Brandon, MB – Award-winning Inspirational Keynote Speaker Joe Roberts, AKA “The Skid Row CEO”, will headline Brandon Mayor Rick Chrest’s “N.E.O: Not Even Once” youth addictions prevention program being presented to several hundred high school students in Brandon later this week. The idea for such an educational program originated during Brandon City Council’s 2018 budget discussions, during which Mayor Chrest proposed additional funding to develop a program to get the message directly to local students about the devastating, highly addictive, and potentially life-threatening consequences of trying addictive drugs, such as crystal methamphetamine, even one time. With input from the Brandon School Division, student leaders, and numerous local organizations, the “N.E.O: Not Even Once” program took shape, and the City of Brandon then sought out Joe Roberts as a notable speaker to headline the program’s events. Roberts went from being a homeless drug addict in Vancouver, to attaining extraordinary business success as a celebrated entrepreneur. He has subsequently inspired and motivated the nation to create ripple effects of transformation in the lives of at-risk youth throughout the country via his national awareness campaign, The Push for Change, which made a stop in Brandon in the spring of 2017. Roberts and his wife, Marie, will return to Brandon this week, bringing his message of perseverance, determination and the resiliency of the human spirit to hundreds of Grade 11 students at all three of Brandon’s high schools during in-school events this Thursday and Friday, and will also present a keynote speech on Friday morning at the Brandon and Area Suicide Prevention Implementation Network’s (SPIN) 14th Annual Youth Wellness Day conference, an event open to all Grade 9 students in the Brandon School Division. “We’re very privileged to have Joe and Marie Roberts from The Push for Change return to Brandon to provide Joe’s story of lived experience as a homeless drug addict and his inspirational message to aid our addictions prevention effort,” notes Mayor Chrest. “City Council placed a high priority on funding a Mayor’s initiative to help prevent youth addictions in our community.  As many Canadian communities are gripped with the consequences of addictive drugs such as crystal meth, we are dedicated to engage and support any efforts that combat this issue in our City.” Roberts will wrap up this week’s speaking engagements in Brandon with a public event on the evening of Friday, December 7th, beginning at 6 p.m. in the Cultural Resource Centre at the A.R. McDiarmid Civic Complex. The event is FREE to attend; however, pre-registration is encouraged by calling the City of Brandon Community Development section at 204-729-2257 or by emailing communitydevelopment@brandon.ca. More information about Joe and Marie Roberts and their motivational and inspirational work can be found at https://skidrowceo.com/.

Source:Brandon Police Service Media Release On Tuesday evening at approximately 8:49pm, CP Police advised they apprehended a male after he jumped off the Holiday Train as it passed through Brandon. CP Police learned the male had an outstanding Warrant of Arrest for Breach of Probation. CP Police arrested and released a 40yr old Brandon man to appear in Court on January 08th 2019.

Vincent Massey will be hosting it's 4th Annual Stuff the Bus in support of Samaritan House this December. The event kicked-off Monday, December 3rd and will run until Monday, December 17th.  Students from Massey's youth Revolution and Youth in Philanthropy will be helping to stuff the bus on Tuesday, December 18th from 9-10:00am and they will be delivering the closed items to Samartian House immediately following. Their goal is to completely fill one school bus with donations from our school community in order to give back to our community.  Staff and students at Massey hope to help to meet the growing need for hampers in Brandon.

Source:  Brandon Police Service Media Release On Sunday evening at approximately 6:13pm, a 911 call was received from a female who had been on the phone with her ex-boyfriend. He told for her to call the Police to attend to his residence in the 3500 block of Willowdale Crescent. Police attended to the residence and could hear someone yelling for help, Police forced the door open to get inside the residence. Police observed the victim being held in a choke hold by one of the suspects and they were demanding to know where his cash was hidden. Police apprehended three people for Break and Enter and Commit Robbery with Violence. A 31yr old Chanupawakpa First Nation man was arrested for Break and Enter, Commit Robbery with Violence and Warrant of Arrest for Forcible Confinement, Mischief Under and Fail to Appear for Court x2. The male was lodged at BCC to appear in Court on December 03rd. A 30yr old Chanupawakpa First Nation woman was arrested for Break and Enter and Commit Robbery with Violence and released to appear in Court on January 31st, 2019. A 26yr old Chanupawakpa First Nation man was arrested for Break and Enter and Commit Robbery with Violence and released to appear in Court on January 31st, 2019.

The Manitoba government is launching a new online Young Worker Readiness Certificate Course to teach youth the basics about workers’ and employers’ rights and responsibilities for safety and health in the workplace, Growth, Enterprise and Trade Minister Blaine Pedersen announced today. “Having a job can be a fulfilling experience for youth as it can provide a sense of accomplishment and responsibility,” said Pedersen.  “This course contains important information everyone should know before getting their first job.”   The interactive course is based on Saskatchewan’s successful youth readiness course and is tailored for Manitoba.  It will help aspiring young workers to: •    understand more about the work world and where to go for information about workplace safety and health; •    examine a pay statement; •    learn about workplace expectations and responsibilities and practice problem solving; and   •    know workers’ and employers’ rights and responsibilities for keeping workplaces safe, and how to recognize and address common workplace hazards. “At SAFE Work Manitoba, we recognize how vital this initiative is for Manitoba's youngest workers,” said Jamie Hall, chief operating officer of SAFE Work Manitoba.  “The course will help keep young workers safe.  Young workers can be more vulnerable to injuries as they haven’t had work experience and don’t necessarily know the potential hazards of the workplace.  When they’re well-informed, everyone is one step closer to coming home safe at the end of the day.” Employers seeking to hire a worker under the age of 16 are required to confirm the successful completion of the course and keep a copy of the certificate as an employment record.  The certificate of completion is transferable to different employers, meaning youth only need to complete the course once.    “The new online training course will better prepare young Manitobans for entering the workforce and help keep them safe,” said Pedersen.   The course replaces an outdated process where employers were required to apply for a government permit to hire a young worker between the ages of 13 and 15, regardless of type of work.  Manitoba was the only province in Canada that required such a permit, which created red tape headaches for employers and was difficult to enforce, Pedersen said. “This initiative is designed to enhance the knowledge and safety consciousness ‎of young workers, which we hope will help create a lifetime culture of safety among young Manitobans,” said Bill Gardner, chair of the Manitoba Employers Council. The minister noted a person must be 13 years of age to work in Manitoba and employers must follow rules to protect the safety and health of young people in the workplace.   Young people who are 13, 14 or 15 years of age are not permitted to work: •    on a construction site; •    in industrial or manufacturing processes; •    on drilling or servicing rigs; •    on scaffolds or swing stages; •    pruning, repairing, maintaining, or removing trees or shrubs; •    at heights more than 1.5 metres; •    with herbicides or pesticides; or •    without direct adult supervision. Additionally, 13 year olds cannot work with dangerous tools or machinery, such as knives, slicers or deep fryers, in the food preparation industry. There are also restrictions on the hours a person under 16 years of age can work.  Young people aged 13, 14, or 15 cannot work between the hours of 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., and cannot work more than 20 hours per week during a school week.   Youth can now complete the Young Worker Readiness Certificate Course online at https://ywrcc.safemanitoba.com/.   The course is administered by the Manitoba government and was developed in partnership with SAFE Work Manitoba.