Canada Day performer Dave Jensen



Dave Jensen has been helping with sound for the past two years at St. George Canada Day and it was time to get him up on stage in front of a crowd!
Dave will be bringing some authentic East-Coast flavour to the festivities along with friends Jeremiah, Frank and Cindy.

Dave hosts the new Brantford Open Stage, which began on Friday, January 6, 2006 to fill the void left when the Brantford Folk Club stopped running their open stage sessions.

Many of the regular participants had expressed the hope that someone would carry onthe open stage tradition, and Dave Jensen stepped in to organize a new club carrying on in the same place and with the same schedule.

The Open Stage runs at the Brant Park Inn – Best Western Hotel at 19 Holiday Drive, Brantford(at the Hwy 403 and Wayne Gretzky Parkway interchange).

It runs every other Friday at 8 PM, September through June.

Open stage format (2-song sets).

Admission: $3 (performers free)

(The location is wheelchair accessible & smoke-free)

June 26th is the last evening before the Summer Break, but check the BOS website for dates when everything starts up again in September – or sign up for the Mailing List – to be added to our mailing list, please send an email tomailto:[email protected]

Canada Day artists CINDY ALEXANDER AND OFFSUIT



2-7 Offsuit is a Kitchener/St. George based rock n’ roll band specializing in music that is recognizable to across generations. They play songs from legendary artists spanning four decades with which everyone is familiar, but avoid the songs that most cover bands have overdone.


From Guns n’ Roses and Pink Floyd to The Monkees, The Eagles, even Huey Lewis and the News. The set is an eclectic blend of favourites suitable for all ages.

Cindy Alexander (of St. George) – Vocals
Steve Goodwin – Vocals, Guitar
Kevin Randall – Lead Guitar
Mike Koch – Bass
Barry Briere – Drums

For more information on upcoming shows, photos, etc. visit their website at: http://offsuitmusic.com/

Canada Day artist Jean St. Pierre – Tribute to Stompin' Tom



“STomPIERRE”
tribute to STOMPIN’ TOM CONNORS

Jean St-Pierre goes by the stage name of “STomPIERRE.” Originally from Ste-Perpétue, Québec, but now based in south-west Ontario, he is a bilingual French-English singer/songwriter specializing in a one-man tribute to Stompin Tom Connors. Beside entertaining festivals, fairs, clubs, hockey tournament parties and the likes, STomPIERRE is also available for indoor-outdoor special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, family gatherings, special holidays, etc.


Visit his website at: http://www.stompintomtribute.com/

Canada Day saved by generous donations



Canada Day in St. George has been rescued thanks to generous donations by STARLITE HOMES LTD. (Jack Speelziek) and ANNSPEL HOLDINGS LTD. (Debby Speelziek). They responded to the front page article in the Brantford Expositor that ran on Wednesday. Many thanks to Jack and Debby and their companies for helping us keep all the entertainment and fun in place.

Canada Day 2009

CANADA DAY IN St. GEORGE
Wednesday July 1st , 2009

AFTERNOON EVENTS ON THE MAIN STREET:

Main Street Contests & Games (1 – 3 pm for kids and adults,
including best Canada Day hat & outfit, Sidewalk chalk art competition,
Hula Hoops and best decorated bike contest – prizes to be awarded!)

Music by Stompin’ Tom artist JEAN ST. PIERRE,

East-coast flavoured music by
DAVE JENSEN & FRIENDS

and great pop/rock favourites with
CINDY ALEXANDER & OFFSUIT.

Bring your lawnchairs to enjoy the music. Sound by Bower Audio.

Museum Open House; Displays & Sidewalk Sales

BBQ presented by the Downtown Merchants.


FORMAL CEREMONY AT THE CENOTAPH CORNER:
Starting at 4 pm

The Royal Canadian Legion, Br. 605 Colour Party.
Greetings & Speeches & Birthday Cake & refreshments!
Singing of “O Canada” &

Young bagpiper Kaitlyn Billing (from St. George-German School)


“FIRE & THUNDER”
FIREWORKS SPECTACULAR!

At approx. 10 pm (when it is good and dark) – at King William Park.

BRING YOUR LAWNCHAIRS!
(No other fireworks or sparklers allowed)
(Tentative raindate is Saturday July 4th)
Presented by the St. George Volunteer Firefighters.

Supported by the County of Brant.
Coordinated by the South Dumfries Historical Society.
Schedule of events subject to change,
check the SDHS website for updates
at www.southdumfrieshistoricalsociety.blogspot.com

Kevin Sylvester wins the 2009 Silver Birch Award for Non-Fiction



The Ontario Library Association announced the winner of the 2009 Silver Birch award for Non-Fiction last week at a big event in Toronto. The winner? Kevin Sylvester for Gold Medal for Weird! We offer congratulations here for now, but you can congratulate Kevin in person on Monday June 8th when he comes to St. George to talk about the book.


