The last year is behind us. With that in mind, the Daily Herald looks back on 2024.
Prince Albert welcomes the newest Saskatchewan resident when Charlotte Eliza Lavigne is born at 12:54 a.m. in Victoria Hospital. Lavigne is Prince Albert’s 2024 New Year’s Baby. She’s also the second person in her extended family to hold the New Year’s Baby designation. “We were actually hoping that she’d be early and be here before Christmas,” Charlotte’s mother Colby says in an interview with the Daily Herald. “But, she had other plans.”
Prince Albert residents and PAGC members gather to mourn and honour PAGC Women’s Commission chair Shirly Henderson, who passes away on Friday, Dec. 29, 2023 at the age of 69. “Shirley was dedicated to the improvement of conditions and improvement of opportunities for all women,” friend Sheryl Kimbley says. “She dedicated her life to ensuring that those who didn’t have opportunities, had opportunities, right down to the inclusion of young people at our events.”
The Salvation Army opens a temporary Warming Shelter called Sally’s Do Drop Inn after a cold spell sets in. Temperatures plunge to below -30 C during the week of Jan. 8. “We are going to do our part to help our neighbour to be a little bit more comfortable,” Major Ed Dean of the Salvation Army says.
Friends and family members gather on Jan. 8 to remember and honour Dwight Whitehead, the Prince Albert man who went missing after leaving Victoria Hospital on Jan. 2, 2023. Searchers found his body on Jan. 16. Whitehead’s death sparks calls for hospitals to be more accountable for releasing patients during cold winter months. “He was greatly loved,” says Eunice Lewis, Dwight’s aunt. “Everybody has nothing but good memories about him.”
Prince Albert city council gives administration the go-ahead to draft a bylaw capping liquor store hours. Under the proposed bylaw, liquor stores will not be able to open before 10 a.m., and must close at 11 p.m.
Poorly cut grass, annoying campfire bugs, and kids not cleaning their rooms are not reasons to call 9-1-1. That’s the message from the RCMP’s Divisional Operational Communications Centre (DOCC) after releasing their Top 10 Calls that Missed the Mark in 2023. “As entertaining as some of these calls are, we want to remind everyone that 911 is for emergencies and emergencies only,” Saskatchewan RCMP DOCC recruiter Lee Rosin says. “When I’m answering calls that aren’t an emergency, it means I’m not available for someone else.”
The Saskatchewan Teachers’ Federation begins a series of rotating strikes after failing to agree to a new contract with the Ministry of Education. Prince Albert teachers are among the first to take part in the one-day strike, which is held on Jan. 16. “We are hoping that the one day strike is enough to get this government to move off of their opening positions within bargaining and get to the table and start addressing those big concerns that teachers have brought forward,” STF president Samantha Becotte says. Education Minister Jeremy Cockrill releases a statement expressing disappointment with the strike, and saying the Government Trustee Bargaining Committee is at the table ready to talk. Those efforts are unsuccessful, and Prince Albert teachers hit the picket line for a second one-day strike on Jan. 22.
Former Peter Ballantyne Cree Nation CEO Trevor Ives is posthumously named the Prince Albert Chamber of Commerce Legacy Award Winner. Ives spent 25 years as the group’s CEO before passing away in 2023. Chamber CEO Patty Hughes says Ives was a great role model for members of the Prince Albert business community, and a worthy Legacy Award recipient.
A Coroner’s Inquest into the mass stabbing in James Smith Cree Nation and Weldon begins at the Kerry Vickar Centre in Melfort. Those in attendance include survivors and family members of the victims. Many attendees are wearing “James Smith Cree Nation Strong” t-shirts. After two weeks of testimony, the jury begins its deliberations on Jan. 30.
After years of calling out bids and prices, Melfort’s Barrie Jung gets a call of his own. Jung is one of three auctioneers being inducted into the Saskatchewan Auctioneers Association (SAA) Auction Era Hall of Honour. He says it was a welcome surprise. “You never expect something like that,” he says. “The association inducts auctioneers every two or three years … but no, I wasn’t expecting to get in there.”
The Prince Albert Police Service says a structure fire that consumes the downtown A&W is not considered suspicious. Fire crews are called to the scene at around 5:10 a.m. on Jan. 17 after the building catches fire. After arriving, firefighters enter the kitchen area to find the fire had already spread to the attic space, and was quickly spreading to the roof. No injuries were reported.
Sports
Girls of all ages from across Saskatchewan travel to Prince Albert to begin the annual Prince Albert Female Hockey Tournament on Jan. 6. The Prince Albert U15 AA Foxes start the tournament off on the right foot, winning their opening game against Lloydminster 4-1 at the Art Hauser Centre.
The Kinsmen Club of Prince Albert names Bruce Vance their Sportsman of the Year. Vance receives the honour at the Kinsmen Sports Dinner on Jan. 20. Vance says he is humbled by the recognition. “It’s just a tremendous honour,” he says. “I’m just thrilled to be the Sportsman of the Year.” The honour comes just a few months after Vance was inducted into the Prince Albert Raiders’ Wall of Honour.
Plenty of GMs are active as the WHL trade deadline comes and goes, but Prince Albert Raiders GM Curtis Hunt isn’t among them. Hunt makes one trade on deadline day, sending Hayden Pakkala to the Lethbridge Hurricanes in exchange for a third round pick. Instead, Hunt says the team will look for continued improvement from the players on their active roster instead of adding new ones.
The Prince Albert Predators are named the Saskatchewan Lacrosse Association (SLA) Team of the Year after capturing another Prairie Gold Lacrosse League title. Predators goaltender Mason Hawkes is named Defensive Player of the Year, and Predators leading scorer Brayden Rieger is named league MVP.
Arts
St. Mary High School’s Upstage Productions opens their newest play at the E.A. Rawlinson Centre after heavy flooding damages the school’s theatre. The first performance of “Puffs, or Seven Increasingly Eventful Years at a Certain School of Magic and Magic” begins on Jan. 11. Students say they are just happy to have a spot to perform. “We didn’t know if we would get a first show because our theatre got destroyed,” Grade 11 student Lukas Tamayo says. “We started out in this classroom. It was a smaller space. I don’t think any of us heave ever really rehearsed for a very long time in a classroom.”
The Mann Art Gallery hosts a closing reception for ‘The Life + Dream of Alex Mullie” on Jan. 12. Interim curator Lana Wilson says the exhibit was a chance to recognize an artist who received little recognition curing his life. The show features 50 of Mullie’s pieces from the gallery’s permanent collection.
The Mann Art Gallery welcomes travelling exhibit “The Flower People” to Prince Albert. The exhibit includes felted pieces combined with a collection of blankets to explore the similarities between Ukrainian and Metis culture. Artist Melanie Monique Rose says it’s great to see her exhibit travelling around the province.
