Although it was well planned, Teresa Bell’s retirement at the Deloraine Post Office came a little more quickly than expected.
“I had always decided that I wouldn’t stay longer than 40 years and I decided back in November that April would be a good time as it would allow me to be more available for when seeding starts and I would be home to help out more on the farm,” Bell explained after her last day on April 17. “At the time April seemed like a long way away, but it sneaked up quickly which started to make me a little sad as it meant not seeing the people that I have enjoyed serving the past 40 years.”
Bell started at the post office on June 6, 1986. It was the beginning of a four-decade career that would see her take over as postmaster and work with around 20 different people. It all came about after a change in the office. As Bell explained, Postmaster Keith Maxwell had just retired, with Bob Astle taking on the position. She walked in, asked if there was a position, and put in an application. Bell wanted to stay in Deloraine and knew it would be a great place to work. She was hired to a part-time position, which worked well with her job as health care aide in Bren Del Win Lodge. Bell stayed at the lodge until more hours were available at the post office in 1987.
She worked under Astle for 15 years, along with others at the time like Evelyn Dailey, Elaine Franklin and Ellen Palmer, before she took over the office in Waskada. When Astle retired in July of 2001, Bell took over the postmaster role. She said he had trained her to take the position, having her take his duties when he was on leave and having her fill in for him as much as possible, attend meetings and training sessions.
“He gave me the opportunity to excel, and I am forever grateful to him for allowing me the freedom to do that. Bob was a great boss and I have so many great memories while working with him.”
The stained glass window restoration project in Boissevain was a unique one for Lampert Property Improvement, and one they have learned a great deal from for the future.
The Whiteshell company completed the north-facing window at St. Paul’s United Church, revealing their work on Friday, April 10. Ethan Lampert of Lampert Property Improvement said the company has traditionally built custom cabins. This was a bit of a change, so much so that they wanted to help the church as much as they could.
“This is out of our scope of work,” Lampert said. “Why we wanted to do this as a non-profit, is that we don’t exactly know how to do this window work. But nobody knows how to do this anymore. It is a forgotten trade. Nobody knows how to do windows this way anymore, so the idea of doing this as a non-profit is to take out time and learn and then be able to do this at other places.”
The story of the project goes back a bit. The church had found the window outside of the stained glass, its protector, was slipping and the sills needed replacement.
Lampert explained they were the first residential construction company to join the United Brotherhood of Carpenters since the 1970’s. He said his project manager Brett Corby was a big influence in this. Lampert said he is comfortable building cabins, while Corby looks for interesting projects. St. Paul’s phoned the Brotherhood asking if there was someone who did this type of work, and then the union called them. They said they would give it a try. It went from there.
“We’re hoping to sort of bring this trade back, replicate it and go from there. This job has been a learning experience for everyone.”
It is 30 years in and going strong for one of the key family businesses in Boissevain.
Steads Farm Supply celebrated the completion of their third decade and their entry into a fourth on Wednesday, April 15. It has been a long time since a couple leaps of faith led the Stead family to Boissevain and an interesting and diverse business venture.
“It’s kind of hard to believe where the time went,” said David Stead, “but time flies when you’re having fun.”
The story stretches back across the Atlantic Ocean, to Yorkshire, England, where David and Diane Stead were dairy farming. Regulations were making it difficult to continue to sell on their own, and they investigated moving to Canada. They came to the Boissevain area in October, 1983. The family continued dairy farming until 1994, selling the quarter then. They started selling a few items like minerals from the farm in the winters.
“I thought if people will come to my farm to pick up minerals, I’m sure they would come to town, so maybe we should get a little place in town.”
The place in town that was once Atkinson’s, and then Mazer’s Equipment on the north end of Boissevain. Stead bought the shop with Ron Gibson in what would become the Agri-Mall. Mayne’s Fuels would operate from inside, as did the veterinarians for a short while, along with Steads Farm Supply in 1996. Gibson sold his shares to the Steads, and eventually they took over the whole building. It was David, Diane and a recently returned home daughter Ann in the beginning.
October of this year will tell whether or not the candidates for the 2026 municipal elections in Boissevain-Morton were among the crowd at the April 9 meeting in the Council Chambers.
The Boissevain-Morton Council held an information session for those interested in a possible run this fall. Head of Council Judy Swanson was impressed by the number of people at the meeting and explained its purpose.
