UNITY — We enjoyed beautiful fall weather for our trick or treaters.
The air will feel crisp for Remembrance Day services but our “hardships” are few and far between compared to those who bravely fought for our freedom. The footage from the war in Ukraine gives us an idea of the devastation caused by war. We can only imagine the mental and physical impact on those directly involved.
Please check your schedules and if you can, sign up as a volunteer firefighter. Our squad needs an increase in members. They usually meet Tuesdays at the firehouse, or you can contact Fire Chief Dwaine Kopp at 306-210-7495. Dwaine can fill you in on equipment provided and training. They are a dedicated and indispensable group.
It’s nice to see our downtown busy. We have a few new businesses either open or opening soon, so stop in and say hello. The ones that come to mind are Unity Asian Foods, Flourish Studios and Simply Swimming.
Unity’s Chamber of Commerce is looking into signage for the reroute to direct travellers to our downtown and facilities. There is a committee setting up for an in-person Celebrate Unity next spring. The chamber has been running Celebrate Unity videos on social media and highlighting their members each week. Excellent advertising for your business. Be sure to sign up if you haven’t already. They are also working on Christmas promotions with Grand in Your Hand, Santa Day and promotions through this year’s traditional Winter Wonderland, which will run Dec. 8.
For town news, we are still running ads for public works director, and we have conducted interviews for finance officer. We hope to hire soon for the finance department.
The arena and curling rink are full-on busy again. Enjoy the walking paths before the snow comes. Eventually the ground will be covered, and the outdoor rink and Wilson’s hill will be busy as well. It’s comforting to know we have Jake and the crew to keep our roads open throughout the coming winter. Some years have been heavy. We’ll see what this year brings, along with water breaks and other problems.
We can say we have everything we need right here in Unity. We have excellent health care and protective services available to us when needed. Don’t take this for granted, as many communities in our province and across the country are struggling to recruit.
It would be great if Unity had more long-term care beds here for our residents. The baby boomers are just starting to impact services for the elderly. If you have the chance to speak to provincial and federal politicians, please carry this need forward in your conversations.
I attended a workshop on new construction regulations. The one that stands out is retroactive. It is now mandatory to have carbon monoxide and smoke detectors in your residence. They are to be “hard wired,” not just the plug-in kind as those can be accidentally disconnected too easily. There have been too many deaths and close calls in Saskatchewan related to these safety concerns. Safety is pivotal for all of us to be able to enjoy our family and friends.
