Westoba provided funding to two community projects in Glenboro this week. The Gaiety Theatre Lobby Renewal and the Glenboro Community Primary Playground. “The Glenboro Gaiety Theatre has been in operation since 1941,” said Leanne Gates, Glenboro Gaiety Theatre committee secretary. “It is an integral part of the social fabric of our community, having a local theatre to offer a movie on a rainy day or just to get out of the sun is win-win for the province and our municipality!” The theatre lobby renewal comes at a critical time for the community. New health guidelines have created challenges for the theatre. “Since COVID-19 has been a part of our life, we have had to shut down completely since April 2020,” said Gates. “That has been a huge financial burden with respect to loss of revenue. To reopen, we have to comply with public health guidelines and the layout of our lobby currently does not allow that.” The committee is taking the opportunity of the current theatre closure to fund-raise and get started on the renovations, so they are ready to open when the health restrictions are lifted. The Glenboro Community Primary Playground project aims at replacing old and unsafe playground equipment as well as developing a small new build playground in the existing park area. “Putting a new primary aged, focused structure will be a huge asset to our small community,” said Kevin Newton, Glenboro Community Playground Executive Member. “The playground gives youth and families a place to go and spend time together while working on fitness, growth, and social interaction.” “Investing in our community is a priority for Westoba,” said Marie Bodnarchuk, Carberry & Glenboro Westoba Branch Manager. “We see so much value in both community facilities. Our staff is proud to support the work of these volunteers. (submitted)

Brandon Riverbank Inc. is proud to announce that as a thank you for getting the vaccine, you can currently book Fusion Credit Union Stage for HALF PRICE! Until June 30th, show your vaccine card (or proof of vaccination – either first or second dose) and receive 50% off the booking charge (bookings until end of 2021). As a bonus, for those who book the stage during this time, receive 25% off all souvenirs inside the Riverbank Discovery Centre/Brandon & Region Tourism Centre!

Loke many companies in Brandon, Direct Traffic Ltd., understood how coronavirus put a damper on birthday celebrations and wanted to do something about it. The company came up with an idea to help recognize your child's or loved one's special day by creating a safe and memorable birthday experience. Direct Traffic Ltd can drive by/park one of their electronic message boards that has a birthday greeting and name on it, play a happy birthday song on the speakers and turn on all of the flashing lights and beacons! "We saw lots of people on Facebook organizing birthday parades, and it just popped into our head that we had something unique and special that we could offer to the parades." Operations Supervisor Breanne Turner told bdnmb.ca. "We are doing it for absolutely no cost at all as this pandemic has been hard enough on everyone, we just wanted to bring something positive to the community." According to Turner, the response to the initiative has been very positive as they are offering something different than the usual. "It's really special to see your name go by all lit up on a big flashing board, especially for the little ones." The company started offering the service in November of 2020 and continues to do today. "We are a little more limited now than we were over the winter as we are using more of our Message Boards for road construction projects, but as long as we have the boards available we will join in on the parade. To book a birthday drive-by from Direct Traffic Ltd. you can contact our office at 204-573-9167, email us at direct@mymts.net, or message us on our Facebook page said Breanne.  

Mealshare, a national social enterprise on a mission to help end youth hunger,partnered with A&W Canada in February2021.All 1000+ A&W locations across Canada are participating in Mealshare with the goal of sharing 1,250,000 mealsper year.A&W Canadaand their guests have already sharedover400,000meals with youth in needthroughMealshare’s network of450+localcharitypartnersandSave the Children Canada.The partnershipis on track to surpass half a million meals shared this month. Over 200,000 of the meals have been provided through voluntary guest donations. Starting June 14th, A&W Canada will refresh the Mealshare Monday campaign with a new feature item-the Beyond Meat Burger. On ‘Mealshare Mondays’, customers can order a Beyond Meat Burger and one meal will be provided to a youth in need through Mealshare. Customers also have the opportunity to help fight youth hunger any day of the weekt hrough the “Make it a Mealshare” program. When customers “Make it a Mealshare”, $1.00 is added to their bill and then a meal is provided to a youth in need through Mealshare on their behalf. Customers can participate in-restaurant, through drive-thru, or by using the mobile app. “A&W is an amazing organization and a leader in the industry through itsmany environmental and social initiatives,” says Jeremy Bryant, Co-Founder of Mealshare.“We have been blown away these past months by the impact A&W has had for our program and for all the youth we support across the entire country. We are excited to see the impact the Beyond Meat Burger will have in our goal of reaching 1,250,000 meals shared this year. “Our national partnership with Mealsharehas been very rewarding. Our restaurants and their teams from coast to coast are proud to be able to give back locally through Mealshare because they’ve seen first-hand the needs in their communities,” says Susan Senecal, President and CEO at A&W Canada. “We love that Mealshare allows A&W Canada and our guests to help make a difference in the lives of so many youth in need”. (submitted)

Heritage Co-op and Gambler First Nation are pleased to announce the signing of a management agreement with respect to Gambler’s new gas bar facility located in Brandon, MB. Gambler has plans to develop their urban reserve property on 18th Street North to include additional retail space, offices, and a hotel. This partnership will allow Gambler to maintain ownership of the facility while Heritage Co-op will supply and support the day-to-day operations, resulting in an agreement that is beneficial to both organizations. “While we had a lot of interest from all of the national brands to work with us on the development, we knew very early on that we felt most comfortable working with Heritage (Co-op) and FCL based on the relationships and trust we were able to build,” Chief LeDoux said. “We’re building this business and this development for the benefit of our Nation’s youth, so it was extremely important for us to have the day-to-day management in good hands until such time as we have the internal management capacity to take this on ourselves. Heritage Co-op is an expert in this industry and in understanding the local market so we’re very excited to have them working alongside us to ensure that this business is a success right out of the gates and that our customers receive the same level of customer service as Co-op is known for.” Heritage Co-op is pleased to be partnering with a First Nation, on an urban reserve site in our trading area providing an opportunity to support our communities. This agreement will be part of the Western Nations brand that has been developed by Federated Co-operatives Ltd. in consultation with Indigenous leaders and communities across Western Canada. Indigenous communities own and operate their own locations while accessing the supply chain and support of the Co-op and their experience in building and operating gas bar facilities. The Western Nations brand has a unique focus on re-investing in Indigenous communities and provides an opportunity for local Co-ops to further support the people and communities in which they serve. It is anticipated that this site will be operational by the end of 2021. (submitted)