A week of laughs, forums, crowds and more

By Lethbridge Herald on April 14, 2025.

Mark Campbell, right, suffers some slings and arrows from longtime friend George Gallant during the Celebrity Roast Friday at the German Canadian Club. Herald photo by Scott Sakatch

POINT OF VIEW – Editor Scott Sakatch

Well, it’s been another hectic week, which has left me with another batch of thoughts running through my head, so buckle up as I pass them along!

A LAUGH AND A HALF: I’d like to give a huge shout out to Brian Dawydiuk (whose name I’ve apparently been mispronouncing for months) and his fellow organizers of the Charity Roast of Mark Campbell this past weekend for putting on the comedy event of the year. Brian, along with a line-up of other local comedians, joined several of Mark’s longtime friends and basically spent four hours lobbing jokes at him and each other. All of them were slap-the-table funny, but there were a few true standouts, including Dave Mikuliak recounting the night when thieves made off with Mark’s (running) car while the pair were in Coco Pazzo performing a Greeter-Gram. Lethbridge Police later tracked down the car after the thieves drove it into a meridian, reportedly distracted while trying to stop the car’s 5-disc CD player from playing non-stop Barry Manilow music. The theme throughout the night was Mark losing the lead role in Jesus Christ Superstar to buddy George Gallant 30 years ago, and losing out to him ever since. It truly showcased how much amazing talent we have here in Lethbridge, and the sold-out crowd showed just how much we think Mark Campbell is all right, I guess (noncommittal shrug).

SAY HELLO, JOE: Today’s issue marks the Herald debut of reporter Joe Manio. Joe began his career in journalism many years ago after leaving the U.S. military, working as a photographer and reporter in California before joining Arnold Schwarzenegger’s gubernatorial campaign (if you run into him, make sure you bring it up because he loves to talk about it). He’s been in Lethbridge since 2010 and has made many connections in the community through volunteer work, jobs and the local Toastmasters. He was also the “face of the Y” for several years. Welcome aboard, Joe! Prepare to be worked like a rented mule!

A FORUM FOR ‘EM: Southern Albertans will have another opportunity to listen to, and ask questions of, their federal election candidates on Wednesday at the Lethbridge Public Library. This will be the third forum this month, after a pair of forums hosted by the Lethbridge and Coaldale Chambers of Commerce. If you get to April 28 and say you don’t know where the candidates stand on the issues, you have nobody to blame but yourself, though you might get away with blaming it on Mark Campbell (even though George Gallant did it first).

THE ROAR OF THE CROWD: It’s always heartening to see the Hurricanes make the playoffs, and our hometown heroes are having a great run of it so far. But what makes it even better is the amazing support the community has been showing at the home games. Attendance at the last Canes-Hitmen game at VisitLethbridge.com Arena was more than 4,000, while the last game at the Saddledome in a city ten times our size didn’t even scare up 3,000 fans. You can bet the Canes have noticed the support, and here’s hoping it fuels them right into the next round.

WAY TO ABANDON US, YOU LOUSY TRAITOR: Uh, I mean, my heartfelt congratulations to Ian Martens, who will be moving on from his position at the Lethbridge Herald at the end of the week. Most readers know Ian as an immensely talented photographer whose work has been gracing the pages of the paper for close to 30 years now, but many don’t know he’s also served as our night editor for the past few years. Essentially, he’s been the one who puts the paper to bed every night and makes sure it gets to the press on time, so that it can get to your doorstep the next morning. It’s no exaggeration to say he’s been my lifeline in the months since I returned to the Herald after almost 20 year away. It’s a stressful job (I know from experience) but Ian always managed to do it with a smile on his face. He’s a consummate newspaperman, and the newsroom just won’t be the same without him. But I wish him all the best with the next stage of his career and his life. At least, that’s what I’m saying to his face. Behind his back, I’m grumbling something about him leaving me all alone in the asylum…

THAT’S ALL, FOLKS: Well, that drains my brain for one more week. As always, I encourage everyone to reach out to me with any tips you might have on what’s going down in our hometown. Email editor@lethbridgeherald.com and let me know!

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