TV power couple’s marriage on the rocks

Happily guiding others through city’s art world

The last Saturday in September is fast approaching and Ed Benjamin, 69, is gearing up for his regular volunteer stint at Nuit Blanche.

While he hasn’t grabbed this year’s T-shirt yet — he’ll only be able to pick it up during Friday’s orientation — he’s more than prepared for his 5:30-9:30 p.m. shift on Sept. 26.

This will be Benjamin’s sixth year volunteering at the annual contemporary art festival, now in its 16th year.

“I think it’s the best night of the year in Winnipeg, just a fantastic night. And having done it once, I just want to keep going back. It’s very intense but it’s not a significant commitment, it’s just one night, so it’s easy to commit to it,” he says.

‘We’re small, but we’re strong and mighty’: Lögberg-Heimskringla newspaper celebrates 140 years in Manitoba

A “friend” of the Icelandic community is now 140 years old.

Lögberg-Heimskringla, a Winnipeg-based newspaper that serves the Icelandic diaspora throughout North America, has published continuously for nearly a century-and-a-half. Staff and supporters celebrated the anniversary Saturday afternoon during a gathering at the Scandinavian Cultural Centre.

“Whatever else it may be, Lögberg-Heimskringla is a friend in print — a familiar cultural institution that has enriched our lives and understanding, informing us and entertaining us at the same time,” editor Stefan Jonasson wrote in the paper’s anniversary issue, published on Sept. 15.

“It has served as a vessel to convey the Icelandic culture and heritage in North America through the course of several generations and changing circumstances, preserving memories from the past, imagining what lies ahead and reinventing itself along the way.”

Serious crash at West Kildonan intersection known for collisions

Residents in West Kildonan say an intersection that was the site of a serious car crash Sunday morning is notoriously dangerous.

Rob Lick heard a loud bang around 7 a.m. and rushed out of his home on Leila to see what the commotion was. He saw two crushed SUVs, a white and black one, in the intersection. Police vehicles arrived shortly after.

“It sounded like when (garbage trucks) drop a big dumpster,” he said. “I heard somebody crying or wailing, they were standing by the vehicle so I don’t know who exactly it was or if someone was injured.”

The sound of sirens followed shortly after when emergency crews came to the scene. The intersection was immediately blocked off.

Finding new markets — across an ocean

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s barnstorming trade mission to the European Union has created a ton of discussion and debate about cultivating new trade opportunities for Canadian exporters. What is hasn’t created, however, is very much certainty.

Steinbach Credit Union member warns others after scammer steals $10K

A Winnipeg single mother whose bank account was drained of nearly $10,000 says Steinbach Credit Union needs to warn its members about what she believes is a broader security problem.

The woman, who is not being named to protect her identity, said a scammer gained access to her account earlier this week after calling SCU’s contact centre, claiming to be her and successfully completing the credit union’s authentication process.

She said she knows of at least six others who have experienced similar incidents in which callers impersonate SCU account holders and pass the authentication checks.

The woman discovered something was wrong when her minor son asked why money had been transferred out of an account they jointly hold.