REGINA - A couple of years ago, when I moved from North Battleford to my new reporting role in Regina, I wrote a News Watch column that my editors billed as my “final News Watch column.”
But as Donald Trump likes to say, that was “fake news.” It may have been my last column based out of North Battleford, but I had several more columns left in me.
That was not the final News Watch column. This one, however, is.
With a new job and a new opportunity to continue in media in Regina, I am bringing my time at SaskToday to a close. And while my new role promises to be exciting and scary all at the same time, the fact is, I have had the range of emotions about this decision.
The reality is that this brings an end to my two years at the Legislature for SaskToday, and I am emotional about that.
Two years ago, I came to Regina with a mandate from my bosses to focus on what I consider one of my strengths: coverage of political news. I remember my first day arriving at the Legislature and my own excitement I felt that day about being able to have a front row seat to what was happening in the Assembly.
I quickly came to realize this is probably the best gig you can have as a reporter in Saskatchewan, because there is always something happening and frankly, never a dull moment at the Legislature.
I remember being there for the Speech from the Throne — including the infamous one in which Colin Thatcher showed up, and believe me, all heck broke loose when people found out he was invited.
I was there for budget days, spending the morning in the budget lockup and the afternoon chasing reaction from the interest groups whose representatives were at the Legislature that day.
I remember being there for the landmark legislation like the Saskatchewan First Act.
I was there for the special sitting on the Parents Bill of Rights Act — the bill requiring parental notification for name and pronouns changes for students under age 16. I remember being there in the crowds of protesters both for and against the legislation at the start of the session.
I was there on the day of the announcement that Walsh Acres MLA Derek Meyers had died — you could hear a pin drop that day.
I particularly remember the day of the pro-Palestinian protests that erupted inside the Legislature, causing the Legislature to be cleared right out.
And I remember the countless scrums and Zoom calls during coverage of the never-ending teachers’ labour dispute.
I was also there for the more ceremonial activities, such as the day the Royal Regina Rifles statue was on hand at the Saskatchewan War Memorial. Or the official visit of Governor General Mary Simon to Saskatchewan.
Being there to see history happen before my very eyes has been a privilege and something I never took for granted. I had an office in the media area of the Legislature and couldn’t believe that this was where I worked — at the Legislature, covering provincial news every day. Frankly, having to give up that office is the toughest part of this whole thing.
But if you were to ask me what I was most proud of during my two years, ironically it had very little to do with the Legislature, and more to do with all the hard work and effort I put in to the rest of what was happening in the city. That included building our presence on the City Hall beat and coverage of major news, such as the news conferences on the James Smith Cree Nation killings in 2022. Or the visit of Prime Minister Trudeau to Regina in 2023.
And who can forget the happenings with the Saskatchewan Roughriders and events like the 2022 Grey Cup Festival, and the 2024 Brier.
Over the last two years, my goal was to fly the flag for SaskToday in Regina and plant a foothold for our news organization here in the city — bringing the major news of what happened in the capital to our readers across the province.
In many ways this has been the dream job, even with the long hours. Murray Mandryk called me the “hardest working reporter in Saskatchewan” because of my heavy workload when the Leg was in session. I’d like to think all of that hard work paid off.
But it has not been an easy time in the media in Regina, because of the turbulence impacting the entire media industry in the last couple of years which all my colleagues have felt.
We felt it here, too, on the day that we got word that SaskToday was being sold by Glacier to Harvard Media.
With the resources of Harvard and CKRM Radio, this move should help solidify SaskToday on its way to being a permanent fixture on the Saskatchewan media scene.
I’d like to think I helped lay the groundwork here in Regina for what will be many years ahead for SaskToday, having worked alongside Jayne Foster and Lisa Joy and the others who were part of this venture from the beginning.
I dunno about you, but I’m going to miss writing the “Daily Leg Update” stories, not to mention “Cairns on Cinema” and the Riders game day reports among others.
As the Legislature session entered its final week, and as I began to realize my own time as SaskToday reporter was coming to an end, I had thought back to the first day and to the enthusiasm and optimism I had felt about arriving at the Legislature. As I was wrapping it up, frankly I was feeling emotional about the whole thing.
Here’s what really helped. During that last week of the session, I sat in on the farewell speeches from departing MLAs and cabinet ministers including Dustin Duncan, Donna Harpauer and Don McMorris. Those speeches were really inspiring and helped me realize, you know what? It’s the right time for a change for me, too.
Harpauer spoke in her speech about a fork in the road and how the path you choose will determine your future. Well, I have found that I, too, have come to a fork in the road. So here I am, heading off in a new direction as I continue my media career. I’m excited, but I will not forget the memories of my two years as the Regina reporter at SaskToday.
My work here is done. Thank you for tuning in, and I hope to talk to you again soon.
