The fall run of our country cookouts came to an end today (Sept 21st) with a stop in Ituna, SK, the “I” of the Parkland region of Saskatchewan and the home of the legendary Nick Kaczmar, the CKRM Promotions Director.
Ituna dates its history to the early 1900’s when the railway came to the area, bringing with it many Ukrainian settlers. By 1910, Ituna was officially incorporated as a village and a town by 1961.
How did Ituna get it’s name? There are a couple theories. One says the railroad builders were naming new towns in alphabetical order as they moved across the region, meaning a station needed an “i.” Another theory says the name was inspired by Rudyard Kipling’s book “Puck of Pooks Hill.”
But what are residents of Ituna actually called? Itunians? Itunites? Itunasanites? Gloria and I called the Mayor of Ituna, Rene Dubreuil, to find out. Take a listen below: