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The Undercovers are making classics cool again with new music releases and their incredible live concert event, Rogers Richie & Robinson — the songs of Kenny Rogers, Lionel Richie & Smokey Robinson. This dynamic new show is coming to Studio Theatre Perth in Ontario on April 12. Tickets are available now at Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434).
On their new tour, fans will hear the brilliance of iconic songs that have become the soundtrack for our lives, reimagined in the Undercovers’ signature stripped down acoustic style. Classics like Smokey’s Cruising, Kenny’s The Gambler and Lionel’s Endless Love.
Earlier this year, the group gained signi?cant attention with their buzz-worthy reimagining of Islands In the Stream—the crossover hit from Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. The music video quickly went viral on YouTube.
“We took the beloved Kenny Rogers classic and infused it with a contemporary acoustic vibe,” says band member Luke McMaster. “This fresh rendition comes at a perfect time, as the song experienced a resurgence in popularity after its heartwarming appearance in the 2023 Beckham documentary.”
They followed that with their stunning new rendition of the hit Motown single Shop Around, paying tribute to their friend and mentor Smokey Robinson, who called the trio’s version of Ooh Baby Baby the best cover of his cherished song that he’s ever heard. Watch the of?cial music video on YouTube.
Written by The Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson and Motown Records founder Berry Gordy, Shop Around became a smash hit for The Miracles in 1960, reaching number one on the Billboard R&B chart, number one on the Cashbox Top 100 Pop Chart, and number two on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was the group’s ?rst million-selling hit record, and the ?rst-million-selling hit for the Motown Record Corporation.
“We tried to imagine how the groove of this classic song might have changed had it been written just ten years later,” says The Undercovers’ Joel Parisien, who takes lead on this track. “Less Miracles, more James Brown and the JB’s. And of course in our usual acoustic, stripped-down style.”
About The Undercovers
The Undercovers is a musical supergroup consisting of three of Canada’s most respected vocalists. The trio has united to reimagine timeless songs by some of the most iconic artists of all time, but their own career credits are equally impressive. Luke McMaster’s writing credits have sold millions of copies for superstars like Rihanna, and he has collaborated with legends like Smokey Robinson, Lamont Dozier, Felix Cavaliere and Jim Brickman, who he teamed up with for their hit single Good Morning, Beautiful. Joel Parisien is best known as the front man for Newworldson, earning four JUNO Award nominations, penning three Top 5 Billboard singles, and headlining festivals around the world. And Kevin Pauls is a gospel and CCM icon, often sharing the stage with many of his musical heroes such as Gaither Vocal Band, Michael English, Russ Taff, Steve Archer, Steven Curtis Chapman and more. For more information and a complete list of tour dates, visit <TheUndercoversLive.com>.
On May 8, come to Farmgate Cider for The Blossom Banquet—an unforgettable dining experience where the fresh flavours of the season and an orchard in bloom will be on display. Farmgate is thrilled to present a one-of-a-kind four-course dinner expertly paired with their sparkling ciders.
Farmgate Cider has partnered with three remarkable women: local Dakota chef and Indigenous food sovereignty educator Caitlin Noel-Drews, Oji-Cree pastry chef Dominique Lalonde, and local Arnprior chef and ice cream maven Chantelle Heeney-Mallard. The evening will focus on locally foraged and wild foods and traditional practices. This dinner aims to celebrate these tenets: local, sustainable, delicious.
Start your evening with a cocktail and appetizer, enjoy the stylings of local musicians, and wander through Farmgate’s orchard in bloom. Then sit down to a four-course meal inspired by the land around us, paired with exquisite Farmgate ciders.
Spaces for this unique event are limited, and tickets are available now at <farmgatecider.ca>. Don’t miss the chance to be part of this celebration of spring, culture, and culinary creativity!
About Farmgate Cider
Farmgate Cider is a family-owned and operated cidery just outside of Ottawa. Family is at the core of everything they do. They plant, prune, graft, harvest, crush, bottle, label and sell together. Each bottle of cider is a testament to this: they won’t sell anything not worthy of their own dinner table.
They also value local and sustainable agriculture. They don’t use pesticides, hormones, or other chemicals on the apples. They don’t add sulphites, preservatives, or additives to the cider. Their bottles are high-quality and reusable. Samples are poured into glassware that can be washed and reused.
Meet the Chefs
Caitlin Noel-Drews is a Dakota chef and Indigenous food sovereignty educator, dedicated to revitalizing traditional foodways through sustainable, culturally rooted cuisine. She merges ancestral knowledge with modern culinary expertise honed under some of Canada’s top chefs, crafting dishes that celebrate Indigenous resilience and connection to the land. Through her work she challenges perceptions of Indigenous cuisine, inspiring a return to traditional, sustainable ways of eating.
Dominique LaLonde is an Oji-Cree pastry chef of the Sachigo Lake First Nation. In 2019 she received her Spirit Name, Neu Uasstessiu Nipish—woman of the Four Colours of Fall—and her clan, the Eagle Clan. It is her life’s mission to give honour to her name and realize its full potential, growing and learning, and to let herself be guided by Spirit.
The inspiration for Kisisâm, her pâtisserie, came soon after. Kisisâm in her language means “she who bakes with fire”. In her words: “My eyes were now wide open. That flower or plant or fungi now spoke to me, unveiling their gifts one by one and how they were used by my ancestors as food or medicine. My heart and mind were on a journey of discovery. People came into my life that shared the same core values and my love for locally sourced and foraged ingredients. I wanted to share that with others, and this led me to finding my path—with pastries inspired by my Indigenous roots, let people experience the art of Indigenous storytelling baked into every bite! I am still early in my journey. I opened Kisisâm officially in the summer of 2023. I thank the Creator every day for the many blessings and helping me bring the voices of my ancestors forward.”
Chantelle Heeney-Mallard has been working in the pastry world for over a decade now, with periods of time working at the Parliamentary Kitchen, in fine dining with the Kitchin Group Restaurants in Edinburgh, as a chocolatier and gelato maker at Hummingbird Chocolate, and most recently diving deep into her own business, Mallard’s Milk Bar. With Mallard’s she has taken her love of travel, using local ingredients, foraging and community, and scooped it into one big beautiful ball of a local homemade ice cream business in Arnprior.
Residents of Almonte and history buffs are familiar with the well-documented legacy of wellness advocates R. Tait Mackenzie and James Naismith. Their influence and impact have been celebrated—not just locally but internationally—since the early 1900s. More recently, another Almonte native, the late Dr. Sean Egan, created an impactful legacy as a proponent of healthy, active living.
Sean became a respected professor at the University of Ottawa, where his research and teaching focused on human performance under extreme conditions, endurance physiology, and health promotion. Deeply committed to public health, Dr. Egan became a passionate advocate for children’s health and wellness, focusing mainly on preventing childhood obesity. He firmly believed that early physical activity and play are vital in setting the foundation for lifelong well-being, and he worked tirelessly to promote this message to educators, families and communities.
He led by example, and his physical endeavors were most impressive. Dr. Egan summited Mt. Aconcagua, the highest mountain in the Americas; biked solo from Ottawa to Eugene, Oregon; and walked from Oregon to San Francisco—each journey reflecting his belief in resilience and personal growth through physical challenge. In April 2005, at 63 years old, Dr. Egan set out to become the oldest Canadian and Irish-born climber to summit Mount Everest. Tragically, he passed away from a suspected heart attack at base camp in Nepal while preparing for his final ascent.
Dr. Egan’s life work left an indelible impression. Among other impacts, it spurred the launch of a wellness program targeting underserved, underprivileged inner-city youth, called Walk This Way. The goal-oriented program, hosted by BGC Ottawa, features weekly “destination” walks in preparation for the 10km event at the Ottawa Race Weekend. Since 2007 over 5,000 children and youth have participated.
On April 26 at 10am, more than 100 young members of Walk This Way, along with members of Dr. Egan’s family and special guests, will venture into Almonte for their weekly training walk. You and your family are invited to join them! This very special walk honouring Dr. Egan will bring the community together in the spirit of wellness. The public event starts and finishes at the Mississippi Mills Public Library (155 High Street, with ample bike and car parking by the Alameda), and features 2km and 6km routes. The walk is free, but organizers will happily accept non-perishable donations to the Lanark County Food Bank.
For full event details and sign-up at Eventbrite—search for Sean Egan Wellness Walk.
Taking place 19 years after the events of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (High School Edition) follows the story of Harry’s son Albus Potter as he tries to live up to his father’s legacy. During his time at Hogwarts, Albus is sorted into Slytherin and is bullied by his peers. While there, he makes one friend—Scorpius Malfoy. Together, the two embark on a journey with the potential to change the past, present and future forever. Almonte & District High School is proud to present this show, directed by long-time director Jennifer Sheffield.
Having a large cast blending all grades at ADHS, it’s no wonder that unique bonds are formed yearly through the school play. Ella Wattie, a returning actor who plays Ginny Potter, says: “I’ve been doing the school shows for two years now and I can’t get enough! It’s among the best parts of my life, so I was especially excited to audition again.” Cole Stevenson, a fresh face to the ADHS Drama Club who will be playing Albus Potter, says: “Everyone in the cast has worked very hard to bring Harry Potter and the Cursed Child to life in our own way, and it’s been an extremely fun experience.” Both actors are enthusiastic to finally get to perform after months of rehearsal.
With many returning cast and crew from last year’s production, still riding high from a Cappies Best Play nomination, the cast brings a vibrant energy to the stage. Cappies is a program that celebrates the hard work that high school students put into their school plays. This celebration results in an award show at the beginning of June where, by vote of student critics, nominees and winners are chosen for each category, like the Tony awards. After receiving 8 nominations (including one for best play) as well as one award last year for their performance of Peter and the Starcatcher, both cast and crew are hoping for another successful Cappies performance.
Performances of this magical show will take place at The Almonte Old Town Hall from April 24–26 and on May 1 and 2 with curtains opening at 7:30pm, with 2pm matinée performances on April 27 and May 3. Tickets can be purchased for $20 and are available at Baker Bob’s, the ADHS main office, online at <onstagedirect.com>, and at the door if not already sold out.
April is National Poetry Month in Canada, and rather appropriately, a group of gifted poets will be visiting and reading in Almonte this month. These readings and talks will kick off the inaugural Lanark Lit Festival of Writing, presented by the ambitious crew at Almonte Readers & Writers, which will take place over the next three months, from April through June, in venues in both Almonte and Perth.
The focus of the festival is to celebrate local literary artists and support skills-sharing and development for writers of all ages and levels of experiences. The festival features a sprawling programme of literary arts events including workshops, courses, writer talks, open mic events, and the launch of the 2nd annual Lanark Lit Writing Competition.
This is big. This is exciting. And you can find the festival’s full Event Calendar at <lanarklitfestival.org>.
For this issue, I had the pleasure of interviewing Almonte’s Dagne Forrest, one of the poets who’ll be taking part in the festival at an Almonte Readers & Writers delve event on April 30, alongside Caroyln Smart. Forrest’s chapbook Un / Becoming—a brisk, engaging, superb collection of poems—was just published by London, Ontario’s Baseline Press.
It is, simply put, a magnificent début.
Throughout Forrest’s beguiling sequence of poems, there is an emphasis on “searching for solutions.” A thread of uneasiness weaves its way through the poems as well, like in these striking lines from the poem Unresolved: “Who really imagines launching their kids / into the permanent flux of a world like this?”
“The unease was explored intentionally,” Forrest told me. “My life was exceptionally heavy with caregiving for many years, in particular from having a child with serious medical issues who was homeschooled fully or partially for many years, alongside the need to work full time. I felt I had to fight to carve out space to process everything and to create. My family has been wholly supportive of my writing, so the fight was with my circumstances and myself, not with the people in my life.”
Un / Becoming is also very much an exploration of nature and our uneasy place in the beauty and mystery of it all.
A heartrending example from the haunting poem Unwilling:
Evening’s shade deepens,
brushing the edges of the wood,
fertile ground for revenants and bad dreams.
I try to make up my mind
about when to turn for home,
while coaxing the dog a little further,
unwilling to cede the distance.
