Moose Jaw Times-Herald: Habitat key ceremony set for Tuesday

Photo courtesy Mandy Eirich

Mandy Eirich stands with her son

Keagan (left) and her nephew Kaleb (right).

By Lisa Goudy

On Tuesday, Mandy Eirich is going to get the keys to her new home and she can barely contain her excitement.

“Owning my home as single mother and auntie has truly been the best experience of my life,” she said. 

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Moose Jaw Times-Herald: Lisa's Corner: Remembering through peace

By Lisa Goudy

I do not believe in war.

As a Mennonite, I firmly believe that taking up arms against others isn’t something we should do. I believe in peace. 

Every year when red poppies start adorning people's jackets, lapels and pockets, I'm always sure to pin my poppy on the left hand side of my chest, but I always add another button from the Mennonite Central Committee (MCC) with a symbol of a dove on it that reads, “To remember is to worka for peace.” I feel it’s essential to wear both.War is not the answer. It only leads to bloodshed and death on both sides. Their individual sacrifices can’t be forgotten and working for peace is the best way to honour their memory. By spreading compassion, we inspire hope.

On a personal note, I have a few family connections to war on both sides of my family.

             

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Moose Jaw Times-Herald: Hearing Voices from the Front

Briercrest College performance of wartime letters, songs and poems returns for second year 

Photo courtesy Briercrest College
Ron de Jager performs “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” 
at the 2015 performance of Voices from the Front.

By Lisa Goudy

Ron de Jager’s parents live in Holland and 71 years after the end of the Second World War, their memories of it are still clear.

“They remember the Canadians coming and freeing them,” said de Jager.

“It was very emotional for them. My mom hid in a bunker in the side of a dike from the Germans when she got bombed out of her village. In one hour, she got separated from her whole family in the south of Holland and so it’s a very vivid memory for them when I still talk about it."

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Moose Jaw Times-Herald: Battling villains of racism

Moose Jaw Multicultural Council art contest part of larger province-wide theme  

Submitted photo The Moose Jaw Multicultural Council, as part of the
Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan, is 
celebrating Saskatchewan Multicultural Week.

By Lisa Goudy

The purpose of multicultural councils is not just to celebrate diversity, but also to understand the benefits of it, according to the Multicultural Council of Saskatchewan (MCoS).

“A lot of people maybe don’t see that part of it. They maybe see a whole bunch of people coming over bringing over all these issues with them or different ways of thinking or being,” said Justin Waldrop, spokesman for the MCoS. 

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Moose Jaw Times-Herald: Showcasing your multicultural superhero

Submitted photo

The Moose Jaw Multicultural Council is

holding an art contest to celebrate

Multicultural  Week in Saskatchewan.

By Lisa Goudy

The Moose Jaw Multicultural Council  (MJMC) wants to know who your multicultural superhero is through art.

The MJMC art contest is to celebrate Multicultural Week in the province later this month.

“It’s a contest that’s meant to showcase multiculturalism and celebrate the diverse country that we live in,” said Stefanie Palmer, executive director of the Moose Jaw Multicultural Council.

The contest is open to all ages, but there are various age categories of ages 5-8, 9-12, 13-17 and 18+.

 

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Moose Jaw Times-Herald: A final farewell to Taylor Field

Lisa Goudy/Times-Herald
Green and white colours were on display from LED wristbands on fans’ wrists during the post-game presentation at the final Saskatchewan Roughriders game at old Taylor Field on Oct. 29, 2016.

By Lisa Goudy

There is no easy way to say goodbye, especially to a place with so much history.

I sat in the stands at old Taylor Field on Saturday night with mixed emotions. I’ve made so many amazing memories were made at this field with family and friends. I’ve sat through sun, rain, snow and wind at that stadium and I’ve loved every second. Just on Oct. 22, I sat through a rain-soaked game and it poured. Knowing that it rained outside and inside the stadium shows exactly why we need the new one.

On Saturday night, it was bittersweet to say goodbye, but there is no denying that the farewell was outstanding.

Lisa Goudy/Times-Herald
(From left) Saskatchewan Roughrider Roger Aldag (1989), 
George Reed (1966), Gene Makowsky (2007) and Darian
Durant (2013) pose with the Grey Cup at the final
game at old Taylor Field on Oct. 29, 2016. They
represented all four Rider teams to win a Grey Cup.

