Easter is just a week away and some event will be starting here in Nain at the Jeremias Sillitt Community Centre.

On Saturday, April 1st, children ages 5-12 is invited to a Pokémon party from 10am-2pm.

There will be a Pokémon poster contest, and posters must be made at home and brought to the JS on Friday, March 31st for judging.

They will also have a prize for person dressed up as Pokémon fan, as well as a Pokémon card display, and many more.

Also on April 1st, there will be a Rummage Sale starting at 12pm and tables will be available at a cost of $10 each.

On Sunday April 9, Easter Bunny is coming to town.

A parade will start at 1pm at the airstrip and ends at the JS Centre where Easter Bunny will give treats and offer pictures to children up to 12 years of age.

They will also have a prize of $100 for Best Decorated Float and Person, and you must be in the parade in order to win.

For more information, you may contact the Recreation Department at 922-2691.

The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador has made a commitment to increase the financial contribution for the 2026 Labrador Winter Games from $500,000 to $750,000. In addition, $50,000 has been committed to support the concept of regional games and sport development in remote areas of Labrador leading up to the 2026 games. The financial contributions confirm the Provincial Government as the primary funder for the 2026 Labrador Winter Games.

The Honourable Andrew Furey, Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the Honourable Lisa Dempster, Minister Responsible for Labrador Affairs and Minister Responsible for Indigenous Affairs and Reconciliation, announced this support during the closing ceremonies of the 2023 Labrador Winter Games on March 18, 2023.

The most recent games, held March 12-18, featured traditional and modern-day sports and skill competitions that reflected the cultural diversity and heritage of Labrador. More than 300 athletes from 19 communities across Labrador, supported by their families and hometowns, participated in what is also described as the ‘Olympics of the North’.

The Labrador Winter Games were first held in 1983 and takes place every three years in Happy Valley-Goose Bay. The 2023 Labrador Winter Games marked the 14th gathering since its inception and the 40th anniversary of its inauguration.

In addition to stimulating interest and participation in organized sport within communities, and encouraging a sense of fairness and sportsmanship, the Labrador Winter Games promote physical activity, the importance of lifelong active living, and nurturing traditional and cultural ties to the past.

Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami reported it has been over 20 years they delivered an experimental learning program with senior executives within the Federal Government.

Last week they were in Nunatsiavut. This program is designed to provide an overview of the systems and services in a region of Inuit Nunangat.

They give thanks to Nunatsiavut Government for support and assistance at every step along the way.

There will be a community consultation for the North Coast communities this week with Norlogics Owner/Principal Consultant, Matthew Pike.

These consultations will be an opportunity to provide your thoughts, opinions, concerns and/or any information related to the potential construction of a road to Northern Labrador.

Please note these sessions will be audio recorded, and the schedule will be updated frequently should there be any weather delays or cancellations.

The community consultation for Rigolet and Postville was postponed due to weather and flight cancellations, re-scheduled date to be announced.

The session for Hopedale was completed last Thursday, March 23rd but is still accepting online submissions at norlogics.ca/north-coast-road.

In observance of LIA Day, the evening session has been rescheduled to tomorrow Tuesday, March 28th at 10am-12pm, 2-4pm, and again from 7-9pm at the NG building.

They will also be in Makkovik on Thursday, March 30 from 7-9pm, and again on March 31st from 10am-12pm, and 1-3pm at the Community Hall.

The Nunatsiavut Assembly Sitting took place earlier this month.

It is held in Hopedale from community by-laws to regulations and amendments covering all of Nunatsiavut, and to understand what is going on in each of the departments.

Click here to hear the audio from the Nunatsiavut Assembly.

First Light Aboriginal Friendship Centre has a Youths skills Employment Program.

Here is what you can expect when you sign up:

• You will get ten information sessions.
• Each session you complete will get you $50 gift card, one per week.
• We will cover resumes, interviews, etc.
• Once a person completes the ten sessions, they will assist the youth, they will find a supportive employer.

You can email gord@firstlight.ca to apply.

When the Canadian Space Agency decided to investigate the unlikely task of growing food in outer space, it looked toward a place on Earth that faces similar growing issues: northern Labrador.

Lynn Blackwood is the Nunatsiavut Government’s Food Security Programs Manager and a jury member for the Canadian Space Agency’s Deep Space Food Challenge.

“In the North, much of the power is generated by diesel, and diesel can give off extra heat, so there’s interesting ways to gather heat that’s coming from a generation plant and be able to power a greenhouse.”

Blackwood said hydroponics play a big role in a lot of the ideas, as well as a focus on non-traditional produce, like spirulina, a nutritious form of algae.

Incorporating solutions into Nunatsiavut culture is important too, she said.

“Innovative ways to grow food married within the food system of the North, where many people follow that traditional lifestyle where they hunt and gather food.”

She said the technology being developed would make a huge difference to Nunatsiavut communities.

“People definitely would like to have more fresh produce available. As you can imagine, weather conditions can be really impactful on delivering fresh produce to the north in the winter time,” she said.

“There’s been times when I’ve been on the coast and in Nunatsiavut, and produce has been delivered and the plane may have come at a time when it wasn’t expected.

And then the people who are expecting the freight aren’t notified and the freight is offloaded. And then it’s left there and in the temperature, it’ll freeze.”

Blackwood said that’s why infrastructure and system planning is also an important aspect of the ideas to consider.

Courtesy of CBC.

No tax or fee increases, 5 per cent increases in Senior’s Benefit, Income Support and plans to consolidate all the province’s ambulance services into one are among the highlights of yesterday’s provincial budget, but the big focus is health care.

$3.9 billion dollars or 41 per cent of the overall spending in this year’s fiscal plan is dedicated to health care and recruitment and retention in particular.

Finance Minister Siobhan Coady calls it a “balanced” approach and rejects the notion that it could be an election budget.

She says government is only two years into its mandate and there is no election in the offing.

The annual Hopedale Heritage Dog Team Race is celebrating its 40th year this year.

We spoke with Hilda Pijogge, one of the committee members and organizers.

This years annual event will take place this Sunday on March 26, 2023 starting at 9am.

She says right now they have 5 dog teams racers registered in this year’s event.

Pijogge adds that they will be holding a banquet for the mushers.

The awards will be held at 4pm, place is yet to be determined.

Click here to find out more about the 40th Annual Hopedale Heritage Dog Team race.

Over $33,000 have been raised through the VOCM’s care’s Ronald McDonald House Radiothon.

The pledges started rolling in from the province as soon as the phone lines opened at 1pm.

People even stopped by with cheques through money raised over the last year. Sasha, representing Coleman’s, was among them. They raised $550 through their community barbeque.

Operating costs at Ronald McDonald House have increased dramatically over the last year with the rising cost of living.

All funds raised will go towards keeping Ronald McDonald House, a home away from home for families and children undergoing treatment at the Janeway Children’s Hospital, going.

Executive Director, Christina Morgan is thrilled with the cause.

Pledges will continue to be accepted online, visit www.RMHCNL.ca/donate.

Story courtesy of VOCM news