Some days, facing the walking dead
feels like it would be simpler
than the unending churn up at the house:
I could just run, not look back.
“Nature is a huge source of inspiration for me,” Forrest says, “and the dog who appears in some of these poems was a muse of sorts. He was my companion for 12 years, walking with me a couple of times a day every day. He died shortly after this manuscript was accepted by my publisher. Walking is astonishingly good at supporting thinking, problem solving and creativity, and the science backs this up. Walking in wild and natural places is always calming and inspiring.”
Along with a reverence for nature, the poems collected here pack a wallop of emotions, and they peel away layers of uncomfortable truths. Reading Un / Becoming, I was reminded of the astonishing power a poet can wield in just a handful of words with a delicacy of language, a keen eye, and beautiful imagery.
Forrest says it still feels refreshingly good to stumble upon a lyrical line, an elegant image, a penetrating insight.
“Yes, I think the capacity for surprising oneself in creating art of any kind never gets old. In this collection, Unspoken Aubade is a poem that I feel arrived fully formed, incredibly quickly, when I wasn’t looking for or expecting it. Tumbling down the page in a handful of very short lines, it has a logic of its own that made me know not to tinker with it.”
“Other poems,” she is quick to point out, “undergo a lot of revision!”
The poem Unless presents the reader with a playful, probing look at how we think and use language—and how both of those things act as filters in the way we see and think about our lives.
Forrest says this was absolutely something she wished to explore.
“I love how phrases and words can hold very different meanings,” she confides, “particularly in English, depending on context, etc. My father’s death was very sudden and at a time of my life when I was leaning on my parents as we prepared for my youngest child’s first open heart surgery, which itself was risky. It took me years to process his loss, and this poem was a breakthrough of sorts. I also just had fun with it, letting language lead me.”
Un / Becoming is a lyrical, thoughtful balancing of the things we all worry about (death, illness, our families, our bodies) amid the complexities and magnificence in the natural world, and all around us. It’s also a clear yearning for answers.
“I see a huge emphasis on ‘searching for solutions’,” says Forrest, “knowing that ultimately there are none, not really. We live our lives in the absence of real answers. I’m fascinated by the current focus in physics on how the universe might end (recent research is lending weight to ‘The Big Crunch’ or reverse big bang, as dark matter appears to be losing strength over time). It’s such an enormous question, and yet we continue to search for answers.”
In such a chaotic time in the world, is poetry important? I asked Dagne Forrest this.
“I feel that poetry is always important, as it’s fundamentally about seeking meaning and processing experience,” she told me. “The longer I spend with it, the more I realize that poetry is about asking questions and exploration. It’s not about having answers. Unlike nonfiction or stories, poetry is best when it’s highly associative, connecting disparate things and experiences and finding something common in them, even if the result remains a question or longing for an answer.”
Dagne Forrest will be reading from Un / Becoming alongside award-winning Kingston poet Carolyn Smart on Wednesday, April 30 at Equator Coffee in Almonte. Join them for a delve — in close conversation event at 6:30pm. Admission is pay-what-you-can in advance via Tickets Please <TicketsPlease.ca> or at the door.
The good and busy folks at Almonte Readers & Writers are also hosting a few other poetry events in April as part of the Lanark Lit Writing Festival, and because it is National Poetry Month. There will be two Art of Writing Workshops: Chaos, Collage, and our Disparate Selves with Wanda Praamsma (a thin line between) on April 5 from 2–4pm at the Mississippi Mills Public Library, and Language of the Heart with Kim Murphy (Ditch Flowers) at the Perth & District Public Library on April 12 from 1–3pm. There will also be a 4-week Writing Circle from Claudia Coutu Radmore (Sweet Vinegars) called Haiku: the art and its related forms on April 8, 15, 22 and 29 from 6–8pm at the Mississippi Mills Public Library. To register for any of these events, please visit <lanarklitfestival.org>.
Angelica Jones has arrived—new name, same unstoppable energy. Formerly known as the Angelina Hunter Trio, this powerhouse band delivers the raw and electrifying sound fans know and love, now with a fresh identity. From gritty guitar riffs to soulful vocals, Angelica Jones is here to redefine blues for a new generation, all while staying true to the heart of their music. On Saturday, April 26, you can catch this 2024 Maple Blues Awards “Best New Group” nominee at the ABC Hall in Maberly.
Composed of three lifelong friends and mainstays of the Canadian music scene, the band has grown and cultivated their sound around the personality and stylings of Angelica on vocals and guitar. When she plugs in her Stratocaster, audiences can expect a wide range of style, emotion, and power. She can lull you in with sweet melodies and sear you with razor sharp blues attitude and screaming guitar lines.
Angelica Jones has the power to shrink a venue or blow it up with her voice alone. Totally unique, when she begins to sing she sounds like no one else. She can tell a sweet story with her voice or bewitch you with its intensity. It’s a powerful instrument on its own. The trio is rounded out by Sandy Hunter on drums and Adam Bell on bass.
Tickets are available from Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434).
Art… and Soul
About twelve years ago, a cluster of life events propelled chef Anne Forsythe into an exciting new calling as an artist. Since the age of thirteen, Anne had been working as a chef and baker in the kitchens of a variety of organizations. Coping with a family tragedy expanded her creative horizons in a new direction. She discovered she was an artist.
Today Forsythe’s home in Carleton Place reverberates with the intensity of her passion for her current joyful series of semi-abstract floral paintings. Her vibrant, textured acrylic artworks celebrate Nature’s proven power to feed our souls. She describes her art practice as “an act of resistance… In my studio, I can shut out the barrage of information and sound bites and focus on making vibrant and joyful pieces of art.” Her other aspiration is to spread the joy. She positions her artworks in the windows of her studio so passers-by can join in the feast.
Her glorious celebrations of nature’s beauty stem partly from the fact that Anne’s father was a florist with a great eye for colour and composition. The texture that plays a huge role in the success of these brilliant acrylic florals is an example of Anne’s appetite for learning and experimentation. Constantly scouring the Internet for educational courses, she discovered she could sand off the rough edges of the modelling paste created by the scrunched-up parchment paper she uses to create the texture on her canvasses. She confesses that when she was starting out, “Bob Ross taught me courage.” The popular television art instructor taught her “not to be afraid to paint over it,” and she does.
Metamorphosis
Environmental conditions play an important role in the successful development and emergence of butterflies and dragonflies and budding artists. Forsythe is forever grateful that help came from all quarters when life’s events became so overwhelming that her distress was noticeable. A friend’s referral to a wonderful therapist was the catalyst; the therapist perceptively encouraged Anne to explore her creativity. Anne had experimented previously with pottery and sewing, but she realized she would like to try to paint. She marched into Brush Strokes art studio in Carleton Place and left with a starter kit—paints, brushes, canvas—and started to play. Intimidated at first, her sessions with Janet Beath <paintwithjanet.com> inspired confidence. Anne also speaks highly of the lessons and workshops she participated in with Jeff Banks at JB Arts in Almonte <jbarts.ca>: “He learns how to teach you, and then he does.” High praise indeed. Nevertheless, it took three full years before she was able to readily show anyone her artworks.
Today her passion to paint is a “daily calling.” Two years ago she discovered that she is a natural morning person, so now she rises at 4am in order to have several hours of peaceful creativity before exchanging her smock for an apron and heading off to culinary work. This allows her “… to paint from a place of rest, in the morning, as opposed to painting after work when I was often grumpy and tired. In my early morning painting sessions, it is quiet; no music or podcasts playing, no outside noise that can interfere with those quiet creative nudges that happen when I am in the groove.” She also follows Julia Cameron’s advice in The Artist’s Way by maintaining her own “Morning Pages”—a daily journal.
Forsythe describes her metamorphosis into a totally committed artist as: “all roads lead-to-here.” Her journalling is just one practice that has guided her on her journey. In 2009 she traveled to the Findhorn Foundation in Scotland and participated in a life-changing experience “designed to inspire individuals to rediscover their inner spiritual wisdom and uncover their true life’s purpose.” Further to that, she became a Level 3 Reiki student, interested in the “exploration of how to integrate the mind, body, and spirit into a harmonious whole.” Her time and efforts were well spent.
Another major factor in her development as a fully-fledged, publicly visible artist with confidence in her own talent also occurred about two years ago when she was invited to join a local art group, Local Colours, led by artist Nora Brown. This group of women meet weekly, September through May, at the Lombardy Agricultural Society Hall, to make art together. Forsythe claims that being a member of this group—“part social club, part mentoring, part talk therapy, has changed me as an artist. They welcomed me with open arms and now are the foundation of my artist’s social life.”
Pre-emergence
Before she knew she was destined to become an artist, Anne was a cook/chef/baker. At the age of thirteen she started cooking at a local golf course and discovered she had a natural aptitude. After her second day on the job, she prophetically announced to her mother that she was going to be a chef. She worked as a cook for three summers and eventually went on to complete a two-year course in Culinary Management at George Brown College in Toronto. She went out west and served as a banquet cook at a hotel in Calgary, learning more about menu planning, purchasing, adapting recipes, and all aspects of being a chef.
When her father developed serious health problems, she returned to school to study food and nutrition management designed to provide health care to the elderly, hoping to help him. She found this so fulfilling that she continues to work in health care. She moved to Carleton Place and now is a chef at the Dave Smith Youth Treatment Centre in Carp, where she serves balanced and healthy meals to her young diners.
Feast Your Eyes from May 2–4!
Anne Forsythe’s celebrations of nature’s beauty will be on display during the Arts Carleton Place special 20th Anniversary Fine Art Exhibition. It will take a little longer before our gardens are able to do likewise, so melt the last remnants of our monotonous winter from your soul by absorbing the glorious bouquets this multi-talented artist is serving for your enjoyment. Anne’s coordinates are available on the back of her Artist Trading Card at the top of the page. Please visit <artscarletonplace.com> for details regarding hours and the two different venues for the ACP 20th Anniversary Exhibition.
Artists Trading Card
WHO Anne Forsythe
WHAT Acrylics Artist, Chef, Baker
WHERE <annescanvas.com>; <artscarletonplace.com/anne-forsythe>; by appointment, <anneforsytheart@gmail.com>, 884–8112
WHEN May 2–4, (Fri. 3–8pm; Sat. & Sun. 10am to 4:30pm), Arts Carleton Place 20th Anniversary Fine Art Exhibition, Carleton Place Arena, 75 Neelin St., <artscarletonplace.com>
WHY “I make my art to express my Self; I share my art to spread the joy.”
After 40 years as a Crisis Counsellor in the Residential Program at Lanark County Interval House, one gains profound insight into the factors compelling women to seek refuge. Intimate partner violence manifests in various forms—physical, emotional, and financial abuse. Economic hardships directly exacerbate the severity of such violence, creating devastating and uncertain futures for affected women and children. The challenges are immense, especially when social assistance applications, if approved, fail to cover inflated rents, groceries, transportation or other basic necessities. Yet, a glimmer of hope emerges.
The Lanark Basic Income Network invites you to the first in a series of events exploring the impact of a Basic Income within our communities. Join us on Thursday, April 24, at 7pm in the Carleton Place Town Hall Auditorium for an evening of insightful discussion. Distinguished guests include Senator Kim Pate, author of Bill S-233—currently before the Senate—which aims to develop a framework for a Basic Income model of financial support. She will discuss the implications of this bill alongside Erin Lee, Executive Director of Lanark County Interval House & Community Support in Carleton Place, who will share her perspective. Both have tirelessly advocated for women and will address how a guaranteed livable basic income can be crucial in a woman’s decision to leave an abusive relationship. Additionally, a guest speaker with lived experience will share their insights.
A Basic Income is an unconditional cash transfer enabling individuals to meet their basic needs. It helps secure housing, pursue employment and engage in retraining, and it boosts the local economy by creating jobs and supporting new business ventures, while generating additional tax revenues. Canada already has basic income-like programs such as the Canada Child Benefit for families with children under 18 and the Guaranteed Income Supplement for adults 65 and over. These income-tested programs consider total income to determine eligibility and benefit amounts.
Real change occurs when communities unite to learn, reflect, and advocate for what is right. The organizers hope to see you there. There is no charge for this event; however, registration is required via Tickets Please <ticketsplease.ca>. For further information, please visit <lanarkbasicincome.ca> or contact <info@lanarkbasicincome.ca>.
Derek Seguin is one of Canada’s most sought-after stand-up comedians, with a career that has taken him to stages across the globe. A favourite at the prestigious Just For Laughs festival, Seguin has appeared there 11 times, often stealing the show with his unique brand of humour. In addition to his numerous festival appearances, he is well known for his frequent appearances on CBC Radio’s The Debaters, where he has become a fan favourite. In advance of his upcoming show in Smiths Falls, theHumm caught up with Derek to find out what makes him tick…le your funny bone.
theHumm: You’ve been a fixture in the Canadian comedy scene for years, but what initially drew you to stand-up?
Derek Seguin: I was actually in my 30s the first time I ever stepped onto an open mic stage. I had always been a fan of stand-up but it never occurred to me that there was a starting point for a comedy career. It was only in meeting some local comedians that it clicked that, like any career/job, there is a day one, so I threw myself at it wholeheartedly but also thinking: This will be a fun hobby. I mean, I can drink and smoke while doing it so... it’s like bowling but better.
What were some early influences or experiences that shaped your comedic voice?
The comedians to have an impact on me were, first, Bob Newhart. My dad had a cassette of his and it was my first taste of hearing someone speak to a live audience and get them laughing. I was enthralled by it. Next was Richard Pryor, who remains my all-time favourite comic. Without Pryor, stand-up comedy wouldn’t even resemble what it is today. He was a master. And not just at the craft of telling jokes or structure or anything; but at finding hilarity in the rawest truths and life experiences. All with an honesty that had never been seen before. He is definitely my comedy hero.
You’re known for pushing boundaries while still keeping your comedy relatable and grounded. How do you strike that balance when tackling edgier topics?
I guess I do that by taking inspiration from Pryor. I try to be honest with the material I’m presenting, and I say the things that some might not say. I try to never be mean to anyone or any group, but am happy to call anyone on their bullshit at the same time. I think audiences can immediately tell/feel the difference when someone’s intentions are malevolent or cruel, versus when they are just expressing their honest experience from their own (my own) vantage point.
You’re one of the rare comics who has successfully performed in both French and English across Canada. What are the key differences you notice between performing for Francophone and Anglophone audiences?
People are people. Funny is funny. Sure there are nuanced cultural differences, but I think that might be more geographic than purely linguistic. Stand-up in Quebec is definitely a little bit different because, like most cultural phenomena here, it evolves on its own with little outside influence because of the language barrier. But stand-up is a huge deal here in Quebec and the top acts can sell millions of tickets annually.
Many comedians mention that fatherhood and family life either slow them down or give them new material. As a father of three, how has parenthood shaped your comedy and your approach to life on the road?
Well, for me, I wouldn’t say fatherhood slowed me down. In fact, I already had 2 kids before I ever stepped on stage, so I never knew anything different as a comedian. Having kids does influence how I tour and travel. I always want to get home between gigs even when it isn’t the most cost-effective strategy. But I’m happy to pay for a flight to spend three days with them rather than sit in a hotel room in Edmonton or somewhere. I think it’s a pretty obvious choice... Unless your family sucks, of course.
My kids and girlfriend have given me hours and hours of material over the years and my current act is very kid-heavy. They are all grown now, but still manage to make me laugh (mostly because, what’s funnier than stupid people?). I talk a lot of smack about them and “throw them under the bus”, as it were, but I think the audience always feels the pure love and loyalty I have for them.
Catch Derek Seguin on Thursday, April 10 at a licensed event (featuring 4 Degrees Brewing & Distilling) at The Station Theatre in Smiths Falls. The show starts at 7:30pm, and tickets are available from Eventbrite. Visit <zapp-productions.com> for more details.
Brooks & Bowskill is the collaboration of Canadian wife-and-husband musicians Brittany Brooks and Jimmy Bowskill. Their genre-bending sound journeys between folk, country-rock, pop and rock and roll.
Jim Bowskill, a multi-talented instrumentalist, songwriter, producer and recording engineer, has established himself as one of the most influential musicians and music producers in the industry. He is a member of Blue Rodeo, and previously spent seven years as lead guitarist of The Sheepdogs.
Since the beginning of her musical career, Brooks has been a prolific songwriter, singer and instrumentalist, crafting lyrically evocative songs steeped in wisdom beyond her years. She has become notable for her unique and poignant vocal styling reminiscent of female folk-rock pioneers from the ’60s like Sandy Denny and Joni Mitchell, as well as country artists like Emmylou Harris and Sylvia Tyson. In addition to releasing multiple solo albums, Brooks has provided background vocals on records and in live performances for numerous bands including Blue Rodeo.
Brooks and Bowskill’s début long-play album Too Many Roads (2023) gained critical acclaim for the couple’s versatile songwriting, expert musicianship and undeniable chemistry as musical collaborators. Their second album, Blissful State of Mind, is the sound of the marriage of two old-soul songwriters, merging their histories together and imbuing each other with confidence. It’s also the sound of a band of musicians who have played together long enough to be able to anticipate each other’s next moves. Roots Music Canada says: “Some of country’s most recognizable couples include Johnny Cash and June Carter, Waylon Jennings and Jessi Colter, and George Jones and Tammy Wynette. A couple that should be added to this list is Jim Bowskill and Brittany Brooks.”
On Friday, April 18, they will be playing at The Cove Inn in Westport. Call 273 –3636 for reservations to the Dinner and Show event, or visit <coveinn.com> for details.
After a long cold and snowy winter, it is time to start planning for summer! If you are an artist in search of a unique opportunity to be inspired—and to give back to nature—please consider applying for a spot in the annual artists residency on the Pontiac’s Dumoine River.
Running from July 29 to August 5, Dumoine River Art for Wilderness (DRAW) is a one-of-a-kind experience available in the Ottawa Valley. As one of approximately 15 artists, you will be treated to an all-inclusive residency on the shores of the iconic Dumoine River where you will be free to be inspired, create, learn and share with fellow artists who care about conserving our natural resources. Unplugged and far from the distractions of your day-to-day world, you will have the opportunity to spend time surrounded by unspoiled nature, hike, paddle, and explore with fellow artists working in a range of forms of expression and experience.
Based at a private campsite on a widening of the river known as Richard Lake, Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society—Ottawa Valley Chapter (CPAWS-OV) will provide all meals and will coordinate transportation from the town of Rapides-des-Joachims to the site. You will be camping in a tent and the site has no running water, but great access to the river for canoeing and swimming. In exchange for this experience, you will be asked to donate one ready-to-be-displayed piece of art to CPAWS-OV for awareness and fundraising purposes. The organization will curate at least two exhibitions of the artwork from DRAW 2025 event.
Shawville Exhibition in April
You can learn more about DRAW by visiting an exhibition of works from DRAW 2024 at Café 349 in Shawville from April 1 to May 3. The Café is located at 349 Main Street in Shawville and is open daily from 9am to 2pm. A special vernissage with artists will be taking place on Saturday, April 5 at Café 349 from 5–7pm. You will have the opportunity to see the artwork on display and available for purchase, and also meet artists and members of the CPAWS-OV team. Light refreshments will be provided. All are welcome and registration is not required.
How Others Can Help
Not an artist, but interested in supporting DRAW? There are several volunteer opportunities available, from helping in-camp to researching and securing venues for exhibitions. Sponsors are also needed to help offset the costs of hosting the event and subsequent exhibitions. Please reach out to discuss volunteer and support opportunities. For more information, visit <cpaws-ov-vo.org/art-for-wilderness> or contact John McDonnell at 819 -209 -5178 or <jmcdonnell@cpaws.org>.
Arts Carleton Place (ACP) is celebrating its 20th anniversary during the first weekend of May with a community tour spotlighting the creative voices and perspectives of talented local artists and artisans, and you are cordially invited to participate in the festivities!
The 20th Anniversary Fine Art Exhibition is a three-day event, featuring all forms of art works from 65 talented local juried artists. It takes place at the Carleton Place Arena (75 Neelin St.) and Art Hub Gallery (50 Bennett St.), along with an additional opportunity to explore “A Taste of Art”, an ACP Pop-Up Gallery at 127 Bridge Street, where the Art Hub will be moving to in June!
The Exhibition will run from Friday, May 2 (3–8pm), and Saturday, May 3 and Sunday, May 4 (10am to 4:30pm). The Friday evening will offer visitors some tasty treats. Pick up your passport at the arena or the Art Hub, get it stamped at both locations, and you’ll have a chance to win amazing door prizes!
Arts Carleton Place currently has over 175 committed members and a dynamic board bursting with ideas to build on the successes of the past. This remarkable group helps ever-growing Carleton Place continue the small-town feeling by nurturing hometown art talent, investing in developing artists and ideas, organizing two annual art shows, supporting the local youth group with art materials, assisting other arts organizations in town, and keeping everyone up to date on all new and upcoming events. Arts Carleton Place is always busy working for the community.
Did you know it was originally known as ‘The Carleton Place Arts Committee’, and was established in January 2004 with a mission to “enhance and encourage a vibrant social environment through the arts”? That first year saw a wealth of resources published for all to access, and a successful fundraising concert to establish an award fund.
By the end of that year, the C.P. Arts Committee developed a life of its own, separate from but still working in partnership with the town council, and it took steps toward incorporation. That was just the beginning for this landmark committee. Arts Carleton Place, as it is known today, was officially launched in the fall of 2005. After twenty years, it continues to recognize, celebrate and promote the unique artistic activity of the community. With an eye to “empowering artists and area residents through the arts”, ACP is committed to raising awareness of the arts, developing partnerships with the community, and supporting the artistic capacity of the area to its full potential.
In addition to the Fine Art Exhibition, ACP is very involved in offering opportunities to support local artists through events and education. In November, the Itty Bitty Artisan & Art Show features unique artwork from local artists. The Art in Public Places program provides members the opportunity to have their art displayed for sale in local businesses. And the monthly e-newsletter “Artsy Happenings” is sent to subscribers with information about where to see artist’s work, performances, and much more.
A critical component of Arts Carleton Place’s mandate is to support local youth in their artistic endeavours through the annual Student Bursary Program. Deserving students from Carleton Place High School and Notre Dame Catholic High School are selected each year by their respective schools to receive a bursary of $1,500 to benefit their continued educational pursuits. This bursary fund is supported by generous donations and proceeds from various art shows, and a list of past recipients can be accessed on the ACP’s bursary webpage.
Members of Arts Carleton Place can showcase their work in the Members Gallery on the ACP website at <artscarletonplace.com>. This online platform allows visitors to browse a collection of work that highlights diverse talents and individual styles, many of which will be on display at the Fine Art Exhibition in May.
Learn about the origins of ACP, the values that drive its initiatives, and the impact they’ve made in promoting arts and culture in the community. Join them for a taste of Carleton Place art and artistry on the first weekend of May! Take an enriching excursion highlighting the vibrant works of art by local talent, and be sure to get a door prize passport to support this worthwhile community event.
We live in a region with beautiful outdoor trails, parks and campgrounds—but how do we reconcile the often synthetic gear we use to enjoy these spaces with our responsibility to preserve and protect the environment? Exploring this question, Bettina Matzkuhn’s Gear will be on exhibit at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum (MVTM) from May 3 to July 19. The vernissage will take place from 2–4pm on Saturday, May 3.
Matzkuhn examines human presence in the backcountry by deconstructing old backpacks and using recycled outdoor fabrics like ripstop nylon, webbing and closures, mimicking tents and backpacks. Visitors are encouraged to interact with some pieces, to unzip and reveal hidden embroidered landscapes that suggest effects of climate change. The exhibit questions the role of outdoor gear in the consumption, promotion, and diminishment of natural spaces. As the consequences of human activity are more visible than ever, the Museum is looking forward to sharing this topical exhibit with the community.
