ELK POINT – The electronic sign a half block south of the Elk Point Seniors Recreation Centre said an even -30 C on Wednesday morning, but that didn’t slow a large and happy group of Pioneer Circle members and their friends from gathering in the hall for a day of celebration of 33 years in the roomy facility that has been their home since 1992.
The Jan. 7, 1992 issue of the Elk Point Review showed the Pioneer Circle members at that time loading the club’s possessions from their former home in what had originally been the Legion Hall and is now the Elk Point Outreach School. That move came just hours after their final bingo in the hall that had been their location since the group was formed on April 3, 1973, and agreed to name the new organization ‘Pioneer Circle’ just one month later.
With increased membership having outgrown that location less than 19 years later, they were moving to the brand new Recreation Centre, and settling in, just in time for their very next bingo on Jan. 6.
Three weeks after their move, the members enjoyed the spacious premises at a housewarming party, according to Elk Point Review reporter Irene Magnusson, who just two weeks later provided all the details of “The grand official opening,” when MLA John Drobot officiated at the ribbon cutting ceremony “while a happy throng looked on.”
Sid Holthe was honoured for his never-ending efforts on behalf of the Pioneer Circle with a gift presented by president Lillian Palinka, and Drobot and Palinka admired a harvest-themed painting presented by local artist Ralph Kryvenchuk, which still graces the same wall today.
While those individuals from that very special occasion are no longer with us today, their memories and their contributions were still on the minds of today’s seniors as they gathered last week to celebrate this year’s milestone with a day of cards, games and good conversation, and lunch topped off with slices of anniversary cake all around. Third generation Pioneer Circle member Lorne Young joined Randy Ballas to cut the anniversary cake while second generation member Lyn Young, the daughter of Irene Magnusson cheered them on.
Today’s hard-working Pioneer Circle members deserve a celebration, because this is a very well-used facility, with cribbage and other card games, floor curling, military whist and court whist on their calendar as well as their weekly bingos and many other events through the year, including the annual Canada Day evening jamboree, as they carry on their organization’s 72-year tradition of keeping this area’s seniors busy and entertained.
