White said they only saw three kindergarten students come into the school this past fall, but it was higher the year before. If they bring in 10 or 11 students this year, it will bulk up their population. Although the numbers are projected to drop a bit in 2024/25, they are anticipating a couple more big years.
“This is really just the start of it. This will continue for a few years.”
As well as large numbers of young students coming in, it looks like they will only be losing a few from graduation. Minto School teaches children until the eighth grade and then they move on to Boissevain School. White said they do lose a few younger students to other schools in their area as school of choice, but there are few. Right now, they are only looking at graduating two eighth graders this year. With double figures coming in to kindergarten, this is a solid trade off.
Right now, Minto has a 35-student total. If all goes according to projections, they will be looking at 42-43 next year. White, who has been at the school for many years, said this would match the largest totals he has seen there.
“My second year was the only year we have been over 40 since I came,” he said. “Usually, it has been around 35.”
The question is why are there so many kids? White said he has seen a lot of families in the right age range, from 25-35 years old, who are having children. Groups of young people of the same age tend to have families together. As they have children a few years apart, they contribute to the school population for a long time.
Where are they coming from? There are a few families who have moved to the Minto area from elsewhere, but White said mainly it is young people coming home to where they were born.
“We’re seeing that for sure. Only a couple of families don’t have Minto roots. All of them pretty much come from around here.”
He said some have come to work the family farms, while others just want their children to grow up in the same atmosphere they did.
“They feel this is a great place to raise their kids,” he said.
Gwen Wooley agrees. A lifetime member of the Minto community, Wooley recently joined the Municipality of Grassland Council.
“We are seeing a lot of younger families moving back to the community,” Wooley stated. “There are a lot of generational families coming in. It has definitely added to the school. There will be 20 some kids in the next few years.”
Like White, she feels the lure of the home community is a big factor. Also, many people work in professions like the health care field in other places like Brandon, Boissevain and Killarney. There is a centrality to the Minto area. As well, there are the basic services such as water and sewer.
“I think people want to live in a smaller community. We don’t have everything for sure, but people are wanting to come back to a smaller place.”
Minto has struggled a little in recent years. They lost their hotel about 20 years ago, and their restaurant created to respond to that also closed. Their historic community market shut down in 2018, the same year they lost the credit union, and the Co-op hardware closed down in 2021. On the plus side, the old Silver Saddle restaurant is now the new home of Mini Mustang daycare, and Lloyd and Elsie Campbell donated $1.5 million for recreation in the community.
White said he did not think the loss of some of these services was too crucial. With so many people working elsewhere, they are quite ready to pick up items on their way home.
“It becomes part of the every day routine,” he explained. “You drive to get to work or get groceries. I don’t think they necessarily need the amenities.”
In many ways, it is similar to any people who live outside of an urban centre.
Wooley said they have had a frustrating few years in the community with losing services, and they will never stop trying to improve the situation. However, people who came from Minto know there have been gaps in services, and are coming for other reasons.
“Minto for me has always had great community spirit,” Wooley said. “People are willing to volunteer, and it has helped us immensely. These people know what it’s like to live in Minto. A big part of the community is getting together to make it better.”
White said right now they are looking at a few changes with classrooms in the building to accommodate the influx. With multi-grade classrooms, they will have to make better use of spaces, such as the basement. Tweaking will be ongoing, but it is certainly a good problem to have.
Because kindergarten students are only funded half time by the province, White said the increase would not show with a lot more staffing right away. However, if it continues into other grades, this could change.
“Definitely this is good news for us,” White said. “With this big group, it gets us over the hump of 40. With the kids going in and out, it is easier to hold to that number than in the past. If you get below 35, then next thing you know you are at 30. Keeping it above 40 is what we are hoping for.”
Although there has not been a great official effort to bring people to Minto, Wooley will continue with word of mouth advertising.
“Every chance I have, I sell it,” she said.
by PAUL RAYNER, Recorder staff