“It is very important to be involved in your local council and local politics because that is where you can make a difference in the community,” Swanson stated, adding she had attended a similar type of meeting in Brandon. “I came home and thought ‘we need something like this here.’”
The purpose was to introduce what the responsibilities and rules for serving in the municipality were. Each councillor gave a brief presentation on their own service, why they decided to run and what committees they served on. Each had their own stories and levels of council experience.
The meeting moved on to discuss what the qualifications one must meet to run for council. A person has to be at least 18 years of age and a Canadian citizen, and voter in the municipality – a resident or owning property six months prior to election day.
Why would you want to run for mayor or council? Candidates are people who care about the community, want to make it better, to serve and give back.
Council is responsible for setting the direction of the municipality, developing and approving by-laws and policies. They are also involved in many different committees. They make the decisions for the municipality collectively. Council makes the decisions; the municipal staff follows through on implementation. Swanson said that Chief Administrative Officer Leo Poulin is their actual employee, with the others working under him.
Swanson showed an example of a long council agenda. Everything on it has to be dealt with at some point, she said. Each council member is expected to attend the meetings, which are held on the third Tuesday in December and January, and every third week after that, except for summer, where it is once a month. Each meeting is between three and five hours. There are also special meetings for issues that come up or to set the budget.
Boissevain Legion Branch #10 is looking for a new generation to keep their work and memory of veterans alive.
The local Legion, whose history dates back to the end of the First World War, put out a call for new members. According to Gib Beard, poppy chairman and member for 50 years, there is a need for more bodies.
“We’re looking for younger people to join,” Beard explained. “We’re small, we can’t really do much. We thought if we could get some younger people in, we could get more involved, but right now we can’t because we aren’t big enough.”
Beard said they have quite a few members, but many are out of town that joined in the past but moved away and still pay their membership. They have around 10 members in the immediate area, and there is a lack of members of younger generations. He added the issue has been around for quite a while.
The Royal Canadian Legion had its start after the carnage of the First World War. Canadian veterans had fought in a brutal war overseas and were suffering. Different veteran organizations, some having their beginnings as early as 1915 during the conflict, were created to advocate for care and benefits like pensions. One of the largest of these was the Great War Veterans Association. On November 11, 1919, these organizations marked one year from the Armistice, which would become Remembrance Day. They soon adopted the poppy and in 1925, the many groups voted to form the Canadian Legion of the British Empire Service League, which was officially recognized the next year.
There will be some new faces on the International Peace Garden Board of Directors, including some we will not know until later in the month.
The Peace Garden is in the middle of voting for board members. As CEO Tim Chapman explained, they have eight seats up for election this year. Terms are three years in length and staggered, with five from Canada, three from the US due in 2026.
“In the last few years, the board expanded its membership from 16 to 18 members,” Chapman explained. “It is just in the bylaws that they can go up to 20 members. It was a board decision, and there was a lot of interest.”
This year, there are five possibilities for the three US seats, with Chapman commenting there is not always a contested election. Carmen Simone, Nancy Olson, Marlys Carlson, Murray Sagsveen and Clay Jenkinson, all with varied board experience, are running for the seats south of the 49th
In Canada, there are only four candidates for the five seats. This means that the declared candidates will be filling spots on the board. Sotirios Kotoulas, an honourary consul for Greece with the province of Manitoba, and former protocol chief for Manitoba Dwight MacAuley will be returning for another term. MacAuley is well known in the area as he is originally from Killarney and spent many years working with CJRB Radio in Boissevain.
Although two local cooperatives may be doing it differently, both are looking for groups in their local communities who are interested in adding a little green this year.
Pembina Co-op opened applications for its Sustainable Roots Grant on April 1. Since 2021, the initiative has seen 24 projects completed in 15 of the communities they serve. They have invested over $35,000 in the endeavour.
“Each tree planted through this program helps strengthen the spaces where our communities come together, including parks, trails, schoolyards and gathering places,” explained Pembina Marketing and Community Relations Coordinator Chelsea Hallson. “These projects leave a lasting legacy that future generations will enjoy.”
One local project they contributed to recently was Minto School. In 2024, they supported Sustainable Roots tree planting on the grounds.
After more than 20 years, a house built as a childhood replica by a local entrepreneur is coming down.
The Municipality of Boissevain-Morton has put out a request for proposals to remove the log house on the grounds of the Irvin Goodon International Wildlife Museum. Executive Assistant Melissa Perkins said the house behind Tommy Turtle has served as a cultural attraction over the years, and has been used during community events like Metis Days for cooking and serving bannock. However, the building is no longer sound.
