Weyburn shone in 2011 and proved its residents to be world-class not only in talent but also in adaptability through adversity, generosity and caring for one another. Here are some highlights of the year.
A new refuse system was introduced to residents of Weyburn early in the year. The new automated refuse truck began its rounds on January 31.
Weyburn Wor-kin Shop Inc. launched their fundraiser with a goal of $500,000 to build a new 10,000 to 12,000-square-foot Day Program facility.
"We want to be a community-based program, not just a centre-based program," said Andria Brady, Executive Director at the Wor-Kin Shop.
Community involvement was perhaps a theme for 2011. Rider Pride took over the city on February 13 during an all-day charitable event, which saw more than $20,000 raised for a new football field for the Weyburn Minor Football league.
Weyburn's first urban wind-turbine was installed on Brown Crescent in early March. The 15-metre high, four-kilowatt (kWh) vertical access wind turbine was permitted by the City of Weyburn as a mutually-beneficial trial.
Mayor Debra Button said that before Council received the request to install the wind turbine, they had been considering installing a trial turbine to test the noise levels and aesthetics of the device.
"We knew that other communities were taking a look at wind turbines. But then (the property owner) came to us and indicated he wanted to put one up for a year at his own cost. It gave the City an opportunity to test it without a cost to us," said Button. "There was a lot of pluses for us so we gave (the property owner) permission to put it up."
Residents of Weyburn need only look at its changing landscape to see how the city has grown this year, but for those people and businesses on the outside looking in, the 2011 City Guide became Weyburn's best marketing tool. The new City Guide was delivered to businesses and organizations within Weyburn on March 16, but more importantly it was also delivered to appropriate venues across the country and abroad.
"Ultimately, these will end up outside of Weyburn in tourism areas such as hotels, gas stations and museums," said Jeff Richards, manager of the South East Regional Economic Authority (SEREDA) and Weyburn Chamber of Commerce. "Tooting the horn in Weyburn is good, but it's preaching to the choir. We have to get the message out there that Weyburn is the place to be, and we are."
Weyburn was subsequently featured on CTV's Home Town Tour.
CTV and STC teamed up to bring CTV Regina newscasters Danelle Boivin, J.C. Garden and Nelson Bird to Weyburn for the day to broadcast the city's many attributes to much of the province. Mayor Button said that seeing the city highlighted on the provincial broadcast made her chest swell with pride.
"We know about these things, but it's great for the rest of Saskatchewan to see it," said Button.
Weyburn was forced to declare a state of emergency on June 17, as flooding caused an electrical failure at the sewage treatment plant, shutting it down and leading to a precautionary boil water advisory, which remained in effect for just under two weeks.
Numerous residences and businesses were plagued with basement flooding and sewage backup after Weyburn was hit with 100 millimetres of rain over the course of one weekend. Approximately 30 residents of Navou Trailer Park were forced to evacuate their homes in the early morning hours of June 18, forcing the Red Cross and Social Services to open an emergency shelter at Crescent Point Place.
A call for volunteers on June 19 reached over 200 willing people, who helped fill sandbags and distribute information packages to residents.
"We're seeing this community pull together and I'm so darn proud of everyone here," said Mayor Button.
The net proceeds from the Graham DeLaet charity golf tournament brought in excess of $310,000 for the Weyburn and District Hospital Foundation. Weyburn native and PGA card holder Graham DeLaet participated in the inaugural tournament in his namesake on July 27.
The Weyburn Golf Course honoured DeLaet by naming the road entering the golf course as 'Graham DeLaet Drive'.
With construction in full swing this year at the Weyburn Comprehensive Course honoured DeLaet by naming the road entering the golf course as 'Graham DeLaet Drive'.
With construction in full swing this year at the Weyburn Comprehensive School, the future site of the Triple C Centre for Community, Culture and Convention, the school year for high school students was altered this summer, beginning earlier than usual on August 22 and final exams were held in December.
Air Ambulance services are coming to Saskatchewan as a result of a $300,000 pledge made by Enerplus on September 15 to the Shock Trauma Rescue Society (STARS) Saskatchewan program. The first helicopter will be located at the Regina International Airport and would be able to reach Weyburn in half the time it takes a ground vehicle to travel the same distance.
"STARS is a really important organization," said Ian Dundas, executive vice-president and COO for Enerplus. "Their commitment to protecting people aligns very well with our interests and our commitment to the health and safety of our employees."
In early October, the Triple C received a $200,000 donation that will result in a new music facility called the Helen Davidson Choral Room. Davidson, who taught piano lessons in Weyburn for 70 years and directed choir and played organ at the Calvary Baptist Church for more than 60 years, passed away in the spring of 2011 at the age of 102. Her friends describe her as having had a lifelong passion for music and performing arts. A donation going toward a new music room in her name as part of a state-of-the-art facility would have delighted the local legend.
The Weyburn Community Dog Park opened this fall. The nearly three acres of off-leash space is located on First Avenue Northwest at Aylmer Street, along the side of the Tatagwa Trail and across from the Tatagwa View facility.
The City of Weyburn's Council Chambers became endowed with a world-class level of sophistication thanks to a new permanent art installation by local artist Heather van der Breggen. A 13-piece series of paintings entitled, 'Just...Roll with it' was presented on October 13 during a wine and cheese reception hosted by Tom and Gail Minard, who had commissioned the series to be donated to Council Chambers.
The 30th Annual United Way Communithon surpassed its goal this year, raising $131,000 for its member agencies. This was the second year that the event was streamed live via the internet. Cj Mainil, who has been the Chair of the Communithon Committee for five years, will be stepping down from the position to allow for some fresh ideas and fresh faces next year.
Weyburn Inland Terminal Ltd. (WIT) was inducted into the Saskatchewan Business Hall of Fame at the 28th Annual Achievement in Business Excellence (ABEX) awards dinner held November 19 in Saskatoon.
The Family Place 12th Annual Festival of Trees raised more than $41,000 thanks to the largest contributions of trees and silent auction items in event history.
Mayor Button initiated a fundraising challenge between employees at City Hall and staff at Weyburn Credit Union to see who could collect more food for the food bank in honour of the CP Holiday Train, which stopped in Weyburn on December 17. The winner of 'the Clash at Coteau Corner' was City Hall, who collected approximately 12,000 pounds of food in addition to the overall collection, which reaches beyond 20,000 pounds (and counting) reportedly received by the Salvation Army Food Bank. Way to go, Weyburn!
Although there were many events worth noting, these were the major points of interest for Weyburn in 2011.
