The Wrap: Child-care sector woes, random sex assault, city CAO resigns, Sea Bears release MVP
Plus: A $10M donation to St. B

Successive provincial governments — both the Conservatives and the NDP — have pledged to make child care in Manitoba more affordable and more accessible.

Those promises, however, have been stacked on a crumbling foundation of worn-out staff, low wages, high attrition rates, poor regulatory compliance and compromised quality.

Part 3 of a Free Press investigation into Manitoba child care examines the sector’s fragile state.

Winnipeg police have charged a 49-year-old man after a suspect wielding a syringe broke into a North End apartment and sexually assaulted two teenage girls in a random attack.

About 10 minutes before the attack, the suspect tried to break into a separate home in the neighbourhood, after watching a mother and her two children in their yard, police said.

The man who was charged was released from prison last year, according to records obtained by the Free Press.

The City of Winnipeg’s top bureaucrat is no longer on the job after a sudden and surprising resignation Monday, days after an audit found most city employees lacked properly documented performance reviews.

Mayor Scott Gillingham declined to answer questions about why the departure of chief administrative officer Michael Jack will take effect so soon or the amount of severance Jack will receive.

The mayor also declined to reveal if he approached Jack or the CAO approached him, when the two first spoke of the matter “late last week.”

City hall reporter Joyanne Pursaga talks to councillors about the sudden departure.

The St. Boniface Hospital Foundation announced a record $10-million donation Monday from Miriam Bergen, who died at age 66 in January 2022. Half of the money will go to the hospital’s new emergency department and half will go to its cardiac sciences program.

It’s not the first gift from the Bergen family — Miriam’s parents, Martin and Ruth Bergen, made a $3-million donation to the hospital to create the Bergen Cardiac Care Centre in 2006.

The Winnipeg Sea Bears released star guard Teddy Allen this morning.

Make no mistake, the decision to release the reigning CEBL Most Valuable Player wasn’t made overnight and it wasn’t strictly related to on-court performance.

Although head coach Mike Taylor didn’t want to get into specifics about any off-court incidents or personal conduct, there were several outbursts that transpired on the court during games, including arguments with members of the coaching staff and teammates.

After a series of recent heartfelt conversations between Allen and Taylor  failed to gain any traction — plus other discussions between the player and team president Jason Smith and also with majority owner David Asper — the Sea Bears reached the point of no return and acted accordingly.

Sports reporter Ken Wiebe reports on the release of the fan favourite affectionately known as Teddy Buckets.