“The building itself has been deteriorating over the past number of years, with extensive repair needed not only to the roof but to the interior of the building also,” Perkins explained. “The structure itself is situated in a low-lying area where spring snowmelt accumulation resulted in flooding causing water damage to the interior as well. Over time these factors have taken a collective toll and the building is currently in a significantly deteriorated state. Now the safety issues are simply too much for it to remain on the property.”
With the purchase of additional land nearly complete, Boissevain-Morton is wasting no time putting it to use.
As soon as weather permits, the municipality will be starting work on about two dozen new campsites in Boissevain. The addition will add to the 40 sites at the Lions Campground, to the southwest in land they are currently acquiring from the Turtle Mountain Agricultural Society.
“The purchase of the land is almost done,” Boissevain-Morton Head of Council Judy Swanson stated. “It should be finished this spring and then we can start work on the campground.”
In late 2025, Boissevain-Morton was informed they had received $100,000 from Manitoba’s “From the Ground Up – Safe Communities for ALL” program. This is much needed help for an important project like the campground expansion.
Swanson said the building of a new swimming pool, completed and opened in 2024, increased the demand for spaces at the next-door campground located on the northwest corner of town.
“There is a need for it. We get a lot of requests for spots and bookings. With the new pool, there is the possibility of more classes, swimming lessons. We went by how many requests there were and how much need there was.”
As Recreation Director Wendy Giesbrecht explained, this is part of a larger phased project. In 2023, they received grant funding. A big part of phase one was the new washroom and shower facilities. Phase two included continued site prep work, including an accessible site. Picnic tables were added and recreational games were put in for the group use area. The group cook shack was relocated to the washroom area.
The sun has set on one of Melita’s biggest supporters and helping hands.
A year ago, in March of 2025, the members of the Melita & Area Lions Club made a decision to ‘wind down’. The membership number had diminished to eight and those eight were getting up in years, making it increasingly difficult to do the things that the club had been doing for forty-nine years. Although the community wanted the Lions to remain in operation, it was difficult finding new members to serve.
Their last meeting took place this past December.
On paper, the Lions still exist, but only because not all the paperwork has been finished and signed for the ‘de-incorporation’. The club’s executive team continues to work on that to make the end official.
While Canada and much of the world were focused on the 2026 Winter Olympics in Italy, young Manitoba athletes were getting all geared up for the 2026 Manitoba Winter Games (MWG) in Thompson.
Of course, there are huge differences between the games held in Italy and those held in Thompson. Two thousand, nine hundred and sixteen of the world’s best athletes of any age converged on Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo to collect gold, silver and bronze; over fifteen hundred of Manitoba’s best young athletes from specific age groups made their way to Thompson to have a blast, and maybe win a medal along the way.
Not every young person has the opportunity to compete in the MWG. For example, to compete in boys’ hockey, players had to be born in 2013. Since the games come around every four years, many boys miss out on the opportunity.
The stars lined up right for Melita’s Cooper Walker this year. He is a goalie for the Southwest AA Cougars that play out of Souris. He has played organized hockey for most of his life.
He learned at the beginning of this past season that he met the qualifications to try out for the MWG. He registered for the chance to compete. A showcase tournament was held December 22-23 which gave scouts from Sport Manitoba an opportunity to evaluate the players. After consulting with the coaches, the scouts sent out invitations to the players that ‘made the cut’.
If a recent fundraiser is any indication, there is plenty of support for the Elgin Hall inside and outside the community.
On March 7, the Elgin Hall Board held a Music Bingo Night. According to organizer Siobhan Jackson, the night was a great success.
“Overall, it went really well,” Jackson stated. “We had 128 people. We were hoping to get 100, so we were very happy. We raised a little money and we are hoping to do something again. We hope to keep everything there afloat.”
Expressions Entertainment out of Ninette hosted the event. Jackson said they had done the music for her social in the hall, and they had done music bingos for Christmas parties. Although this fundraiser was bigger than the bingos they had done in the past, Jackson said the proprietor was very excited to be involved. The hall board also liked being able to employ someone from another local small community.
What is a music bingo? As Jackson explained, it is similar to a regular bingo, except with a musical twist. For $20, each participant received three musical sheets – one from the 1950’s, one from the 80’s and one party music. Parts of songs were played and with some hints, participants picked the song. This was done as a bingo, with straight, diagonal lines etc. until a bingo.
