Approximately six weeks ago, when a men's choral choir called A Buncha Guys from Saskatoon performed in Rabbit Lake, people that I knew who attended had nothing but great comments on the performance. When I saw a poster hanging up in the vicinity advertising that they were to perform in Nutana Park Mennonite Church April 24, my vehicle directed me to that location. What an absolute performance, with Fraser Krips as a guest playing the marimba.
A marimba is a percussion instrument consisting of a set of wooden bars struck with mallets to produce musical tones. The music is amplified by resonators attached to the bars. This instrument originated decades ago in Guatemala and West Africa. This soloist had the audience in awe.
The men's choir sang 16 selections with a few of the guys playing bass, banjo, mandolin, guitar and piano. One of the reasons I attended was that I was fortunate to have taught piano lessons to Tyler and Brett Martens from Rabbit Lake for a few years. The closing piece was I'm Gonna Sing with the guys singing, but both the Martens boys were the duet accompanying on the piano.
Their parents Deb and Al Martens, sister Maryjane and grandparents Cornie and Marlene Martens all from Rabbit Lake were in attendance. The director of the group is Russ Regier with Val Regier, the piano accompanist. If you ever have an opportunity to see this choir, I would highly recommend it. It was a wonderful afternoon followed by coffee and visiting.
Accompanying me to this performance was Marguerite Wintonyk (local) and Jean Sherman of Maymont. For more information on booking this group, contact Russ Regier at [email protected].
A woman spoke on behalf of Canadian Foodgrains Bank with their goal being a world without hunger. She has firsthand experience working in Third World countries and sees the devastation that these countries face every day. The audience was under no pressure to donate, but there were offering envelopes and one can get a receipt for tax purposes with donations of $10 or more.
New Brunswick is a province that Sharon Babiy is no stranger to. She visited her niece Marcie Meiers (Greg) and three children for 10 days. Marcie is Victor Pushee's only daughter who has been living in the Maritimes for many years. Sharon enjoyed the many new sights that she had not visited yet with the family.
My oldest son Curtis along with fellow employees at Scott Lake Fishing Lodge were anxiously awaiting their one week fishing expedition at Christmas Island when they got unexpected news in Hawaii. Going to Christmas Island was not going to be a reality, because the fire truck at the airport was out of commission. There is only one flight every week going in and departing from this small place located in the Indian Ocean, 380 kilometres south of Java.
They ended up staying longer in Hawaii and fished on Oahu and Moloka'i Islands.
Every second year the owner of Scott Lake Lodge pays for a new fishing experience in a remote part of the world. Two years ago the crew fished in the Amazon and the photos and videos my son showed were fascinating. Not many tourists would be too thrilled with having alligators lunging beside the watercraft. That just adds more excitement to this sport.
Monday had many admirers viewing the beautiful quilting and art display at Rabbit Lake Hall. Lynn Morrison and Donna German were among the instructors this past fall and winter. I was glad to have seen the fantastic work that people can do in their free time. Some residents from Rose Gill Lodge and school aged children also partook in showing their talent.
 I was among the many interested people who attended a small workshop on Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide last Monday at the Ukrainian Catholic Hall in Hafford. There were a couple of interesting guest speakers who kept us very attentive. Canada, amongst other countries, is considering legalizing assisted suicide and euthanasia. Almost every day the news is filled with events that illustrate the varied attitudes people take in the face of undeniable challenges in life. There was much literature handed out for everyone to take home and read.
The three-day Kinsmen Rodeo has come and gone. It was deemed a real success as always, thanks to the many dedicated volunteers who make this a reality. Grandchildren Parker and Keri Sevick were a delight for me to take on April 29. It was nice to see so many children enjoy this fast-paced evening. Obviously cowboys do enjoy this challenging, dangerous sport.
We certainly are experiencing hot summer days for the beginning of May, with record breaking temperatures. Many gardeners will be wanting to sow their gardens early because of this heat, but don't get fooled. Jack Frost will dampen our spirits yet, because it is not uncommon to receive cool weather towards the end of this month.
We do have all of the sounds and sights of summer around us. Perfect weather for yard work, almost too hot, so the shade is a real treat to escape to! How many of us like those pesky mosquitoes and ticks?
