YXE Underground

Since 1981, the Elizabeth Fry Society has supported women across Canada who are criminalized or are at risk of criminalization. In Saskatchewan, the organization is led by Nicole Obrigavitch, and she is helping to grow the Elizabeth Fry Society’s impact in our city, especially when it comes to affordable housing. When Nicole started as the Executive Director of the Elizabeth Fry Society in 2023, t...

Hello and welcome to a special bonus episode of YXE Underground.  Back in May, I was fortunate to host a book launch at McNally Robinson for my friend, Chelsea Coupal . Chelsea is an incredible poet, and her new collection, entitled ' U Alive' , is a powerful read.  The collection was published by Saskatchewan's Thistledown Press . I got to speak with the publisher's Publicity and M...

In Season Seven of the podcast, I had the pleasure of meeting a Saskatoon nurse named Dominique Paulgaard. She was one of five Saskatoon oncology nurses who started a charity called Prairie Cancer Fertility Preservation a few years ago.  The purpose of Prairie Cancer Fertility Preservation is to preserve the ability for cancer patients to have children. This can either be through sperm or egg...

"I never really interview people. I converse with them." Hossein Martin Fazeli is an award-winning filmmaker who calls Vancouver home. His latest documentary, ' I Am Gitxsan ,' has led him to Saskatoon for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.  Hossein's documentary is screening at Wanuskewin Heritage Park at 4pm on September 30th as part of the day's events at the park, and he expla...

I love Nuit Blanche! I think it is a wonderful opportunity for our community to explore the city, interact with thought-provoking and unique works of art, all under the stars on a Saturday night.  The festival also gives local and national artists a chance to create under a theme chosen by the Xiao Han, Nuit Blanche's curator.  I was lucky to have Xiao on the podcast last year, and we ha...

Welcome to the Season Nine debut of YXE Underground. My name is Eric Anderson, and I am so excited to begin this season of the podcast with the CHAMPS Summer Camp . CHAMPS is pretty incredible. It is an annual week-long day camp held in July primarily for children between the ages of seven and 17 with congenital or acquired heart disease. For 11 years, CHAMPS (which stands for Children’s Healthy-H...

Anita Smith is wearing purple work gloves and has a walkie talkie clipped to shirt when I meet her at W.E. Graham Park a few days before the Saskatoon Fringe Festival  is set to begin. She and her team of staff and volunteers are setting up for the festival and are not letting city construction get in the way of hosting another wonderful festival.  It has been another busy year for Anita. As Artis...

There is always something happening in Saskatoon during the summertime. From Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan and the Fringe Festival, to the Saskatoon Ex and Rock the River, there is something for everyone to enjoy in our community.  Last week, my wife and I went for a walk on the Train Bridge on a beautiful afternoon. We don't often walk in that area of the city, and reminded me of how beautiful...

When was the last time you felt free to be creative? To just let loose and tap into your creativity in an inviting and supportive space? I was thinking about these points when I took in the Something Sketchy – Bad Drawing Only event in January.  This gathering comes from the wonderful mind of Jaymie Raefta , a Saskatoon illustrator and artist who has become one of my favourite people in the past f...

Hello and welcome to Season 8, Episode 9 of YXE Underground. I’m Eric Anderson, and welcome to OUT Saskatoon’s Newcomer Support Group. It is a snowy, bitterly cold Thursday night in April, but in the OUT Saskatoon’s headquarters, their main gathering space is packed with people from across the world. This support group started last May and offers LGBTQ newcomers and refugees a safe space to not on...

"Every day is a new, exciting challenge. I am having a great time doing it, but it is a challenge." Anita Smith has been creating live theatre for nearly 30 years. She is the Executive and Artistic Director of the 25th Street Theatre Company and loves providing Saskatchewan artists the opportunity to tell their stories and showcase their skills.  The company's latest production, however, is pushin...

Welcome to the YWCA Saskatoon's Hopeful Hearts Home program. The program takes place in a four-story building that opened last year and is a transitional housing wing attached to the main YWCA building.  The Hopeful Hearts Home program provides women and their families with a safe home in a nurturing environment to heal from experiences of interpersonal violence. There are 35 suites in the buildin...

