The Manitoba Historical Society has identified characteristic Westman sites in its list of top 10 endangered historical resources in the province.

The society released its 2026 list on last week, naming a building in Brandon alongside four buildings in Westman rural areas as some of the most endangered. A church, community centre, an old school, a fairgrounds building and grain elevators made up the local resources at risk.

Lawrence Prout, chair of the historical society said the goal is to drive solutions for historical sites.

“These things — large and small, urban and rural — tell the story of who we are,” Prout said in a press release. “We hope to encourage thoughtful discussion and collaborative action before they are lost.”

University College of the North has been selected to lead a new international network focused on improving solid waste management across Arctic communities.

The institution announced it will serve as the lead organization for the newly established Thematic Network on Solid Waste Management in the Arctic under the umbrella of the University of the Arctic.

The network was officially approved by the UArctic General Assembly on May 29 during meetings in Tórshavn, following a proposal review process and presentation by Anderson Assuah, an associate professor in UCN’s Aboriginal and Northern Studies department.

Assuah will lead the international initiative, which aims to strengthen collaboration, research and knowledge-sharing around solid waste management challenges facing Arctic communities.

A popular downtown gardening initiative is returning this season to provide Portage la Prairie residents with free, fresh produce directly from the sidewalk.

The Portage la Prairie Community Revitalization Corporation (PCRC) has planted six “Garden Goodie Boxes” at high-traffic locations across the downtown core. The communal gardens are designed to foster environmental stewardship and ease the burden of rising grocery costs by making healthy food accessible to everyone.

“Each garden goodie box is planted with a combination of different vegetables,” said Hope Faschoway, community facilitator for the PCRC. “They can be picked and utilized by anyone here in the city of Portage.”

This year’s boxes are heavily stocked with tomatoes and cucumbers. They are located in front of A&V Electronics, Subway, the BDO Centre and near Portage Collegiate Institute (PCI) and the MCC Thrift Shop.

A new regional transit service is moving closer to reality for Long Plain First Nation following the arrival of a fleet of passenger buses.

The community recently took delivery of three transit buses, an acquisition that marks the culmination of a collaborative planning process that began four years ago.

Long Plain Chief David Meeches credited the community’s former leadership and the City of Portage la Prairie for originally developing the concept in 2022. Meeches said current council members and staff have worked diligently to push the project across the finish line.

“All we simply did is notify our people that this is now becoming a reality,” Meeches said of a recent update posted to the community’s social media page. “It’s not a formal announcement.”

CB Aspire Salon and Spa of Rivers has expanded its service offerings and operational space within the past six months.

The expansion added new staff, expanded treatment rooms, and introduced a Japanese head spa service, broadening the salon’s beauty and wellness offerings.

Owner Carina Blankenspoor said she has grown the business at 546 Second Ave. from a single-chair startup in 2019 into a thriving full-service wellness destination.

“Being in a small town, there are no other salons that have multiple services in one building,” she told the Sun. “Not only does it draw people from our town, but also from areas far around us to come and have a full day of pampering.”

Babatunde Adewole opened up Instagram recently and saw a message that he had been tagged in a post. When he opened it, there was his picture alongside news that he had been nominated for Afrobeats Artist of the Year at the 2026 Western Canadian Music Awards.

“I was in my vehicle,” he recalled. “I was kind of shouting out loud, screaming. I was like, ‘Wow, this has actually come to pass.’”

For Adewole, who performs under the name SCUD, the nomination is a milestone in a seven-year effort to build an Afrobeats career from Thompson, a city of about 13,000 people 740 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

The Nigerian-born artist is one of two Manitoba nominees in the category, which was introduced in 2025 as the Western Canadian Music Awards moved to recognize the growing influence of Afrobeats.

The City of Portage la Prairie has recently moved its community safety officers (CSOs) into a new, larger headquarters, a development local officials say signals a long-term commitment to community security.

The new facility is currently undergoing renovations, including fresh paint, during the official move. The building is now open to the public and offers significantly more space than the previous office, allowing for better operational security and employee amenities.

“This is a great move for the community safety officers to move over there because the building is substantially larger,” said Councillor Colin Doyle. “It just gives them all a little bit more space for, one, for confidentiality reasons, and because it is a secure facility now, as opposed to just an office you can walk into.”

The new location is at 14 Tupper Street South. Doyle added that the building will also provide functional upgrades for staff, including proper locker space and shower facilities.

A donation from the Kiwanis Club of Neepawa & Area will help create a new sensory-friendly space aimed at making local day camp programming more inclusive for children of all abilities.

The club recently contributed $750 toward the development of a Sensory-Friendly Quiet Zone at Neepawa’s day camp facility. The space is designed to provide children with a calm environment where they can take a break, regulate emotions, recharge and return to activities when they feel ready.

Neepawa CAO Colleen Synchyshyn said the room will include a variety of resources tailored to different sensory and self-regulation needs.

“The Sensory Friendly-Quiet Zone is designed to be a welcoming space where children can take a break, regulate, recharge and enjoy a calmer environment whenever they need it,” Synchyshyn said.

Whether the Toronto Blue Jays win the World Series or miss the playoffs altogether, the 2026 season will be remembered for the significance of the team celebrating its 50th anniversary.

Only those of a certain age who were around to watch the Jays’ first-ever game back in April, 1977, will recall that instead of sunshine pouring into Exhibition Stadium, where the Jays played their first few seasons, a fluke spring snowfall soured the day. The average American ball fan whose image of a stereotypical Canadian is someone who resides in a cold country and perhaps lives in an igloo may have had those myths confirmed with video replays of that snowy day, April 7. A Zamboni was even needed to clear snow from the field. Normally, weather that extreme would have caused a postponement of an outdoor baseball game, but there had been so much hype about the Canadian expansion team playing its first game, it was full steam ahead.

The Blue Jays won the game 9-5 over the Chicago White Sox, as Doug Ault (career batting average .236 and 17 home runs), banged out two homers.

Wouldn’t it be grand if the Blue Jays celebrated their 50th year of existence with a World Series championship? Year 49 produced an American League East title, an AL championship and a near-miss in the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, losing Game 7 in extra innings at home.

If you’ve ever wondered how the necktie became the “classic” Father’s Day gift, you’ve got Norman Birrell to thank.

Father’s Day was first inaugurated in the U.S. in 1910, and as things often do, the idea eventually migrated its way north.

In 1936, during the Great Depression, Toronto menswear retailer Norman Birrell, who sold a lot of neckties, saw an opportunity to market the day and prop up the summer sales slump. His enthusiastic promotion of the day as the chairman of the Toronto Father’s Day Committee, joined by other businessmen, helped to give the local economy a boost with sales and jobs while honouring dads for all they do.

And so here we are, with 90 years’ worth of necktie purchases under our belts, still celebrating devoted fathers.