Thousands
of people took advantage of near perfect weather on Monday
to take part in local Canada Day celebrations from Beacon
Hill to Vars and a few communities in between.
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Orléans
MPP Marie France Lalonde and MP Andrew Leslie serve up some
birthday cake to patrons at the Petrie Island Candada Day
celebration on Monday |
The largest
event was the annual Canada Day celebration on Petrie Island
hosted by the Kiwanis Club of Orléans. After being
hit by torrential rain in 2017 and a sweltering heat wave
last year that kept many people indoors, this year`s Canada
Day celebration was picture perfect.
The event
kicked off at 11 a.m. with inflatable rides for the kids,
facepainting and games like mini-putt, a fish tank and a
beanbag toss for the little ones. Circus Delights also entertained
the kids with a special magic show.
The
official opening took place at 1 p.m. with speeches from
the various local politicians, including Ottawa Mayor Jim
Watson, followed by the cutting of the Canada Day birthday
cake which was quickly devoured by nearly 100 hungry revellers.
One of
the early hightlights was a performance by Orléans
Ward councillor and lead guitarist extraordinaire Matt Luloff
who was reunited with his band Hearts&Mines for a short
set.
The event
was brought to a close by a 15 minute fireworks display
that sent everyone home with memories of yet another Canada
Day in Orléans.
After
the event ead organizer Zybina Richards was both thrilled
and relieved that the day had been such a terrific success.
"It`s
been absolutely marvelous. Honestly," said Richards. "After
two years in a row when Mother Nature has not been at her
best. I feel tryly blessed that we were able to have such
an amazing day. Everyone is happy. They all have a bug smile
on their face and they are really enjoying themselves, especially
the young families who don't want to go downtown and get caught up in the huge crowd."
Sheryne
Morcos is one of those people. She and her husband David
brought their four kids to Petrie Island, including their
two-year-old son. Having a family-friendly algternative
to the chaos downtown is godsend to families like theirs.
"It's
great. There's a lot of thnings to do for the kids and you
can't find a better setting," said Morcos. "There was no
way we were going to take the kids downtown it's a mad house."
Other
Canada Day celebrations were held in Beacon Hill where hundreds
of people enjoyed barbequed hamburgers and hotdogs took
part in kids activities and watched a colorful fireworks
display hosted by the Beacon Hill Community Association
in Beacon Hill Park.
The Canada
Day celebration in Blackburn Hamlet was also well-attended
as were the festivities in Vars. The Blackburn Hamlet event
was hosted by the Blackburn Community Association which
booked several local performers who kept the crowd entertained
right up until the fireworks at 10 p.m.
OCCO Kitchen
owner and executive chef Mark Steele even got in on the
action, hosting his own Canada Day celebration for his neighbours
on Comfrey Crescent in Notting Hill complete with a bouncy
castle, BBQ and fireworks.
Speaking
on behalf of our readers and all those who attended the
many Canada Day events in the east end, the Orléans
Star and orleansonline.ca would like to thank
all the organizers, the hundreds of volunteers and all the
donors and sponsors who make it all possible.
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Petrie Island Candada Day celebration organizer Zybina
Richards meets up with former Cumberland councillor
Fern Casey who organized the very first Fallingbrook
Canada Day celebration in the Apollo Crater in 1988.
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Adam Polka brought his newborn son Eli to Petrie Island
to celebrate his very first Canada Day. Fred SherwinéPhoto.
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(This
story was made possible thanks to the generous support of
our local business partners.)