Growing up in Swift Current, I never saw the infamous Great Buffet of China television ad that aired all the time from 1996 to 1998, but Craig Silliphant and Don Sparrow sure did.  They remember seeing it in the mornings before university, at supper during the news, and into the wee hours of the night.  The story of how this advertisement came to be, the impact it had on those involved in the prod...

It’s a Tuesday afternoon and the commercial kitchen at Mount Royal Collegiate is filled with grade 11 and 12 students preparing a restaurant quality meal under the careful and encouraging eye of Wayne Pilon.  Wayne teaches the commercial cooking program, along with the high school’s food skills and sewing classes (he is also the school's Athletic Director), and today he is dividing up the students...

I am very excited to share a conversation with you featuring two wonderful people who you met a few years ago. Tennille and Lydia Corbett are mother and daughter who wrote a best-selling memoir in 2024 entitled, ‘(Un)Remarkable: How Cancer and Depression Intertwined Our Stories of Grief and Hope.’ Their 2024 episode focused on Tennille’s cancer journey, Lydia’s mental health challenges, and how th...

I remember being a kid in Swift Current being glued to the television when the Kinsmen Telemiracle fundraiser was on across the province. I would get my parents' permission to call and make a donation to the fundraiser and then wait for hours for my name to slowly crawl across the bottom of the screen. It was such a big deal to see my name on television, even it lasted for just a few seconds and w...

For the past three years, Wanuskewin’s Artist-in-Residence program has welcomed emerging and established Indigenous artists to not only create within its beautiful space, but to share their inspiration and process with visitors to the park. This program is helping our community connect with Wanuskewin in new ways, and you’ll meet some of the people behind the program in this episode of YXE Undergr...

Hello, I'm Eric Anderson and welcome to YXE Underground. If you are a long time listener of the podcast, thank you! If this is your first time listening, welcome. YXE Underground is a local, independent podcast here in Saskatoon that shines a light on people who are doing incredible things but are flying under the radar.  I am so excited that the wonderful Lisa Greig is once again joining us in Se...

Empathy and compassion are qualities Brynn Service has in spades, and they are enabling her to make a difference the lives of Saskatoon’s homeless population and those who are at risk of homelessness. Brynn is the Saskatoon supervisor of a national program called Coordinated Access , and she shares why this work means so much to her in this episode of YXE Underground. Saskatoon continues to face t...

Hello and welcome to a special bonus episode of YXE Underground. I’m Eric Anderson and I hope you had a great holiday season. For 13 years, Swinging with the Stars has paired community leaders with professional dancers for a night of entertainment and raising money for the Saskatoon City Hospital Foundation .  This year’s event is on Saturday, January 31st at TCU Place, the theme is Broadway, and...

In this bonus episode, we are going to learn about a new and innovative project from Elmwood Residences that will make a real difference in Saskatoon’s disability community. It’s called the Elmwood Community Hub , and you might remember it being discussed in our last episode that highlighted the work being done at Elmwood’s Community Homes throughout Saskatoon.  The Community Hub, which if everyth...

Kyle Danylyshen is one of four residents living in one of Elmwood Residences' community homes for people with intellectual disabilities. For 56 years, Elmwood has supported individuals experiencing intellectual disabilities with the care and services they need to live full and meaningful lives.  The organization operates 15 community homes in Saskatoon. These homes have care staff providing 24-hou...

Welcome to Saskatoon Fire and Flood. It’s a Friday afternoon and Brennen Mills is showing me and my photographer, Rona Andreas, around the building. It’s a really impressive space full of tools and equipment designed to help people recover from an incident such as a house fire.  I feel lucky to say I have never had to call on Brennen and his team for their help. In fact, Brennen was not on my rada...

Welcome to a special bonus episode of YXE Underground. My name is Eric Anderson and it has been a busy week for the podcast. Last Monday, I dropped an episode that took listeners to Beaver Creek Conservation Area to enjoy a Dark Skies event put on by the Meewasin Valley Authority. On Thursday, I spoke with Katayoon Navabi about the Diaspora Film Festival she was helping organize at the Remai Moder...

Hello and welcome to a special bonus episode of YXE Underground. I am  excited to share with you an interview with Katayoon Navabi.  Katayoon is the Program Director for the Paivand Society , which is a non-profit organization in Saskatoon that promotes cultural dialogue, and is on the organizing committee of the Saskatoon Diaspora Film Festival.   This film festival, now in its third year, shows...