Last weekend, the Russell Golf Course celebrated their 100th anniversary.
After a day of golf amoung friends, the club members met again on the Sunday morning for a pancake breakfast followed by a speech by RM of Russell Binscarth councillor Brent Havelange and the cutting the official anniversary cake.
Councillor Havelange’s speeches are always a treat. This one, shown below, takes us through the history of the Russell Golf course. Thank you councillor Havelange for allowing us to pass this information onto our readers.
“My name is Brent Havelange I am a counselor, in the Municipality of Russell-Binscarth, also in attendance is my fellow councilor Barry Wishart and ex-councillor Ray Elliot, so on behalf of the municipality, I would like to congratulate the Russell Golf Course on its hundred-year anniversary.
That was all Joan Miller had asked me to say in our first meeting. But after a follow up meeting, she gave me five more chores and expanded this brief speech into the history of The Russell Golf Course.
So, if I see any rolling of the eyes ITS NOT MY FAULT...nor worries it will not last 20 minutes, no one here wants to hear my mumblings for that long.
This quarter section was originally owned by Mr. R. M. Anderson and was purchased for the price of $6000. Mr. Ken Reavie had indicated in a letter that the committee that was struck to negotiate for the purchase was not transparent about what they wanted the land for, fearful that Mr Anderson might raise his asking price if he had known the true purpose it was to be used for. Any councilors who have been involved in similar negotiations for the purchase of farmland in the municipality know what Ken is getting at.

Want to know more? Pick up this week's Russell Banner and get this story on the front page and page 2.

For the last eight years, the Pelly Trail Classic Soap Box Derby has been a favourite summer fun for the entire family. (Top centre) Modelled after old time community fairs, the derby gives kids of all ages (and their families) a chance to show off not only their mechanical creation skills with home-made derby carts but their driving skills down the steepest hill on Pelly Avenue. Participants can either rent a cart or buy it by the kit and build their own through Youth for Christ. Thanks to the efforts of dozens of volunteers helping with everything from the running the carts back up to the top of the hill, to face painting and the manning of the Pelly Classic food booth which served up home made burgers and cotton candy, or the climbing wall (top right) that comes from Madge Lake Bible Camp every year, the Soap Box Derby has been a favorite family fun day. Proceeds from the event go to Youth for Christ located on Russell’s Main Street. Turn to page 5 for more pictures of the event.

Local landscaper Peter Wyss is advising residents of Roblin to check their elm trees for signs of Dutch elm disease (DED).
He says while there are not as many elms in town as there are Manitoba maples, there are still quite a few and many are dead or dying.
Check out this week’s Review for more.

The Arts for Manitoba Indigenous Youth Choir headed to Italy earlier this year to perform in the 29th Alta Pusteria International Choir Festival from June 10 to 14, 2026. The choir was led by Choral Director Rhonda Head and it has been one of many life-altering experiences the youth have embarked on. The scenery in Italy was unlike anything the choir had seen before.
“It was a really awesome experience; it was surreal and all of us kept saying we couldn’t believe we were going,” said Head. “The flight was long and once we arrived, we had jet lag for about two days.

Every summer, there is a campaign launched for people to be responsible and diligent in the effort of preventing Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) from taking up residence in Manitoba lakes and waterways. The most common and concerning AIS is zebra mussels; however, other invasive species can create havoc in waterways.
Recently, the curly-leaf pondweed, a member of the AIS, was detected in North Cranberry Lake.
“It was first detected in early July 2026 by a member of the Manitoba government Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) team who was checking the lake for the presence/absence of zebra mussels and other AIS as part of their annual monitoring program,” said Citizens Protecting Our Northern Waterways (CPONW) President Chris Smith. “Because of our ongoing relationship with the government AIS team, our volunteer group, CPONW, was informed.

A group known as the Indigenous Saskatchewan Women’s Environmental Water Advocacy Keeper (ISKWEWAK) launched a water movement that started on August 1 and runs until August 6. This water movement is a call to educate and urge those living near the Saskatchewan River Delta to resist the Lake Diefenbaker Irrigation project, in an effort to protect the delta.
This has been an ongoing effort that is now making its way into Manitoba.
“For me, this started way back, like 20 years ago,” said ISKWEWAK Member Denise Mckenzie. “My husband, who was with the NI Trappers, and I were trying to advocate about what was happening with the water. There was no flow going in; everything was starting to dry up. There was a smell to it, and the animals weren’t area. Everything was dying out.
“We kept getting the runaround. We went to federal and provincial government, with Justice and Environment. They referred us to Water Security and they referred us to the Watershed. Then when the Watershed Department came in and sent someone out to inspect, he said everything was good. We kept getting the runaround and nothing was happening.

Thirty-eight teams hit the links at the Dauphin Lake Golf Club, Saturday, for the Pine Creek four-person best ball golf tournament.
The team of Darryl Lacquette, Tyler Lacquette, Jose Lacquette and Evan won the tournament, finishing with a 56.
Winning the first flight was the foursome comprising of Chief Barry McKay, Chad Facey, Derek and Shawn McQuarrie, shooting a 57.
Larry Nepinak Jr., Earl Thompson, Taylor Fletcher and Al Cote were awarded second place on a countback over Dion Anderson, Adam Anderson, Kyle Sinclair and Lou Shorting. Both teams shot a 58.
Keith Pangman, Shawn Pangman, Tyson Pangman and Brad Belhumeur combined to shoot a 60, good enough for first place in the second flight on a countback.
In second place were Dustin Mousseau, Aaron Lavasseur, Rodger Roulette and Rodger Roulette Jr., while in third place was Chris Stranger, Dwayne McCorrister, Pat McKay and Cooters, with a 61.
Rey Cook, Nelson Leaske, Able Gott and Dennis Chartrand teamed up to shoot a 63 to win the third flight.
Greg Starr, Waylon Eastman, Drake Starr and Wade Aitkens took second place on a countback with a 64. In third place was the team of Russell Beaulieu, Albert B., Rob Mousseau and Mike Prince.
Closest-to-the-hole winners were Darcy Pelletier on no. 2, Farron Genaille on no. 6, Gott on no. 9, Jose Lacquette on no. 11 and Belhumeur on no. 14.
Genaille also had the men’s longest drive, while Mya Kubrakovich had the women’s longest drive. Jose Lacquette won the putting contest and McQuarrie won the chip-off.

The future of the Gilbert Plains Country Club could be decided this week at a board meeting, slated for today.
The local golf course was devastated by flooding in late June and early July. And while staff have been working on repairing the course, the board has also begun fund-raising to cover the $100,000 insurance deductible.
GPCC general manager Scott McCallum said they reached out to Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries to get a license to hold a 50-50 draw.
“The turn around time on that was four to six weeks and that was time we felt we didn’t have,” he said.
So GPCC reached out to the Dauphin Kings to use their 50-50 system and the draw began last month.
“We’re very thankful for that. And it’s going pretty well. It’s over $13,000 now and, l;ike anything, the bigger the pot, the more people will buy. So it’s going well,” McCallum said.
The draw will be made, Aug. 30, at noon. At this time, tickets can only be purchased online at DauphinKings5050.ca.
To assist with the fund-raising efforts, Park View Private Wealth Management Ltd. launched the Parkland Business Challenge with a $500 donation toward the deductible and is inviting other Parkland businesses to support the cause.
“It’s been very successful and people are being extremely generous. We’re just so thankful for everybody that’s thinking of us and helping out in whatever way they can. There’s certainly no donation too small,” McCallum said.
Seeing that support from businesses throughout the Parkland and beyond is incredible, McCallum said.
Golf courses throughout the province have also stepped up to support GPCC, with Dauphin, Neepawa, Minnedosa and Swan River offering discounts to GPCC members.
“There’s several golf courses that have reached out to us and they have some things planned for how they can help us,” McCallum said.
“And not only help us, but help our members, because, at the end of the day, our members are the ones that we’re most concerned about and they’re the ones that are losing their golf course. It’s sad, but it’s also something to celebrate to see how much people come together and support each other through times like this.”
Some courses, McCallum added, were able to take on some of the tournaments scheduled for GPCC this year.
“As sad as it is, it’s heartwarming in other areas at times,” he said.
McCallum thanks everyone in helping to publicize the fund-raising efforts.
“We’re a small non-for-profit golf course, but we know that we’re loved, obviously, by a lot of people. So it’s going to make things a little easier down the road,” he said.

