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Marauders advance to Hoopla despite losing “gravy game” in regional final

The 5A Girls Basketball Regionals hosted at Ecole St. Mary High School ended with the St. Mary Marauders advancing to Hoopla in Moose Jaw, but not winning the Regional title.

The Marauders fell 54-45 to the top seeded Swift Current Ardens in Saturday evening’s final but advanced by finishing second.

Marauders head coach Dwayne Gareau said the final was a gravy game after the Marauders defeated the Carlton Crusaders 62-49 on Saturday morning to advance to the Championship game.

“You want to win this regional championship,” he said. “We’ve done the first order of business, which Is qualifying for Hoopa. Second, if we could have beat them and improve the ranking, that was the second order of business. But it’s kind of the gravy game. We ate the French fries that was the gravy.”

Gareau said that the team will go back to the drawing board in the week leading up to Hoopla, which is scheduled for March 21-23 in Moose Jaw.

The final got off to a slow start for both teams with Swift Current leading 8-5 after the first quarter and 19-18 at the half. Gareau said both teams expended emotional and physical energy in the semi-finals, which may have contributed to the slow start.

“We had a lot of good looks early on and we were just missing some easy ones,” he said. “Playing good defence kept us in it thankfully, but just didn’t play well enough offensively. That was just the consistent (note) throughout the whole game: we) didn’t play consistently enough offensively.”

The Marauders took a 45-41 lead with under seven minutes left in the game before they had went cold offensively. Gareau said that the team had some fatigue and Swift Current took advantage.

“We just didn’t make any plays in that fourth quarter and then that’s a testament to that team (The Ardens) there. You know what, they’re a great team and they are ranked number one for a reason in our region.”

Both teams turned it on offensively in the second half with the Ardens leading 33-32 after three quarters.

Cassidy Schrader led the way offensively for the Marauders with 15 points, while Grade 12 forward Sydney Batiuk contributed 12 points.

“I think we just performed as a team,” Schrader said. “I think we were all sticking together. We put our hearts and then we left it all on the court.”

She added that the day was a long one as Gareau had noted. Schrader was happy to advance to Hoopla.

“It is so exciting,” she said. “I’m so excited. It’s my Grade 12 years, so this is just a special moment for me.”

Gareau said how they prepare would be determined once the Marauders know their opponent

“Obviously, we are going to have to play better offensively, no matter who that team is. But will we game plan against them? We’re known for playing wonderful defence and capitalising and playing some transitional offence so that’s going to be a game plan,” Gareau said.

The Marauders opened the regionals with a 52-29 win over Weyburn on Friday evening. Gareau thanked all of the people who helped make the weekend a success.

“I just want to thank all of our volunteers, our officials, our fans. It was a fantastic weekend of basketball and hosting teams from all over the province was a ton of fun,” he said.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

STF announces province-wide strike on Wednesday and withdrawal of extracurricular for this weekend

Saskatchewan teachers will hold another one-day province-wide strike on Wednesday, along with a two-day withdrawal of extracurricular activities on Thursday and Friday.

The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation (STF) made the announcement early Monday morning. By law, 48-hours’ notice is required for job action.

The one-day strike coincides with the announcement of the provincial budget. The two-day, province-wide withdrawal of extracurricular activities March 21 and 22 means a possible cancelation of SHSAA Hoopla in Moose Jaw, which is scheduled to begin on Friday.

“Government’s unwillingness to work with teachers in finding any path forward has forced this decision, which will impact students and communities both big and small across the province,” STF President Samantha Becotte said in a press release.

“Teachers have done their part to avoid more job action. We have bargained in good faith, and we have been clear that our opening proposals are only a starting point for discussion. We invited government to take part in binding arbitration on the single issue of class size and complexity, but the education minister rejected the offer within hours. The refusal of Minister Cockrill and Premier Moe to compromise are to blame for the strike and students’ loss of extracurricular activities in the days to come.”

