South Dundas council sworn into office

What can 100 women, armed with just a pen and a checkbook, accomplish in South Dundas? 

That is what organizers of thenewly formed, 100 Women Who Care About South Dundas, are asking themselves and others, as they launch a campaign to recruit 100 women prepared to write cheques for $100 to benefit a local organization/charity to the tune of $10,000.

The 100 Women Who Care About South Dundas Club membership drive launched on social media January 23, quickly gained momentum with 32 South Dundas women now committed to writing a check to a yet to be determined South Dundas charity/group.

The initiative will not advance until the magic ‘100’ is reached and organizers are betting on their belief that there are 100 women or more who would like to have their $100 become part of a “big” contribution to the community.

While everyone is used to donating a dollar here and a dollar there, and buying this ticket and that ticket, organizers are excited that the 100 Women will provide a one-time huge, and much needed boost to a charity/organization selected by the women themselves.

“It is like a local  charity will be winning a lottery,” says Christyn Veinotte who with mom Tracey and good friend Janeen Wagemans are behind the 100 Women Who Care.

100 Women Who Care About South Dundas came about when Wagemans was listening to a CBC morning show, and, “they were talking about a 100 Women who Care about Ottawa group.” Thinking it would be a good idea for South Dundas, she set to work on developing a website [www.womenwhocaresouthdundas.com] and a Facebook page [100 Women Who Care About South Dundas].

“I called Tracey [Veinotte] and asked her if she was on board. She said absolutely. Then Christyn asked if she could be involved, and I said absolutely. So here we are. We feel that the three of us represent three very different generations who will attract a good mix of women.”

By noon on the 23rd, Wagemans had a website and a Facebook page ready to go. By 12:01, she was asking herself what she was doing.

After researching various 100 clubs/groups, it has been decided 100 Women Who Care About South Dundas will be kept as simple as possible, with minimum rules and little to no paperwork for application and/or charity nominations.

The formula is simple: 1 hour + $100 x 100 women=$10,000 per year invested in making South Dundas an even better place in which to live!

Participants must commit to attending a one hour meeting each year; commit to donating $100 each year; be prepared to advocate for their chosen charity and be able to answer questions from the group.

Each woman also has the opportunity to nominate a charity/organization when registering. The nominee must be a recognized charity or organization that can issue a tax receipt either on its own or through the municipality. It must also be an organization/charity that has an actual physical presence in South Dundas.

Once 100 women have joined, a date and time will be announced for the big event which will take place at the Upper Canada Playhouse, thanks to the support of Playhouse Artistic Director Donnie Bowes.

The evening will kick off with a wine and cheese, to allow participants to meet, mingle and lobby for their charity/organization. Each of the 100 will then vote and from that vote the top three choices will advance to the final round.

At this time, representatives of the top three will have five minutes to promote their selection. A second vote will then take place. The winner will be announced and each of the 100 Women Who Care About South Dundas will write their cheque. Tax receipts will be issued by the winning charity/organization which will receive 100 percent of the donations. At 100 women that is $10,000!

That charity/organization will not be eligible to win again for three years and will be required to report on how the $10,000 was used to 100 Women Who Care About South Dundas when they meet one year later. 

The organizing committee is looking at and approving the nominations and when the 100 women meet, each will receive a ballot with approved recipients listed.

That is when the fun, in the form of lobbying, will begin. “I think it is great that it is going to be competitive,” says Christyn.

“Hopefully people will think this is so much fun, they will want to make it an annual event,” adds Janeen. “So next year the meeting will start with the winners coming in and telling us what they did with the money.”

The date for the 100 Women finale will not be finalized until 100 members have committed. “We can go over the 100, but we must have that number,” says Christyn.

“This is a significant chunk of money,” says Janeen. “And it’s to be absolutely local [South Dundas]”.

“It’s so exciting because it’s collective,” adds Christyn. “We are going to be part of something bigger, not just an individual donating $100.”

“We are hoping that the women will take a good look at the community and see where the needs are,” says Tracey. “It might also provide the initiative for people to come up with an idea and get something going. I think one of the appealing things to this is that it is just going to be an hour. It’s very convenient, and it will provide a great opportunity for women in the South Dundas Community to network. I can see everyone leaving, feeling a lot of pride.”

“Instead of being happy because they donated $100 to something, they can take pride in the fact that they are part of a group that donated $10,000,” says Christyn.

Participants can join 100 Women Who Care About South Dundas by calling 613-803-5547 or on the website at www.womenwhocaresouthdundas.com Registration is not possible on the Facebook page, but participants are invited to become a friend of the page and like and share, to help promote the effort. 

