By Yvette d'Entremont - The Weekly News
It didn't take very long for a handful of members from the Fall River visioning group to come on board with Sandra Carr's idea to hold a canal festival in the community.
As a member of the visioning committee, she knew one of the suggestions brought up frequently by residents during consultations was a desire for community-based festivals. She also knew that on Canada Day, Fall River residents had to leave the community if they wanted to participate in a larger patriotic celebration.
"About two weeks ago I called a meeting at the Snow centre and surprisingly had five men show up," said Carr. "We opened the meeting up for ideas, and we were so pleased that we've decided what we want to do."
The group has decided to host a day-long event on July 1 to showcase the importance of the Shubenacadie Canal system. They're already banking on the Fall River Canal Festival becoming an annual event.
"The Shubenacadie Canal Commission will do a flotilla of canoes (up the canal) to show how it would have been done in the old days," she said. "We're quite pleased with that, and they're happy to be able to bring this here to us."
The festival will start in the morning with an ecumenical breakfast held at St. John's United Church but with the work, costs, and profits shared by all five of the community's local churches. The group plans to use the Gordon R. Snow Centre's grounds for activities they hope will include a band, tae kwon do demonstrations, and a youth skateboard and BMX competition.
A children's art show will be held at the old rec centre, and fireworks will be set off in the evening from one of the islands in the middle of Lake Thomas. Carr said she wanted to spread the events out a little so people throughout Fall River can easily participate.
"We wanted to do it on Canada Day because we didn't want it to interfere with Keloose (festival) or the Waverley Gold Rush," Carr explained. "Plus, if you want to do something on Canada Day, you always have to leave the community. This gives people an opportunity to stay here and enjoy and celebrate Canada Day."
Carr hopes the annual canal festival will help highlight the history and natural beauty of the lakes found in the community.
"The Shubie Canal is the centre point. We have all these lakes in Fall River and don't use them or advertise them," she said.
The volunteer committee planning the Fall River Canal Festival is a subcommittee of Fall River's visioning group. They're hosting a second planning meeting on March 17 at the Gordon R. Snow Community Centre starting at 10:30 a.m.
They encourage anyone interested in sharing their ideas for the Fall River Canal Festival to attend the meeting, or to contact Carr at sandracarr43@yahoo.ca.
ydentremont@eastlink.ca