“With Gear, Matzkuhn has created thoughtful and critical art that is increasingly important for us to see and reflect upon,” says Michael Rikley-Lancaster, MVTM Executive Director/Curator. “Living in such a wonderfully lush and green valley, so close to cottage country and removed from the more extreme effects of climate change, we can often take our environment for granted. This exhibit encourages us to examine how we interact with and explore our natural spaces.”
The Mississippi Valley Textile Museum is committed to collecting, preserving, and telling the stories of the local mill workers and labour history while offering an open, inclusive space for the local community and visitors from across the globe. If you wish to enquire about Museum and its operations, please visit <mvtm.ca/whats-on>.
From bake sales to barbeques, church groups will try every angle to raise funds to fix the roof. However, none are as ambitious as what playwright Jackie Bennett suggests in her play Get What You Need.
The Friends of the Mississippi Mills Public Library are presenting Ms. Bennett’s play as a staged reading on April 26, in two performances (2pm and 7pm) at St. Andrew’s United Church in Pakenham. With a lively cast of twelve local people, this event promises not only a fun-filled theatrical production but also an important fundraiser for the Friends, who are dedicated to assisting the libraries in both Almonte and Pakenham with special projects for all ages.
Playwright Jackie Bennett resides in Orillia but has a local connection, being the daughter of well-known naturalist Cliff Bennett of Almonte. The Friends are excited to be able to stage her play in this unique setting, very appropriate for a play about the difficulties of a volunteer group trying to maintain their historic building. Who knows—this could be fuel for fundraising ideas no one has considered!
Tickets at $25 are on sale now through Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434). Please note that the church has limited accessibility and is not suitable for wheelchairs or scooters.
The Mississippi MUDDS are bringing the beloved musical Groundhog Day to the Carleton Place Town Hall this May, with performances on May 1–3 and 8–10 at 7:30pm, and a special matinée on May 4 at 2pm. Tickets are now available at Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434). This exciting production promises to bring the charm, humour, and heart of the hit 1993 film starring Bill Murray to the stage in a delightful new way.
Based on the classic comedy film, Groundhog Day follows Phil Connors, a cynical big-city weatherman who finds himself trapped in the small town of Punxsutawney, PA, to report on the annual Groundhog Day festivities. What begins as a routine assignment quickly turns into a bizarre and frustrating experience as Phil discovers that he’s doomed to relive the same day—February 2—over and over again.
As Phil’s frustration grows, he must confront his arrogance and cynical attitude while interacting with the relentlessly cheery townsfolk. But as the repetition continues, Phil is faced with a profound journey of self-discovery. Will he embrace the opportunity for change and growth, or remain stuck in his cycle of bitterness?
This local production features a tremendous cast of performers from across Lanark County and Ottawa, showcasing the area’s incredible talent and passion for live theatre. The musical is full of catchy tunes, comedic moments and emotional depth, making it a must-see for theatre lovers and anyone who enjoys a feel-good story.
Don’t miss the chance to witness this incredible musical journey at the Carleton Place Town Hall. Get your tickets today and join the MUDDS for a night of fun, laughter, and inspiration!
The LAM, a new Literary Arts Magazine, is officially open for our first round of submissions. Founded by three local writers and artists, we are dedicated to publishing prose, poetry, and art by authors and artists in Lanark County.
A grassroots-style publication, The LAM will be funded by community donations and support. Every single penny raised will go into print quality and distribution to ensure the absolute best for our writers and artists. Our goal is to give those who have never been published an opportunity to feel supported and experience the thrill of having their art in print.
Our editors are local writers and artists dedicated to enriching the artistic community in Lanark County.
Elysia Rourke, Fiction Editor for The LAM, is a middle grade author and stay-at-home mom. Her début novel, Whale Fall, is slated for publication with Penguin/Nancy Paulsen Books in 2026. She is the founder of the Almonte Writers Guild and lives in Almonte with her husband, two sons, and dog. Her writing can be found at <elysiarourke.com>.
Marianne Jeffery, Creative Non-Fiction and Poetry Editor with The LAM, is a poet and short-form writer who has done a little bit of everything, from pouring coffee to teaching K-6. She is always learning and is passionate about bringing community together through creativity as a Director of the Almonte Writers Guild. At present, she divides her time between Ottawa and Lanark County.
Vanessa Uschy, Arts Editor for The LAM, is a visual artist specializing in mixed media drawing, painting, and textiles. She is currently working on 3-D textile canoes, mixed media drawings, and paintings that reference personal and collective histories. In addition to having an active studio practice, she teaches at the Ottawa School of Art and in her home studio. She will be having a small exhibition at the Almonte Public Library from August to October of 2025, and is preparing her canoes for open submissions to the World of Threads festival in 2026. Her portfolio can be found at <vanessauschy.ca>.
Our first issue, coming this fall, is themed “darkness and light”. Artists and writers may interpret this theme however they choose, though the magazine will be printed in black and white. We welcome experimental pieces that challenge form and our preconceptions of what art can be. Submissions for Issue I are open until May 31 and may be sent to <submissions.thelam@gmail.com>. We encourage everyone interested in submitting to check out our Facebook page for more information, including submission guidelines.
We hope you will join us for our first fundraiser, a Create-a-thon, on Saturday, April 12 from 1–4pm at the Mississippi Mills Public Library, Almonte Branch in the Big Meeting Room. Prepare for an afternoon generating ideas for short stories in a group brainstorm session, writing blackout poetry, and working on our own projects. We advise that you bring a pen and paper or your laptop to work on your own projects in between planned activities. Tea and coffee will be provided.
We look forward to seeing you there!
The sweetest brothel in all of Kansas is set to take over Merrickville’s Community Centre this spring—a move that is already the talk of the town.
Theatre Night in Merrickville (TNIM) presents Jenny’s House of Joy by Norm Foster, from May 1–4. The cast and crew will bring you back to the 1870s when the west was wild and Jenny and her ladies of the night could melt any cowboy’s heart with their humour in the fictional town of Baxter Springs.
“Be prepared to fall in love with these gals,” says director Andrea Lewandowski. “They’re working at the oldest profession in the world for the oldest reason in the world—women didn’t have a lot of options. But they embrace that life with dry wit and a lot of laughs.”
Lewandowski says the vivid set and interesting costumes alone are worth coming to see.
“It’s a colourful show and it’s been so much fun to dress these girls,” she says. “There are 22 different costumes, I counted. We’re so grateful to our costume guru Lorraine Hopkins, who’s an absolute whiz at this.”
Jenny’s House of Joy is loaded with strong and loveable characters, starring TNIM newcomer Jenny Pfitzer (as Jenny) who plays the sweet but firm madame of the house. “She’s kind of a mother hen to the other gals, especially the young one, Anita (played by newcomer Liah Naidoo), who dreams of moving up in society,” says Lewandowski.
Audiences will also enjoy TNIM regulars Connie Coleman (Frances) who plays the rough and gruff aging harlot, and Peyton Horning (Natalie) who sashays into Jenny’s House as a young socialite escaping a bad marriage, seeking financial independence.
Things get heated when local society lady Clara (played by Janet Rice) storms into Jenny’s House greatly dismayed to learn her husband has become a new regular.
Tensions also rise between some of the harlots themselves. “There’s some pretty fierce competition between the girls,” says Lewandowski. “I won’t tell you how it ends, but you should expect to laugh a lot and maybe cry at the end. I know I do, at every rehearsal.”
Jenny’s House of Joy kicks off during TNIM’s 50th anniversary year, a milestone that has pushed the theatre’s efforts into high gear. “We’re especially excited about the new and improved programs we’re creating. They’re full of information about the show and the cast. We were able to do this thanks to tremendous support from local businesses. Our usual 4-page program has transformed into a 16- or 20-page keepsake. We’re super proud of it.”
Lewandowski says this show is best suited for adults, but makes for a perfect girls’ night out or date night. “If you only see one show this year, Jenny’s is the one. We think people will be talking about it for a long time after it’s done.”
Jenny’s House of Joy runs Thursday to Saturday, May 1 to 3 at 7:30pm, and Sunday, May 4 at 2pm. Tickets are $20 online at <merrickvilletheatre.org> or at the door. Follow TNIM on Facebook (Theatre Night in Merrickville) and Instagram (@merrickvilletheatre) for sneak peaks of the show over the next few weeks.
The direct protection of land is one of the most important tools we have to help conserve biodiversity and reduce climate change, locally and globally. Come out to the Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust (MMLT) Annual General Meeting of members on May 8, at the MMLT Offices (MVCA Boardroom) located at 10970 Highway 7 in Carleton Place.
Guest presenter John Lounds will share his stories and knowledge about land protection as a critical tool for conservation, and discuss how MMLT’s work is part of the solution. For over 20 years, John was the president and CEO of the Nature Conservancy of Canada, where he played an instrumental role in protecting 14 million hectares of land and water, as well as habitats of at-risk plants and wildlife nationwide. A member of the Order of Canada and past governor of the University of Waterloo, he continues to support community organizations and nature conservation initiatives at the Centre for Land Conservation. Visit <mmlt.ca/events> for more information and to register for MMLT’s AGM with special guest presenter on May 8. Need to renew your MMLT membership? Visit <mmlt.ca/product/mmlt-membership>. Doors open at 5:30pm, and opening remarks begin at 6pm.
The Smiths Falls Community Theatre is celebrating a milestone, and we hope you can join us. It is the 15th anniversary of our beautiful theatre opening its doors for the first time on April 24, 2010, and we will kick off the second of six plays for the 2025 season the following evening, 15 years later. Jonas and Barry in the Home comes from Canadian playwright Norm Foster—a master of comedy, but even more so a master of the roller coaster comedy, which alternates between laugh out loud moments and more thoughtful ones seamlessly, leaving you with many emotions by the end of the show.
How do we tell you about this story? Maybe with a few questions. Do you ever hear a song and become filled with memories? Do you wish there were things you could undo… or try? Have you ever wondered what topics the senior adults in your life talk about when they are together? Barry (Rob Glas) has been moved into Gateway Gardens seniors’ complex by his daughter Rosie (Danielle Brkovich) so she can keep an eye on him because she works there. He is not well pleased with the idea but befriends another new resident, Jonas (Casey Allen), and together they share many interesting conversations—some heartfelt, some sentimental, but many that are hilarious. Watching their bond grow shows us that it is never too late to find deep friendships and live life to its fullest. The cast and crew are working hard to make this a wonderful experience. Mark your calendars!
The play runs for seven performances over two weekends, with 7:30 performances on Friday, April 25 and Saturday, April 26 and a 2pm show on Sunday, April 27. The second week runs Thursday, May 1 through Saturday, May 3 at 7:30pm and closes on Sunday, May 4 at 2pm. We are excited to now offer seating selection when you order your tickets online at <smithsfallstheatre.com> (even if you have season vouchers—just use the voucher code in your order). Orders can also be made at Special Greetings, 8 Russell Street East in Smiths Falls, Monday through Saturday from 9–5. You can also call the store at 283–2244. Adult tickets are $24, student tickets are $10. Our full season of plays has something for everyone, so visit <smithsfallstheatre.com> to find out about all that is coming up at The Station Theatre.
James Parkinson was a British neurologist, geologist, scientist and activist born on April 11, 1755. We celebrate World Parkinson’s Day each year on his birthday, and we focus our attention on Parkinson’s awareness in April in honour of him and his discoveries.
In 1817, Parkinson published “An Essay on the Shaking Palsy.” It set out a closely observed clinical account of a progressive, disabling condition which was swiftly recognized as an important description that has since attained the status of a classic medical text.
The essay carefully and accurately portrays Parkinson’s disease, which he called “shaking palsy”. He did not name the disorder after himself, but Dr. Jean-Martin Charcot suggested that the Parkinson’s name deserved to be linked to the disorder that he had so accurately described.
In 1980, J.W.S. Van der Wereld, a Dutch horticulturist who had Parkinson’s disease himself, developed a new red and white tulip variety. He named it the “Dr. James Parkinson” tulip in honour of Parkinson and the variety won awards and was recognized for its beauty, but its significance grew beyond horticulture.
In 2005, the red tulip was officially adopted as the international symbol for Parkinson’s disease at the 9th World Parkinson’s Disease Day Conference in Luxembourg. It represents hope, resilience, and a global effort to find better treatments and ultimately a cure. The red tulip is commonly used in awareness campaigns, Parkinson’s advocacy organizations, and fundraising efforts.
