Pam Fedack

Starting next fall, Grade 7 and 8 students from Hochfeld School will attend Prairie Dale School in Schanzenfeld for their last two years of junior high. The Board of the Garden Valley School Division (GVSD) made the decision at its last regular meeting.
    

Ratepayers in the City of Winkler can expect to pay more when they receive their tax bill in late spring. An operating budget of over $22-million was presented during Tuesday's council meeting, representing a 9 % increase from budget 2022.
    
City Manager Jody Penner says inflation is a big reason for the increase, with more dollars needing to be allocated in all areas.

Despite being impacted by a number of water events last year, the City of Winkler isn't watching the spring flood forecasts as closely as other municipalities across the Pembina and Red River basins. Mayor Henry Siemens says that's because of Winkler's well-planned and well-built dike infrastructure that moves the water around the city. 

Senior Administration and the Board of Trustees of the Garden Valley School Division (GVSD) are projecting to run a deficit budget for the 2023/24 school year.
    
With the division's enrolment rebounding from several years of significant loss, some of the budgeted money will be earmarked for additional teachers, as well as bus drivers to support a higher enrolment. 

The Winkler and District Health Care Board has announced new plans for expansion.

Last year at this time, the board announced its intentions to build additional space directly north of the existing clinic on the former Co-op gas bar property. When tenders came back on the project much too high to sustain, that plan was put on hold.
    
The board was then approached last summer by the AL Group of Companies to buy approximately 20,000 square feet of space in the ALG Professional Centre, on top of the 27,000 square feet the clinic already occupies in the building.

This is the time of year Grade 8 students start bringing home high school information packages as well as begin to pick their course selections for Grade 9.
    
At Winkler's Northlands Parkway Collegiate (NPC), getting students ready for the transition to high school begins prior to them entering secondary school and continues throughout their first year.  

A new president has taken the reins of the Winkler and District Chamber of Commerce.

Hank Froese took his oath as president at Thursday's annua Chamberl meeting and business lunch, taking over from Keith Gislason who will be staying on the board as past president.

The Winkler Harvest Festival Committee has been busy getting the ball rolling for the 2023 event.
    
Winkler City Events Coordinator, Nicole Enns is taking on the challenge of heading up the organizing committee for the first time this year, after shadowing Kathy Bueckert in 2022.
    
Enns says she's thankful to be following some wonderful women who have done some great planning - and - have left her with that solid plan to work off of.

A competitive target shooter from Roland will be heading to South Africa in March to take part in his first world-class event. Scott Kyle, who grew up in Boissevain, will be participating individually and as part of Team Canada at the Rutland Cup. Team Canada consists of seven competitors and four shooters noted Kyle.

"This is a world-class event, it will be over three weeks in Bloemfontein, South Africa. There will be the individual competition with a few hundred of the best shooters in the world."

The implementation of some new practices at Winkler's Northlands Parkway Collegiate (NPC) two years ago, aimed to improve the transition to high school for incoming grade 8 students, is proving successful.

NPC Vice-Principal, Jeff Osinski says the new practices were meant to enhance the school's existing transition plan, with the goal of getting their students feeling a sense of belonging sooner into the new school year.