How simple and straight-forward it was in 1913. Tending to the needs of the newly minted Rural Municipality of Coalfields No. 4, meant you had to pay some attention to the immediate details, throw in some volunteer hours to get certain jobs done and everything else pretty well took care of itself.
Fast forward to 2013, and things are vastly different. The RM of Coalfields is big business with many demands facing it on agriculture, economic, public works and social fronts.
Those stark differences were made apparent at the RM of Coalfields' 100th anniversary party staged in the RM's newly constructed maintenance and storage garage in the Village of Hirsch on July 13.
Reeve Stan Lainton, who has served on the council for 17 years, 14 of them as the reeve, noted that his father had also been a councillor and he could recall as a youngster joining his dad for a visit to the RM shed years ago when the small building housed a single grader and two little mowers tucked into the corner. Expansion became necessary a few years after that as the equipment grew in number and size, and now another new facility is needed to help store and repair four graders, two tractors, mowers and other equipment for seven operators. The administration office also includes up to three people.
"We just purchased a new grader and tractor," Lainton told The Mercury. "We could use another operator. We have 325 miles of road to take care of now."
Lainton said there are still a few areas that require more attention following the spring and summer floods of 2011.
"Places that were softened up and tough to maintain to begin with. We have to keep up with the muskrats who like to bore under the road beds and weaken them. We have to hold them under control," he said, referring to just some of the day-to-day events that taxpayers don't always consider when annual budgets come up for review.
Lainton and Deputy Reeve Paul Deren said the RM of Coalfields is still dominated by agricultural landowners and agrarian pursuits, but there have been forays made into dividing properties into smaller acreages for residential development. They explained that a minimum of three acres and a maximum of 10 acres can be used for residential pursuits and hobby farming with a maximum of five dwellings on a quarter.
With an overall population of 395, there will be further challenges for the traditional way as current senior farm owners sell their land to fewer and fewer buyers who are more interested in farming on a corporate scale.
Lainton said when the 2011 floods arrived the maintenance and repair side of the business absorbed most of their time and money. He said there are still outstanding claims to be processed by the Provincial Disaster Assistance Program (PDAP) for up to $1 million, but he wasn't holding his breath. They couldn't afford to wait for any additional PDAP assistance since a bridge had to be repaired and grid roads that were totally destroyed had to be rebuilt and maintained along with more than 25 miles of trenching that took place to help with drainage. There were dikes to build for RM home owners and pumps to bring in to keep the waters at bay.
"We were still doing assessments and digging last summer and into this summer," Lainton said. "But most of the land around here is back into production, I still have one home quarter under water, but most are back to work."
Don Taylor, the Division 1 director for the Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities (SARM), brought greetings from that body to the Coalfields celebration in Hirsch.
"Think of the technology they could call upon in 1913 compared with what you have today," he said.
"Back in 1913 they would have had virtually nothing to call on to help them other than each other. Now what about the next 100 years, will it evolve as effectively as it did for the first 100?"
During the course of the celebration that included free food and refreshments plus a number of door prizes and raffles, it was announced by administrator Val Pelton that the RM of Coalfields council had agreed to commit to a 10-year sponsorship of the Weldon School's breakfast program in Bienfait. Weldon School Community Council and breakfast club co-ordinators Lucille Michel and Melissa Rensby were on hand to collect the first cheque. Later, the two said the program's original sponsorship had just recently expired, so the RM's offer came at the right time. The program can be operated within a budget of about $6,000 annually, they said.
Souris-Moose Mountain MP Ed Komarnicki brought greetings from the federal government and noted how much it took to keep a rural municipality moving forward in today's new world order.
"Your municipal government is the government on the ground. They are the ones who build and cut roads and stage the war on droughts and floods, and they are the ones who have stood the test of time. This is one of them congratulations," Komarnicki said.
In his address to the nearly 100 people who had gathered for the event, Lainton said over the 100 years there had been many brave and well meaning people stepping forward to serve on council and all had served under tougher times too.
"Can you even imagine setting a budget for this RM in the 1930s? Setting rates on land that was blown away? But I will say one thing, the dedication of those who serve hasn't changed. We've moved from horse-drawn graders and sickle cutters to computer aided graders. We need an office staff to keep our council organized and operators to keep the snow pushed and ditches mowed and the gravel moved."
All employees of the RM were introduced to the assembled audience that enjoyed an opportunity to socialize with neighbours and take a tour of the building and equipment following the formal portion of the gathering.