To highlight Parkinson’s Awareness Month, “Ready to Bloom” potted tulips will be on sale at three local stores for shoppers to take home and enjoy on Saturday, April 12, from 10–2 (or while supplies last). Find them at the Independent Grocery stores in Perth (80 Dufferin Street), Smiths Falls (25 Ferrara Drive), and Carleton Place (455 McNeely Avenue). The cost is $12 per pot.
On Saturday, April 26 from 5–10pm, come out to the Civitan Club of Perth for Meatball Madness and Karaoke featuring a meatball dinner, karaoke, cash bar and silent auction. The cost is $25 per person. For tickets, call 267–4766 or 283–6640; payment is by cheque or e-transfer to <trumangayle@aol.com>
Both events are fundraisers for the Parkinson’s Community Network (PCN)—a group of individuals impacted by Parkinson’s Disease who came together in 2023 to promote awareness and support, and to advocate for improved services and treatment for people with Parkinson’s living in Lanark Leeds and Grenville. Donations to PCN can be made through the Perth and District Community Foundation <pdcf.ca>, who will issue a tax receipt.
Most people live with symptoms of Parkinson’s for many years before being diagnosed. Symptoms to watch for (but which not everyone has) may include a slight shaking or tremor in the finger, thumb, hand, or chin, especially while at rest; physical movements become slower than usual, making everyday tasks more challenging and there can be increased muscle stiffness and/or pain; arms not swinging when walking; handwriting becoming smaller and more cramped; a diminished sense of smell; sudden movements during sleep or acting out dreams; constipation; depression, anxiety or apathy.
There are now over 110,000 Canadians living with Parkinson’s Disease (this number is expected to almost double by 2034). It is the fastest-growing neurological disorder worldwide, and Canada has one of the fastest rates. The aging demographic does not fully account for this, and it is thought that environmental factors such as pesticides and persistent (forever) chemicals are also responsible. There is a higher incidence in rural areas that is associated with farming, cleaning solvents, and well water use. As well, rural populations have less access to specialists, resulting in a late diagnosis or not being diagnosed at all.
Although we have no accurate data regarding the number of people living with Parkinson’s in Lanark Leeds and Grenville, we do know that we already have a fragmented care system, long waits for diagnoses, and a lack of access to specialized care.
For more information about The Parkinson’s Community Network, please visit <parkinsoncommunity-network.org>.
These are unprecedented times. With a federal election coming soon, there is a sense of urgency to determine who can best lead Canada at this critical point and who can best represent the evolving concerns of Lanark-Frontenac. It is important to rise above the noise of misinformation. Get to know your candidates. Do your own research. And, most importantly, exercise your right—and responsibility—to vote.
You are encouraged—whatever your political affiliation has been in the past—to come and meet the dynamic Michelle Foxton. Ask questions and learn how she will address our riding’s greatest needs.
“I’m running to be the Member of Parliament for the federal riding of Lanark–Frontenac because I care—it is my home and I want to see it treated fairly and not taken for granted,” says Michelle. “Our riding deserves a Member of Parliament who actively listens and always has time to sit down with residents and hear their concerns. It deserves someone who cares enough to ask what the needs of residents are and then to fight for them; to give residents the respect and dedication they deserve.”
Michelle was raised in Sydenham, Ontario and has a general law practice in the area. She is no stranger to the campaign trail, having been the federal Liberal candidate for Lanark-Frontenac-Kingston in 2021. Michelle was the youngest representative of Loughborough District to serve on South Frontenac Township Council. She holds a B.A. from Queen’s University and earned her Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Windsor.
With new boundaries kicking in for 2025, Lanark-Frontenac is a 7,322 square kilometre rural riding (Kingston is no longer included). This is what Michelle has to say about that: “Rural ridings like Lanark-Frontenac are the front porches of Canada. They’re where neighbours talk and support one another, where families gather and friends help each other out. They are places where families settle down and townsfolk grow old together. They’re places where politicians are one of us and aren’t so busy they can’t stop by for a cup of coffee or a beer.”
Michelle’s website <michellefoxton.ca> is loaded with information.
“Her responses to questions were intelligent, thoughtful, and respectful,” says Mississippi Mills resident Jeff Mills. “She listened carefully and provided reasonable, direct answers—not political jargon or slogans. It’s clear that she is a consensus builder, not a politician stuck in party rhetoric. She even took notes on good ideas suggested by the people in the room. We truly felt heard.”
Meet Michelle
A Michelle Foxton Meet-and-Greet will take place on Monday, April 7 from 6:30–8:30pm at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, located at 3 Rosamond St E in Almonte.
This event is free, but tickets are required. Please get your ticket at TicketsPlease.ca. If you have questions, email <info@michellefoxton.ca,> or call 1–877–270–2755 .
This event is being organized by Jeff Mills, Wendy O’Keefe, Jane Coyle, Stephen Brathwaite, Laurie Blackstock, Pamela Steele, Valerie Martin, Kris & Rob Riendeau, Sarah Prospero, Angus Affleck, Scott & Sally Hortop, Ed Lawrence, Carol and Vic Bodé, Alice Puddington, Sherryl Smith and Garwood Tripp.
The Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust (MMLT) is excited to announce the return of its birdhouse fundraiser auction. This year’s event, titled Birds of a Feather Auction Together, runs from April 15 to 30 and invites the community to bid on beautifully handcrafted birdhouses and avian-related art. All proceeds will support MMLT’s mission to protect nature reserves and foster engagement with nature.
Following the success of past fundraisers—Birdhouse Blowout (2021), Birdhouse Bonanza (2022), and Backyard Beauties (2023)—this year’s auction aims to raise $7,500 to help acquire and protect vital conservation lands, ensuring the conservation of critical habitats for birds and other wildlife.
One of the auction’s highlights is an inspiring masterpiece by renowned local artist and sculptor Chandler Swain. Titled The Forest Queen Bird Feeder, this breathtaking creation is now on display at General Fine Craft in Almonte. This masterpiece is a must-see—and a must-have—for art and nature lovers alike!
MMLT is committed to protecting ecologically significant lands across the Mississippi and Lower Madawaska River watersheds. Funds raised through this auction will directly contribute to conserving natural spaces, safeguarding wildlife habitats, and fostering a deeper connection to nature.
“With natural landscapes under increasing pressure, conserving land and protecting vulnerable species has never been more urgent,” says MMLT Conservation Coordinator Andrew Dunbar. “Every bid placed helps us conserve these vital habitats.”
Starting on April 15, visit <mmlt.ca/events> and follow the auction link to browse a unique collection of handcrafted birdhouses. Register to place your bids and stay engaged as the competition unfolds. The auction closes on April 30, with the highest bidders winning their chosen pieces. After the auction ends, winners will receive instructions on how to collect their birdhouses.
MMLT is grateful for the generosity of donors, including Neil McBride, who has already contributed 15 unique pieces to the fundraiser including birdhouses, birdfeeders, butterfly houses and garden art!
“Conserving land for public use and habitat protection is crucial in a shrinking world,” explains McBride. “People from cities and smaller communities need to be able to get out and smell the land and enjoy what our parents and their parents took for granted—freedom to enjoy nature, the birds and creatures that also enjoy the green spaces.”
Join MMLT in celebrating creativity, community, and conservation—place your bids and help protect the natural beauty of our region!
Visit <mmlt.ca/events> to see the Birds of a Feather Auction Together fundraiser and other upcoming events! On May 3 they will have a booth at EarthFEST in Carleton Place. Their AGM takes place on May 8 at the MVCA office in Carleton Place. May 10 brings a Spring Flowers Walk at Marble Woodlands, and June 5 features a Notes for Nature 2 fundraiser concert at the Almonte Old Town Hall.
This spring, the newly-formed Rideau Players will be performing an original play with all proceeds going to local charities. The play, a comedy titled Old Jesse’s Flask, was written by the entire troupe based on an original concept suggested by their director, Chris Whitty. Last fall, over many evenings around a dining room table with lots of snacks and an abundance of enthusiasm, the story was fleshed out. Over the Christmas holidays, Chris took everyone’s ideas and completed the script.
Old Jesse’s Flask centres around a very elderly woman and her five aging children: three competitive and bombastic older daughters, a successful and stalwart son, and an easy-going youngest daughter. Add in a disgruntled divorcé who hears voices, a granddaughter returning home from studying abroad with a much older fiancé in tow, and a magical flask, and their weekend quickly turns from a happy reunion to a comedy of circumstance, back-biting and adversity.
The Rideau Players were brought together last year when the Rideau Lakes Libraries needed actors and a stage crew to perform Murder by the Book, a play by Laure Teasdale. That show ran for four nearly sold-out performances in the Delta Old Town Hall and raised about $7,000 for the new Portland Library. At the year-end party, everyone involved agreed the experience was so much fun that they wanted to do it again. This year’s cast includes actors from Athens, Delta, Portland, Elgin and Jones Falls.
After picking a name for the troupe, the Rideau Players decided to create an original play so it could be performed without worrying about royalty fees and licensing agreements. This gave the troupe not only the ability to write their own characters, but also the freedom to perform in different communities in the hope that greater visibility might produce greater charitable revenue for those communities. Currently, this hopeful cast is feverishly rehearsing and planning in anticipation of the quickly approaching opening night.
The schedule includes two shows at the Delta Old Town Hall on Saturday, April 26 at 7:30pm, and on Sunday, April 27 at 2pm. Proceeds from these two performances will be donated to the Delta Mill Society. Two additional shows will be staged on Friday, May 9 at 7:30pm at the Joshua Bates Centre in Athens with proceeds going to the Athens Public Library; and on Saturday, May 10 at 7:30pm at the Elgin Lions Hall in Elgin with proceeds going to the St Luke’s Thrift Store School Lunch Program. Tickets will be sold at the door at each venue for $25 each, and can be reserved by emailing <theatre.rideau.players@gmail.com>.
Theatre in the Rideau Lakes and Athens is making a comeback, and the Rideau Players are looking forward to entertaining their communities and generating money for local charities. Don’t miss your chance to have a good laugh and experience live local theatre while supporting great causes!
The Carleton Place and District Community Band (CP Band) is launching into their 2025 season with a spring concert entitled “Playing May Fourth with the Force.” Troop Alert! Members of the Capital City Garrison—501st Legion and Rebel Legion have been invited. You will have an opportunity to snap a selfie with these special guests.
Consisting of fifty musicians, ranging in age and experience from high school students to retired career professionals, the CP Band is excited to bring to life the music of Star Wars and Star Trek. The concert will take place at the Carambeck Community Centre, 351 Bridge Street, on Sunday, May 4 from 2–4pm. To add even more to an already “off-world” experience, the band will be rounding out the concert with music from the swing era and Broadway. The infectious beat of this music will have you tapping your feet or dancing in the aisles and they challenge you to try and sit still. Admission is $15 and children under 12 are free. Complimentary refreshments are offered during the 20-minute intermission.
The CP Band will also be performing on July 1 at Canada Day Celebrations, with Monday evening outdoor concerts in Carleton Place’s Riverside Park on June 16 and July 28 from 7–8pm. On July 14, join them at Gemmill Park in Almonte from 7:30–8:30pm. As always, the band will be playing at Remembrance Day Services on November 11 in Carleton Place and will perform a Christmas concert, in partnership with and at the Zion-Memorial United Church, on November 30 to raise funds and collect food for The Lanark County Food Bank. Last year, the generous audience donated over $1,200 along with many boxes of food for The Hunger Stop.
For more information on times and locations of this year’s concerts, please visit <facebook.com/cpadcb>.
Wetlands mitigate flooding, store carbon and provide habitat for a diverse range of species, making them significant nature-based climate solution powerhouses.
Lanark County has significant areas of wetlands, so many of us may not feel that there is a shortage. Since the planning of the Caivan development on the Perth golf course lands started, our community has discovered how easily development can impact these sensitive lands. These powerhouses need our help more than ever!
