Maybe one day this job will feel like actual work . . .
March 25, 2024, 2:13 pm
Kevin Weedmark
I love my job because every single day I get a lot of work done, I get to work with great people, I learn something new, and I have fun.
Wednesday was no exception as I headed into the Legislature for the Budget Speech. The Minister of Rural and Remote Health was prepared to talk about the CT Scanner for Moosomin after the budget.
Our brilliant young reporter Ashley came with me, as she had done some reporting last summer that helped bring the CT Scanner issue to prominence. She wrote an article on Levi Jamieson’s contribution to the CT Scanner Fund in the hope that it would help in the future in a case like his. The day after that article came out we interviewed the then-minister of Rural and Remote Health, Everett Hindley, and he committed in that interview to come out to tour the Southeast Integrated Care Centre and find out more about the need for a CT Scanner for the Moosomin Region.
“I’m always very encouraged to see when an individual such as Levi has decided to also become part of this and throw their support behind this initiative—not just in terms of that support but doing so in financial means as well. So a very gracious thank-you to Levi for what he’s done now for this particular project and the support he’s thrown behind it,” were Hindley’s exact words to us. And the day after that, we spoke with Premier Scott Moe. His exact words were “I think all will be inspired by the dedication and drive that a young guy like Levi has in already fundraising for a valuable service like the CT Scanner. It will be looked at in the due course of the budgeting process of the government and the SHA.”
Wednesday’s budget includes a $5.1-million increase to expand capacity for specialized CT and MRI medical imaging services, thanks in part to Levi’s efforts and Ashley’s reporting in getting the CT Scanner onto the agenda.
The fun thing about going to the legislature is seeing lots of people you know. On this trip we ran into a bunch of teachers from Moosomin, Rocanville, and Wapella who were protesting outside the Legislature.
Inside, one person told me it was like running a gauntlet to get through the protesting teachers. I responded that for me it wasn’t like running the gauntlet in a negative sense, it was like running the gauntlet to get to the post office or the credit union without stopping to chat with 15 people. Through the day we spoke with Moosomin MLA Steven Bonk, his assistant Garry Beckett, Cannington MLA Darryl Harrison, former Cannington MLA Dan D’Autremont who sat near us on the floor of the Chamber for the budget speech, Sheila Sterling, former publisher of the Redvers Optimist who runs the speakers office and got us seats on the floor, STF vice-president Nathan Bromm, Minister of Rural and Remote Health Tim McLeod and NDP MLA Trent Wotherspoon, who gave the opposition response to the budget. I introduced Ashley to him and told her he is the smartest guy on the NDP side of the house. He responded that he didn’t want to know where I rank him out of all 61 MLAs. I don’t know if he picked up on the fact that I said he was the smartest “guy” on the NDP side, so not divulging where he ranks compared to his leader, Carla Beck . . .
So, like every day, I got a lot of work done, talked to some great people, learned a few new things, and had some fun!
Maybe one day this job will feel like actual work, but I haven’t got to that point yet!
