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Local

MORGAN MODJESKI / FREE PRESS
Sandra Shibata, vice-president with the Japanese Cultural Association of Manitoba, on Saturday stands next to a table displaying the names of people who were expelled to Manitoba after they were forcefully removed from the west coast in 1941. In the other room, the association was hosting a watch party for the unveiling of the Japanese Canadian Monument in Victoria B.C. one of 15 taking place across the country.

Winnipeggers witness unveiling of Japanese Canadian monument in B.C.

Morgan Modjeski 5 minute read 8:39 PM CDT

As Miki Stewart gathered with her family at the Japanese Cultural Association of Manitoba on Saturday afternoon, she was thinking of her parents, Yoshimaru and Yoshi Abe.

Both Stewart, 80, and her sister Yumi Falk, 81, alongside an older brother, were born in the Tashme internment camp in British Columbia. They were among more than 2,600 Japanese Canadians who were forcefully removed and interred at the camp following the bombing of Pearl Harbour and Canada’s declaration of war on Japan in 1941.

“They didn’t talk much about how they suffered,” Stewart said of her parents. “But they did.”

She was amongst a group of more than 150 people who gathered at the association’s McPhillips headquarters on Saturday afternoon to watch the unveiling of the Japanese Canadian Monument in Victoria B.C.

New

Local

RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS
Provincial justice officials are trying to seize a Dominion Street home that has been the source of neighbourhood consternation for years.

Province looks to seize notorious drug den

Erik Pindera 4 minute read Preview

Province looks to seize notorious drug den

Erik Pindera 4 minute read 12:00 PM CDT

Provincial justice officials are trying to seize a Dominion Street drug den that has been the source of trouble in the West End for years.

The owner of 982 Dominion St., 45-year-old Robert Edward Johnson, was most recently arrested in June along with several others after a lengthy Winnipeg Police investigation into thefts and illicit drug sales connected to the house.

“The residence has a reputation within the neighbourhood as being a location where individuals habitually attend for the purpose of purchasing and/or consuming controlled substances,” reads a statement of claim filed by the province’s director of civil forfeiture in the Court of King’s Bench last week.

“For several years, the residence has been associated with criminal activity, violence, and disorder, resulting in numerous police attendances and complaints from members of the surrounding community.”

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12:00 PM CDT

Local

’Disgusting’ posters being investigated by police

Morgan Modjeski 4 minute read 2:22 PM CDT

The Winnipeg Police Service major crimes unit is investigating what some have labelled offensive and hateful posters on full-display at a Winnipeg home.

One of the people irked by the display is Gracie Garrett. She’s has lived on Ashburn Street in Winnipeg’s Minto neighbourhood for almost ten years. She’s never felt unsafe in the neighbourhood before, but now, a set of posters plastered on a nearby house are making her feel uneasy.

The five signs, posted facing the street prominently on a front window, contain a slur, refer to Nazis as “heroes” and call Muslims, Christians and other groups “evil.”

Learning of the signs Friday, Garrett said she’ll be reporting the posters to police, as she worries they incite and promote violence.

Civic Election

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS
Scott and Marla Gillingham have breakfast at home on Saturday morning.

A day on the campaign trail: Winnipeg's mayor, seeking a second term, does double duty

Malak Abas 11 minute read Preview

A day on the campaign trail: Winnipeg's mayor, seeking a second term, does double duty

Malak Abas 11 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 5:56 PM CDT

In the weeks leading up to the civic election, Scott Gillingham has been performing a juggling act: he’s running to be Winnipeg’s 45th mayor, while still serving as its 44th.

“If someone asks me about the campaign, I’m going to answer them. But I think for most people, I’m the mayor of Winnipeg, even if I’m showing up as a candidate,” Gillingham, 58, says. “I try to do all I can to maintain that distinction.”

The Free Press joined Gillingham on a recent rainy September Saturday on the campaign trail, where he served in both roles during an event-laden day. City council’s final meeting before the Oct. 28 election was days earlier.

