Weldon Rinn

Revisiting Community Futures

Last summer, I wrote about Community Futures Manitoba (“Rambling with… Community Futures,” Free Press Community Review, East edition, July 27, 2022).

Ramblin’ with… Stacie Rasmussen

As a follow-up to a column I wrote last fall on Rasta Lady Cannabis Shop, I did an interview with Stacie Rasmussen, district manager of four cannabis shops in south-central Manitoba — Rural Buds in Carman, Rural Buds in St. Pierre, Rural Buds in St. Adolphe and Rasta Lady in Morris.

Rambling about… Food for Thought

Some things are just so dang good you’ve gotta revisit them, and sometimes more than once.

Rambling with… Westman Aphasia

Researching my own health issues, I found Brandon’s Westman Aphasia and Susan Cable, their chief administrative officer, and decided to ask her about the services provided by the organization.

Ramblin’ with… Rasta Lady Cannabis Shop

Rasta Lady Cannabis Shop has a distinctly Jamaican sound to it.

Rambling with… Community Futures

Susan Bater is the entrepreneurs with disabilities program manager of the Community Futures Manitoba office here in Winnipeg.

Ramblin’ along with… Look Music

Look Music is a business I’m very familiar with, as I have known owner Doug Kool virtually my whole life. I even worked for him during my university days and beyond.

He has expanded his business to include a lot of things that weren’t offered when I was in his employee and being based in Brandon doesn’t restrict his operations to southwestern Manitoba. Doug will travel nearly anywhere to appease his customers, and has plenty of business in and around Winnipeg.

I started by asking Doug how many years he’s been entertaining the masses? What was your motivation to start a DJ service because that is how you first started, right?

“Since 1975, I believe,” he said. “I had a local guy play my wedding social. You know him, Brent Tough, and I thought to myself…‘Hey I really am into music, I could do this.’’

Rambling on down to… Planet of Sound

I had some dealings with Planet of Sound on Henderson Highway a few years back and really enjoyed their professionalism.

I had been in the store a few times before and if you’re into vinyl records or music in general you’ve got to visit them.

So, when I ran across Planet of Sound on Facebook (www.facebook.com/planetofsound) I just knew I had to introduce them to you.

So, I’ll turn most of the telling, as is my column modus operandi, to Mr. David Wright to fill in the details.

Rambling with… Woofs ’n Wags

“Funny how difficult I found these simple questions to be. It is different when you speak about yourself…lol!”

That’s the first comment I got from Nikki Sherwin, the owner of Woofs ’n Wags, an industrious dog-related undertaking that involves grooming and a variety of other pet-related services.

As usual, I’ll turn everything over to Nikki:

“I currently have two locations,” she said. “For now, two locations (at 491 St. Anne’s Rd. and 2 Donald St.) are plenty but, in the future, we will probably see one more location.”

Food for Thought

Food For Thought is not part of a chain, just a one-and-only standalone catering service which has been in business almost 22 years.Melanie Rushton has been sole owner and proprietor for those 22 years. When I asked if she was related to Joyce Rushton, she said she was and wondered how I knew Joyce. It turns out that Joyce — or Mrs. Rushton, as I knew her, was my Grade 7 teacher many years ago at Virden Junior High School. And she was also Melanie’s grandmother. Small world, indeed! I asked Melanie how she was surviving the COVID-19 pandemic and if she has had to lay off any employees .“Yes, I had to lay off a couple,” she said. “But I needed them back as our frozen food line grew fast due to Covid,” which is a fact we can all easily understand in these times.Her business name is catchy and unique, and I told her so, to which she replied: “Yes, it is very catchy, part of the reason I chose it.” Food for Thought used to regularly cater group meals to clients and businesses but Melanie said that, since the beginning of the pandemic, many of them have tried their line of frozen meals and now order them regularly.I asked if she had any plans to move or expand and learned that Food for Thought started out on Main Street and moved to 840 Erin St. about eight years ago. “This location is serving us well. It is nice and central for our customers, and a good base for our citywide delivery service,” Melanie explained, adding that “if the frozen food line continues to grow, we will consider expanding.”I asked if there was anything else she wanted to add or that she thought needed mentioning, which gave her an opportunity to give me a rundown of what Food for Thought has to offer.“We have a large variety of meals available, like roast chicken dinner, pot roast, turkey dinner, lasagna, soups, desserts and much more. We cook all the meals ourselves and are proud to say they are very low in fat, sugar, and sodium. They are for anyone who needs a healthy, home-style meal.” Clients can call 204-772-3663 to order, or order online at www.foodforthoughtcatering.ca or www.foodft.caFood for Thought delivers citywide or you can pick your orders up curbside at 840 Erin St. Before she signed off, Melanie recalled one thing she wanted to be sure to mention:“I started the business 22 years ago with my grandfather in mind. My grandmother had passed away and I was really concerned about what he would be eating. He was a farmer and was always used to having healthy, home-cooked meals. He enjoyed our meals until the age of 96! Sadly, he passed away last year”. Weldon Rinn lives, writes, and enjoys living in St. Vital. He can be reached at weldonrinn2@gmail.com

