Organizer Kara Plamondon says there will be a lot for the kids.  She says there’s going to be physical activities, snacks, lots of reading, free books, writing activities, games, lots of prizes for the kids, face painting and all kinds of fun things for the kids to do.

The Creighton camp starts at 9:30 Monday morning at the school with an afternoon session at 12:30. The Denare Beach camp starts at 9:30 Wednesday morning at the Band Office with an afternoon session at 12:30.  You can register at 9:30 at the camps or call 306-688-5825.

The Northern Gateway Museum in Denare Beach will be holding their annual Discovery Day Sunday afternoon.  Their Board Chair Penny Morissette invites you to visit the Museum to look at their history and enjoy the day.  She says there’ll be free books for the children and they’ll be selling pocket books by the bag, they’ll be have free refreshments, there’s a pottery demonstration by Elaine Angelski of Cabin Country Pottery and they’ll be introducing an exciting new find of a old film call The Peddler which is quite a find.

Discovery Day runs from 2 to 4 Sunday afternoon.  The Museum is open from 11 to 7 daily except Wednesday with free admission.

The Manitoba Youth Job Center is holding their annual Hire a Youth Week next week.  Office Manager Amy Bradt says this is to promote the benefits of hiring youth and students.  She says during the week the Odd Job Squad will be hosting a car wash on Thursday August 1st at the Hapnot parking lot and a hot dog sale which will involve the Odd Job Squad going to local businesses and collecting pre-orders for hot dogs and drinks and delivering them on August 2nd.

If you are interested in hiring a student you can call the Center at 204-687-1689.

As fall is fast approaching the Chamber is looking for people to join their executive in October.

They are planning for their annual radio auction October 5th with letters to go out to businesses starting tomorrow.  Their annual Celebrating Communities Gala will be held October 10th with the Greenstone office accepting nominations for volunteer awards from Flin Flon, Creighton and Denare Beach.

Members were reminded Flinty’s birthday party is coming up August 18th at the Station Museum with cake, beef on a bun, World Bubble Day, a person added to the Wall of Honor, the official opening of the Hudbay archives and other events.

The Chamber held a silver collection at their Chili and Bannock brunch during the Trout Festival raising 463 dollars for the Royal Canadian Legion’s Cenotaph project.

The Chamber’s next general meeting will be held on August 27th.

The Aviva Community Fund has a pre launch website set up as people prepare to share ideas to create positive change in your community.  The most popular idea, voted on and chosen by Canadians, will have a chance to share the one million dollar Aviva Community Fund.  You can submit your ideas starting September 23rd with voting starting September 30th.

Aviva encourages you to start preparing now by visiting their pre launch website where you can get information about the competition and download the information kit with tips on how to prepare your submission.

You can find all this at www.avivacommunityfund.org.

Plans are now underway for the annual Creighton Home Business Show being held on September 14th.  Creighton Recreation Director Channa Senyk says you can start booking space now.  She says they are looking for any home business that would like to come out to Creighton to the Sportex and take part in their show.  She says it could be jewelry, baking, anything that you have going on and they’ll rent you a table and open it up to the public.

You can book a table by calling Creighton Recreation at 306-688-3538. The deadline is September 6th.

The Flin Flon and District Chamber of Commerce has unveiled their new geocache coin.  It was designed by Craig and Abigail Cowper from Denare Beach.  Chamber President Kory Eastman says the front is emblazoned with the theme 80 years of community and celebrates two of our most common citizens a miner and a hockey player and it has a starting point for a geocache with a flag on the left hand side leading to a treasure find on the right hand side.  He says the second side will help world geocache hunters understand where Flin Flon is by providing a location on the familiar map of Canada and advertising the Flin Flon Chamber website where they can investigate our community and get more information.

Mayor George Fontaine says it was nice to see a family designing the coin that promotes our community.

The coin will be available for purchase for ten dollars in time for Flinty’s birthday party on August 18th with 750 coins to be minted.