The CFUW Environment Advocacy Group is hosting a presentation at their April meeting that will provide more information and will address ways to take action to prevent future developments on wetlands or other sensitive lands. Join them on April 22, Earth Day, at the Perth Legion at 6:30pm for an in-person presentation by Don Johnston, former president of the Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust. Don will also speak about Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust and the role of land trusts in the protection of sensitive lands.
For now, you are encouraged to sign a petition from Ontario Nature as a good first step towards taking action. You can find it at <ontarionature.org>.
Changes to Ontario’s planning policy and legislation over the past several years have undermined wetland protection across the province, accelerating wetland loss. Please sign the Action Alert urging the Government of Ontario to fulfill its obligation to conserve vital wetland ecosystems by restoring provincial wetland protections to their prior strength.
Summer Home and Garden Tour
Save the date! Tickets for the CFUW Perth & District Home & Garden Tour, taking place on Saturday July 12 from 9:30am to 4:30pm, go on sale April 1 at Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434). You can also purchase tickets for the Garden Lunch for $20. CFUW members look forward to seeing you there!
There’s a group of Arnprior residents who have been raising the alarm about development planned beside Gillies Grove for months—but they’re not having an easy go of it.
“Many people think the battle was won when the Nature Conservancy of Canada bought the land in 2001,” explains Lacey Smith, founder of citizens group Save the Grove Again. “But the bordering property, being sold to a developer, contains integral parts of this sensitive ecosystem.”
The forest that makes up Gillies Grove is “old growth,” a classification so distinct that only 2% remains intact in all of North America. Smith calls this little slice of it “the beating, green heart of Arnprior.”
Anyone experiencing déjà vu right now ought to be excused. In the ’90s, an advocacy group by a similar name—just without the “Again”—successfully rallied to protect the Grove from development, facilitating the NCC’s purchase and ensuring its preservation.
This time around, it’s the land next door that has captured public concern. The severance application for the eight hectares, approved earlier this year, states the land will be used to develop a “mix and range of housing options.” The seller’s website identifies the buyer as Cavanagh Communities.
Environmental Concerns
“This property not only contains a good amount of significant woodland itself, but all of the new eastern white pine growth and the bordering meadow—the ecotone—which is the most ecologically diverse part of the entire ecosystem,” says Smith. “If you remove these essential parts of this ancient and complex ecosystem, the core stand of old growth is exposed to immense danger. And no, this is not my opinion; this is the opinion of biologists, ecologists and foresters who have visited the Grove and have a deep understanding of its complex needs.”
Since the advocacy group first assembled in August 2024, several scientists have joined the ranks, all donating their time to lend credence and support to the cause.
Volunteers have erected hundreds of signs on yards in Arnprior, amassed over 4,000 signatures on an online petition, sent a delegation to town council, run a postcard campaign, and organized the attendance of over a hundred people to oppose the seller’s severance application at the February public meeting.
“It’s not enough”, says Smith.
She says it won’t be environmental issues that win the battle; instead, it’ll come down to public pressure from the residents of Arnprior, as well as visitors.
Missing the Forest for the Trees
“It’s tough convincing people that this private sale is, in fact, a very public matter,” explains Smith. “The reality is, this development will affect the whole town—whether it’s because of public safety, recreation, or the historical significance of the property.”
The residents of Arnprior have cultivated the public community garden for over 40 years and enjoyed public access to walking trails that connect the Grove with the protected waterfront and Robert Simpson Park.
“I think people who enjoy their daily walks in the area would be shocked to find out exactly how much of what they consider to be ‘the Grove’ is at stake here,” adds Smith. “A lot of folks who enjoy it don’t realize exactly where that property lines are.”
Neighbours have even more to worry about, said Smith, with three schools and a hospital close by. “This is a relatively closed-off area with very limited road access,” said Smith. “During the recent bus strike, parents got a taste of how increased traffic can affect drivers and pedestrians alike. It was a messy and dangerous experience.”
In addition to apathy about a public sale of “already protected lands,” another factor tipping the scales for the pro-development side is the provincial government’s response to the housing crisis. This has made battling development more difficult for citizens’ groups across Ontario.
Smith said many supporters are, like her, tired of the uphill battle—but that there is a renewed hope and optimism this spring.
Events Planned
The group has big plans for 2025 with a variety of education and outreach events coming up, including:
On Sunday, April 13 at 4pm, come to the O’Brien Theatre in Arnprior to see Call of the Forest: The Forgotten Wisdom of Trees—a documentary film featuring Diana Beresford-Kroeger, scientist and author. Tickets $10 for adults, $5 for children.
On Thursday, April 17 at 6:30pm, the STGA Community Coffeehouse will be held at Café Tilda in Arnprior. The two-hour monthly event is open to anyone wanting to learn more about advocacy efforts, share ideas and enjoy some chit chat in an informal setting.
On Saturday, May 24 at 7pm, the STGA Musical Benefit Concert takes place at the Emmanuel Anglican Church at 287 Harrington St. in Arnprior, featuring a line-up of esteemed local musicians. Tickets will be available soon for $25 at Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434).
Funds raised through these events will be used to continue public awareness efforts and engage experts to help navigate the group through municipal planning.
“An old-growth forest cannot challenge a real estate developer in council—that’s up to us,” said Smith. “This is an endangered ecosystem—10,000 years in the making—and a cornerstone of Arnprior. This fight will be worth it, just like it was last time.”
For more information, please visit <savethegroveagain.com>.
A feisty farm woman is fed up with the conventional way her son is farming the family land. That’s why she’s staging a one-woman protest, chaining herself to a fence post and refusing to come in from the fields until he agrees to try farming regeneratively. In the process, it hits home to both of them that working together is the best way to regenerate their farm and help reverse climate change.
Written and performed by Dale Colleen Hamilton, She Won’t Come in from the Fields will be coming to Almonte on Tuesday, April 22 for one show at the Almonte Old Town Hall, as part of Earth Day celebrations in Mississippi Mills. The half-hour performance will be followed by a discussion. Find details at <climatenetworklanark.ca>.
Dale will then travel to Westport for performances on Thursday, April 24 at the Morton Hall, and Friday, April 25 at 7pm at the Westport Legion. A Legion community dinner ($12) will be offered from 5–7pm on the 25th if you want to make it dinner theatre! Free and by-donation tickets to those two shows are available at Eventbrite. The Almonte show is being presented by Climate Network Lanark <climatenetworklanark.ca>, and the Westport shows are presented by the Better Together Circle <bettertogethercircle.org>.
Dale’s performance will be followed by a conversation with the audience about climate solutions and challenges in farming today, and explore how to dovetail different approaches to food production for the benefit of farmers, consumers and the planet.
Dale has been writing and producing theatre for over forty years and comes from a 6-generations-deep farm family in southwestern Ontario. In the 1990s she was elected to Eramosa Township Council and appointed to the provincial Farm Products Appeal Tribunal. She is a member of Farmers for Climate Change and the Ecological Farmers’ Association of Ontario, and has a master’s in environmental studies from York University, where she focussed her research on regenerative farming. She has performed this show in fringe venues and in Glasgow, Scotland at the COP 26 UN Climate Change Summit.
The front cover of theHumm for January, 2008 displayed a vibrantly coloured monoprint by Perth artist Suzette MacSkimming. It evoked the beauty of decaying plant life entwined with mysterious, rune-like letters. An article by arts reporter Sally Hansen introduced the reader to “MacSkimming’s complex, multi-layered, deeply textured, richly hued compositions,” describing them as “visually fascinating and psychologically compelling.”
In the years since then, Suzette’s artistic vision has evolved through exploring the endless possibilities of abstract expressionist painting. Her latest adventures on that journey will be on view in Soul Search, an exhibition of 15 stunning acrylic canvases opening on May 3 at the MERA heritage schoolhouse in McDonalds Corners.
Visitors to the solo show will encounter an artist fully committed to abstraction, yet constantly experimenting to discover the unexpected. The large bold canvases Lovers in a Dangerous Time and Dance Me to the End of Time explode with startling colour and dynamic movement, contrasting with the more playful and delicate Bright Affair or the brazenly passionate Come Love. Each painting, while sharing Suzette’s concern with compositional wholeness, is strikingly individual.
Her artistic practice helps explain the exhibition’s title: “I paint with my mind set to intuition-playfulness-dream mode, discovering images, symbols, and themes that are powerful for me. So painting turns up something different every time. I open myself to the spontaneous and the unconscious, letting the painting process show through the finished work. The act of painting takes on a life of its own.”
Suzette studied painting at the University of California at Berkeley, where she worked with leading west-coast abstract expressionists. After a year travelling in Europe, she moved to Canada in 1965, studying with Robert Markle and Dennis Burton in Toronto and Richard Gorman and Leonard Gherbrandt in Ottawa. Her work has been widely exhibited by galleries, including Ottawa’s Atrium Gallery at Centrepointe, Agnes Etherington Art Centre in Kingston, and successive galleries in Perth.
Working in residence for three summers at the Contemporary Artists’ Center in North Adams, Massachusetts, Suzette created and exhibited a series of large monoprints. In 2007, fifteen prints from the series were purchased by the Sprott School of Business at Carleton University, Ottawa, which has them on permanent display. Currently Suzette’s art is shown and sold by Studio 87 Contemporary Art in Perth <studio87art.com/macskimming-suzette>. Her personal artist’s website is <suzettemacskimming.com>.
Soul Search opens at MERA on Saturday, May 3 with an artist’s reception from 2–4pm, which is open to the public. Suzette, a teacher as well as an artist, will also hold a workshop at MERA on Friday, May 23 from 10:30am to 4pm. Titled “Awesome Abstracts: the Process of Creating Abstract Expressions,” the workshop will guide participants in the joy of letting go and getting lost in the liberating process of intuitive experimentation. Suzette promises the workshop will be “inspiring, revolutionary and fun.” Registration is available on the MERA website <meraschoolhouse.org/workshops> and limited to 10 places.
Take in Soul Search and find out what Sally Hansen meant when she wrote in theHumm: “When I first saw Suzette MacSkimming’s artworks, I was thrilled to experience the same fascination I felt decades ago when I first saw a huge Jackson Pollock original.” The exhibition continues until May 30.
The Perth Citizens’ Band, Canada’s oldest continuing town band, will be holding its annual spring concert titled “Pop & Rock Legends” on Sunday, April 27 at 2pm at the Perth Legion Hall, located at 26 Beckwith Street Perth. The concert will feature well-known songs from the early days of rock and roll through to the late 1970s, including songs from Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Mamas and the Papas, Led Zeppelin, Elton John, Queen and many more, certainly known selections for all ages.
The Perth Citizens’ Band is proud of its reputation as Canada’s oldest continuously operating community band, with the first record of a Perth Band dating back to 1850. This year they are celebrating the band’s 175th anniversary with a busy concert schedule. As a way of thanking the community for its long support over the years, this year’s spring concert will be free to the public. Come out and celebrate their long tradition of concerts in the community. For more information visit <perthband.ca> or follow them on Facebook.
Get ready to immerse yourself in the vibrant energy of spring as one of the most anticipated musical events of the season unfolds from the community-based Goulbourn Male Chorus (GMC). “This year’s Spring Concert promises to be an unforgettable afternoon filled with powerful performances, beautiful melodies, and a celebration of the season’s most inspiring music,” enthuses musical director Scott Auchinleck.
On Sunday, May 4 at 3pm, Trinity Presbyterian Church will come alive with the captivating sounds of their broad repertoire of traditional male chorus selections. Many GMC arrangements are unique, created by a member specifically for the vocal ranges in the chorus. The concert promises to be a mesmerizing journey through a variety of musical styles. From heartfelt ballads to upbeat rhythms, each song will bring something special to the audience, celebrating the essence of spring.
Whether you’re a long-time fan or a first-time attendee, this spring concert is an event you won’t want to miss. Celebrate the season with friends, family, and the magic of music in the air. Tickets information and links to past performance recordings are available at <goulbournmalechorus.com>. General admission is $25 and students pay $15; the concert is free for ages 12 and under. Don’t miss your chance to witness this breathtaking performance live!
