Winkler's Mayor is sharing a number of thank you's with the community for its recent response to help those in need due to the wildfire situation in the province. Henry Siemens says it was important to him, and all of council, to recognize and show appreciation for how welcoming the city was to evacuees, even though the Meridian Exhibition Centre was not called upon for use by Manitoba Emergency Measures Organization.
"Ultimately, the big communal centre wasn't needed, but we did have a number of people that came and stayed in hotels," Siemens explained. "They hung out in and around town. They participated in activities. They needed to be fed. They needed some personal things, and our community was just absolutely amazing with that from front to back.
The Mayor also had additional kudos to Winkler Fire Department and other volunteers.
"The firefighters and volunteers who set up the Meridian Exhibition Centre in record time, and our firefighters who went to serve and fight the fires in Woodridge and in Badger and in Cross Lake," he added. "Morden Stanley Winkler Emergency Management team for the excellent job they did to prepare the Meridian Exhibition Centre, to prepare to serve the evacuees and then to serve those 50 to 60 that we did have in our community, and make sure everything worked well there. I'm extremely proud of that group. I'm extremely proud of our community, overall, for stepping forward like that."
Regional cooperation strikes again
Meanwhile, it's yet another example of the cities of Winkler and Morden, as well as the R.M. of Stanley, working together for the region. The three have been announced as hosts for the 2026 Manitoba 55+ Games.
"We're going to have about 1,100 athletes in town over three days, sports ranging from baseball to golf to pickleball to wisp to cribbage," said Siemens. "It's an opportunity for us to showcase this beautiful area of the province, but also an opportunity for our volunteer groups and our three municipalities to work together to show what we can do when we're prepared to have all three of us work for something bigger."
You can listen to the entire In the Mayor's Chair conversation with Henry Siemens, below.