Strathmore

It's hard to live in Strathmore without knowing the name George Freeman, but who was he?

Freeman, who has a school and road in Strathmore named after him, lived in town for decades working alongside groups such as Ducks Unlimited and the Royal Canadian Legion in Strathmore.

According to Jenny Schumann, treasurer with the local Legion, Freeman was a veteran, who stormed the beaches of Normandy during World War II.

"The mural at the Legion, George can remember being in that boat landing on the beaches of D-Day, just as clear as that mural was."

The Mayor of Strathmore is challenging the Mayor of Medicine Hat ahead of the playoff series between the Agra Risk Wheatland Kings and the Medicine Hat Cubs.

The series, which begins in Strathmore at 8 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 21, is the closest the Kings have ever gotten to winning the championship.

Strathmore Mayor Pat Fule called out Mayor Linnsie Clark in a Facebook post.

As the temperature warms up there will be plenty of fun events for families to enjoy this weekend.

Mad Hatters Cornhole Club Regional Tournament: Get your cornhole bags ready because the Mad Hatters Cornhole Club will host a regional tournament at the Strathmore Civic Centre from Feb. 21-22. The festivities kick off on Friday at 5:30 p.m. with Saturday's event starting at 9 a.m.

Country music artist Drew Gregory has unveiled his new EP called 'One For The Road'.

The six-song EP dropped early Friday morning.

Gregory told StrathmoreNow that the song itself holds a special meaning for him.

"It just kind of talks about the road between my hometown of Standard out here between it and the farm. I could just about drive that road blindfolded."

Gregory also cited memories he has of the road growing up.

"The whole EP has that coming home kind of feeling to it."

Canada defeated its archrival the United States 3-2 in overtime in the 4 Nations Face-Off final on Thursday night in what was an emotionally-charged affair for players and fans alike.

The rematch between the two sides was intense, although it did not consist of three fights in the opening nine seconds, as the preliminary round game in Montreal did last Saturday, a 3-1 win for the Americans.

Connor McDavid scored the game winner, while Nathan MacKinnon and Sam Bennett scored in regulation for Canada. Brady Tkachuk and Jake Sanderson replied for the U.S. 

Seventy per cent of Canadians are in favour of dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs on the United States, a new poll suggests.

Nearly half of respondents to the Leger poll — 45 per cent — said they were strongly in favour of such tariffs, while 25 per cent said they were somewhat in favour.

U.S. President Donald Trump has pledged to impose steep tariffs on imports from Canada and other countries.

Last month, Agriculture in the Classroom Saskatchewan (AITC-SK) unveiled a brand-new ‘Grains of Saskatchewan’ interactive display. A new interactive display that will allow a more hands-on learning experience surrounding agriculture and crops grown in Saskatchewan. Sara Shymko, executive director with Agriculture in the Classroom, explains how hands-on learning can benefit when teaching about agriculture.  

Langdon Firehouse Bar & Grill is bringing a karaoke contest to the area next month.

Starting on Mar. 5 the Total Package 2.0 contest begins, with battle rounds of karaoke singers competing for a $1,000 cash prize. The event will run until Apr. 23.

"Last year was insane. I can't remember how many contestants we had, but most of the nights you couldn't even find a spot to sit in here," said Aleesha Gosling, owner of the firehouse. "The talent is incredible. The people that come should be professionals."

This weekend the Agra Risk Wheatland Kings return to the ice to begin the second round of playoffs against the Medicine Hat Cubs.

Cole Tweit is the top scorer for the Kings with 46 points and has been with the team for three years.

"My first year I was towards the bottom of the team, the next year I was in the middle of the pack, and this year I'm at the top," said Tweit.

The forward says that he's grown more mature over the years, which has led to an improvement in his performance. Tweit believes that this is a microcosm of the team's success.

It appears that the cold snap that hit the Strathmore area is finally behind us.

Earlier this week, temperatures were reaching an overnight low near -40°C including the windchill, which led to an extreme cold warning being issued.

"It was a bit late as what we would normally expect, but we normally get a cold spell at some time during the winter," said Andy Yun, a meteorologist with Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC).