Practice your best royal wave and get ready to celebrate our Queen next month in Cow Bay.
Her Royal Majesty will not be visiting the area but locals can attend a Jubilee Tea in her honour at the Cow Bay Hall, 1493 Cow Bay Road on Aug. 23.
Afternoon teas have been taking place at the hall since the early 90s, but this year is the 60th anniversary Jubilee of the Queen's ascension to the throne, so organizers thought it would be fun to add a special twist to the usual sandwiches and goodies.
"It is an achievement to have been on the throne for 60 years," said Carolyn Scott, chairperson of the Social and Beneficial Society of Cow Bay, who are putting on the event. "We want people to have fun, dress up if they want, have some old fashioned cream cheese sandwiches and gather here at this historic little hall."
The Social and Beneficial Society was formed in Cow Bay in 1887, one year before the hall was opened.
"They floated the logs by barge from the Eastern Shore to build the hall. It has a great history here in Cow Bay and we are trying to maintain the legacy by holding events like the teas," said Scott. "And this one is especially exciting."
Scott said the hall was first built to serve the leisure and recreational needs of the community.
"We started using the original name, the Social and Beneficial Society back in the 1990s. This place has hosted a lot of events over the years and had fallen into disrepair. When we first started hosting teas there was no bathroom. We had to lug water into the building. We are doing everything we can to raise money to keep it going."
The society received financial support from Coun. Jackie Barkhouse, the Russell Lake Sobey's and they were successful in receiving a small grant from Heritage Canada.
"But there are restrictions on how we could use the grant from Heritage Canada. We cannot charge admission to the Jubilee Tea, but we do have a donation box. We hope people will be as generous as they have in the past at our other teas," said Scott.
The Society has faced tough times lately with power bills and there is very little insulation in the building, she said.
"So we are hoping more people will rent the building for family dinners, weddings and parties. These Jubilee Teas are just the start of what we need, which is more support for an historical spot in our community that we don't want to see disappear."
FACTS
There will be two sittings the teas on Aug. 23 (2 p.m. and 3:15 p.m.). All guests will be piped into the hall at the start of each sitting. Dress up and hats are optional, but are suggested to celebrate the Jubilee.
The hall is located at 1493 Cow Bay Hall. Anyone looking for information on how to rent the hall or for more info on the Jubilee Tea, call Carolyn Scott at 465 6546.