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Both Friday afternoon and Saturday afternoon, August 14-15, 2015, the public had the opportunity to take a look at the long term concept plans for the Iroquois Waterfront, designed by Mark Thompson Brandt Architect & […]

Upper Canada Village’s launch of the new Pumpkinferno, billed as ‘Eastern Ontario’s largest, boldest and most unique’ event has surpassed expectations with over 12,000 visitors through the gates in just seven days of operation.

That figure grew dramatically, this past Saturday night when 5,000 people showed  up causing back ups on County Road 2 and a long wait despite the St. Lawrence Park’s Commission’s effort last week to speed up the entry process.

“Once again we will be trouble shooting,” said the Commission’s Corporate Marketing and Development officer, Susan Leclair, on Monday morning. 

Leclair explained that after the big crowds on the weekend of October 11-13, measures were put in place last week that were expected to keep the flow moving. They included overflow parking and improved schematics for check in/ticket sales.

However, says Leclair, it didn’t take into account that there would be 5,000 visitors on a single night.

While the overflow parking and the entry (separate entry for prepaid, and five cashes open for sales) was in fact better for the visiting public,  their success pushed the problem further up the line to a bottleneck which occurred just inside the village. 

As one exits the Visitor Centre, the Pumpkinferno begins with a light show. Visitors then proceed to the first few exhibits along a narrow pathway around the grist mill. It was at the start to the narrow pathway, that the process slowed down Saturday night.

“While our team was prepared to have a robust visitation, the public reaction surged early in this event, resulting in some extended line ups,” said SLPC General Manager & CEO Darren Dalgleish, in a press release that was released late last week, prior to Saturday night’s huge attendance.  

In the press release, Dalgleish added that, “our team has reacted quickly and streamlined the entrance processes which will be able to get visitors into the parking lot and through the gates much quicker this weekend. Other small adjustments inside the attraction will keep our guests moving at a timely pace during their walk through. It looks like Pumpkinferno is here to stay; based on the attendance to date and stellar feedback we are receiving from our guests.”

“We are driving a strategy of “product mix enrichment” and Pumpkinferno embodies this priority,” said Dalgleish.  “The visitor response has been absolutely astonishing, far exceeding expectations.”

The phenomenal early success of Pumpkinferno has led to the addition of three extra days – November 1, 2 and 3 (Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights) – in order to accommodate the tremendous popularity of the event.

Pumpkinferno, an event to be enjoyed by all ages is a 45 minute walking tour through a mesmerizing installation of thousands of LED-lit pumpkins of all sizes.  It is a unique blend of creative artistry and must be seen to be appreciated. 

To speed entry into Pumpkinferno, advance ticket purchase is recommended and can be bought online at www.Pumpkinferno.com.  

With a ticket in hand, visitors can then proceed directly to the Express Line-up for pre-paid tickets which will ensure quicker entry. 

Combo tickets Fort Fright / Pumpkinferno ($20 general admission) or Pumpkinferno / Alight at Night (Adult $20; Senior/Youth $15) are also available.

Here’s what visitors are saying about their Pumpkinferno experience:

• “You have outdone yourself with this festival event. The level of artistry and imagination is outstanding.”

• “Awesome, fabulous carvings and display, a must see for all family members.”

• From OTTAWA:  “Hundreds of pumpkins stacked into enormous scenes of stunning originality. The displays literally took our breath away. My kids asked if we could come back the very next night. Well worth the drive and affordable!”

• From CORNWALL:  “This is Upper Canada Village’s new event SUPERSTAR! Original, creative and mind-blowing!”

• From KINGSTON:  “So much buzz about this event we had to see for ourselves. It exceeded our expectations by miles!  What a cool idea! Such energy and talent!”

•From WINCHESTER:  “We did not really know what to expect. We found it difficult to move to the next display because the carving detail was overwhelming! Proud to have this event in our own backyard!”

• From MONTREAL:  “Been to Alight at Night for years – had to think this was worth the trip. It sure was and then some. What an incredible creative idea – executed to the max! Nothing like this in Quebec!  Tres Bien!”

Pumpkinferno is open on select nights from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. throughout October and into November: Thursday to Sunday, October 25, 26, 27, 28; Wednesday to Saturday, October 31 (Hallowe’en), November 1, 2, 3.

The event has affordable family friendly pricing of $10 Adult (13 to 64 years of age), $7 Senior (65+ years of age) / Youth (6 to 12 years of age) and is absolutely free for children five and under. 

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