In Winnipeg, it’s rare for an incumbent to be defeated. But Gillingham knows his win in 2022 wasn’t exactly a landslide — he won with 27.5 per cent of the vote — and he’s been thinking about his second term ever since.

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Updated: Yesterday at 5:56 PM CDT

Winnipeg Jets

Winnipeg Jet Tyrel Bauer (77) and Boston Bruin Mark Kastelic (47) fight during the first period in Winnipeg on Friday.

Living the dream

Ken Wiebe 6 minute read Preview

Living the dream

Ken Wiebe 6 minute read 4:48 PM CDT

DETROIT – As Tyrel Bauer took a left turn out of the tunnel from the Winnipeg Jets dressing room and into the stands, he was met with a hearty round of applause from the 25 friends and family members who had made the trek from various points around North America.

Bauer had just realized a childhood dream and the significance of the moment was not lost on some of his biggest supporters.

“It was a special walk, for sure. A special walk,” Bauer said on Saturday afternoon before the Jets departed for a two-game road trip that begins on Sunday in Detroit against the Red Wings. “Those people who came – and many more that weren’t there and were cheering on from afar – they’ve always been there.

“I wanted that for my family, maybe even more than I wanted it for me. They’ve been through thick and thin. I’ve stressed mom out quite a bit over the years doing my job. That meant a lot for them and I’m really happy they could be there for it.”

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4:48 PM CDT

Local

Wayne Glowacki / Free Press files
Artist Carey Newman with Witness Blanket, which features objects recovered from residential schools. Newman hopes legislation can be introduced to preserve records detailing abuse at the schools.

‘Almost too much to contemplate’

Unease stirs as clock ticks down on destruction of records documenting residential school abuses

Marsha McLeod 12 minute read Yesterday at 12:49 PM CDT

Opinion

Broadening prediction-market gambling a bad idea Editorial 2:01 AM CDT
Learning to win: a real problem for conservatives David McLaughlin 2:01 AM CDT
Wet weather heats up feed grain availability Laura Rance-Unger 2:01 AM CDT

Local

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES
Being an inner-city school comes with challenges but also fosters an underdog mindset that leads to exceptional accomplishments.

Gordon Bell rings in a century

Maggie Macintosh 12 minute read Preview

Gordon Bell rings in a century

Maggie Macintosh 12 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 8:06 PM CDT

Mischka Valencia had gotten used to the hum of heavy machinery at Gordon Bell High School.

“Ever since I’ve been here, it’s all been under construction,” the Grade 12 student said, standing on the sidelines of the brightly painted revamped outdoor basketball court. “I had no idea this was a court.”

The Filipina teenager landed in Winnipeg several months after the inner-city campus had transformed into a construction site.

It was the fall of 2023 and Mischka’s priorities were fitting in, befriending classmates and learning a third language via first-period French.

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Updated: Yesterday at 8:06 PM CDT

Amateur

BROOK JONES / FREE PRESS FILES
Six programs in the Manitoba Women’s High School Hockey League folded before the start of the 2026-27 season once the Hockey Manitoba U18 AAA ban took effect.

Six high school hockey programs ceased operations following new Hockey Manitoba policy

Joshua Frey-Sam 7 minute read Preview

Six high school hockey programs ceased operations following new Hockey Manitoba policy

Joshua Frey-Sam 7 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 8:19 PM CDT

She lived the best of both worlds.

For the last three years, the 17-year-old wore a sweater for two different hockey programs — her high school team and AAA club in the Manitoba Female Hockey League — and was preparing to flourish in both colours again this winter.

Recently, however, the blue-liner was disappointed to learn she is no longer eligible to play her Grade 12 season with her school owing to a new policy imposed by Hockey Manitoba that bans players from participating in the Manitoba Women’s High School Hockey League if they are rostered on a U18 AAA team.

The rule applies to all athletes who play for both Winnipeg-based and rural AAA teams.

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Updated: Yesterday at 8:19 PM CDT

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TV

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Summer H. Howell says she feels she’s been working towards playing the role of Carrie her entire life.

