Celebrate Ontario awards $300,000 to St. Lawrence Parks Commission events

The Pumpkinferno lights have gone out in some 60,000 hand-carved pumpkins, that delighted 35,000 visitors of all ages at Upper Canada Village this fall.

Despite a rainy and cool fall, Pumpkinferno hosted over 35,000 visitors, a performance that put the event close to its target for 2014. 

Over 1,000 children from the Upper Canada District School Board and the Catholic District School Board of Eastern Ontario painted real pumpkins that were part of the Children’s Pumpkin Patch exhibit.  

Pumpkinferno also showed its appeal as it travelled across the province with a new installation at Dynamic Earth in Sudbury.  Fall visitation to Dynamic Earth rose by 30 percent with the added appeal of 15 of Upper Canada Village’s artistic pumpkin exhibits.

“We had a slow start this year due to the very rainy fall weather, but traffic really picked up each week,” said Geoff Waycik, Manager, Upper Canada Village.  “Feedback from our guests has been really positive.  This year we were able to respond to requests for new exhibits, and we introduced about 50 all new…” 

“Our team is now quickly dismantling and storing our Pumpkinferno displays to get ready for an exciting Alight at Night event that will open on Friday, December 5.”

Preparing for Alight at Night

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A handful of South Dundas residents are among the 30 residents of Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarrry who will be receiving a special decoration on December 9th.

Monday, SDSG Member of Parliament, Guy Lauzon, announced the names of local community leaders who have been selected as recipients of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.

“We were overwhelmed with the response to nominations and the number of worthy candidates for the Medals,” said MP Lauzon. 

“We are so blessed to live in such a great community and country. These individuals have truly made a difference and are excellent examples of leaders and Canadians who make us proud.”

The following SDSG residents were named as recipients: Joan Farlinger, Doug Grenkie, Dr. Graham Houze, Trevor Tolley, Helen Tupper, Sean Adams, Bill Bresee, Pastor Thurland Brown, Jim Brownell, Wayne Burns, Father Bernard Cameron, Shirley Coons, Mamie David, Rose Desnoyers, Barbara Ann Glaude, Ernie Filion, Ken Heagle, Sandy Lalonde, Rachelle Lamond, Gilles Latour, Rick Marvell, Dr. Mary Randlett, Gerald Samson, Josee Sauve, Rick Shaver, Sue Tarle, Theresa Taylor, Karen Torrie-Racine, Sandy Weagant and Miriam Wheeler.

A new commemorative medal was created to mark the 2012 celebrations to mark the 60th anniversary of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the Throne as Queen of Canada. 

The Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal is a tangible way for Canada to honour Her Majesty for her service to this country. At the same time, it serves to honour significant contributions and achievements by Canadians. A formal ceremony to present the honors will take place on Sunday, December 9th at the St. Andrews Catholic Church in St. Andrew’s West. The event will begin at 1:30 pm and is open to the public to attend.

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After more years of playing crib than anyone can remember, Comrade Willis Douglas was blessed with his first-ever perfect hand of 29 points! He was dealt the Jack of clubs and three 5’s, when the 5 of clubs was cut for his nibs. Willis was playing with Mike Lavery against Ted Grattan and partner Roger Coulter. Congratulations Willis.

Speaking of crib, the IL (Iroquois Legion) crib league is gearing up for play starting Saturday, September 10th at 1pm. All crib enthusiasts are welcome, and the afternoon’s play consists of nine games with partners or opponents drawn at random from those present. Call Roger Coulter for more information.

The monthly steak barbecue at the IL held its own, even considering there were a couple of other functions going on in the community. The barbecue crew was little, but those that were there pitched in and got the job done. You did a great job crew… the evening was a success, with 76 steak dinners being served.

The next steak barbecue will be held on September 17th. It is highly recommended to get your tickets early because a large crowd is expected, as the event is listed as part of Applefest.

I received a call last week from a very important project that is going on in our nation, dedicated to recording the stories of our war veterans. A project that is sponsored in part by Canadian Heritage and Historica-Dominion Instuitute, this is a project that is currently working against time to digitally record the stories of our World War II veterans. On their website you can listen to the stories of the veterans in their own voices, or you also have the option to read the interview verbatim. It is truly amazing.

The stories are interesting and informative, and as well, the classroom project is proving to be very successful. It is the foundation’s aim to someday have this project included in the education curriculum. Veteran speakers will also go into the classroom, college or other functions to tell their stories.  

In checking out their website, I was disappointed that I couldn’t find any veterans stories from our area at all. If you are a WWII veteran or have a family member or friend who served in the second great war, please call 1-866-701-1867 or email memory@historica-dominion.ca. This truly is a race against time as we are losing our veterans at an alarming rate now.

There were seven tables seated at August 9th euchre. In first was Cecil McDermott, followed by Martha Whitford in second. Betty Shaver was third.

On August 16th, there were nine tables, with Gladys Parks finishing first. In second place there was a three-way tie between Jean Dunbar, Sandra Julien and Jack Shaver.

This Friday’s hot lunch will be beef strips and sauce served with rice pilaf, with Mexican fruitcake for dessert.

Have a great week everyone! Cheers.

Thought of the Week: For beautiful eyes, look for the good in others; for beautiful lips, speak only words of kindness; and for poise, walk with the knowledge that you are never alone. Audrey Hepburn 1929- 1993.

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