Leons Headlines Sept 9: For most Manitoba school divisions, today is the first day of school, as 281K students return; parents are being urged to avoid sharing identifying details in back-to-school photos, as names, schools, interests & addresses can be used by online offenders to locate or groom children.
-Gladstone & MacGregor elementary schools get $231K in new playground equipment, with the province covering 75% & local fundraising & Pine Creek SD covering the rest.
-MB Labour Board orders 350 striking Dynacare lab workers back to work after less than a day.
-Brandon city council waives criminal record check fees to help attract volunteers for Operation Red Nose this holiday season, shuttered since 2023.
-2 dead in separate crashes in western Manitoba; 1 man killed in rollover near Alonsa; another after an ATV & truck collided in Sandy Bay.
-MB government provides $100K to the RM of Boissevain‑Morton for the Boissevain Lions Campground expansion.
-Winnipeg’s new Northern Super League team will play next season in a new 4,500-seat stadium, supported by government funding & led by Olympic gold medalist Desiree Scott.
-Manitoba contributes $73M for 821 new homes in a partnership with the feds, City of Wpg & community housing organizations, with all but 10 to be built in Wpg.
-In a national address to Canadians Tuesday, PM Mark Carney warned of tough times ahead as US retaliatory tariffs begin.
-Trump ramps up retaliation Tuesday, banning imports of booze & other products.
OH man, the Kemnay Bridge hit again. Tuesday a motorist with a dashcam caught a emi trailer grazing the famous Kemnay Bridge, a landmark now famous across Canada for it’s numerous warning signs for low height, and the dozens of drivers who have ignored or not understood the warning.
🎒📚 BACK TO SCHOOL TODAY. School is back in session today, with thousands of Manitoba kids trading summer freedom for backpacks, classrooms and alarm clocks. For parents, it’s a day of excitement, relief… and maybe a little “where the did the summer go?” GRAB THE KLEENEX! This first-day-of-school video is an absolute emotional ambush — the kind that starts out sweet and ends with you pretending there’s something in your eye.
🎒 FIRST DAY OF KINDERGARTEN. The first day of kindergarten is one of those huge milestones filled with excitement, nerves and, for some parents, plenty of tears.
📸 FIRST DAY PICS. The annual first-day-of-school photo is back — fresh clothes, big smiles, oversized backpacks and those hilarious little signs announcing what kids want to be when they grow up. Here are some of the funniest first-day pictures parents have shared over the years.
🚫 SHOULD ALL SCREENS BE BANNED? School is back — but should screens stay out of the classroom too? If we’ve banned phones, should tablets, laptops and other screens face the same scrutiny, or are they simply part of modern education?
WHEN DID PLAYING OUTSIDE BECOME A CRIME? A mother was convicted after allowing her children to play outside without adult supervision, raising a much bigger question about how much freedom kids should have today. Are we protecting children — or preventing them from learning independence and simply being kids?
A PARDON FOR LINDSAY CLANCY?!?! After her murder trial ended in a mistrial last week, Lindsay Clancy’s attorney has now gone directly to President Donald Trump asking him to pardon his client. There’s just one enormous problem — Trump can’t pardon her, because she’s facing state charges in Massachusetts, not federal charges; so why is her lawyer making the request, and could Trump’s influence still have an impact on what happens next?