I’m not talking about the actual football game itself. The Saskatchewan Roughriders played the final game Saturday night against the B.C. Lions and the Riders lost, with a final score of 24-6 for B.C. I would have loved to see a final win at the final game. That would have been fantastic, but it was not to be.

Really, though, Saturday’s game wasn’t about winning, even though we all wished it could’ve happened. It was about saying goodbye, a final farewell. And that farewell shone, climaxing with a post-game finale that struck many emotional chords.

Taylor Field has been the home of the Riders for almost a century. More than 600 CFL games have been played at Taylor Field. We’ve seen some fantastic games and some terrible games at that field, but nothing could diminish my love for the place. It is the place where my love of football grew into the undying love I have for the Riders to this day. 

I’ve sat through blowout wins and blowout losses. I’ve sat through intense, exciting games and slow, dull games. I’ve seen seasons where the Riders have been on fire, such as the 2013 season that began with the best start in franchise history going 8-1 in the first nine games and eventually culminating in the ultimate Rider Pride moment on Nov. 24, 2013.  

I, and the 44,709 other people there - including Tom Hanks and Martin Short – will never forget the experience of the 101^st Grey Cup game, the first one played at home, and the wave of exhilaration when we won the game 45-23 against the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. 

I’ve also seen defeat, losses and just terrible examples of football, games and seasons that aren’t memorable. I’ve never left a game early, though. Even when we’ve been losing miserably, I’ve sat and cheered loud and proud for my team. A true, hardcore fan never gives up on their team, no matter what, and I never will. 

Taylor Field has created more amazing memories for me than just football. On Oct. 8, 2006, I was one of the 45,000 people at the Rolling Stones concert when they rocked the stadium. That show blew me away. It was only +2 Celsius, but the cold didn’t bother me that night. It was awesome. 

Lisa Goudy/Times-Herald
Planes from 15 Wing Moose Jaw fly over Taylor
Field at the final Saskatchewan Roughriders
game at that field on Oct. 29, 2016.

This concert changed everything, as it really helped put Regina on the map for big-name concerts that rocked that field. On July 28, 2010, I was at the Bon Jovi concert, another unforgettable experience. On Aug. 14, 2013, I attended the Paul McCartney concert, which again was out of this world. These concerts created so many amazing and treasured memories. It was surreal being there for those shows. 

But for me, Taylor Field is more than any one game or any one concert. It’s more than any one moment. It’s a series of experiences, like another home, that add up into memories I’ll hold close for the rest of my life. 

Saturday’s farewell did the stadium justice. The Jack Semple Band, featuring three-time Canadian Country Music Association winner Jess Mokaluke and Jason Plumb, performed a special half-time show. 

When the game was done and the big stadium floodlights were turned off, we were in for the biggest treat of all – a 25-minute tribute that included a light show with LED wristbands every attendee was given, video footage and history of all of the memorable moments at the stadium and special appearances by Rider legends George Reed, Roger Aldag, Gene Makowsky, Darian Durant and the Grey Cup, which RCMP members passed to Reed, who passed it to Aldag, who passed it to Makowsky, who passed it to Durant. They represented all four Rider teams to win a Grey Cup.

Nostalgia was high in the air during the entire presentation. Seeing the crowds lit up in green and white from the wristbands to seeing the Rider players with the Grey Cup to Durant’s final countdown to the end of an era before the final fireworks display lit up the sky, I found myself in tears. Taylor Field will always hold a special place in my heart.

As sung in the Green Day song that played to close the final moments of old Taylor Field, “It’s something unpredictable, but in the end is right. I hope you had the time of your life.” 

Yes, I did. 

See you next year, Rider Nation, at the new Mosaic Stadium where we will make more amazing memories together.

Moose Jaw Times-Herald: Lisa's Corner: Superheroes more than comics

By Lisa Goudy

A superhero fad is taking over.

Just look at the entertainment industry. This year alone we’ve seen the release of Deadpool, Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Captain America: Civil War, X-Men: Apocalypse, Suicide Squad and today, Doctor Strange. 

Marvel Studios, Warner Bros. and 20th Century Fox have announced long-term plans for years leading up to 2020 for the release of several Marvel and DC superhero movies.

I, for one, am so happy to be a comic fan and couldn’t be more thrilled that we are seeing all of these characters jump to the big screen and be a mainstream thing. Superheroes have a way of providing hope, inspiration and an escape from reality.

 
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