The Goulbourn Male Chorus is a community-based chorus made up of men from the township of Goulbourn and surrounding West Ottawa communities including Kanata, Carp, Carleton Place and Constance Bay. In addition to their Spring and Christmas concerts, GMC performs at seniors’ homes and local events, often for charity fundraisers. The chorus welcomes any male who enjoys singing and comradery to join them any Tuesday evening at Trinity Presbyterian Church located at 1817 Richardson Side Road at 7pm. You don’t need to be able to read music—you only need a love for music and sharing a few laughs with like-minded men.
Mark your calendars, grab your tickets, and get ready for an afternoon of music, celebration, and springtime joy!
Treat yourself to an exciting musical evening on April 12 with oboist Caitlin Broms-Jacobs and pianist Madeline Hildebrand. These two consummate musicians, who enjoy very active careers as soloists and chamber musicians, have been collaborating as a duo since 2014 and more recently under the name Fierbois, which means “proud wood” in Old French, and was the name of the sword of Joan of Arc.
Caitlin Broms-Jacobs has held the position of principal oboist of the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra since 2009, where she has often been featured as a soloist, and also performs frequently as guest principal oboist with the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. She has appeared at numerous festivals in Canada and abroad. A sought-after soloist and collaborator, Madeline Hildebrand has shared the stage with many renowned artists including Philip Glass and the Kronos Quartet.
Fierbois has curated a magnificent program celebrating both familiar and lesser-known works, starting with Jitro from the Czech composer and conductor Vítezslava Kaprálová’s Dve písne (Two Songs). Born in 1915 to musician parents, Kaprálová started composing at the age of nine and in 1938, to great acclaim, conducted the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Once regarded as one of the most promising composers of her generation, Kaprálová’s music was given less and less attention during the years following her death at only twenty-five years of age from miliary tuberculosis. Despite her short life, she composed some fifty remarkable works in all categories: piano, chamber, orchestral and vocal music.
Second on the program is Élisabeth Jacquet de La Guerre’s Sonata in D major. Jacquet de La Guerre (1665–1729) came from a family of master masons and prominent organists and harpsichord makers. A gifted child, she played the harpsichord and sang at the court of Louis XIV from the age of five. She was one of the earliest French composers to write cantatas and sonatas, and she was the first woman in France to compose an opera.
The piece by Jacquet de la Guerre will be followed by three works by Sergei Rachmaninoff: Vocalise, Op. 34 No 14; Étude-Tableau, Op. 39 No. 5; and Spring Waters, Op. 14 No. 11. Rachmaninoff (1873–1943) was one of the finest pianists of his day, and as a composer was the last great representative of Russian Romanticism. Of the 85 songs he composed, only Vocalise, which has no words, survived the test of time. The melody is so enthralling that it has been transcribed for every imaginable combination of instruments. His Étude-tableau in E-flat minor is considered one of his greatest pieces for solo piano. Spring Waters, which is about the thaw from winter to spring, is one of Rachmaninoff’s popular songs and has remained a concert staple for over a century since its first performance.
The first half of the program ends with a selection of dances, known for their lively and folk-inspired melodies, from Mikhail Glinka’s second opera Ruslan and Lyudmila. Glinka (1804–1857) was the first Russian composer to be widely known and well regarded within his own country, recognized as “the father of Russian music” for his pioneering cultivation of Russian folk modalities.
The second half of the program is devoted to works by Ralph Vaughan Williams (The Lark Ascending), Pavel Haas (Suite for Oboe and Piano) Fikret Amirov (Nocturne), and Gayané Chebotaryan (Six Preludes).
Vaughan Williams (1872–1958) was the most important English composer of his generation and a key figure in the 20th century revival of British music. The Lark Ascending is a work inspired by the 1881 poem of the same name by George Meredith about the song of the skylark. Originally composed in 1914 and revised in 1920, it ranks at or near first place in polls of audiences’ favourite pieces.
Pavel Haas (1899–1944) composed his Suite for Oboe and Piano, a chamber music masterpiece, in 1939 during the Nazi occupation of Czechoslovakia. He was a prolific composer particularly well known for his string quartets, symphonic music and choral works. He also composed for cinema and theatre. Haas was sent to Auschwitz in October 1944 and put to death.
Azerbaijani composer Fikret Amirov (1922–1984) grew up in an atmosphere of folk music. His father was a well-known singer and player of the tar, an instrument that resembles a long-necked lute. As well as his work as a composer, Amirov was always very active in musical administration, having been at various times artistic director of both the Kirovabad and Baku Philharmonic Orchestras, director of the Azerbaijani Theatre of Opera and Ballet, and secretary to the Azerbaijani Composers’ Union. Nocturne is gleaned from his 12 Miniatures, which he composed in 1971, and exhibits a profound response to the folk-music of his country. On the whole, his music represents a skillful use of Azerbaijani folk elements and Western art music.
Fierbois will close their concert with three of the Six Preludes from 1948 by Armenian composer, pianist and musicologist Gayané Chebotaryan (1918–1998). A prolific composer for piano, she also created choral works and folk song arrangements. The Preludes run the gamut of musical expression, testing the technical, tonal, harmonic, rhythmic, lyrical and percussive capabilities of the piano. During the many years Chebotaryan taught at the Komitas State Conservatory in Yerevan, she educated several generations of Armenian composers and musicologists and gained a great reputation in her country and abroad.
Tickets are available online at Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–8434). We look forward to seeing you!
MERA is once again offering their popular Summer Art Camp for children ages 5 to 12. There will be two sessions offered: July 7–11 and August 4–8. Camp will run from 9am to 3pm each day.
MERA Summer Art Camp offers a dynamic environment where young artists are encouraged to explore their unique voices through a variety of media and techniques. Over the course of the camp, each child will have the opportunity to experiment with different materials such as watercolours, acrylic, collage, sculpture and mixed media, allowing them to discover which tools best express their personal creativity. The focus is on fostering individual expression and building confidence in their artistic abilities. Children will learn not only the fundamentals of art but also how to communicate their thoughts, feelings and ideas visually. With guidance and support, they will develop their skills in a fun, collaborative atmosphere, embracing the joy of self-expression through art.
This year, camp will be run by Heather Vriends—mother of 4, Jill of all trades, artist, cook, and experienced child care provider. She will be supported by her daughter Finnlee Vriends and daughter-in-law MJ MacLeod—both experienced and capable young artists. MERA is excited to see what creations our young friends come up with this year!
The camp fees are $240 per child for members or $300 per child for non-members. Please note that grandchildren of MERA members are entitled to members’ rate. To register, please contact <meraschoolhouse@gmail.com>.
In 2004, Susan Freeman, a Tay Valley Township councillor, knew that there was something about singing with others that just made you feel good. She imagined an inter-generational choir with adults and children singing together. Freeman approached well-known local musical leader Nicola Oddy to direct the new Tay Valley Community Choir, and the rest is history. Twenty years of history!
To celebrate, a grand 20th Anniversary Spring Concert is being planned for Friday, April 25 at 7pm at the Maberly Hall.
At the concert, former directors Nicola Oddy, Grace Armstrong and Jack Hurd will each lead one of their favourite songs from the past. The choir will remember former director, the late Ann McMahon, with a show tune she loved, One Day More from Les Misérables. Dayna Clarke, one of the first children to sing in the choir, now 20 years older, will return to join the choir as she leads Over the Rainbow with an opening solo. Posters and photos from the past will decorate the hall. In remembrance, there will be a place to write the names of members who have passed on.
The choir invites previous members to attend the concert. A photo of all choir members, past and present, will be taken at the end of the concert. Fiddlers and Friends, who have often been guest musicians at past choir concerts, will return to entertain with toe-tapping and hand-clapping tunes.
Over the years the choir has had several directors and accompanists. The practices and concerts have always been fun. So much fun that some original members are still singing with the choir. Rebecca Worden, current director, and Mary Lou Carroll, current accompanist, make a great team leading an enthusiastic and talented group of singers. Upbeat, soulful and familiar songs sung in four-part harmonies will make up the repertoire for the concert. As usual at Tay Valley Choir concerts, there will be plenty of opportunities for the audience to sing along, ending with all joining in on Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.
Everyone is invited to help the choir celebrate its 20th anniversary. Refreshments will be shared by audience and singers at the end of the concert. Admission is by donation, and Food Bank donations are welcome.
In today’s fast-paced, technology-driven world, many children struggle with rising levels of anxiety and stress. As outlined by author Jonathon Haidt in his book The Anxious Generation, fostering resilience, independence and social-emotional skills in children is critical to countering these challenges. Camp Lau-Ren, a beautiful Christian summer camp nestled along the Ottawa River, provides the perfect environment for nurturing these principles in young campers.
One of the key messages in The Anxious Generation is the importance of allowing children to face age-appropriate challenges. Camp Lau-Ren offers kids a chance to step outside their comfort zones in a safe, supportive environment. Activities like canoeing, hiking, and acting in campfire skits encourage children to develop practical skills, solve problems, and gain confidence in their abilities. These experiences foster independence, a cornerstone in reducing anxiety and building resilience.
The book also emphasizes the need for strong social bonds to combat feelings of isolation. At Camp Lau-Ren, children have the opportunity to connect with peers in meaningful ways, whether through team-building games, shared meals, or nightly campfire skits and songs. These relationships are strengthened by the camp’s values of inclusion, kindness and faith, helping kids build a sense of community that can reduce loneliness and promote emotional wellbeing.
Spending time in nature has been shown to reduce anxiety and improve mental health. Camp Lau-Ren’s stunning natural setting provides campers with the chance to disconnect from screens and immerse themselves in the beauty of creation. Through activities like nature walks and morning watch, children learn mindfulness, gratitude, and the value of slowing down in a busy world.
Preparing Kids for Life
Preparing children for the future means equipping them with the tools to face uncertainty with confidence. Camp Lau-Ren’s structured yet flexible programming strikes the right balance between challenge and support, ensuring kids leave with a renewed sense of resilience and self-worth.
Sending a camper to Camp Lau-Ren isn’t just a summer activity—it’s an investment in their mental, emotional and spiritual growth. By combining the principles of The Anxious Generation with a nurturing camp environment, Camp Lau-Ren provides children with the tools they need to thrive in an increasingly anxious world.
You can register your camper for an experience of a lifetime online at <camplau-ren.com>. The Annual Camp Lau-Ren Open House takes place on Saturday, June 7 from 11am to 2pm. You can take a tour of the site, see a camper’s cabin, explore the sand beach on the Ottawa River, climb the famous Rock and stay for a free BBQ and a drink.
“I know you hate woo-woo,” my friend said, “but I know you love mythology.” Intrigued, I opened the gift: my first deck of tarot cards. It was The Mythic Tarot, which traces a different legend from classical mythology through each of the four suits. As a doctoral candidate in early literatures, I was lured by the interplay of these stories, and I have been reading tarot ever since.
Still a skeptic, I don’t believe in fortune telling, but it has been my experience that the cards are a device for constructing a narrative that helps me better understand myself. Like poetry, tarot is an interpretive exploration and a form of self-expression. Tarot is never a substitute for critical thinking, common sense, science, or therapy. In fact, all these areas of inquiry have enriched my tarot literacy over the past 25 years.
Through the centuries, the cards themselves have evolved. The Renaissance brought the science writing of Middle Eastern scholars to Europe, and playing cards came to Italy from the Muslim world. The new technology of the printing press made card production feasible, and the heavy outlines of early modern woodcuts remain an influence on the cards’ archetypal imagery. Tarot only became linked to divination in the nineteenth century. Weary of the industrial revolution and the disenchantment of the modern world, the Victorians romanticized the past. In this context, tarot was ripe for the projection of esoteric overlays such as astrology, numerology, and masonic symbolism. Later, tarot continued to absorb influences from magical orders and Jungian archetypes.
All these streams feed into contemporary tarot discourse, but today individual readers may choose which layers to mine for significance. By shifting my focus from content to process, I avoid fixing each card with a given meaning or a right answer. I believe that the most interesting answers will always be found within the questioner, and that the most fruitful questions are motivated by curiosity rather than a sense of mastery. Tarot is simply one lens for understanding the self, and use of this tool is a skill that can be learned by anyone whose curiosity leads them to this path.