Jackson said it was a fun event with something for everyone.
“They would play songs, add a bit of trivia, with three different rounds. By the end there would be a blackout, which is the most fun. Everyone liked the party songs. Everyone knows 80’s songs and the older people really liked the 50’s songs. It was a lot of fun.”
A beautiful quilt is perhaps the perfect wrapping to Murray Dalrymple’s 30 years in service to his country.
The Boissevain native received his Quilt of Valour on March 7 in Shilo. The works are presented by Quilts of Valour Canada Society and are a way of honouring those who have spent a part of their life serving this country through the military. Dalrymple, whose career started in 1975 and spanned the globe, is certainly deserving.
When he first heard he was getting the honour, having been nominated by Boissevain Legion Branch #10, he admitted he did not know that much about it. He looked it up and was quite pleased with the honour. There were several given out that day, and Dalrymple had his wife Myrtle, sister Louise Hardcastle and a few members of the local Legion with him.
“It was quite an honour,” Dalrymple said.
Dalrymple’s story begins in the 1970’s. He was working at Drings (now Western Archrib) in the glue gang. He and Allan Deacon had been talking about joining the military, and they went into Winnipeg for the aptitude test. They came back and he received a call a few months later asking if he wanted to join the Canadian Armed Forces. Dalrymple agreed, went into Winnipeg and signed the papers on February 14, 1975. He was 19.
Inquisitive minds were bringing the planted seeds of science to bloom in Boissevain School on March 6.
The south gym was alive with questioning students at the Boissevain School Science Fair. Boissevain students, joined by their compatriots from Minto School, displayed the work they had put in on projects that spanned the years and the interests, as they learned new things by trying out experiments.
“There were a total of 82 students and 59 projects,” said Boissevain teacher/organizer Hannah Beghin. “The fair is open to students from grades 1-12, but there were only students in grades 1-7 that chose to participate.”
Beghin explained that information about the fair was sent out mid-January, allowing a month and a half for students to prepare for the day. Two lunch hours a week were set aside for students to get help for projects, but the vast majority of work was put in at home.
There were a number of different projects over the many grades that participated. One was from Liam Fortier, a grade six student. He presented a study on energy, particularly a comparison of solar panels with other sources. Using a small, hand held solar panel, some testing and a lot of research, he put together a strong project.
One of the key events in Souris has found an added expense they were not anticipating and one they wanted help with.
The 26th Souris Survivor Curling Bonspiel is set to start at the end of the month. It takes a lot of planning to create this major draw to the community. This year, organizers were hit with a surprise insurance situation. As Sponsorship Committee Chair Mark Fenwick explained, they were asked to provide their own insurance to cover the five-day event. He said they have traditionally fallen under the Souris-Glenwood liability insurance, as they are using the municipal facility, the Memorial Complex. For their five-day event, they were quoted around $2,500 for this extra.
“We have never had to do this before,” Fenton said. “We’ve never had a legal issue, and unless we get sponsorship, it will be another expense for us.”
Fenwick wrote a letter to the Souris-Glenwood Council last month. He pointed out the municipality had always declared Survivor a community event in the past, and has in 2026 as well. Though the Curling Club, which organizes the bonspiel is being charged the insurance rate as a part of their rental agreement, they are not the only group that benefits. Quoting numbers, he said over the previous 25 ‘spiels, they have netted $750,000 with $180,000 going to facility rent, over and above the club’s $30,000 annual rent. They have also chipped in $200,000 to maintenance and capital projects in the complex. Different community groups have also benefitted from donations made in return for their help during the event.
Fenwick said they were looking for some help from the municipality.
“We were hoping they would cover it for us. They declare it a community event, so we were hoping they would waive this.”
The Boissevain Arena was hopping with hockey talent last weekend, but the impact did not stick to the ice.
The U13 A Female Provincials were held from February 27 to March 1. It was a busy time on the ice, and according to Melissa Perkins, one of the organizers, it was also a great one.
“Hosting the Hockey Manitoba Rural U13 A Female Provincials in Boissevain this past weekend was a tremendous success,” Perkins stated. “This three-day provincial championship tournament showcased the best of the best of Rural U13 Female hockey teams and athletes. Featuring 10 teams from across the province, it was a true showcase of hockey skills, teamwork, and competition right here in our own barn.”
With the strong hockey culture and history in Boissevain, Perkins said, bringing the female tournament to town was extra special. The arena was packed all weekend and the influx of more than 145 players was noticed around town, although the start had a shaky look.
