I have lived near or in the village of Leask for all but one year of my life. Leask was incorporated in 1912 and is located on Highway 40 in central Saskatchewan. The current population is approximately four hundred people on a good day.
Through the years, businesses and services have closed and/or been torn down. Different ones have opened in their place, and new buildings have been added.
The evolution of a small town:
- Bowling Alley and Cafe 1962 (closed, Leask Sales and Service, closed, now the Village Maintenance Shop)
- C.N.R. Station (closed in 1979 and torn down)
- Railway (line closed and removed)
- Grain elevators (remaining ones are now privately owned)
- Pompu's Store (closed, building later burned down)
- Imperial Oil bulk fuel - Charlie Kasun, (Three D Farm Services - Imperial Oil Agent Gordon Harris, closed, building moved)
- Belyk's Drug Store (Cote's Variety Store - Arnold's Variety Store, now Bramshott Spirits)
- Helen's Bakery (closed in 1984 and torn down)
- Stefanic Dry Cleaning depot (closed and torn down)
- Pool Hall (closed, P & J Sewing, closed, Shago’s, torn down)
- Mansell's Hardware (closed, Derr Laundry Mat, closed, and torn down)
- Ferster's Blacksmith Shop (closed in 1988 and torn down)
- United Church (closed, later Happy Hands and Feet Daycare, closed, building now privately owned)
- North American Lumber, (closed, Cliff's Lumber Supply, closed)
- Robin Enterprises 1981, closed (E & B Lumber, closed, building now privately owned)
- Leask Sports Center (curling rink closed)
- Ball diamonds (rebuilt in 2000)
- Paris Cafe - Charlie McHanson (closed and torn down)
- Evergreen Agencies, Eileen Dobson now Tait Insurance
- Leask School - Leask Community School addition of Home Ec. and Industrial Arts facilities in 1984, renovated in 2023
- Spriggs' Meats purchased Shop Rite (a butcher shop is now located in the Leask Mart grocery store)
- Several grocery stores including William's Store, The Big Store owned by Marcel Roberts, Eugene Lalonde and Irene and Andy Cyr, Wasko's, Lucky Dollar Stores, Shop Rite owned by Bill and Alma Dube, Spriggs' Fine Foods and Meats (now Leask Mart)
- Hairdressers I frequented - Bernie Hoffman, Vi Samiroden, Vivian Spriggs, Debbie Watier, Jeanette Clark, Chris Donohue, Susan Radics and Lori Donohue
- Grace Baptist Church (closed and torn down)
- Hotel Windsor and cafe 1912 - 2011 (burned down)
- Confectionary/gas/laundry/car wash - U-Clean, Barney’s, Dooper’s, (closed)
- Rogerson Garage (closed)
- Implement dealerships - Central Garage Case New Holland - Hector Fouquette, Bill Dobson, Stanley Barber and Murray Kasun (closed, the original building burnt down and was rebuilt, Buck's Place restaurant, confectionary and gas and CJH8 Mechanical), Northwest Tractor (closed, building now privately owned)
- McHanson's Hardware (closed) sold to village and opened as ACE Hardware (closing 2023)
- Leask Gospel Tabernacle (rebuilt)
- Royal Bank (closed, now Affinity Credit Union)
- Fire Hall torn down (new one built)
- Butler Library (built)
- The clinic (closed 2019), town office and Woodland Pharmacy, Jim's Hair Studio (closed 2022)
- Jerry's Barber Shop closed 2020 - Joanne Conan IG Wealth Management
- Leask Housing Authority (houses built) 1978
- South Park Terrace (units built)
- Funeral Services (built - Hawryluk Funeral Home, closed now Beau 'Lac' Funeral Home)
- Happy Homesteaders Seniors' Center built 1984
- Leask Lions' Hall built in 1981 (Leask Community Hall in 2012 when the Lions’ Club dissolved and turned the hall over to the village)
- Misty Petroleum built near Leask in 2017 on Highway 40
- Kilwinning Store (closed and torn down)
- Saint Henry's Catholic Church (rebuilt)
- All Saints Anglican Church. 1926 - present (current building built in 1957)
- Bricklayer - Andy Cyr
- Wheatland Lodge Longterm Care Home built in 1990
- Leask Cafeteria opened (formerly Shop Rite building) Kai and Janet Wong sold the cafe and retired in 2020
- Sears Outlet (service discontinued)
- S.T.C. Transportation Services (service discontinued)
- Sterling Coach Lines (service discontinued)
- Leask Flyers Senior Hockey Team (folded)
- Leask Hornets Ball Team (folded)
- Gilles Jean Construction (closed)
- Bill's Bobcat and Construction (closed)
- Johnson Excavation (in operation)
- Rogers Construction (retired)
- Autet Construction (in operation)
- S.G. I Insurance, Milton Egg, until 1989
- Co-operators Insurance, George Mann until 1976, then Lloyd Banda
- Banda's Sales and Service, Lloyd Banda, retired and sold business to Zac Waldner in 2019
- Leask Legion Hall 1927 - current
Wow, there have been more changes in the village than I initially thought when I started this story. Buildings come and go, but memories remain. Some of mine include the:
- Smell of the fresh bread at the bakery
- Parrot that lived at the dry cleaners
- Sawdust on the floor at the butcher shop
- Sound of the ball rolling down the alley and slamming into the pins at the bowling alley
- Train rumbling through the village
- Pool Hall feeling like a dark man cave when I walked to the back of the building where my dad was getting a hair cut from Mr. Leblanc
- Sports days at the ball diamonds with the sound of a bat hitting the ball, the umpire's voice and the smell from the outdoor food booths
- Grand Opening of the Leask Sports Centre, figure skating and attending hockey games
- Parades and celebrations
- Fish and Game banquets and dances
- Opening of Wheatland Lodge
- Original Saint Henry's Church and its basement hall
- Paris Cafe with its long counter and red spinning stools
- McHanson's original hardware store with its impressive selection of products
- Day the hotel burnt down
- Smell of oil from the back mechanic's shop at Central Garage when I went there with my dad
- Getting the call that my Sears parcel had arrived
- Riding the S.T.C. bus and Sterling Transportation van
The sign outside the village says this area is a sportsman's paradise. There is a nine-hole golf course a few miles away. Emerald, Martins and Memorial Lake Regional Parks are all within an hour's drive, as are Iroquois, Big Shell and D'Amour Lakes. Botchy's Campground provides camping, ice cream and a greenhouse.
Rural communities across our country have all struggled to remain vibrant. What has been the most significant change in your life where you live?
As you know, I often refer to Leask as "The Village" in my stories; my Mom called it that. I thought you might like to see it.