This week has been declared as Heritage Week by the Government of Saskatchewan.

The week of February 20th -24th is also run in conjunction with Heritage Saskatchewan, and the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation.

One of the Chairpersons of the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation is Royce Pettyjohn, who also holds the title of Manager of Community & Economic Development for the Town of Maple Creek. He says Heritage Week is an opportunity to reflect on what makes Saskatchewan the province it is today.

"So Heritage Week isn't just about museums, archives, and historic sites - although that is part of it of course. It's also about us reflecting on cultural traditions, stories, traditional arts and crafts, and things that identify us as individuals and as a province," he said.

As part of the week, the provincial government has announced a southwest Saskatchewan site which has been nominated and unanimously voted to receive a Provincial Heritage Property designation.

That site is the southwest's Historic Reesor Ranch, located near the Cypress Hills and Maple Creek, who now await approval of the decision after a 30-day public approval stage.

The Reesor family has been operating the ranch for 113 years - before Saskatchewan was even a province. Currently, it is operating as a Guest Ranch and Bed & Breakfast under the fourth, fifth, and sixth generation of Reesors. The Guest Ranch and Bed & Breakfast were first implemented in 1991.

The news of the designation is welcome to Pettyjohn, who explains what the significance would be - especially to the southwest - if Reesor Ranch is approved as a Provincial Heritage Property.

"It'll be the first ranch in Saskatchewan that's been designated (as a PHP), so in some ways, it'll be representative of the story of ranching in the province of Saskatchewan. For us in the southwest, it's important because it'll be the first Provincial Heritage Property that's been designated in the Maple Creek and Cypress Hills region," he says.

Pettyjohn shares why Scott and Theresa Reesor, current owners and operators of the ranch, approached the Saskatchewan Heritage Foundation earlier this year regarding recommending Reesor Ranch to the Government of Saskatchewan.

"It was because of the honour and prestige associated with a Provincial Heritage Property designation. It sets it apart from all other properties in the province as being something that's truly provincial in scope and in significance," he said.

The Saskatchewan Heritage Found Chairperson also explains how the designation could, in turn, boost economic activity in the region through tourism.

"The difference between Historic Reesor Ranch and most of the other ranches in the region is that there's a tourism aspect to the ranch already. I think this designation creates another level of awareness for the travelling public. They're not just going to a fabulous destination or to see a representation of a ranch in the Cypress Hills area - They're also going to a place that's now recognised as being provincially significant," he said.

The approval of the Provincial Heritage Property would certainly be fitting, according to Pettyjohn, with Canada's 150th anniversary looming on the horizon.