Manitobans will have more choices for summer camps this year as a few organizations expanded their age ranges.

Steinbach

The City of Steinbach is offering activity-based camps including:

July 7 - July 11: Survivor CampJuly 14 - 18: Game On! Sports CampJuly 21 - July 25: Hero CampJuly 28 - August 1: X-Treme Sports CampAugust 5 - August 8: Olympics CampAugust 11 - August 15: Adventure CampAugust 18 - August 22: ‘Tropical Thunder’ Camp

The 2025 federal election was the NDP’s worst electoral showing in its history. With only seven seats in the House of Commons, the NDP doesn’t even have official party status.

Not only will the NDP not get the parliamentary resources that official parties receive, but its MPs won’t even be able to participate regularly in Question Period or have guaranteed spots on parliamentary committees. This will obviously make it hard for the NDP to get any media attention.

Even what little leverage the NDP has in this Parliament doesn’t amount to much. For example, interim NDP leader Don Davies recently announced that his party would vote against the federal throne speech. However, when the time came for the vote, the NDP let the speech pass “on division,” which means that its MPs didn’t even bother to force a standing vote.

To make matters worse, NDP MPs couldn’t even choose an interim leader without exposing their internal divisions. After Davies was announced as interim leader, three NDP MPs sent a sharply worded letter to their party executive expressing disappointment over being left out of the process. It’s more than a little absurd that the NDP is now led by a leader who was actively opposed by three out of seven MPs (one of whom is now the leader himself).

Exceldor Cooperative will be selling its assets to Sofina Foods, a move that will end almost 70 years of the organization working as a co-operative.

“Exceldor’s assets will be integrated into Sofina Foods, a privately held Canadian company. This would mean the cooperative structure would no longer apply to the operations being transferred,” wrote Gabrielle Fallu, public and government relations manager at Exceldor, in an email.

Exceldor Cooperative, owned by approximately 330 member-producers in Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba, generates more than $1.4 billion in revenue annually employing more than 3,800 people, of which 600 work in Blumenort. Exceldor is headquartered in Lévis, Quebec and owns brands such as Exceldor, Lacroix, Granny’s, Butterball, and Saha Halal.

Fallu wouldn’t disclose any financials of the sale, but she said Sofina will not be laying off any workers.

On June 15 we celebrate the pillar of the family, our fathers. Whether you’re a grandfather, opa or dad, fathers are there to support their family and be a strong shoulder to lean on.

Of course, the most important role of fathers is to be a member of the family team and work with mothers to raise the children they share together. I am blessed to be a father myself and can say it is the highest achievement I hold. As much of a task as raising children is, it is the best gift a person can ever receive.

Whether at work, with friends, or on vacation we always have the need to feel a sense of fulfillment. From personal experience, I can say that being a father and now an opa is the most fulfilling role I have ever had. Whether waking up to cheers or tears it always keeps you on your feet.

Father’s Day is a day of reflection on the many fathers and grandfathers (opas) that helped create the current family we have. Whether your family came to Canada, or were the first peoples on this land, we honour the sacrifice that the fathers of the past made for us to enjoy the lives we have today.

I remember it vividly. Driving along the road south of Winnipeg as cars were stopping near one of the homes along the Red River. A spray-painted wooden sign was near the driveway that read “Volunteers Needed.” As I entered the back yard and joined the sandbag line beside other Manitobans who had come to help, a steady stream of new volunteers joined, along with others who were bringing sandwiches and drinks for volunteers.

It was 1997 and residents along the Red River were fighting to protect their homes from the “Flood of the Century” and Manitobans were, literally, standing shoulder to shoulder with them. This is just one time in the long history of our province where residents have rallied together to support those around them who are in need. And today, we see Manitobans stepping up to do so again.

The forest fires that have ravaged significant parts of Manitoba already this summer are not just a threat to natural resources, they are threatening communities and the people who live in them. The province is under a state of emergency and more than 20 communities have declared their own state of emergency. Most importantly, more than 18,000 Manitobans have been forced to flee their homes, often with only minutes notice. These are our fellow Manitobans who need food and shelter along with all the other basic life necessities.

While governments have programs and funds to assist those who have been evacuated, it does not always arrive immediately or cover all the needs of those who have been impacted. And that is why we have seen organizations, from churches to the Red Cross, offer to provide assistance. And as they always do, Manitobans have responded. Through donations to the Red Cross or providing needed items at designated drop off areas, thousands of Manitobans are generously helping those who have had to leave their homes. While the fires and the resulting smoke in the air can leave Manitobans feeling powerless, they have the ability to help, and as generations of Manitobans have, through floods and fires, they are doing just that.

With more than 1,000 homeowners doing curbside compost pick-up, the RM of Hanover is encouraging more LUD residents to enter the program.

“We’re wanting to divert waste from the landfill so we can keep our landfill healthy,” said Katie Derksen, public works administrative assistant.

In 2025, every tonne of waste diverted from the landfill saves the RM $60. Derksen couldn’t say how much organic waste is being diverted from the landfill as the RM doesn’t have a scale to weigh the trucks.

“But we know it’s a significant amount based on how big our pile is and the cost saving that we see on the garbage fees from diverting the tonnage,” she said.

A Niverville woman who would not wait for her ride after police gave her a chance to call someone was led out of Steinbach court to jail after pleading guilty to driving with blood-alcohol over .08.

Candace Nykiforuk, 52, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 days custody and handed a two-year driving prohibition by Judge Tony Cellitti June 6.

The sentence was the minimum he could give her because of her previous impaired driving conviction from June 4, 2020 when she received a $1,200 fine and one-year driving prohibition. She had no other prior record.

RCMP were called to Nykiforuk’s daughter’s home in Steinbach by the daughter and her partner for a disturbance just before noon on Oct. 12, 2024. They told police Nykiforuk would not leave after driving to their home.