This is National Drowning Prevention Week and Jon Sorokowski, Water Safety Coordinator with the Manitoba branch of the Life Saving Society says they are focusing on two messages this year.  He says the Society considers drowning to be a quick and a silent killer so we need parents and caregivers to always stay within arms reach of their young children whenever they’re near water.  He adds the other thing that they’re focusing on this year is boating safety and they want people to choose it and use it, make sure they’re wearing a life jacket whenever they’re in a boat.  He says not wearing a life jacket was a factor in 80 percent of boating deaths in their latest drowning report.            

Sorokowski also reminds you lots of things can go wrong when you mix alcohol with boating. You can learn more by going to www.lifesaving.ca

A Kidnetic Energy Science and Engineering Camp sponsored by the University of Manitoba in August has been sold out in Flin Flon.  The Camp is for students 9 to 12 years old and earlier Camp Logistics Leader Tabatha Wasylyk had told us the camp operates on different themes including medical science day, space discovery day, sustainable energy, mining and genetic day.  She adds there’s a wide variety of different science and engineering topics that will be covered and every day has a variety of experiments, games and projects for the kids.

The Camp runs from August 19th to 23rd at Ruth Betts School.  If you were unable to book for this year but are interested in the camp for next summer you can find out more online at www.wisekidneticenergy.ca.

Churchill Member of Parliament Niki Ashton has called on the Federal Government to listen to First Nations and take action following reports of intentional malnourishment of First Nations children and subsequent testing by the Government of Canada.  Ashton says a number of First Nations were targeted including two in Northern Manitoba, Norway House and Opaskwayak Cree Nation and as the Member of Parliament for this area she is appalled and supports the calls of the affected First Nations for action.  She says the Federal Government must break with its paternalistic way of doing things and work with affected First Nations to act on these reports and respond to the inter-generational impacts of such actions. She adds the Federal Government must be a willing partner and work with First Nations towards justice and healing.

At their last meeting Flin Flon City Council extended the sewer backup subsidy program that now applies to Flin Flon Manitoba residents to Flin Flon Saskatchewan residents allowing them to apply for a 25 percent rebate from the city for installing sump pumps and backup valves.  This program has run in conjunction with the Manitoba government’s program but since there is no similar program in Saskatchewan only the city’s portion will apply to the Saskatchewan residents.  This issue results from concerns about sewer backup problems raised by South Hudson residents at the previous Council meeting.

Preparations are underway for a Breast Cancer Pledge Ride. Organizer Paulette Wotton says it results from her involvement in a committee in Winnipeg where they’ve held their 12th annual ride and they have raised over 500 thousand dollars towards the research and technical support in Manitoba alone for breast cancer. She said she decided to have a run from northern Manitoba because Cancer Care Manitoba is inclusive of all rural areas, Flin Flon included and all of the north.

The ride starts on Saturday, August 3rd at the Gateway on to Gyles Park finishing at the second annual Flonstock music festival. Wotton says the ride can include any motorcycle and hopefully some classic cars with pledge forms available at VA Services or by calling her at 204-271-2928 or 687-7026 or on facebook at Breast Cancer Pledge Ride North.

Ground had been broken for the first home being built in Flin Flon by the Habitat 53° Chapter of Habitat for Humanity. McKeens Trucking started clearing the lot for the home at 63 Green Street on Friday.  Local Habitat Chair Ted Elliott says it’ll be great to see construction start.  He says they’d like to have it closed in by fall before it gets cold and then they can work on it through the winter.  He adds is depends on what they find once they get the ground cleared.

Mayor George Fontaine congratulated the organizing committee noting he knows they have been working a long time on all kinds of avenues from organizing the whole project to trying to raise funds, clean up and so on, so he is really proud to see that this is happening in our city.

Back in May the Chapter’s Family Selection Committee selected the family who will purchase the home, Angela Bennett and her son Austin.

Habitat for Humanity builds homes for purchase by low income working families with a no down payment and no interest mortgage that is set to a maximum of 25 percent of their gross income.  The family must also put in 350 hours of volunteer work in the community as well as towards building their home.