Food For Thought is not part of a chain, just a one-and-only standalone catering service which has been in business almost 22 years.

Melanie Rushton has been sole owner and proprietor for those 22 years. When I asked if she was related to Joyce Rushton, she said she was and wondered how I knew Joyce. 

It turns out that Joyce — or Mrs. Rushton, as I knew her, was my Grade 7 teacher many years ago at Virden Junior High School. And she was also Melanie’s grandmother. Small world, indeed! 

Rambling along with … The Unexpected Gift

Tara Torchia is the owner of The Unexpected Gift, a unique, compassionate, caring, and genuinely empathetic business — which we all should be aware of.

First we’ll meet Tara… and as with all my columns, I’ll let her tell her own story:

“I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012, I went through a mastectomy, six rounds of chemotherapy and 25 blasts of radiation — the full-meal deal,” she said. “I was off work for about one year and when I went back, people were still complaining about the same things. After my experience, I knew that the only people that can change their situation are themselves. I felt that I could simply not ‘do’ corporate Canada anymore.

“I took a business development course with the Women’s Enterprise Centre and the rest is history. I also felt there had to be an easier way of going through this cancer dance, so I thought ‘Why not have everything that you might need in one location — a one stop shop, owned and operated by a cancer survivor? Someone who can really relate to what you are going through,” she explained.

Rambling with… Body Measure

We’ve all likely seen the advertisements for Body Measure on TV.

I’ve been intrigued since I first saw one and, upon learning they’re located close to me, at 1086 St. Mary’s Rd.,  I needed to learn more. So I contacted  owners Meline Elliott and Erica Henderson.

Melina and Erica first worked together on a research study at the University of Manitoba. Melina was a research co-ordinator and Erica worked as an X-ray tech. Through their work in research it became clear that the public needed and wanted access to scientifically based data about their bodies and health.

Erica has also worked in the fitness industry for over 25 years, working as a fitness instructor and a trainer, so Body Measure combines both of Erica’s passions; her love of fitness and health and wellness technology.

Rambling along with 204Comics

So, I have to admit I had never heard of 204Comics; however, it sounded just like the type of establishment I love to frequent. Or used to before my health failed me and COVID-19 made things even more complicated.

Ashley van Oeveren and his wife run the store and I sent my intro blurb in an email and the rest is journalism history…

So Ashley answered my email and some questions for me so, take it away Ashley:

“My wife and I are the owners of 204Comics; we have been at our current location (5-1549 St. Mary’s Rd.) for (six) months. We have one employee, Bobby, whose main role is developing our website/online store .”

Rambling on with Farmery Estate Brewery

I am turning up many diamonds in our little suburb as I spelunk from home but, while it’s actually a little further afield, Farmery Estate Brewery is near and dear to my old heart.

Why? Because they make beer, of course. Without any more dithering from me, let’s learn more about Farmery Estate Brewery from Eric Warwaruk, who was kind enough to answer my calls for a column.

My first query had to do with location.

I asked Eric where Farmery’s farm and hopyard is located.

Rambling with… Joe Daley Sports and Framing

I first met original WHA Winnipeg Jets goalie Joe Daley years ago, when his sports card shop and framing business was on the west side of St. James Street, directly across from Polo Park.

I remember being a bit star-struck and buying a card (of him, of course), and asking him to sign it. He was in a Detroit Red Wings uniform and I still have the card somewhere in Hoardville (which also doubles as my suite at Kinsmen Place).

Knowing that Joe and his son Travis have relocated Joe Daley’s Sports and Framing to 513 St. Mary’s Rd., I contacted them (actually, it was Travis) and asked if they’d be interested in being interviewed for a column in The Lance.

The first question I was asked was whether their St. James location was where they started the business, and was a bit surprised by the answer:

Ramble on over to Rave Massage

Located directly west of St. Vital Centre, a little strip mall at 1220 St. Mary’s Rd. is home to Rave Massage.

