Dolly Parton made local impact for thousands

NDP defends involvement of U.S. company in Hydro project

A U.S. company that donated to Donald Trump’s 2025 presidential inauguration could build Manitoba Hydro’s proposed $3-billion natural gas turbines, which has drawn criticism from an environmental group amid the NDP government’s pushback to tariffs.

‘Part of the neighbourhood’s history’: Minto staple B.C. Grocery shutters

Gary Achtemichuk stopped at his favourite Winnipeg corner store for relish.

Unlike similar trips over the last four decades, he left with a surprise: B.C. Grocery, a Minto neighbourhood staple, was closing its doors.

Owner Lechman Parboji officially shuttered the shop Monday after 42 years at its helm. On Wednesday, movers hauled equipment out, making room for a new three-bedroom apartment suite — one the Parboji family intends to use, at least initially.

“The whole neighbourhood is going to miss him,” Achtemichuk said. “He was the friendliest gentleman you’d ever want to talk to.”

Winnipeg teacher disciplined for ‘liking’ student’s post

A Winnipeg teacher has been reprimanded for accidentally clicking ‘like’ on a student’s year-old social media post during a late-night scroll.

A recent investigation by Manitoba’s independent teacher commissioner found Jordan Nelson, a hockey coach in the Pembina Trails School Division, engaged in professional misconduct by viewing online profiles of students who were following a team account he was managing on behalf of his school.

“Using information associated with the school’s hockey team account to access and review a student’s social media account, without any legitimate educational or workplace purpose, was inappropriate and inconsistent with the professional boundaries expected of a teacher,” commissioner Noni Classen wrote.

A five-page report, better known as a consent resolution agreement, details agreed-upon facts about an October 2025 incident and subsequent disciplinary action.

Canada’s first drive-thru-only McDonald’s opens in Winnipeg

One Grimace and dozens of smiles were on display Wednesday as McDonald’s staff and supporters celebrated the grand opening of the fast-food chain’s first drive-thru-only restaurant in Canada.

Man who killed truck passenger handed new 12-year sentence

Manitoba’s highest court has given a man who shot at a passing truck and killed a 20-year-old woman a 12-year prison sentence for manslaughter.

William Ryerson Thomas Comber, now in his mid 20s, was found guilty of second-degree murder by a jury in December 2022 for the killing of Hailey Dugay on Nov. 17, 2018. Comber was later sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 12 years.

Dugay died after the truck she was travelling in was struck by gunfire late at night on a gravel road near Fraserwood, 90 kilometres north of Winnipeg.

The Court of Appeal struck down Comber’s murder conviction earlier this year and ruled he was instead guilty of the lesser offence of manslaughter.

Chefs gather in St. Boniface to see whose version of jollof is best

Chef Alex Bockarie is bringing an age-old African culinary battle to Winnipeg.

On Saturday, five local chefs hailing from Senegal, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Ghana and Nigeria will go head-to-head to determine who makes the best jollof — a rice dish simmered in a savoury tomato-based stew.

“Jollof rice originated from Senegal but it has spread throughout West Africa and every country has its own method of cooking it,” Bockarie says. “It’s a long-standing fight; even among the communities here in Winnipeg, everybody’s always saying that Sierra Leone’s (jollof) is the best, Ghana’s is the best, Nigeria’s is the best.

“It’s a friendly competition; friendly, but very serious too.”