The Flin Flon Neighborhood Revitalization Corporation is looking for a student to work with them over the summer.  The Corporation’s Laurence Gillespie says its inside and outside job explaining basically it’s someone who likes bubbles and children because they’re looking for someone to help run their World Bubble Day festival that’s coming up in mid August. He adds they’ll help out in the office and help them keep the Main Street flowers in good condition.  He says it has to be someone who is a student now and is going back to school in the fall because it’s funded by a federal grant that is specifically reserved for a returning full time student.

To apply you can give Laurence a call at 204-687-6972 or visit their office above Pharmsave on Main Street.

Canada’s Parks Day is being celebrated tomorrow with a number of interesting events being help in parks across the province. District Park Supervisor Gaylene Mischuk invites you to attend events being held in Bakers Narrows Provincial Park near Flin Flon.  She says their fire program is going to have one of their newest water bombers on display at the Flin Flon airport from 1 to 3 o’clock so you can take a tour inside the water bomber and meet Smoky the Bear and then you can head over to the picnic shelter at the Bakers Narrows campground for some cake and some prizes.

Mischuk adds the water bombers presence depends on both the weather and the forest fire situation.

Area resident Dennis Hydamaka expressed concerns at this week’s Flin Flon City Council meeting about the fact Hapnot Street at the Fifth Avenue Corner has become a commercial travel route with semis traveling south and taking the hill.  He says the street doesn’t have a cross walk, a sidewalk or traffic caution signs and we’re lucky there hasn’t been a serious accident.  Councilor Bill Hanson Chair of the Engineering Services Committee will look at a sewer box that was used as a walkway by area residents to see if it needs repairs and Councilor Skip Martin Chair of the Traffic Commission will see if the trucks are creating a problem.

The First Baptist Church in Flin Flon is offering an Adventure Day Camp next week.  Pastor Jim Galbraith says the camp is for children 5 to 12 years old.  He says they have a team coming up from Winnipeg and they’re going to have some local volunteers as well and they are going to do things like take kids out to the park near the Church, they’re going to do crafts with them and feed them snacks, do drama and bible stories with them and generally just keep them having fun for three hours.

The camp is free and runs Monday to Friday next week from 9:30 to 12:30 at the Baptist Church.  You can register by going to the Church at 9:30 Monday morning or for more information call them at 204-687-4123.

The Flin Flon Neighborhood Revitalization Corporation is conducting an online Flin Flon Community Concerns survey.  The Corporations Laurence Gillespie says the main purpose is to get an idea of what the community’s priorities are.  He explained every NRC is governed by a five year plan which is drafted through a community consultation process and the first five year plan that set them up is coming to an end and they need to set up a new one.  He adds this is one step they’ll take to try to get the pulse of Flin Flon to see what people want them to be over the next five years.

The survey will take about ten minutes to fill out and can be found online at www.ffsurvey.org.

Council received a letter from Fawn Brown expressing concerns about the amount of garbage being dumped along the old number ten highway as well as in plenty of other places near town.  She says since there have been fees to access the local dump the amount of garbage people are leaving in the bush has dramatically risen.  Brown asked Council to reconsider the fees to access the dump.

Councilor Bill Hanson says there has been garbage dumped along the old highway and in the bush long before the tipping fees came into effect at the landfill.  He did present a change in those fees that was approved by Council. They dropped the 25 dollar construction fee for vehicles under one ton so people hauling those kinds of material will only pay the regular fee of ten dollars for vehicles under one ton.  The remaining fees for larger vehicles stay the same.

At last night’s meeting Flin Flon City Council approved a non-resident fee schedule for the Aqua Center effective September 1st.  An example of the fees shows an adult resident paying $4.75 general admission while a non-resident will pay 6.75 and for a full facility pass a resident family will pay an annual fee of $357.75 while a non-resident family will pay 507.75.  The non-resident fee is calculated as a 42 percent surcharge based on the admission rates. Mayor George Fontaine says this sends a message that this facility is subsidized by Flin Flon tax payers so non-residents will now help share that cost.

Councilor Colleen McKee opposed the use of user fees suggesting Council come up with other ways to structure non-residential fees as user fees may discourage people from using the facility.

With summer in full swing people are taking to the outdoors with their off road vehicles.

The RCMP reminds you of the need to know the rules in the Off Road Vehicle Act.  That includes helmets are required by law for all recreational riders, off road vehicles are not intended to be operated on a roadway, the shoulder or across the median of a divided highway or on any sidewalks, a person crossing an intersection must have a valid drivers licence and cross at 90 degrees near the intersection and a young person under the age of 14 cannot operate an off road vehicle unless supervised and accompanied by and at all times within clear view of their parent or a person who is 18 and authorized by the parent.

Manitoba RCMP investigate on average five fatal off road vehicle collisions every year and in most cases the deceased was not wearing a helmet and speed and alcohol were also factors.

Community Futures Greenstone is asking you to nominate outstanding volunteers.  Manager Bunny Burke explains anyone in Flin Flon and area can nominate someone to receive a volunteer award. She says they should send in a brief bio of the individual to Community Futures Greenstone on Main Street in Flin Flon and then they’ll review them all and select individuals who will then be the recipient of a volunteer award.  She adds this year they’re hoping to do four individuals from Flin Flon, a couple from Creighton and a couple from Denare Beach.

Those receiving awards will be invited to the annual Celebrating Communities Gala in October to receive a gift and certificate of recognition.

The 24th annual Cranberry Portage Trout Challenge is coming up August 3rd and 4th on Big Athapap.  The Committee’s Mike Wesner says once again prizes from first to third are guaranteed.  He says first place is 35 hundred dollars, second place is 25 hundred dollars and third is 2 thousand dollars guaranteed and there’s prizes from fourth to tenth and it’s based on a hundred boat entry but they have been averaging between 50 and 60 teams so tenth is usually around 350 dollars.

You can register by calling 204-472-3044 or go to Cranberry Trout Challenge on face book.  You can register right up to the start of the tournament at a cost of 150 dollars for a team of two.

The Flin Flon Creighton and Area SPCA have a lot of animals in their shelter and Manager Carmen Hiebert says they are looking for some help. She explains they are always needing dog walkers so people can come out and take the dogs on the trails that are around the SPCA, they always need people who want to come in and spend some time with all the cats they have in the shelter and they are always looking for volunteers to come in and help scrub down the shelter.

If you can help them out drop in at the Shelter at the corner of the Perimeter Highway and the Cliff Lake road during their open hours from 12 to 4:30 Tuesday to Saturday with the hours extended to 7:30 on Thursdays.

Travel in and out of Lynn Lake will continue as a long term operating agreement has been reached that will see their airport stay open. Fred Petrie VP of Operations at the airport is glad to see the airport staying open and in local hands. He says an airport is key to a community’s economic development adding commercial and economic activity that an airport can facilitate is essential to having a viable community.

They announced the public/private partnership on Friday and under the agreement YYL Airport will be assuming all operational responsibilities for the facility. Petrie says they plan to have an aggressive approach with the airport in bringing in business and opportunities to Lynn Lake. Mayor James Lindsay says with this agreement Lynn Lake will be in an improved position to help foster Economic Development locally and within the region.

CFAR 590’s Raphael Saray returns to Winnipeg this week to produce a performance at the Winnipeg Fringe Festival, the third largest Fringe Festival in the world.  Saray says the play he wrote is called Shakey Must Die and it’s a dark comedy about room mates who conspire to commit a murder and they hope hilarity ensues.  He adds it stars a group of people he went to the University of Manitoba with as well as instructors and directors from the Canadian Mennonite University and the University of Winnipeg, a gaggle of amateur and professional talent he has conned into working for him.

The performance takes place at the Manitoba Museum during the Fringe Festival that runs July 17th to 28th.

Construction is taking place at the Flin Flon Station Museum this month.  The Committee’s Bunny Burke says they’re reworking the whole display area bringing in some new displays, items and stands and Hudbay will be adding the mining archives to the back of the museum.  She says right at the moment they’re a little bit under construction but its going to be great and its going to be ready for Flinty’s birthday party August 18th.

Burke invites people to drop in and offer suggestions on how they think things could look or be laid out better.  The museum is open daily from 12 to 8.