“The weather Friday was looking iffy and affecting travel plans for teams coming from the east, with some team families stuck on closed highways outside of the city. Thankfully conditions improved, roads re-opened and everyone made it in and the schedule ran as planned.”
A Boissevain roper will be able to continue on with his rodeo dream once he is out of high school.
Reid Armstrong, who graduates this year, will be moving on to Dodge City Community College in Kansas. The 17-year-old has participated in numerous rodeo events with the Manitoba High School Rodeo Association, including trips to provincials and nationals, and will be joining Dodge City’s rodeo team.
“I went on a trip last month, three weeks ago to choose a school,” Armstrong stated. “I visited four and ended up choosing Dodge. I liked it the most.”
At the end of the week, he will be heading to Dodge to officially sign with the rodeo team and have a media day. He will be going out in August to start his college rodeo career.
Although everything seems to be moving quickly, this was not a long-term plan. Armstrong said that when he qualified for National High School Finals, he was not thinking of college. While there, however, he checked out the college booths. He said they all offered such great programming with rodeo opportunities. Dodge was one of the schools who reached out to him and his first visit was there. Then he went to a pair of Texas schools and one in New Mexico. Dodge made the biggest impression on him. Economics were one reason, with all of their fees merged into one. All of the amenities were great. Of course, there was the rodeo program. He said they have the best coaches. Both Jacob Perky and Colton Valente went to great schools, are young and have the most ambition.
“When I went down there I was welcomed with open arms. I felt very at home there, they wanted me to come out there and check it out.”
Armstrong added he felt Dodge appreciated his good, positive behavior when he arrived, which showed they were looking at the right things.
“I think I made the right choice,” Armstrong said.
More...
For Levi Nadlersmith, his upcoming support appearance at the Paralympic Games is a logical outgrowth of his lifelong competitive sport background.
Nadlersmith, a native of Boissevain, has long been known for his prowess in cross-country skiing. Now he will be helping another competitor, Jesse Bachinsky, compete in the event in Italy. At the beginning of the week, he was in Austria preparing for the days ahead, being thrilled at the chance.
“Absolutely,” Nadlersmith, who has lived in Golden, BC since 2021, stated. “It’s an exciting opportunity. The Paralympic Games are the pinnacle of para sport, being named as a guide for Team Canada is a huge honour.”
The story begins several years ago, when Nadlersmith was home for a visit. In 2017, he was asked to guide the then 16-year old Bachinsky in a race at the International Peace Garden. The local boy filled in for a race, and has been guiding him off and on ever since.
“It definitely grew out of my competitive skiing background. Having race experience and strong technical skills is essential, so it was a natural transition.”
Jesse Bachinsky is a visually impaired athlete from Winnipeg. He has competed on the World Cup circuit since 2017, and placed fifth in an event in Canmore, Alberta, which was one of the selection events for the Paralympic games.
Upgrades at the airport in Deloraine-Winchester received a very tangible vote of confidence from the Manitoba government.
On February 12, Municipal and Northern Affairs Minister Glen Simard was at the airport outside of Deloraine to announce the municipality would be receiving $1.49 million in GRO funding for the replacement of the airstrip and lights. In front of members of not only Deloraine-Winchester Council, but also Boissevain-Morton, Brenda-Waskada and Two Borders, as well as others involved in the airport, Simard explained the reasoning for the grant.
“This is a strategic investment in the safety, connectivity and long term strength of the entire southwest region,” Simard stated. “Rural communities deserve the same level of emergency access and medical support as any major centre. Upgrading the runway and lighting systems ensures year round, reliable access for medivac services, Canada Border Services, aerial surveillance, flight training and aerial application services.”
“When someone’s life is on the line, minutes matter. These upgrades will save time and potentially save lives.”
Simard added that upgrading the status of the airport from rural to regional recognizes the airport’s status as an area hub. It serves all communities the entire southwest, he said. So many aspects of the area, from agriculture, to medical services to regional trade and investment are served by upgrades.
“Communities like Deloraine-Winchester are central to the province’s economic and social fabric,” he continued. “Investments like this ensure rural communities have the infrastructure they need to thrive, infrastructure they deserve, not just for today but for decades to come.”
Simard gave kudos to local leaders for the work they did to help make this come to pass.