Becotte said more than 4,000 teachers will be at the Legislative Building on Wednesday to deliver a message to the government. Hundreds more will take part in demonstrations at other locations throughout the province.

The STF has also encouraged supporters to join the demonstrations to show that proper funding for education is a concern for more than just teachers.

“Thousands of teachers will bring the message right to government’s doorstep,” Becotte says. “The Premier and Education Minister are not listening to teachers, and they are not listening to the thousands of parents, caregivers and students who are calling on government to respond to the needs of education.”

The two-day, province-wide withdrawal of extracurricular activities March 21-22 means teachers will not provide voluntary services involved in the organization, supervision and facilitation of activities including athletics, non-curricular arts, field trips, student travel, graduation preparations, school clubs and other activities.

“We are fighting to improve the learning conditions for all students across Saskatchewan,” Becotte added.

“Extracurricular activities are an incredibly valuable part of the school experience for both students and teachers, but the education of children and youth is always our first priority. We can no longer watch the decline of our students’ learning environment while government ignores reality and refuses to make a commitment to predictable, sustainable funding for prekindergarten to Grade 12 education.”

With the one-day province-wide strike announced for Wednesday the scheduled Open House at Carlton Comprehensive High School in Prince Albert would be cancelled.

While speaking to the press at an event earlier in the day, Premier Scott Moe commented on the possibility that Hoopla and the Optimist Band Festival in Regina could be cancelled as well. He claimed that the STF were targeting events like these.

“It’s disappointing,” Moe said. “They don’t have to shut down Hoopla. They can make a decision to not shut down Hoopla and they can make a decision to come back to the bargaining table and we respectively ask them to do so.”

Hoopla was cancelled in 2020 when negotiations stalled over classroom complexities. That point became moot after the province was shut down by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Moe also repeated claims by the government that the STF has only been at the table for 30 minutes in five months. The STF has denied this claim, pointing to the five full days of conciliation in December, which was the last act that led to the job action, as proof they have been at the bargaining table.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

Coffee and Conversation discusses forestry train and more

Forestry has always been an important part of the history of Prince Albert and the area.

The Prince Albert Historical Museum hosted a Coffee and Conversation on Sunday that discussed this topic as well as a forest conservation program.

The guest for the afternoon was John Daisley, who is the president of the Forest History Society of Saskatchewan. The organization is composed of people who have an interest in what has happened in the forest for the past century.

On Saturday, Daisley spoke about the education program run by the Canadian Forestry Association between 1920 and 1973.

“It’s a program that utilized a rail car donated by CN and by CP as an educational tool in southern Saskatchewan, primarily used to promote shelter belts and conservation … and in northern Saskatchewan, along the fringe of the forest promoting fire awareness and conservation of the of the of the forest and the water resources,” Daisley said.

Daisley outlined the activities of the organization before beginning his discussion of the train. Daisley highlighted the visits to Prince Albert and surrounding communities and schools including Paddockwood and others. The information he collected came from reports by the Canadian Forestry Association.

He is a retired forester but has worked in the industry his entire life.

Every spring the organization produces a magazine called “Echoes in the Forest-Saskatchewan Forestry Tales”.

“Some of the things that we’ve talked about in our magazine are things like the river drive on the Little Red River and the first sawmill in Prince Albert in the 1890’s. We’ve also done articles on the Big River area and the and the history of the sawmills there,” he explained.

The magazine has also highlighted sternwheeler boats that shipped wood on the North Saskatchewan River.

“The use of sternwheelers driven by steam on the North Saskatchewan River and various things like that,” Daisley said. “We’re interested in old photos and in stories. Some people have been able to give us photos of the DNR patrol cabins that used to be across the province. We’ve looked at the history of some of the fire towers, some of them started as very crude affairs and most recently now they’re computerized camera affairs.”

Daisley agreed to give a talk at the suggestion of another museum member, who is also a member of the Forest History Society.