Flin Flon Parks and Recreation will be holding an event called Registration Under One Roof September 6th and 7th.  Recreation Programmer Aimee Deans explains the idea behind this event is to have all the community organizations, whether it be hockey, skating or swimming under one roof on the same weekend so people have the opportunity to find out the kinds of programs we offer in our community.

There is no registration fee for this event but all interested organizations must register by August 9th by calling Aimee at 204-681-7542 or email adeans@flinflon.ca.

The Norva Centre in Flin Flon is offering a variety of classes for kids over the summer.  The Center’s Mike Spencer says there are several types of art instruction being offered.  He says they’ve got jeans as canvas with Sally Gurba on July 16,17 and 18, graffiti tote bags on July 24th with Colleen McKee, tie dye t-shirts on July 29th and 30th also with Colleen McKee, a paper making workshop on August 3rd and an introduction to photography workshop with Daniel Dillon from August 5th to 9th.

You can find out more on their web site www.norvacentre.com or on facebook.

Spencser adds Norva is putting together a catalogue of Flin Flon artists for the time capsule.  Any artist interested can contact the Norva Centre.

A safe food handling course is coming to Flin Flon Monday for people who work in the food industry or prepare food at functions where a lot of people are involved.  The courses James Dean says it runs the full day and they have various sections that they talk about from areas of preventing food borne illnesses to food hygiene, reducing common errors in the food handling sections that people work with in the food industry when they are in restaurants and other things like that.

Dean adds there’s a real interest in fast food in today’s society and the more they do in food education the more people realize they can do things to make it safer.  The course costs 96 dollars and runs Monday starting at 8:30 and at the end of the day you receive a provincial certificate.  To register call 204-623-3790 or drop in downstairs at the Flin Flon Public Library at 8:30 Monday morning.

The United and Lutheran Churches are inviting children 4 to 10 years old to join their vacation bible school under the theme Kingdom Rocks next week.  Organizer Kristina Lies says each day you will experience fun and learning such as their epic bible adventures, an imagination station, they have knights and ladies, queens and kings as well as learning about David, Esther, Jesus and Josiah and they’ll have lots of fun with crafts and games.

The vacation bible school will run from 9:30 to noon Monday to Friday next week at the Lutheran Church.  They would prefer you register by calling Kristina at 204-687-5519 or drop in to the Lutheran Church at 9:30 Monday morning.

CFAR 590’s Tri Service Million Dollar Hole in One is coming up July 23rd to 28th at Foster Park.

The Committee’s Richard French says it raises money for a good cause.  He says in the past they’ve supported things like the Lions Handivan, the dishwasher at the Flin Flon Community Hall, Kin Park, last year they supported the Women’s Resource Center lunch program and this year they’re supporting the Spray Pool in Creighton that is in need of repairs.

Anyone interested in the Million Dollar Hole in One can purchase early bird balls at 30 for 15 dollars that are now available at the Gateway and Pharmasave.  More information can be found at www.flinflononline.com.

The Alpine Convenience Store in Denare Beach is sponsoring a tagged fish event to promote fishing in Amisk Lake.  The store’s Deb Arsenault says there’s not cost to enter and anyone holding a valid Saskatchewan fishing licence or treaty card can get out there and try their luck at angling.  She says there are ten tagged Walleye fish placed all over the lake and they’re in all the usual spots that we all like to fish in so you can do a catch and release or catch and keep, bring the tag into the store and receive the cash or prizes.

There are seven prizes of 100 dollars, one prize of 150 dollars, a fishing rod and a dip net to be given away.  The event runs until September 30th.

The Flin Flon Norva Center is hosting an artists retreat at the Bakers Narrows Conference Center in August.  The group’s Sarah Trevor says they invite local artists as well as those from other areas to share the experience.  She says it’s for any creative person who wants to take a week out of their busy normal lives to really concentrate on what they want to do and it’s a lovely tranquil setting to get out of their everyday responsibilities.  She notes they have a system of sharing the cooking so that they can do the most they can for their creative side.