Deloraine-Winchester Reeve Kelly McMechan said he was grateful as well to the community for coming together to advance the project. Looking back, he thanked the local Deloraine Flying Club for putting in a paved runway many years ago, before they knew there would be farm chemicals spread by air or life flights from the area. He also gave credit to the many people, from the municipal council, to staff, to Peter Downey of the airport. McMechan added the announcement was only the start of the process, with a community meeting set for March 19 in Deloraine, in which they would kick off the fundraising for their part of the work.
The project at this point is to resurface the runway and add new lighting, although more could come in the future.
As McMechan explained prior to the official announcement, the runway needed serious work. Many years ago, in part due to the climate of the area, cracks had developed on the tarmac. Government engineers at the time said to cut out a spot two feet wide and dig it down, fill and repack it. Every spot where that was done created a dip and eventually made it a rough runway. Planes do not like using it, whether they are life flight or crop dusters. Time has come to resurface the area. This will be costly.
“It’s a big pill to swallow for a municipality,” McMechan explained. “The province has covered almost one and a half million as their start, then we will start fundraising for our part.”
He added they would be looking for help from the federal government as well as other local contributors.
McMechan said it might take time to get the work done. They have to raise some more money, and they would also like to coordinate with asphalt companies who could be in the area to work on Highway 21 so they can come and lay out the runway at the same time. There is no doubt it will be done as soon as they can, however Simard said part of the reason the province wanted to move on the funding so quickly.
“I have a lot of confidence this will happen in short order,” Simard stated.
This is because it is such a well-used airport. Air ambulance flights from STARS land there, as well as regular medical transfers, aerial crop applications and most recently, Black Hawk helicopter flights for border security refueling. Downey said they have a reputation of being a 24/7/365 airport for the area. The closest airport of this type to the west would be Estevan, to the east Morden.
“This airstrip is more than a runway. It’s a lifeline for medical transport, a gateway for agricultural and business activity, and a critical piece of infrastructure that supports safety, mobility and economic opportunity for our communities,” said McMechan. “When people talk about rural resilience, this is exactly what they mean: the ability to connect, respond and grow.”
“We feel this region is positioned to have extraordinary growth in the upcoming years, this is why we are making these investments,” Simard stated.
by PAUL RAYNER, Recorder staff
With a new doctor on board, health care in Souris is looking good. The Souris Glenwood Health Professional Recruitment & Retention Committee is working to keep it that way into the future.
Dr. Jake Yuriy has most recently been added to the health care team in the community. According to recruitment committee chair Darryl Jackson, his arrival has been a couple of years in the making. Jackson said the doctor had been in Souris while he was in Brandon, and liked the clinic. Yuriy had commitments in the Wheat City and Dauphin to take care of first, but eventually they were able to make a fit.
“It is not unusual for it to take months if not years to get all of the ducks in a row,” Jackson stated.
Yuriy is originally from Dauphin, beginning medical school in Winnipeg in 2019 before moving to Brandon to complete his medical training in 2021, also taking his residency there. According to Prairie Mountain Health, he always expected his work would be based in western Manitoba.
Right now, Souris Health Centre has five doctors and a nurse practitioner. Prior to Yuriy, Souris was able to add a new doctor in the fall of 2025, with Dr. Rilwan Azeez, originally from Nigeria, coming on board. Jackson explained that although it might seem they are blessed with physician riches, they do cover a very wide area. Their doctors spend a couple of days a week in Hartney and there are some patients from Brandon who cannot get a family doctor in the city.
For Sean and Kristi-Lyn Buckley, Deer Meadow Farmacy is about providing food with the best nutrition, produced the best way in a complete and health conscious fashion for all to benefit from.
The Oak Lake farm operation takes a slightly different path to producing meat to market. It takes the soil, plants and animals, as well as the consumer into account, creating a more whole product and system.
“From the beginning, our goal has been to raise pastured protein in a way that benefits the land, the animals, and the people who eat it,” explained Kristi-Lyn Buckley. “The shift to farming the way we do now wasn’t a single decision, but a gradual process shaped by several practical and philosophical reasons.”
She said her story started on her family’s farm near Virden, which was founded in 1881. She began farming with her father in 2012, building her own cattle herd. In 2018, she decided to relocate her herd, and needed to go elsewhere as the land prices were too high. That year, Sean, who came from a farming family although he did not grow up on the land, joined her and they located in the Oak Lake area.
The story moves to its present from different directions. They could not purchase additional land, so they had to make the best use of what they had to grow their herd. This meant high quality forage, and Buckley said they learned healthy forage started with healthy soil. That came from diversity in plants and animals.