“He made this suggestion and (I am) pleased to be able to show up here,” Daisley said.

The Forest History Society also conducts meetings, which are similar to what was done at the Coffee and Conversation. Meetings are planned for Nipawin, Hudson Bay, Prince Albert, Big River and Meadow Lake for 2024

The Coffee and Conversation had another excellent crowd as they have in recent months and Daisley said that was nice to see.

Daisley was born and raised in Prince Albert and currently lives in Hudson Bay and has a hobby sawmill.

“I worked here for Saskatchewan Forest Products and I moved down to Hudson Bay to work for MacMillan Bloedel and then for Weyerhaeuser and then eventually retired,” he said.

Samples of the Society’s magazine and the papers where he got the information for the presentation were also available to be seen at the Museum.

“The magazines are available for folks that are interested and the memberships are only $25 a year,” he said.

The final Coffee and Conversation of this season is on April 12 and will be with Keri Sapsford of Compost Corner.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

STF gives notice of withdrawal on noon-hour supervision to begin next week

The STF has given notice of a rotating withdrawal of noon-hour supervision that will take place Monday and Tuesday after the government denied a chance to enter into binding arbitration on Thursday.

The Prince Albert area is not affected but the adjacent North East School Division is.

The STF stated in a release that by law, 48-hours’ notice is required for job action but the STF is providing extra time to allow families to make arrangements.

“The STF is disappointed that Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill has rejected the Federation’s invitation to take part in binding arbitration on the issue of class size and complexity,” the release stated.

“The Minister continues to insist this issue cannot be part of a provincial collective bargaining agreement; however, a conciliator’s report released in January validated teachers’ position that class size and complexity can be articles for negotiation as they relate to teachers’ working conditions. Any issue can be sent to binding arbitration as long as both sides agree to the process.”

Later on Friday, the STF added on X (formerly Twitter) that escalation could lead to cancellation of Hoopla in Moose Jaw next weekend.

“We offered government a path forward through binding arbitration for class size and complexity—and they refused almost immediately,” the tweet reads. “We are hoping they reconsider before Sunday, as further sanctions could include cancellation of many important extracurricular events. This includes Hoopla in Moose Jaw, which committee chair Roger Morgan calls ‘more than just a tournament.’”

The STF stated that Government’s refusal to participate in arbitration means, regrettably, that job action will continue.

Withdrawal of noon-hour supervision on Monday, March 18 will all schools in North East School Division, all schools in Prairie Spirit School Division and all schools in Regina Catholic Schools.

Withdrawal of noon-hour supervision on Tuesday, March 19 will involve all schools in Christ the Teacher Catholic School Division, all schools in Good Spirit School Division, all schools in Île-à-la-Crosse School Division, all schools in Northern Lights School Division, all schools in Prairie South School Division, all schools in South East Cornerstone School Division, all schools in Sun West School Division, all schools in Living Sky and Light of Christ Catholic schools divisions and Sakewew High School (North Battleford).

Withdrawal of noon-hour supervision means STF members will not be available to supervise students who are eating lunch at school or taking part in noon-hour activities. Although teachers, including principals and vice-principals, often provide lunch-break supervision, it is not part of their contracted professional duties. Student supervision is the responsibility of the school division and supervisors are not required to be teachers.

Forensic Science Days returning to the Prince Albert Science Centre

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Forensic Science is a fascinating topic and people will have a chance to learn about it at the Prince Albert Science Centre in the Gateway Mall.

The Science Centre will be hosting its second Forensic Science Days on March 23-24. Science Centre board member Lisa Mokleby said the purpose of the event is to educate the public about forensic activities like fingerprinting, footwear impressions, and investigating crime scenes.

“We are going to have several different tables set up for activities,” Mokleby said. “Some of these include fingerprinting and footwear impressions, and there’s going to be an adult crime scene to investigate and a children’s crime scene to investigate.”