Trevor adds the cost is 150 dollars and accommodation is available at the Lodge.  Anyone wanting more information can call Norva at 204-687-4237 between 10 and 5 or email norvacentre@gmail.com.

A time capsule will be buried next month to mark Flin Flon’s 80th anniversary.  Committee member Colleen Arnold says they want everyone to consider placing something in the capsule that is relevant to today reflecting the community or personal interests.  She says they want to capture all that defines life in Flin Flon today so anything of value to yourself within the last 18 months or so.  She adds some items for example could be coins, newspapers, toys, CDs, local art works, scrapbooks, board games or photos.

The time capsule is a 3 feet by 3 feet concrete capsule to be buried and opened on the city’s 100th anniversary.  Forms with suggestions must be submitted by July 15th and can be found at City Hall, Women’s Resource Center, Aqua Center, Friendship Center or online at www.flinflononline.com.

The Canadian Environmental Assessment Agency must decide whether a federal environmental assessment is required for the proposed Lalor Concentrator Project near Snow Lake.  To assist in making its decision the Agency is seeking comments from the public on the project and its potential effects on the environment.

They report Hudbay proposes to construct and operate a new zinc and copper/lead concentrator at the existing Lalor Mine site located 200 kilometers east of Flin Flon in the mining district of Snow Lake.  The Concentrator would have a design capacity of 45 hundred tonnes of ore per day.

This is the final week written comments will be accepted.

More information is available on the Canadian Environmental Review Agency web site using reference number 80047.

The Habitat 53° Chapter of Habitat for Humanity held their first yard sale and barbeque Saturday at their ReStore.  The store’s Kathy McCormick says it went well.  She says they only had a few tables for their yard sale but they had a continuous flow of people coming in to see and shop in the ReStore and learn about their fund raising to build their first home in Flin Flon.  She adds it went so well they’ll do the barbeque and yard sale again on May 10th next year.

The ReStore is open Saturdays from 10 to 3 until the end of September and is located between the Armories and Twin Motors.

The Flin Flon Friendship Center’s Camp Moochikun is underway running from 9:30 to 4 Monday to Friday.  The camp started last week for 6 to 8 year olds running until the end of the month and continues in August for 9 to 11 year olds.  Camp Director Kyle Harkiss says they provide a variety of activities.  He said they do a lot of swimming, a lot of outdoor activities, they are heading to the Irving Head Museum a couple of times, they are going to the SPCA to do some dog walking and are really keeping active.

For information on the camps you can call the Center at 204-687-1314 or drop in to fill out a registration form.

The Green Project started its 14th season of spreading limestone to promote growth in the Flin Flon Creighton area this spring.  Coordinator Dave Price says they had a good start to the season.  He says they’ve had kids from all the area schools, Creighton and Flin Flon out greening since the end of May.  He says they had 26 different classes out with over 500 kids and covered almost 2 hectares of ground so its been going very well.

Price says they won’t be doing greening with public volunteers over the summer but areas treated in the past are doing very well as you can see at their web site www.greenproject.ca.

As Saskatchewan youth begin looking for summer employment those 14 and 15 years old are reminded they must complete the province’s Young Worker Readiness Certificate Course in order to work.  The course teaches youth about their rights and responsibilities related to health, safety and labor standards in the province.

The course can be taken on line. (at www.lrws.gov.sk.ca/ywrcc.) You can find the online address by going to flinflononline.com, local news and click on Sask young workers. All 14 and 15 year olds must also have consent from their parents or guardian in order to work.

Since the 2010 launch of the online certificate course over 23 thousand Saskatchewan youth have completed the course.

Bac Tech Environmental Corporation has arranged a bridge loan that will enable it to complete its technical preparations for the Snow Lake project.  Bac Tech has signed a contract with the Manitoba Government to remediate an Arsenopyrite Residue Stockpile at the Snow Lake Mine to eliminate further leaching of arsenic generated within the stockpile into the surrounding watershed. The funds will be used to complete its front end engineering study which remains an integral part of the Snow Lake Project financing package.

Company President Ross Orr says they are pleased to have access to this capital to move the project ahead and they intend to repay the loan from proceeds of a project financing for the Snow Lake Project.

