Last year by this time we had already lamented a month's worth of winter, and we had no idea what Mother Nature had in store for us from November 2012 to April 2013. This year, we got to wait a whole extra two weeks but, when Old Man Winter returned, he brought along plenty of snow and ice with him. And it appears, when winter returned, it unpacked for a lengthy stay including adding lots of snow and ice to its mix.
Celebration, that was the theme for Rider fans this week after Nov. 10's thrilling victory in the west semifinal, making it only one more game to win to be part of home field advantage at Grey Cup 2013.
Unity Public School will be sending out report cards today, with follow up parent-teacher interviews Nov. 19 and 20. In addition, the annual Scholastic Book Fair will run Nov. 18-22 with opportunities for students to win new books for themselves and their classrooms on family night.
UCHS continues to be a very busy school. Both junior volleyball teams headed to district championships Oct. 30, after earning a berth at conferences. The junior boys were up against some tough battles and came out with a fourth place standing. The junior girls, who played in Cut Knife, went through to a gold medal win earning the Battlewest District title.
A big congratulations to the senior girls' volleyball team who earned a berth to provincials to be held this weekend in Assiniboia. The senior boys will be hosting conference playoffs this weekend in Unity.
St Peter's will soon be preparing for Advent. Music fills the air at St. Peter's as both the choir and the new band students are practising for their Christmas appearances. Report cards will be out soon for students and the parent-teacher conferences will soon follow.
The rink is full of hockey games and practices. While housing so many teams in the minor hockey program seems like a good problem - compared to other communities who struggle to keep their minor hockey programs alive - it does force teams to move practices to other communities. There just isn't enough ice time to give enough to all 12 minor hockey teams, in addition to senior and recreation hockey as well as the Unity Skating Club. You can check the rink schedule posted at the arena or log on to the Town of Unity website to see what's slated next for the rink.
The Unity Miners thrilled fans with the home opener against Lloyd, winning in overtime. A number of locals have joined the team as well as some returning favourites and it looks like this year's senior hockey squad will show some great strides in giving fans all the excitement they can handle. The next home game for the Miners is Nov. 22 against Kerrobert.
This is the weekend the Unity Curling Club has some top-notch teams coming to the Sifto Cash Spiel, including McKee, Manners, Heitt and many more. Curling action is free and you can enjoy the large windows at each sheet in addition to the overhead cameras streamed to the TVs for those "close to the button" calls.
League curling continues Tuesday through Thursday, in addition to youth curling on Monday and high school curling prepping teams for their season in practices now too.
Come to the holiday gift fair at the Unity Legion Hall Nov. 22 from 7-10 p.m. for some early Christmas shopping.
Hunters, mark Dec. 14 on your calendar as it is the annual scoring night for the Unity Wildlife Federation, being held at the Agroplex beginnning at 4 p.m.
Coffee row conversation is a flurry as contributors talk about their enthusiasm and excitement in the Riders leading up to this weekend's Western final against Calgary. Trains and their speed through town, the number of them on the move through town and the cargo they carry are discussed on a regular basis. Hockey and curling are also common topics on the round table. So you see we keep busy in Unity with activities and wisdom from our friends on coffee row. Until next week
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