Mokleby originally reached out in 2023 to the Science Centre to coordinate an event because she is passionate about forensic science and wants to share her knowledge. She was born and raised in Prince Albert and works as a DNA Consultant with Aurora Forensics.

“I consult on the criminal portion or DNA portion of the criminal cases so I get phone calls from people all over Canada and the US to be an expert and give my opinion,” Mokleby explained.

She works on presentations for anyone interested.

“I teach and give presentations to lawyers and students of all ages,” Mokleby said.

She approached the Science Centre about putting on a Forensic Science Camp last year after noticing the Science Centre was putting on events. She said the events have proven popular with everyone.

“People of all ages to come in and learn about it, not just kids,” Mokleby said.

Partnering with Mokleby is Prince Albert RCMP Cpl. Janelle Samoila who works in the Ident Section for the RCMP,

The event runs on Saturday, March 23 from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. and on Sunday, March 24 from noon until 5 p.m.

Exhibits and activities for all ages include items such as footwear impressions, fingerprints, crime scene evidence and much more.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

Deputy Fire Chief surprised with final Saskatchewan Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal

Prince Albert Deputy Fire Chief Alex Paul got a surprise on Friday when PA Northcote MLA Alana Ross presented Paul with a Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal (Provincial) for his years of dedication to public service both through his career and volunteer work.

Paul received the medal during a ceremony at the main Fire Station. His medal is the final one that will be approved by the province, Ross said. There are a few other still to be handed out, but those were approved before Paul’s.

Paul said he thought all Jubilee Medals had been handed out in 2023, so he was surprised to get one so far down the road.

“I was totally taken off guard by this,” he said. “The Fire Chief was off on vacation today. I wasn’t expecting anybody else in the building and he showed up here about 20 minutes before the presentation and suggested that I should put on my dress uniform, that there was a presentation being made.”

Paul’s interest in public service stretches back many years. It started as a teenager in 1983 when he joined St. John Ambulance, which had a volunteer brigade in Prince Albert at the time.

“We attended many community events, the Exhibition, all of the Raider Games, Founders Day, things like that, doing volunteer first aid work,” Paul said.

“The natural progression from that was to get into EMS so I became an EMT and started working with Parkland Ambulance. (I) worked with them for five years, from 1990 to 1995, and then made the move over to the fire service and that’s where I remain today.”

Paul has since risen through the ranks to Deputy Chief. He said that his career and volunteer work has always been about serving the public.

The “B” Platoon that was on duty for the day was in attendance. Paul’s family was also in attendance.

Prince Albert Fire Chief Kris Olsen said in his speech that Paul was recognized for both his career as a firefighter and in the public service. Paul has been working in the community safety field since 1990 with both Parkland Ambulance and the Prince Albert Fire Department.

Paul’s volunteer work began with St. John Ambulance in 1983 filling many positions. In 1992 he started with the Prince Albert North Search and Rescue which he still works with today.

“All these hours of dedication don’t come with a paycheque, they come with dedication to the community,” Olsen said.

After the speech by Olsen, Ross presented Paul with his medal. In his speech following the presentation, Paul noted that people do not do work and volunteer as a way to receive recognition but he was honoured to be recognized.

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Medal (Provincial) commemorates the 70th anniversary of the Accession of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth the Second to the Throne as Queen of Canada. The Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (Saskatchewan) recipients are to be of all ages and from all walks of life who have contributed to their community and society.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

Carlton to host Open House March 20

Carlton Comprehensive High School is giving prospective students a chance to have a look at their new school when they host an Open House on Wednesday, March 20.

The open house runs from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., and will open with a 20-minute group presentation by the administration team in the lecture theatre.

“We will introduce our admin team and we’ll talk about what Grade 9 will look like, what our school has to offer and just talk about some different things as part of our school day (and) what a school day looks like as well,” Carlton vice-principal Rylan Michalchuk said.

There will then be five separate breakouts sessions on different parts of academic life at Carlton,

“One of them is our Global Sports Academy classroom.  Doan Smith and his team will present on what their program is about what credits they offer Grade 10, 11 and 12 and then what it looks like in Grade 9,” Michalchuk explained.

As well, athletic directors will talk about what sports teams look like in the school community. The Fine Arts program will talk about what they offer in Grade 9 and their programming in Grade 10 through 12.

Carlton can appear to be an intimidating school in terms of size and Michalchuk said that breaking it down in this way lessens that.

“Break it into parts,” he explained. “They might know about our athletics programme, but they want to know more about Fine Arts, so they can pick and choose and suit whatever interest they’re in, fits their needs and go from there,” Michalchuk said.

Michalchuk said that the large overview and the breakout sessions would give the prospective students a nice understanding of Carlton.

“Another big part of our schools are our practical and applied art shops. So there’s a couple of teachers that I can present on all of our shop like our PAA we call our shop classes,” he explained.

They will also talk about what it looks like in Grade 9 and then 10, 11 and 12.

“In Grade 10,11 and 12, we’ve got everything from sewing to cooking to welding to machining to construction,” Michalchuk added.

The French Immersion program will be the other breakout session and talk about what that is like in the school.

Michalchuk explained that there will be 10 to 15 minute sessions of each scheduled throughout the evening. He said families could attend one to five of these depending on what they are interested in.

“The other option will be just to walk around and check out our school, teachers will be in their classrooms to have conversations about Grade 9 or to answer any questions that families have about our school,” he said.

He explained that staff and students will also be giving guided tours if that is a better option for people.

“Whatever they’re comfortable with. we feel like those four options just provide families with, different comfort levels to decide what type of tour they want to participate in,” Michalchuk said.

There are also some private tour options for those who are interested.

“If they can’t make it that night, they can phone the school and talk to an administrator about booking a tour outside of that time,” Michalchuk said.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

RM of Prince Albert recognized for Municipal Centre project

The RM of Prince Albert received recognition at the 17th annual Saskatchewan Municipal Awards for the development of the RMs new Municipal Centre.

Reeve Eric Schmalz was shocked to win the award for Top Rural Initiative for the complex.

“It was a pleasant surprise when we were told that we had won,” Schmalz said. “It was something that we didn’t expect, but it was a pleasant surprise and very rewarding to be recognised in that fashion.”

Schmaltz said the project took a long time to come to fruition. The complex celebrated its grand opening in August of 2023.

“It was a team effort,” he said. “We made a lot of concessions, we spent a lot of time diligently pouring over plans to make sure that we had the right cost to benefit for our taxpayers and to make sure that we will have a usable facility long into the future.”

The new centre is located north of the Highway 11 and Highway 2 junction. It was built on 400 acres of land along Highway 2 intended for commercial and residential development, according to its website.

The RM of Prince Albert concept is a municipal centre that encompasses the RM shop and office and is equipped to be the RM Emergency Response Center. The centre offers meeting space and amenities and the area is expanding with multiple enterprises emerging in their design phases.

“It’s not a dedicated emergency response centre but it can act as one should there be an emergency that happens,” Schmaltz explained. “(If) there’s some kind of an evacuation or a place to congregate for evacuation, that could all take place at the RM Municipal Centre.”

The new facility replaces the RM’s two previous locations, the maintenance shop on Phelps Drive and the administrative office downtown.

“We knew we needed to expand to be able to accommodate the growing needs of our municipality (and) to be able to service the needs of the ratepayers,” Schmaltz said.

The municipal office and shop facility is also the first building to be constructed inside Signature Developments’ new commercial and residential project located in the RM.

Schmalz said that he hoped getting recognized for this concept would spur other municipalities to develop projects that expand the commercial sector.

“It’s not just expanding the tax base, you are expanding the prospects for employment, for business development, for people to set up their own businesses for the employment for, for your citizens of your community,” Schmalz said.