Tomorrow marks the start of National Fishing Week sponsored by the Canadian National Sport Fishing Foundation.  Their spokesperson Mike Melnick says the idea is to encourage Canadians to get way from today’s technology and enjoy fishing especially with kids and that leads to another benefit of the week which is introducing young people to the pass time of recreational fishing because people who fish and hunt are the ones who look after the resource so by introducing young people to fishing it’s good for the future because they’ll be the caretakers of our fishery in the years to come.

For more information on National Fishing Week or even how to get started fishing visit their web site at www.catchfishing.com.

Saskatchewan’s annual Free Fishing Weekend takes place tomorrow and Sunday.  Bob Skaftfeld from the Fisheries and Wildlife Department explains residents and visitors can fish without having to purchase a licence.  He explained on this particular weekend those people who regularly require an angling licence don’t have to purchase one but all the other rules and regulations apply so they are encouraging people to pick up a copy of the angler’s guide which is also available on their web site and can be downloaded, review these and just be aware of all the rules and regulations.

Skaftfeld adds anyone planning to take fish out of the province must purchase a licence.  Their website for fishing regulations is www.environment.gov.sk.ca.

At their meeting this week Mayor and Council had praise and thanks for everyone involved in a very successful Flin Flon Trout Festival weekend and the city’s 80th anniversary celebration which they report was really well attended.  Councilor Tim Babcock who is also the President of the Festival said there was a lot of work done by the committees and sub-committees and more people have become interested in volunteering.  He said the 465 helicopter rides by Wings Over Kississing raised about 88 hundred dollars for the Festival.  Mayor George Fontaine added volunteerism here is community wide and that should be recognized.

In other business Council received the Fire Chiefs report for June indicating 8 calls during the month.

The city will apply for provincial funding to assist with work on Oak Avenue from Aspen Grove to the public lane to replace the storm sewer and resulting road and curb repairs as well as Asphalt work on Elm and Hemlock, Hart, Windsor and Balsam Avenues.

 Manitoba’s mobile breast screening clinic will be in Flin Flon from July 8th to 23rd at the Primary Health Care Center.  Their Health Educator Brandy Pantel says this clinic is important to women.  She says they are definitely encouraging women 50 years of age and over to call them and make an appointment to attend for a mammogram when they are in Flin Flon.  She adds it’s really important because early detection offers the best opportunity to have a great outcome in terms of breast cancer.

For more information visit their web site at www.breastcheckmb.ca and to book an appointment call      1-800-903-9290.

Simon House Bible Camp is taking registrations for their summer camps.  Director Darrell Janzen says they have camps and fun activities planned for ages 6 to 18 years old.  He says they have a variety of activities including a climbing wall, lake front activities, lots of games and a great time.  He adds they have financial assistance available for people who may need a little help to get their kids there this summer.

For more information or to register for one of these summer camps you can check their web site at www.simonhouse.ca or call them at 204-472-3025
 

Denare Beach Recreation is offering day camps from now until August 9th.  Recreation Director Laurie Stomp says they have camps for children 5 to 11 years old.  She says the kids will be going out and they will be doing crafts everyday, there’s different activities and they’ll be going down to the water and playing at the beach and there’ll be snacks provided but they are asked to bring a bagged lunch.

The cost is 12 dollars a day and they run from 10 to 4:30 Monday to Friday.  For information or to register you can call Amber or Taylor at 306-362-2150.

Council heard concerns from residents of Parkway South and Aspen Grove where sewer backup problems started two years ago when an overflow pipe was removed.  The recent heavy rain again caused backups.  They want to know what and when something will be done. The residents said they called the city for help and when they finally got an answer help was slow in coming.

Councilor Bill Hanson said the city will try and find both short and long term solutions with engineers looking to see what changes have to be made to solve the problem.

Mayor George Fontaine added they are going to make sure someone answers the phone and acts quickly with pumps.  He added they will work at trying to find out what the problem is and find the right answer to it.

