CHVN

A congregation in Texas is mourning the loss of Pastor Jason Owens, a long-serving and deeply respected spiritual leader.

In an official statement posted to the church’s Facebook page on Thursday, church leaders shared the news "with an extremely heavy heart," describing Owens as "a cherished friend and a vital part of our church family."

Winnipeg police are searching for a suspect after a man was randomly assaulted at the Forks. 

Shortly after 11 p.m. on Friday, Winnipeg Police say they were called to the Forks Market, where they found a 30-year-old man suffering from serious injuries.

According to witnesses, the victim was assaulted and knocked to the ground by a random man who then continued to attack the victim until he lost consciousness. He then stole an item belonging to the victim before walking away.

The victim was transported to hospital in stable condition. 

Five local organizations that help in the fight against homelessness in Winnipeg will receive a generous donation thanks to a special fundraiser held over the weekend. 

Each year, Brothers of the Fork, a group of local, philanthropic Winnipeg cyclists who have been doing street outreach on the down low since 2011, host the Bridge to Nowhere Ride.

The 90 km ride takes participants from Kildonan Park all the way to Selkirk, Manitoba and back. 

Due to the overwhelming generosity of Manitobans, the Winnipeg Humane Society has had to put a pause on donations. 

Last week, the Humane Society put out a call for a variety of items to help with their emergency pop-up shelter that is housing the pets of wildfire evacuees at the St. Norbert Community Centre.

A missing 17-year-old girl has been safely located.  

Police say the youth was last seen in the St. Boniface area over the weekend. 

The Winnipeg Police Service was concerned for her wellbeing and was asking anyone with any information regarding their whereabouts to contact the Winnipeg Police Service Missing Persons Unit.

On Tuesday evening, they sent out a release saying she had been found.

Freedom International School is preparing to host a special event

This week, the school, a registered charity serving newcomer and former refugee youth ages 12-21, providing specialized, trauma-informed, accredited high school education in a Christ-centred environment, will host a mixed media art exhibit called "This is My Story."

Wilma Derksen labels herself a writer, coach/therapist, and an “accidental wanderer,” among other things, but she says that she is likely best known as a “mother of a murdered child.” 

Derksen, who now resides in Winkler, is the mother of Candace Derksen, the 13-year-old girl whose story has shocked and disheartened the public across the country (and beyond it) since 1985.  

Steinbach's brand-new multipurpose facility is partially open and is anticipating a full year of bringing the community together for events.

"We're so excited about this building and it's not even completely open yet," says the Director of Communications, Marketing, and Sales at the Southeast Event Centre in Steinbach, Michelle Sawatzky-Koop. "March 14, we got the arena bowl open for that very first Steinbach Piston game. We got the occupancy granted a mere 12-24 hours before we let 2,400 people into the building."

The Winnipeg Jets brought plenty of excitement to downtown Winnipeg during their playoff run last month, but that's not it. 

Thanks to the Jets' dedicated fans, over $234,000 was raised during this season's Whiteout Street Parties to support the work of four downtown community organizations. 

The Liberal plan to give first-time homebuyers a tax break on a newly built home could have substantial impacts on housing affordability — with a few caveats — a new analysis finds.

The Liberal government introduced legislation on June 5 to eliminate the GST portion from new home sales of up to $1 million for first-time buyers, which works out to as much as $50,000 off the cost of a new build or a substantially renovated unit.

For homes sold above $1 million, the GST relief is phased out as the price tag nears $1.5 million.