“These things are all important aspects and it needs to be looked at by all councils at all levels of government. It’s a pretty important thing that to maintain the livelihood and the viability of our rural communities and region,” he added.

The Saskatchewan Municipal Awards celebrate the excellent and innovative practices of Saskatchewan’s municipal governments. Four innovative projects from five municipalities are being recognized for the 17th Annual Saskatchewan Municipal Awards. This year’s winners have shown excellence in municipal infrastructure, cooperation, and addressing community needs.

The RM of Prince Albert project was one of five winners in the Saskatchewan Municipal Awards. Top Municipal Initiative was the new Mechanical Wastewater Treatment Facility in the City of Lloydminster. The winning practice was creating a new multi-jurisdictional, bi-provincial wastewater treatment plant requiring collaboration from leaders in all levels of government. Resulting in improved quality of treated effluent entering the North Saskatchewan River and achieving a fair agreement that benefited residents of both Alberta and Saskatchewan residents.

Top Urban Municipal Initiative was the Southland Co-op Centre in Assiniboia. The winning practice was the replacement of the old rink with a new state of the art recreation facility that

supports the health and wellness of the community and has increased tourism to the area. The centre contains a walking track, NHL-sized ice surface, Multi Purpose Gym, Climbing Walls, Simulator room and more.

The winner for regional cooperation was Outlook-Rudy Joint Protective Services, which is a partnership between the Town of Outlook and RM of Rudy. The winning practice was the Town of Outlook and the RM of Rudy No. 284 worked together to address concerns raised over the long-term viability of fire and rescue services by addressing a need to repair relationships within the region.

The winning projects were selected by the Saskatchewan Municipal Awards Committee who reviewed 12 nominations, submitted on behalf of 28 municipalities.

Each year, the awards committee is made up of partners from the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM), the Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association (SUMA), New North, the Rural Municipal Administrators’ Association of Saskatchewan (RMAA), the Urban Municipal Administrator Association of Saskatchewan (UMAAS) and the Ministry of Government Relations (GR).

The winners will be celebrated at the SARM Annual Convention and Tradeshow on March 13 and the SUMA 2024 Convention and Tradeshow on April 16. Both events will be taking place at the REAL District in Regina.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

Melfort’s Luthi almost to goal after completing Tokyo Marathon

Melfort marathon runner Robyn Luthi has almost completed her goal of running the six Abbott World Marathon Majors after completing the Tokyo Marathon.

Luthi completed the Tokyo Marathon on March 3 with a time of two hours, 59 minutes, and 21 seconds, which was not a personal best but still good enough to hit her goal of less than three hours.

“I am getting to the point where I’ve hit my top physical fitness level so to be starting to achieve like a new personal best that each race is going to become harder and harder for me,” Luthi said.

“Knowing that, the goal is to go to sub-three (hours)…. Training during a Canadian winter makes it a little bit trickier, so to get the sub-three, I was super pumped.”

Luthi finished 132nd in the women’s division in Tokyo. It was her fifth marathon completed among the six ‘major’ marathons, known as the Abbott World Marathon Majors. She has previously completed marathons in Berlin, Boston, Chicago and London.

She said that winter training in Saskatchewan made it tough to know how she would perform in Tokyo.

“You kind of have to go in with a lot of variables knowing that it may not go the way you planned just because some of the workouts didn’t go as planned due to weather,” Luthi explained. “It’s one (race) that has a lot of uncertainties coming into it. It’s very, very happy to pull off a sub-three just with what’s been going on leading up to the race.”

The Tokyo Marathon was a different experience compared to other marathons like Boston and Berlin according to Luthi, but still very well-organized.

“It is a little different when you’re in the starting curls,” she said. “Usually, there is a lot of hype and excitement. It was really quiet at this one.

“In the course, I’m used to the big marathons where people are cheering and it’s loud and you feed off that energy. This one, the people were still out and they were watching, but there was no cheering in certain sections. It was a little bit different that way.”