For more on the Silver Birch awards, see:






Kevin Sylvester talk on Monday, June 8th

The South Dumfries Historical Society presents a Public Talk by:

KEVIN SYLVESTER
Author, Artist, CBC Radio personality

presenting a talk on “WEIRD” OLYMPIC STORIES

The gold medals handed out in this talk are for inept athletes, shameful scandals, freakish weather, cheaters, chokers and much worse!

Kevin Sylvester is the bestselling author of Sports Hall of Weird. He is also a reporter, radio sports host, producer and documentary-maker, as well as an illustrator.

His book, The Gold Medal for Weird, the follow-up to the Sports Hall of Weird, is a nominee for the Ontario Library Association’s Silver Birch Award.

He has a Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and English (with a minor in Latin) from St. Michael’s College at the University of Toronto, and is working on a degree in Fine Arts at the Ontario College of Art and Design. He has also worked for over a decade with CBC National Radio Sports.

Kevin lives in Toronto with his wife and two daughters.

Monday, June 8th, 2009
at the St. George United Church Hall
(9 Beverly Street East)
7:00 PM Start – Free Admission – All Welcome

Kevin will be giving a presentation on his book for the students at St. George-German School in the afternoon before his talk.

See Kevin’s Blog at: http://www.kevinarts.blogspot.com/

Minister of Veterans Affairs Commendation to Dave Thomson

On May 11, the Honourable Greg Thompson, Minister of Veterans Affairs, will present the 2009 Minister of Veterans Affairs Commendation to ten citizens of Ontario.

The Commendation is presented to individuals who have contributed to the care and well-being of Veterans and to the remembrance of their contributions, sacrifices and achievements.

The recipients on May 11th are:

Ray Cameron, Scarborough
Michael Comeau, Bradford
Stephen Cooper, Burlington
John Hare, Oro Station
Leslie Kemp, Oshawa
James Knox, Holland’s Landing
Allan MacIsaac, Pickering
William McDonald, Toronto
Dave Thomson, St. George
Jan Van Der Rassel, Corbeil

Some background on the Commendation:

Since serving in uniform, many of Canada’s Veterans continue to provide outstanding service to their country, their communities and their fellow Veterans. To formally recognize the contributions of these outstanding Canadians, the Governor General authorized the creation of the Minister of Veterans Affairs Commendation.

The Commendation is awarded annually to individuals who have contributed in an exemplary manner to the care and well-being of Veterans or to the remembrance of the contributions, sacrifices and achievements of Veterans.

The Commendation is intended primarily for Veterans, but may be awarded to non-Veterans.

In April, 2001 Her Majesty the Queen approved the design of a special bar to be worn with decorations to be known as the Minister of Veterans Affairs Commendation.

The Governor General has issued a Warrant creating this award, and the governing policies call for it to be “…awarded to individuals who have performed commendable service to the Veteran community and /or individuals who represent commendable role models for their fellow Veterans.”

Insignia and Wear

The Commendation consists of a certificate, a lapel pin for civilian wear and a bar for wear with decorations. The design is a gold maple leaf resting on a red poppy, a flower long associated with the sacrifices of war, with the Royal Crown on the top of the pin.

The Minister of Veterans Affairs Commendation is worn below official decorations on its gold bar. It can be worn on Veterans’ blazers, formal wear etc. on occasions when it is appropriate for medals to be worn. The lapel pin may be worn at any time on civilian dress.

The SDHS extends congratulations to Dave Thomson and all of the other recipients of this commendation.

Here is the text of the Commendation for Dave Thomson:

Dave Thomson
St. George, Ontario

Mr. Thomson is an auto parts dealer with a soft spot for Veterans. In 2006, while browsing on eBay for items for his auto parts business, he discovered a First World War medal of a soldier from a nearby town. Mr. Thomson bought the medal and turned it over to his town museum.

Since then, Mr. Thomson spends much of his spare time surfing the Internet trying to locate other Canadian service medals which he, in turn, returns to family members, museums, or a Veterans’ organization should the family members not be found. To date, Mr. Thomson has successfully returned the medals of close to 250 Canadian Veterans to families or communities.

He has bid and paid for medals out of his own pocket to ensure their safe return to family. In many newspaper articles, he has asked that people contact him should they come across medals for sale on the Internet.

