Old Man Winter Returns

Old man winter isn't done with us yet.

A blast of arctic air is going to keep things chilly for at least the next two days.

Bill Laidlaw from Signal Weather Services says the good news is the snow won't stick around for long.

The normal highs for this time of year is 8 degrees.

Trek from Kingfisher Lake Completed

Fundraising efforts continue for a new building to house a treatment program in Kingfisher Lake First Nation.

The campaign has hit a high note with the completion of a 500-kilometre walk from the remote Northern community to Sioux Lookout.

37-year-old William Mekanak and 16-year-old Bryan Sainnawap embarked on the journey to raise money for the prescription drug detox program.

The two walkers say a new centre to run the program is needed to combat the problem.

The goal is to raise 150-thousand dollars.

School Board's Worried About Possible Amalgamations

Is a merger forthcoming involving the Rainy River District School Board and the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board?

That's a possibility if the Provincial budget passes.

Mike Lewis is Chair of the Rainy River Board and he says it may help the province reduce the deficit but stresses there's more to consider than just money.

Lewis is encouraging residents and communities to speak up in opposition.

Fraser Institute releases latest report on Secondary School's

The Fraser Institute is out with is annual evaluation of secondary schools in Ontario.

Its mixed news in Kenora, where Thomas Aquinas saw its rating increase, while Beaver Brae slipped a few notches.

Study author, Michael Thomas says while some educators don't like their report, he thinks its still valid.

Thomas Aquinas was rated 84th out of the 718 schools ranked in the yearly report.

Beaver Brae was 623rd overall.

Saints, Sinners and Spirits at the Museum

Lake of the Woods Museum is looking into the dark underbelly of Kenora's past.

A new exhibit opened last week up called Saints, Sinners and Spirits.

Museum spokesperson Braden Murray says there's a long history of rum-running on Lake of the Woods.

The exhibit, developed by staff at the museum, will run until June 9th.

New Forest Fires Reported over the Long Weekend

The forest fire season in northwestern Ontario is only a week old, but there's already been 13 fires reported in the Kenora District.

Over the weekend, two more fires were reported.

One grew to 6 hectares in size before being brought under control.

The other was just a small 0.1 hectare blaze north of the city.

Both are listed as human-caused.

Fires were also reported in the Dryden and Fort Frances Districts as well this Easter Long weekend.

NOMA Supports Local Tourist Centers

There's more support for keeping tourist information centres in Fort Frances, Kenora and Rainy River open.

The Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association is the latest to voice its opposition to the planned closures.

NOMA President Ron Nelson wants Tourism Minister Michael Chan to meet with area tourism officials and hold off hold off on the closures until then.

OCN Penguins with 5th Consecutive NAFN Title

Manitoba teams once again dominated the North American First Nations tournament of Champions.

For the 5th year in a row, the OCN Penguins took the A-side champioship winning the 20 thousand dollar first prize beating the Sandy Bay Feathermen 5-3.

In the battle for 3rd place, Eagle Lake shut out the OCN Blues 2-0.
In the B-side final, Grassy Narrows beat up on Shoal Lake 7-2.

In the Oldtimers division, Shoal Lake eked out a 2-1 win over the Whitefish Bay Rangers.

Senior Thistles Advance to Allan Cup

The Kenora Triple "a" Senior Thistles will be playing for Allan Cup for the second year in a row.

The Thistles hosted the tournament last year, but this year they played their way in by winning the Renwick Cup, and will be the Ontario representitives.

The Kenora squad beat Dundas in two straight games in the best-of-three series over the weekend.

The Thistles capped the series Saturday night with a convincing 6-1 win.

Jeff Richards had a three goal game.

Friday night, Kenora beat Dundas 5-2.

The Allan Cup starts one week from today in Lloydminster.