Manitoba’s own Summer Howell takes on biggest role yet as Stephen King’s telekinetic teen Carrie

Randall King 6 minute read Preview

Manitoba’s own Summer Howell takes on biggest role yet as Stephen King’s telekinetic teen Carrie

Randall King 6 minute read Yesterday at 3:49 PM CDT

From the tender age of eight, actress Summer Howell has made her presence known in a series of horror films shot in her home province of Manitoba.

Her first film was Curse of Chucky (2013), director Don Mancini’s continuation of the venerable killer doll series he started (as a screenwriter) in 1988 with Child’s Play.

“Even then, it was obvious she was very talented, intelligent and delightful,” Mancini said of Howell.

Though she has worked in other genres, Howell gravitated to horror repeatedly, with credits in Shawn Linden’s harrowing Hunter Hunter (2020) and the 2023 possession thriller All Fun and Games. Earlier this year, she shot the horror film Sundown in Winnipeg with director Rebekah McKendry, which premièred last week at Beyond Fest in Los Angeles and is headed for a streaming berth on Shudder.

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Yesterday at 3:49 PM CDT

Bomber Report

John Woods / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
Winnipeg Blue Bombers’ Jake Ceresna (94) — who went down last week with a knee injury — is cleared to play against Montreal. The defensive tackle leads the team with seven sacks.

Bombers near must-win territory as Als look to look to clinch East crown

Taylor Allen 6 minute read Preview

Bombers near must-win territory as Als look to look to clinch East crown

Taylor Allen 6 minute read Updated: 2:29 PM CDT

The Winnipeg Blue Bombers slayed the beast from the East once already this season — but can they do it again?

The Blue and Gold (7-7) will try to pull off another upset when they take on the Montreal Alouettes (11-3) on Saturday (6 p.m.) at Percival Molson Memorial Stadium.

The two teams last met in Winnipeg on Aug. 28 when the Bombers pulled off an unexpected 44-28 victory.

The stakes are much higher this time around. The Als can clinch the East Division with a win, while the Bombers are clinging to the West’s crossover playoff spot by a thread, with the Calgary Stampeders (7-8) hot on their heels.

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Updated: 2:29 PM CDT

Civic Election

Klein to double down on derelict homes

Joyanne Pursaga 5 minute read Preview

Klein to double down on derelict homes

Joyanne Pursaga 5 minute read Yesterday at 6:08 PM CDT

Kevin Klein promises to set tight timelines for owners to clean up vacant and derelict homes, if he’s elected to become Winnipeg’s next mayor.

The owner of each building would have six months after it becomes vacant to file an action plan to repair, renovate or remove the structure entirely by the one-year mark.

Those who fail to do so would face heavy fines and possible expropriation, he said.

“Hundreds of empty buildings sit boarded up, waiting to burn, like the one behind me. A vacant house is a fire trap, it’s a crime hub,” said Klein, pointing out the charred remains of a home on Alexander Avenue Friday.

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Yesterday at 6:08 PM CDT

The Arts

Moving drama at MTYP gives voice to boy who changed law

Holly Harris 4 minute read Preview

Moving drama at MTYP gives voice to boy who changed law

Holly Harris 4 minute read 2:37 PM CDT

The heroic true tale of Norway House Cree Nation-born Jordan River Anderson came home Friday night, as Manitoba Theatre for Young People presented Yvette Nolan’s Jordan.

The touring production, a collaboration with Geordie Theatre, runs weekends through Oct. 11, with additional stops in Toronto, Vancouver and Ottawa’s National Arts Centre.

Having several of Anderson’s family members witness the local première underscored the evening with poignancy. Elder and Pine Creek First Nation member Barbara Nepinak added her own dignified presence and prayers following MTYP artistic director Pablo Felices-Luna’s welcoming remarks.

The season-opener also marks the Winnipeg-raised playwright’s homecoming; the Algonquin playwright, director, dramaturg, actor and educator was a fixture in our local theatre community for many years before going on to serve as artistic director for Native Earth Performing Arts from 2003 to ‘11, among other contributions.

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2:37 PM CDT