Similar concerns were raised by residents of South Hudson stating they believe there are some pipes broken in their area.  Mayor Fontaine said they will send people to find out what the problem is and how to solve it.  He says in both areas they will let the residents know what is happening.  Councilor Hanson will meet with the Engineer and Utility Department today to start the process.

The Women’s Resource Center in Flin Flon held a fund raising event called Walk A Mile in Her Shoes with male volunteers fund raising and then walking in red high heels.  Executive Director Colleen Arnold said it raised awareness on violence against women as well as a lot of money.  She says they had 17 walkers that came out and they did a great job of raising funds raising over 8 thousand dollars and they had a lot of new faces so the awareness really got out into the community.

The money raised will go to the Women’s Safe Haven.

 Flin Flon Parks and Recreation’s Summer in the Parks program is underway running until August 23rd.  One of the Supervisors Athea Fernandes says they offer a variety of programs each week for five to eight year olds.  She says they have a lot of plans for many outdoor games noting they are not working out of the Willowvale Curling Club this year but out of the zoo so they’ll be outside a lot more.  She adds they’ll be at the wading pool a lot and have a couple of fun field trips this year.

Summer in the Parks runs Monday to Friday from 12 to 5.  For information or to register you can call the Recreation Office at 204-681-7542.

The Northland Ford classic car event was held yesterday afternoon. 

The winner in the pre 70’s event was Jim Goodfellow with a 1970 Chevelle, in the post 70’s event Len McKenzie with at 1972 Chevelle and in the People’s Choice Rob Robinson with a 1969 Charger.

There were 14 entries in the event.

Saskatchewan residents have this week left to nominate someone for the Saskatchewan Order of Merit. Provincial Secretary Wayne Elhard explains any Canadian citizen who is a current or former resident of Saskatchewan can be nominated.  He says the Order is part of their honors and awards program where they recognize individuals in a variety of areas of excellence like the arts, agriculture, business and industry, community leadership, so all these areas of profession are open for nominations.

To nominate someone for the award you can call 1-877-427-5505 or go to their website at www.ops.gov.sk.ca.

At their next general meeting July 23rd the Chamber will introduce the people who designed their new geocache coin and unveil the design they submitted.  They have agreed to put one these coins and one of last years coins in the Flin Flon time capsule.

The Chamber set the date for their annual radio auction for October 5th and will hold the annual awards gala to recognize volunteers and businesses from our communities on October 10th.

The Chamber has received the latest copy of the Northern Experience Publication that includes features on the north including Flin Flon’s 80th anniversary and Bakers Narrow Lodge.  Copies are available at the Chamber or Greenstone offices.

A whole list of prizes was presented in the 48 hour fishing derby.  The top three in adult events were first prize for top trout Sheldon Wiebe at 43 inches receiving one thousand dollars, second for top walleye Joby Nomeland receiving 500 dollars and third for top pike Glen Burkett 39.5 inches receiving 250 dollars.

The top three in children’s events included top trout 11 year old Mike Ward 22.25 inches, top walleye 6 year old Jordan Donaghy 26.5 inches and top pike 9 year old Blaine Wilson 31 inches.

The winners of the Spirit of the Trout Festival Award were Tristan Barteski and Melissa Ziehlke each receiving 500 dollars.

The Photo Scavenger Hunt was won by the team of Annette Last, Tami White, Tanya Walker and Michelle Peters winning 200 dollars.

First place in the commercial category in the Canada Day parade went to Northern Rainbow's End, while non-commercial first place went to The Flin Flon Ski Club.

The 11th annual Beat the Chief competition was held Sunday at the Flin Flon fire hall.  Four fire fighters tested their skills and fitness by climbing stairs, running a course, hitting a target with a fully charged fire hose and dragging a 185 pound victim while in complete fire gear.

Finishing in the top three were Dan Hotel in 1 minute 13 seconds, Morgan White 1:16 and Travis Pfoh at 1:23.  Hotel says this is a great competition for the fire fighters.  He says he would of liked to have had more guys out but it was a good competition none the less.  He says it shows how fit the fire fighters have to stay just to serve the community.

The top three finishers will have their names engraved on the trophy at the fire hall.