Work is well underway on upgrades to the City’s Active Transportation Route along Mountain Road North.
Three blocks of the bike path - from River Avenue to Davidson Avenue - are being moved from the roadway onto a widened sidewalk following the boulevard.
The city’s focus on active transportation reflects a desire to create a cycling culture, which revolves around the Northgate trail system and feeds tourism in the future.
Mountain Road, mayor David Bosiak said, is an important part of the overall vision.
“When we contracted with urban systems to facilitate our active transport plan for the whole city, one of our priorities was we wanted to connect all of the schools and our major public facilities, parks and stuff like that,” Bosiak said.
“So we’ve always thought that Mountain Road is a tremendous spine of the system to get people going north and south.”
Other existing trails, such as the Kingsway Trail and a planned trail along Whitmore Avenue, branch off for east and west travel and spawn other active transportation routes, such as the Allen Dowhan Campus Connector.
“If we’re trying to create a bike culture up at Northgate and in Riding Mountain National Park, we have got to, by extension, do it in town. It’s got to be a complete culture of active transport, so, that’s what this is.”
City council, Bosiak said, has committed to spending up to $500,000 annually on active transportation and the work on Mountain Road will be completed in phases, along with other active transportation developments.
“We’re spending about that amount on a number of things, because we’re finishing the Al Dowhan trail to the college. We’re spending with urban systems on the design of the Whitmore Avenue Trail that’s going to go from AC towards Main Street and we’re going to spend some money this year on that first piece of the Mountain Road connection,” he said.
Bosiak added work on moving the bike path off the roadway will be done in phases as infrastructural renewal takes place along the street.
“It’s always been a plan to get that bike path off of the street,” Bosiak said, adding the former city council spearheading the Mountain Road bike path made the decision to develop the on-street option based on logistics and funding.
“They got a little grant and that’s all that they could do. That’s all they did and that’s all we got.”
Bosiak added he has heard complaints about the project and the decision to spend money on the upgrades.
“Give us the benefit of the doubt and comment on this when you see it done, Active Transportation Routewhen it’s complete. Not before it’s even started,” he said.

Dauphin Fire Department (DFD) was on the scene of a blaze last Wednesday, later determined to be suspicious in nature.
Shortly after 9 a.m., DFD was dispatched for a report of smoke coming from a residence north of the city along Hwy. 20.
Upon arrival, firefighters observed smoke coming from a window on the north side of the home. Upon entry to the structure, crews located a fire in the stairwell along the north wall, with several of the stairs already burned away.
This fire was initially extinguished, and additional firefighters had to gain access to the second floor from ladders in order to reach the fire extension.
As firefighters were working on the second floor, the roof began to fail due to the flames impacting the structural members of the roof.
This required firefighters to take a defensive position as the second floor was deemed to be unsafe due to the collapse.
Once the fire was under control, crews again entered the second floor to completely extinguish the blaze.
The department was able to clear the scene at approximately 3 p.m. once the fire was determined to be completely out. The ensuing investigation into the cause determined the fire to be suspicious in nature.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call the Dauphin RCMP at 204-622-5050 or Manitoba Crime Stoppers toll-free at 1-800-222-8477.
Friday morning, just before 10:30 a.m., DFD was dispatched to a report of smoke coming from a home on 3rd Avenue SW. Upon arriving on scene, crews found the RCMP had forced the front door open to allow the firefighters entry to the home.
The firefighters entered the home, which is under renovation, and quickly located the fire on the main floor. As the staircase to the second floor had been temporarily removed as a part of the renovation, crews accessed the upper portion of the home using a window as an access point.
Once all areas had been cleared and no further fire extension was possible, crews ventilated the building to remove the remaining smoke.
The investigation into the cause of the fire has determined it was an accidental fire. As part of the renovations, the owner had been using an oil based stain on wood for flooring and trim. The rags used had been discarded into a plastic pail after use. The rags spontaneously combusted and the flames spread to other construction materials that were piled nearby.
When oil-based stains dry, they create heat. If the rags that were used for the application of the stain are crumpled up, this heat gets trapped and can build until the rags spontaneously combust.
According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), fires caused by spontaneous combustion are a significant hazard. These fires often start hours after a project is finished, typically at night when no one is around, making them especially dangerous.
What not to do with oily rags:
Tossing them in a pile on the floor. This is the classic scenario for spontaneous combustion. The pile acts as an insulator, trapping all the heat produced by oxidation.
Throwing them in the trash can. A crumpled rag in a trash can, surrounded by other flammable materials like paper and sawdust, is a fire waiting to happen. It’s a perfect fuel package.
Putting them in a plastic bag. A plastic bag is even worse than a pile. It not only traps heat, but also melts, adding fuel to a potential fire. Never, ever do this.
Leaving them in your pocket. It sounds unbelievable, but people have suffered severe burns from oily rags combusting in their pockets hours after finishing a job.
Putting them in the washing machine or dryer. The oil residue will not wash out completely. Putting them in a dryer adds even more heat, dramatically increasing the fire risk. This can burn your house down.
Always properly dispose of them, or use only water based stains.