Love for animals | Vern and Michelle Halpenny raise cattle and train horses in the shadow of Meadow Lake Provincial Park
DORINTOSH, Sask. — Lasagne is warming in the oven and wood smoke billows from the rooftop as the sun sets on Vern and Michelle Halpenny’s bungalow this brisk fall day. The couple lives within sight of the Meadow Lake Provincial Park amidst forested habitat for abundant wildlife. Neither one is interested in taking a vacation […] Read moreStories by Karen Morrison
Time is ripe for B.C. cider makers
MERRITT, B.C. — Cider is a relative newcomer to the Canadian marketplace, but sisters Theresa Pedersen and Kate Garthwaite believe the time is right to launch Left Field Cider. Garthwaite said 50 percent of the world’s cider comes from England, where she spent a year working for a cider maker. Gord and Debbie Garthwaite, her […] Read more
Group offers support for new farmers
Young Agrarians | B.C. organization offers support and networking opportunities for upstart farm businesses
HARRISON HOT SPRINGS, B.C. — Making farming an attractive career path and connecting farmers with the resources they need to get started are the goals of the Young Agrarians. Sara Dent, the group’s co-ordinator and a former farm worker, helps organize potluck dinners, open farm days, work bees and demonstrations to gather those interested in […] Read moreAuthor can relate to challenges faced by female doctor
Grain farm operator says some 100-year-old perceptions about women still exist
Anne Lazurko grew up in a large family of girls who believed they could do anything they wanted in life. The Weyburn, Sask., writer soon separated fact from fiction but used that experience in her first novel, Dollybird. The story follows the trials, tribulations and triumphs of a young, pregnant, unwed Moira. Banished from her […] Read moreCreativity keeps florist’s job interesting
Creativity keeps florist’s job interesting
BIGGAR, Sask. — Few bouquets, arrangements and photo albums are available for customers to peruse when buying flowers at Designs by Ann. “You tell me what you want and I’ll create something that’s original,” said Saskatchewan business owner Ann Sapsford. The florist tends to a rainbow of coloured flowers inside Biggar’s 1912 Bank of Commerce […] Read more
Tales of school days in coal mining town
Volunteers’ efforts | East Coulee School Museum preserves school, community and coal mining histories
EAST COULEE, Alta. — The bell sounded and children would pour through wooden doors at opposite ends of the East Coulee School, one for girls and one for boys. Inside, they reassembled in classrooms with tidy rows of sloped wooden desks and oversized windows. But before entering the schoolhouse in Alberta’s badlands, they likely dipped […] Read more
Art takes centre stage in small town
ROSEBUD, Alta. — Life in this Alberta hamlet moves as slowly as a porcupine crossing a grid road on a sweltering summer day. “You don’t have to drive anywhere in Rosebud unless you’re in a hurry,” said resident Donovan Snider, 12. “The only time there is traffic is during shows.” Rosebud Theatre produces four shows […] Read more
Art theme survives 40 years
Rosebud Camp of the Arts started in 1973
ROSEBUD, Alta. — The sheltered valley setting of Rosebud has attracted many people throughout the years, from nature lovers to Group of Seven artist Alexander Young Jackson. Settler James Wishart founded the hamlet in 1885, calling it “the promised land.” It flourished in the early 1900s, reaching a population of 300 in the 1920s but […] Read moreFCL scholarship gives students job opportunities
A new scholarship fund will help students complete training in agriculture and business while providing Federated Co-operatives Ltd. with access to post-secondary graduates. Each student will receive $2,000 in August and January and $1,000 in May, paid summer internships and employment opportunities with FCL after graduation that include a signing bonus. A total of $20,000 […] Read more
Everything has its place at Dalbey Farms
Everyone plays a role | Taking over the family’s mixed farm requires help from the parents and children
“One of the things I’ve taken from being raised here is that everything has its place,” said their son, Barry, who farms in this Danish community in southeastern Alberta. He and his wife, Pauline, seed 4,000 acres of wheat and canola and run a 140-head cow-calf operation called Dalbey Farms with their two daughters, Kirsten […] Read more
