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Eight-year council veteran declares candidacy
3 minute read 4:43 PM CDTA fourth sitting City of Steinbach councillor has declared his candidacy in the next municipal election.
Bill Hiebert, who is completing his second term on council, announced last week that he will put his name forward once again.
He joins Susan Penner, Jake Hiebert and Damian Penner as current councillors seeking re-election. Jac Siemens and Michael Zwaagstra will not be on the ballot. Also seeking council positions are Nicholas Goertzen, Mitesh Kumar, Greg Carlos, Ron Falk and Brad Unger.
Hiebert was born and raised in Steinbach, worked in the construction business and then spent 42 years in the automotive industry before retiring in 2023.
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1946 – 2026 Watching Steinbach Grow: Fair at Grunthal highlights Hanover Centennial
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COLUMN: Beyond the Shelter – Sexual violence: Myths vs. reality
3 minute read 4:22 PM CDTSexual violence is a topic that many people find difficult to discuss, yet open conversations are essential to building safer, more informed communities. Misunderstandings and harmful myths continue to surround sexual violence, often creating barriers for those who have experienced it and making it harder for survivors to seek support.
Sexual violence is an umbrella term that includes any unwanted or non-consensual sexual contact, comments, acts, or gestures. While many people think only of physical assault, sexual violence can also involve verbal, emotional, and psychological abuse, including coercion, manipulation, harassment, and technology-facilitated abuse.
Talking openly about sexual violence helps increase awareness, challenge misconceptions, and reduce the stigma that often prevents survivors from coming forward. Community education plays an important role in helping people recognize unhealthy behaviours and understand the impact sexual violence can have on individuals and families.
One of the most common myths is that sexual violence must involve physical force or visible injuries to be considered serious. Others believe that if someone eventually “gave in” or did not physically resist, it was not sexual violence. These beliefs are false and can be deeply harmful. Consent must be freely given, and the absence of a struggle does not mean consent was present.
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LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Grey Matters column hits the right notes
2 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026Gary Dyck’s recent “Grey Matters” column on the power of music, (The God who sings, July 30), is one of those rare pieces that makes a professional musician sit up a little straighter. Plato is quoted, hymns are sung, and somewhere between a dementia ward and a surgical bed we are reminded of something conductors have long suspected but seldom say out loud: the human nervous system appears to have been designed with a back door labelled “Music Only.”
Dyck’s vignettes are quietly devastating. A man who has lost almost everything still lights up at the sight of “the singing man.” A patient who declines prayer accepts a hymn with an enthusiastic nod and hums along. Another, hemorrhaging and scheduled for transfusion, stabilizes after hearing “Be Still and Know.” These are not sentimental anecdotes; they are data points from the front lines of human consciousness.
Science is still mapping the precise pathways, but the phenomenon itself is ancient. Music does not persuade the way an argument does. It simply arrives — already inside the room where memory, emotion, and meaning reside. In that sense it is less a message than a presence. Chaplains know this. Musicians know this. The rest of us keep rediscovering it with a mixture of surprise and gratitude.
One is tempted to smile at the elegant economy of it all. We build hospitals full of sophisticated equipment, yet sometimes the most effective intervention is a familiar melody delivered by a man willing to stand in a doorway and sing. Dyck’s column is a graceful reminder that the oldest technologies of the soul have not yet been improved upon.
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COLUMN: Report from the Legislature – Celebrating a local landmark
3 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2026As we welcome the warmth and energy of summer, it’s the perfect time to celebrate the remarkable landmarks that make our communities unique. One of the most breathtaking monuments in our region stands proudly in Cooks Creek, the Church of the Immaculate Conception. Known for its striking architecture and spiritual significance, it remains a cherished symbol of faith, perseverance, and community spirit.
Construction of the church began in 1930, led largely by dedicated volunteers and parishioners. After 22 years of hard work, it officially opened its doors in 1952. Today, it is recognized as one of the largest Ukrainian Catholic churches in Western Canada, and arguably one of the most impressive in all of Manitoba.
Built in the Ukrainian Baroque style, the church reflects architectural traditions found throughout Eastern Europe. With its nine domes and intricate handcrafted detailing, the building is often affectionately referred to as a “prairie cathedral”. Much of the construction was done by hand, and its very foundation tells a story of faith, craftsmanship, and community sacrifice.
At the heart of the church’s creation was Father Philip Ruh, a priest who designed the church and played a central role in its vision and construction. Born into a modest family in what is now northern France (then part of the German Empire), Father Ruh began his religious training in the Netherlands in 1898. He later studied theology in Germany for an additional six years before being assigned to Canada on a mission to serve Ukrainian Catholic immigrants.
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COLUMN: Village News – From farmyard relic to museum treasure: A 1938 McLaughlin Buick finds a new home
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