The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
The annual Boxing Day hockey game was the place to be on the afternoon of the 26th. There was some pretty decent talent slapping on the pads and strapping on the blades for this one, and I'm not just talking about frequent stalwarts like Ted Stabback, Brady Gaudet, Darren Pattison, Cory Wiwcharuk, Terry Hornyak, and Phizzy Klyne. This year, there were a few current and several former Junior players banging the boards at the Wilfred T. Lipton Arena. The aforementioned Stabback had both his boys home for Christmas and out on the ice. Rick (Nelson House Flames) centered Ted's line and Jesse took a turn manning the blueline for the opposing black team. Also suiting up on the black team were Ted's nephew, Riley Eastman and Kyle McLaughlin, who also play for the Nelson House Flames. I heard it said up in the stands that one person didn't think Ted had slowed down much since his playing days in the Senior League. Then the comment was made that he was always that slow, so who are you going to listen to? Grandpa Don Milburn was all ear to ear smiles as he watched son Joe and grandsons, Marc, Donald, and Josh suit up for the game. Marc and Donald played on the same line for the black team with Josh backstopping them. Father Joe played with the whites. It's the first time in a while that Marc has been out on the ice, but after a few shifts of huffing and puffing, he seemed to be back into it. Donald, just home from South Carolina, looked real good right from the start. And although he played a solid three games between the pipes, Josh's black team was bested two to one. From all indications their father, Joe, hasn't lost any of his chippiness or intensity. Just meters it out at a lesser rate. It was all in fun and an excellent way to get away from the table and all of the turkey and desserts that find their way on to your plate at this time of year. Also home for the holidays and out on the ice were: Josh Evans, who is a "AA" Bantam goaltender out in Yorkton and Joel Jackson a d-man for the OCN Blizzard. Residents of Snow Lake are beginning to sit up and take notice of the fact that they could be without daily bus service come March 1, 2005. That is, if they don't put pen to paper and try to do something about it. Several weeks back a notice from Greyhound Canada began circulating the community. The handout announced that the company is proposing to cut their service from twice daily (from the north and south) six days a week to twice daily two times per week. This, of course, is unacceptable to most Snow Lake people. The town receives everything from their Daily Reminder or Free Press (already a day late) to hospital x-rays and from school supplies to parts for the mines and auto repair. It is a service that if reduced will affect (some severely) practically everyone in the community. In order to help those out who want to write Greyhound and make their concerns known, the local weekly newspaper, The Snow Lake News, is offering to fax letters of opposition to Greyhound free of charge.