Luthi said she was lucky and found motivation by running with a fellow runner from Boston. They ran the first 35 kilometres together and took turns setting the pace for each other.

“It really helped stay kind of focused mentally and keep the pace on track as that race gets on and you get more tired,” she said. “It’s really easy to slow down and kind of give up at times, so it was really nice having that support person there mentally and physically to keep the pace going and power through to the sub-three.”

Luthi has the New York Marathon in November left to complete the Abbott World Marathon Majors and expects to learn this week if she qualified after running the standard time in Tokyo.

“I’m excited to be done the big six,” she said. “It’s been a huge and amazing experience, but now it’ll kind of leave me with what do I do next.”

Although she has plenty of running experience, Luthi has no plans to become an ultra-marathon competitor.

“I ran the standard for the 2025 World Age class championship, so depending on where they are, I will probably participate in that,” she said. “There’s a marathon in Spain I would like to try down the road and maybe start working on some half marathons. I’d like to see what I can do time-wise wise competing in some of those.”

In a half marathon, her goal would be under one hour and 24 minutes.

Luthi finished in two hours, 58 minutes, and 15 seconds when she competed in in the 2023 Abbott World Marathon Majors Wanda Age Class World Championships last October. She accomplished her goal of automatically qualifying for the 2024 Wanda Age World Championship in Sydney, Australia by finishing 14th in her age group, she also finished a marathon in under three hours.

Throughout nine marathons since 2017 she has managed to shave significant time off her finish.

Luthi initially began running marathons in 2017. Her goal was to qualify for the Boston Marathon, which she did after running the Queen City Marathon in Regina.

Luthi not only finished in less than three hours, she was almost two minutes below her goal. In 2021 she completed the Chicago Marathon in 3 hours, nine minutes and five seconds.

In the Berlin Marathon in September 2022, Luthi placed 235th out of 11,509 women. She was 35th in her age class, the 10th fastest Canadian woman, and the third fastest Canadian woman in her age class.

Luthi completed her previous personal best time when she competed the London Marathon in April 2023 in a time of three hours and three minutes.

Luthi and her family made the Tokyo Marathon a family vacation. She said it was great to have them cheering her on.

“It’s been a really great experience,” she said. “I was fortunate I could bring my family with me on this trip. We’ve been taking in all the sights trying to experience as much as possible. We’re exhausted and we have walked several, several kilometres every day, but it’s all been worth it.”

Luthi run the Boston Marathon three times in 2018, 2019 and 2022 and the Chicago Marathon in 2021.

In Boston in 2022 she completed the course in a time of three hours, nine minutes and 13 seconds.

michael.oleksyn@paherald.sk.ca

Seniors remain active through volunteering in Prince Albert

Seniors in the community can be great volunteers for local organizations.

The Prince Albert Legion branch has many senior volunteers including Hughie Read.

The 72-year-old Read has been a Legion member for 15 years and is also a member and volunteer for the ANAVETs.

“Once in a while I do, I’m a member at the Army and Navy, I do a little bit there,” Read said.

“I kind of like doing it there (The Legion),” he added.

Read said that he is not really a volunteer for other organizations but he is still active through working.

“I don’t do a whole lot of volunteering, but I do other things like I work a little bit and that.

But other than that I give them a bit of my time,” he said.

Read volunteers his time in the kitchen and worked at the recent Legion Pancake Breakfast for the Prince Albert Winter Festival.

“And then I get the I go and get groceries every Wednesday for them, like  if they need pop or they need chips or stuff like that. I do that and then I help in the kitchen,” Read said.

Read explained that he also helps out with fish fry in the summer and works every Canada Day.

Read said that doing things like volunteering does not necessarily keep him young.

“I just like to do it,” Read said.

Read said that the Legion is always looking for members and volunteers.

” I have a few friends that just became members and they said, ‘well if you guys need any help, just give me a call.’ I said I would,” Read said.