Complete information about their massages services be found on Rave’s beautifully laid-out, easy-to-navigate website at www.ravemassage.com but I spent some time asking Tracy Simmons, who owns and works at Rave Massage alongside her husband, Ted., bout their business and how they’ve been doing during the pandemic.

My first question was about whether they had always occupied their current location and if they entertained any plans to expand.

I’ll turn it over to Tracy at this point:

ImagineAbility… if you can

So there’s a non-profit organization in the City of Winnipeg that I believe is one of our best kept secrets…

It’s called ImagineAbility (IA) and  I was fortunate to meet a young woman involved with IA through the Winnipeg Blue Bombers fan ambassador volunteers program.

Specifically, we met through the bike valet component of the fan ambassadors program, which I supervise. ImagineAbility works with the Bombers to provide volunteers for games and events at IG Field.

Tara Buzahora co-ordinates and supports IA’s service users and ensures that the interactions from all stakeholders remain positive and respectful. She takes her responsibilities quite seriously and is very proficient - emphatic and considerate and unafraid to be assertive on behalf of those she supports at IA.  

Rambling with… Past N Present Games

My relationship with Past N Present Games goes back several years - my son Carter made sure of that.

So, looking for a place to take my next rambling column, I thought of PNP. And who better to guide my inquiries than Lee Skwarek, the products and promotions manager.

Lee handles social media, advertising, buying; basically, he’s the public face of PNP Games. He has been employed with PNP for over 11 years now and says that he “started as a delivery driver and part-time store employee and worked my way up.”

I will turn it over to Lee to fill in the details of his story:

No argybargy at Argy’s Records

Ray Giguere is the owner of Argy’s Records & Entertainment Shop. I applied basic mathematics and guessed that his initials were used together to form Argy’s.

It makes sense, right? But it turns out I was wrong (more on that later).

A few weeks back, I set out on a mission to learn how Argy’s, located at Unit 9-1604 St. Mary’s Rd. earned its name and other interesting facts.

I’ve been in Argy’s a couple of times and purchased a few items like a record or two and a couple of sports cards.

Rambling on about … 007 and COVID’s sad toll

So I created a little stir on Facebook when I happened to comment that Sean Connery was and always would be the only real James Bond in my humble opinion.

I also said that Sir William Stephenson was Ian Fleming’s muse and inspiration for his imaginary spy novels. Further to that, the aforementioned Stephenson was originally from Winnipeg, so our province could claim that old “shaken not stirred” had prairie roots. A plethora of good information on Stephenson can be found on Wikipedia. From what I can discern, most if not all of said information rings true.

A friend from Australia brought some other information to light concerning a certain gentleman from Down Under who also had a stake in the creation of 007. I told her and some other respondents on Facebook that the only real true source would be Fleming and he ain’t talking and won’t be any time soon…

Fleming said he based his creation on individuals he met during his time in the Naval Intelligence Division, and admitted that Bond “was a compound of all the secret agents and commando types I met during the war.”

A satisfied Riverview Health Centre patient

They say the best form of advertising is a satisfied customer; unfortunately I was a customer at Riverview Health Centre’s acquired brain injury (ABI) unit but you can count me as satisfied I am now ready to talk about the facility so that other Manitobans will be better informed about Riverview’s role in providing health care to Manitobans.

I am familiar with the unit where I was a patient but was totally unaware of all the other areas served by Riverview, so I turned to Sheldon Mindell, executive director of RHC Foundation to answer my many questions.

He said my timing couldn’t have been better ,as the Health Centre is about to launch its new website (www.rhc.mb.ca). In addition to presenting information about all aspects of Riverview, the site will showcase stories of past patient experiences, a catalogue of previous Health Views publications plus a three-dimensional tour of the facility.

Prior to the creation of Riverview Health in 1994, the property  at 1 Morley Ave., was known as the Municipal Hospitals —King George, King Edward, and Princess Elizabeth. These facilities were owned and operated by the City of Winnipeg and provided care to patients suffering with communicable diseases.

Dakota Family Foods delivers in many ways

There is a jewel hidden away in the heart of St. Vital and if you are not aware of this treasure yet, allow me to introduce you…

Dakota Family Foods is a community grocery store at 1099 St. Mary’s Rd. in the Dakota Village Shopping Centre, just north of Beliveau Road.

It’s the kind of place where customers are greeted by name and they know staff members names, or both; I am one of the latter.  The success of this store is based on the staff providing exceptional service and it offers many things you may not see at big box stores, such as:

• In-store smokehouse meat items, and their own in-house sausages;