He also encourages people to donate their bids to help him win auctions and return the medals to family. When he locates a Canadian military medal up for sale on the on-line auction, Mr. Thomson turns to the digitized records of Veterans Affairs, Library and Archives of Canada and gets help from a North Bay Ontario genealogist and local media to locate the soldier’s descendants or hometown.

SDHS takes part in the Kellogg’s Adventure Pass Promotion

This Spring, Kellogg’s, the big cereal company, is bringing you fresh ideas for family entertainment like never before.

Kellogg’s has partnered with the Canadian Museums Association to offer you great added value on participating products with an adventure you don’t want to miss!

From museums and zoos to science centres and art galleries, the opportunities for family adventures are endless! With over 500 unique adventures all across Canada, there’s something for everyone.

The Kellogg’s Adventure Pass entitles you to up to $10 off the purchase price of one regular priced admission with the purchase of one accompanying fully paid adult admission.

You can find the Kellogg’s Adventure Pass printed inside specially marked packages of the following Kellogg’s products:

Rice Krispies* cereal (525 g)
Crixpix* Krispies* cereal (350 g)
Rice Krispies* Vanilla Flavour cereal (420 g)
Rice Krispies* Cocoa cereal (420 g)
MultiGrain Krispies* cereal (385 g)
Froot Loops* cereal (380 g)
Kellogg’s Frosted Flakes* cereal (485 g)
Corn Pops* cereal (345 g)
Mini-Wheats* Original Frosted cereal (555 g)
Mini-Wheats* Brown Sugar Flavour cereal (555 g)
Mini-Wheats* Maple Flavour cereal (540 g)
Mini-Wheats* Strawberry Flavour cereal (540 g)
Mini-Wheats* Cinnamon Streusel Flavour cereal (540 g)
Kellogg’s Two Scoops Raisin Bran* cereal (675 g)

The passes are Free with purchase of the cereal. It is a limited time offer. They are only available in specially marked boxes while supplies last. The Coupons expire on December 30, 2009.

For a complete list of venues and all the terms and restrictions, visit

http://www.kelloggsadventurepass.ca/

The St. George Museum & Archives is a participating location and, since admission is already free, we are offering a deal whereby the pass can be used for $5 off the $10 price of Doug Mannen’s history of St. George.

Several other members of the Brant Museums and Galleries Association are participating as well.
So eat up and enjoy!


*©2009 Trademark of Kellogg Company used under licence by Kellogg Canada Inc.

Paris Lioness Club presents "Florence Nightingale" – and decadent desserts


The Paris Lioness Club has a special evening coming up on Monday, May 25th at the Paris Fairgrounds (139 Silver Street, Paris).

Wendy MacDougall will be appearing as “Florence Nightingale” as part of their 15th Annual Dessert and Speaker Evening, which starts at 7:00 pm.

Wendy MacDougall is a transplanted Maritimer who is a fan of Florence Nightingale. She studies nursing at McMaster University in Hamilton. Wendy currently works for the Region of Halton as the Staff Development Co-ordinator and is a part-time instructor at Mohawk College.

As the title of the evening suggests, there will be desserts galore – including diabetic treats.

Tickets are just $10 from any Lioness Club member or to order by phone, call 519-442-6904 or 519-442-2618.

Proceeds support community projects.

Bring a friend for an inspirational and uplifting evening.

Some background on Florence Nightingale from the Florence Nightingale Museum website:

“Florence Nightingale is famous for being the ‘Lady with the Lamp’ who nursed soldiers during the Crimean War, but this was just one of her many great achievements.

Florence Nightingale was born in Italy on 12th May 1820. Despite opposition from her family she decided to devote her life to nursing and campaigning for better health care and sanitation for all.

It was her work during the Crimean War that created the legend of the Lady with the Lamp and it was her experience here that drove her to continue, researching, writing and tirelessly campaigning.

After the Crimean War she demanded a Royal Commission into the Military Hospitals and the health of the Army, she began investigating the health and sanitation in the British Army in India, and the local population.

Money which had been sent by the general public to thank her for her work in the Crimea was used to establish the first organised, training school for nurses, the Nightingale Training School at St Thomas’ Hospital.

Her greatest achievement was to make nursing a respectable profession for women. Florence’s writings on hospital planning and organization had a profound effect in England and across the world, publishing over 200 books, reports and pamphlets.

Florence died at the age of 90, on 13th August 1910, she had become one of the most famous and influential women of the 19th century. Her writings continue to be a resource for nurses, health managers and planners to this day.”

Florence Nightingale’s collected works are being published in sixteen volumes as a project based at the University of Guelph.

For more information on this local project see:

http://www.sociology.uoguelph.ca/fnightingale/Introduction/index.htm