If you have been seeking a new avenue for self-exploration, you’ve found yourself eyeing the tarot decks in a local shop, or your own cards are gathering dust, please consider joining me for a six-week Read It Yourself tarot workshop that will run between Mother’s Day weekend and the summer solstice at the Carleton Place Collective. This is the perfect time to hone a sense of clarity before summer brings children home from school or steals you away from your routine.
Just as our own contexts illuminate every tarot reading, our historical context continues to inform our relationship to the cards. Lanark County is home to beautiful Victorian towns that now seem quaint or even magical to the contemporary eye. This aura—the projection of our desires onto the past—has helped to create thriving centres of art, culture, and community. Yet what is happening in the wider world today is heartbreaking and mindboggling. Many of us are seeking meaning, focusing on what we can control, and building supportive connections locally. I am reminded of the card of the Star, a spark of hope remaining in the darkness. Perhaps these are aspirations that tarot can feed, even if the cards cannot tell you what the future holds.
Snorri (she/her) is a pseudonym. She has 25 years of experience as a professional teacher, researcher, and reader of texts, and a 25-year relationship with tarot. You can reach her at <otherhandtarot@gmail.com> or on Facebook at Other Hand Tarot.
In John Murrell’s Waiting for the Parade, the events of the Second World War are dramatized through the eyes of five very different women who gather to work for the war effort in Calgary, Alberta. With humour and comradeship, the women, portrayed by Lindsay Williams, Courtney Mason, Janice Reid, Lara Klymko and Mary Ann McKiver, attempt to survive until armistice is finally announced.
Veteran director Carolee Mason is the driving force behind Studio Theatre Perth bringing this iconic play to the stage from May 1–11. To have it occurring during the 80th VE Day Commemoration was very important to Carolee. She felt that there would be many stories in the media about the war years and numerous commemorative events in and around the area in the month of May.
Carolee had known about the play since the 1980s when it was first performed. After attending several productions over the years and using some of the monologues in her teaching and audition workshops, she could see that it had very rich and challenging roles for women. On a personal level, this play has been on Carolee’s mind a great deal ever since she was helping to clear out the family farmhouse and came upon a drawer where her grandmother had kept her ration books, letters, and other documents from wartime. This got her thinking about her grandmother’s experience as a farm wife—keeping a garden, attending Red Cross meetings, knitting, and making up parcels for soldiers.
Carolee feels that the stories that every family has from the war years—whether or not an immediate family member served overseas—are still very much alive in most Perth homes even now.
Carolee shared with me the story of how her grandmother had made up a parcel of outgrown children’s clothes and sent them to a Dutch refugee family recently arrived in Canada. She had put a note in the pocket of one of the coats, welcoming the recipient to their new home. The mother who received the parcel wrote back to thank her. This became a family story that her grandmother told, marvelling that young mothers had so much in common no matter where they came from and despite the war going on around them.
A theatre performance is a way to open a dialogue about wartime experiences that many may not want to talk about. It is also a way to help younger people, born long after the war ended, learn about those experiences—people who have not been privy to actual interviews and authentic words of the war vets. In a way, Carolee says, Waiting for the Parade is a kind of verbatim theatre, a form she’s always been drawn to.
To get back to the five actors you will see on stage, they have multiple demands made of their talents. While the play is not in itself a musical, it is almost more difficult than a musical, because there is a great deal of a cappella singing. These women must be able to pick notes out of the air. There is also some piano playing required, so at least one of the women had to be a Conservatory trained pianist. And there is 1940s choreography that they all must take on with ease. Classic triple threat performers—singers, dancers and actors. As actors they will each share their individual stories with the audience in monologues, delivered on five different levels on the stage. At other times they will interact out on the stage as they meet in a canteen where they all volunteer.
Waiting for the Parade is going to be an amazing piece of theatre that this writer trusts you will want to enjoy more than once. The production opens on Thursday, May 1 and runs through to Sunday, May 11 with four evening performances and four matinées. Sold-out performances are anticipated, so don’t delay in getting your tickets, on sale now at Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434).
Many concerned folks in Canada believe it is time to resurrect Victory Gardens. These gardens were ubiquitous during the First and Second World Wars as ordinary citizens did their bit to support the war effort. They dug up their yards, parkland, vacant lots, playing fields, and anywhere that root vegetables such as potatoes and carrots would grow. It appears to many that we are currently facing existential threats to the Canadian economy and indeed to Canadian independence, and we need to do anything we can to support our local economy.
These efforts during wartime were at first opposed by well-meaning bureaucrats fearing that scarce seeds and fertilizers would be diverted from farmers who were believed to be much more productive growers of food crops. These views were changed as the positive effects on civilians were observed—people were motivated and morale increased. I believe that the benefits are even more profound. The current threats facing Canada came out of left field. This can cause anxiety, as it is not clear how to respond. A response to a real threat requires real action. What’s better than getting your hands in the soil? The therapeutic benefits of gardening are well documented. There is no downside. At worst, you end up with healthy fresh food!
My first piece of advice is to not overthink it. Just get outside and do it! Keep it as simple as possible. Plant some fail-safe vegetables such as beans, but don’t hesitate to experiment with a whole bunch of stuff. It might be a good year for cucumbers but a disastrous one for tomatoes.
The first order of business is to find a spot to plant your seeds and seedlings—it can be directly in the soil, it can be in a container, it can be on your land or in a community garden. It must be well-drained soil, because waterlogged plants die. You might want to chat with the neighbours to ensure that the site was not formerly a dump for depleted uranium. It is not necessary to buy expensive cedar lumber and to truck-in loads of triple-mix to build fancy raised boxes. My grandmother dug rows to plant seeds on level garden soil with a hoe—we can do the same thing.
A couple more conditions. The site must have at least six hours a day of direct sunshine and access to water. Virtually all vegetables require a minimum of an inch of moisture a week throughout the growing season. I may well be proven wrong, but I like to think that root crops in particular, planted early in spring, are better able to capitalize on spring melt and not be as vulnerable to mid-summer droughts.
Key to gardening success is understanding that some vegetables prefer cool conditions and have resistance to frost while others need hot conditions and are very vulnerable to frost. For cool-loving plants think greens, the onion family, and cabbage with its many relatives. For heat-loving think tomatoes, peppers, and vine crops such as squash and cucumbers.
For all you Royalists, I regret to report that Victoria Day is not sacred and you should not hold off and plant all of your garden on the May 2-4 weekend! In fact, long before Victoria Day, over half of my vegetable garden is planted. By then I am even harvesting and eating some of the early crops, such as lettuce, radish and spinach.
The Victoria Day rule for planting the garden in our area is still an important one for heat-loving and frost-sensitive plants such as beans, peppers, eggplant, basil, pumpkins, melons and cucumbers. However, there are many vegetables that can be planted in the garden in the first half of April—some of the hardiest are peas, onions, lettuce and spinach. Semi-frost-hardy vegetables such as beets, carrots, chard and potatoes are best planted in late April or early May, as they germinate slowly in cold soil.
An early start is essential for most plants that do not tolerate heat. Our Ottawa Valley spring can be incredibly short, with snow still on the ground at the end of April and 30-degree temperatures by late May. Some plants such as peas, broccoli, cabbage and turnip grow quickly in cool temperatures and practically stop growing in the heat of the summer. Lettuce and spinach will “bolt”, that is, produce flowers when temperatures climb above 20°C , resulting in bitter unpalatable leaves.
Want a super-early start to planting? Within our yards the spot where the snow melts first may well be a favourable micro-climate and a great spot for an early start. I have planted a row of peas next to the south-facing wall of the house very early in April with some success. Other hardy greens will also work.
What happens if the weather turns really nasty? Onions, peas and spinach take frost and snow in their stride as do our spring blooms—no need to cover them.
Raised beds and well-drained soil assist an early start by warming up much faster. To determine if soil is workable, take a handful and squeeze—if it stays together in a ball, it is still too wet, if it crumbles it is ready. Time to get out and get planting!
Much as we gardeners would like to hope that climate change will bring much more benign growing conditions, the reality is more likely to be extreme temperature swings and volatility, and a higher probability of drought. Facing these challenges, it is almost impossible to overstate the importance of trying to match the growing requirements of plants with the expected weather conditions in the growing season.
Registration is well underway for the 11th edition of the Perth Kilt Run this summer! Since the start of January, over 1200 runners have registered for the Classic 5-Mile race, with very strong numbers in the other three races as well. The big event takes place on June 21 at 6pm, and participants will be treated to a fun post-race festival with live music, snacks and refreshments.
“We are blown away by the immense interest in the return of the Perth Kilt Run,” says Terry Stewart, the Perth Kilt Run’s Founder and Co-Race Director. “Registration is well ahead of our plan, and we are seeing participants from across the country and as far away as Switzerland!”
All ?nishers will receive a unique medal to commemorate their achievement. Each year, a different Scottish Clan will be featured.
As a nod to the race founder, the 2025 medal celebrates one of Perth’s most recognizable surnames: Clan Stewart. The ribbon displays the bold colours of the Stewart (Black) tartan and the medal proclaims the Stewart Clan motto, Virescit vulnere virtus (Courage grows strong at a wound.) Unique medals for the wee lads and lasses reflect the cheerful spirit of our youngest competitors!
“We are looking forward to celebrating with everyone at the finish line! Perth will once again be awash in tartan as we celebrate its Scottish heritage,” adds Heather Domereckyj, Co-Race Director.
Registration will be open until May 26. To register for the 11th edition of the Perth Kilt Run, please visit <perthkiltrun.ca>. There are four race distances for all ages (5-mile, 1-mile, 400m and 200m), as well as a race challenge for completing both the 1-mile and 5-mile events. It is open to all ages and skill levels—runners, walkers, and everyone in between! Perth is the current Guinness World Record holder for Largest Kilt Race—Traditional Kilt, an honour achieved on June 25, 2016.
The 2025 Ten Collective artists are looking forward to their fifth show together. This year the artists are Amelia Ah You, Bhat Boy, Jill Halliday, Eileen Hennemann, Katherine McNenly, Maria Moldovan, Jennifer Noxon, Kaija Savinainen, Charles Spratt, Lily Swain, plus guest artist Allan Stanley.
This show and sale has become so popular that collectors know to arrive when the doors open on Saturday. The Ten Collective artists have been honoured over the past four shows to have much of their work purchased over the two days, with paintings moving to homes and offices in Lanark County, Ottawa, Montreal, Toronto and beyond.
Since their last show in May 2023, Charlie has been using his sunscreen and warm jackets, painting outdoors in all four seasons; Maria’s paintings and ceramics are in great demand at Almonte’s General Fine Craft and in Ottawa; Jennifer’s days are filled with creating her art as well as her music that resonates with so many; Jill’s funny bone has been well-oiled preparing her unique artwork for 2025; there aren’t enough good-light days for Kathy to paint her detailed and exquisite still-life paintings; Amelia’s spiritual paths have filled her days in nature and in her work; Lily is a master juggler of family, home and artwork that always impresses and inspires; Bhat’s whimsical depictions of fantastical cityscapes surprise and uplift; Kaija’s paintings are extremely moving as each one captures the essence of her overwhelming passion; Eileen’s split focus on media once again offers a range of subjects that delight; and Allan has continued to hit his stride with unique compositions and exploration of his subject matter.
Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 11am a new blog post is available on <thetencollective.com>. This year the Ten Collective blog has become even more popular. The artists have written about their journeys, their painting processes and their lives.
The website includes personalized bios, galleries from previous shows, and links to the artists’ websites that display all of their paintings, sold and on offer to purchase. The FAQs answer a lot of the questions, especially about parking spaces which can become scarce as the day wears on. If you want to keep informed about the Ten Collective, send your email address for updates to <thetencollective.com>. You can also follow them on Instagram and Facebook.
The 2025 show will display all new work in a variety of styles and media with no two artists alike. Paintings will be available for purchase, and for those interested in buying, please note that a cheque, cash or e-transfer is preferred; however, some artists may accept credit cards. Purchased paintings are picked up between 4–4:45pm on Sunday unless other arrangements have been made with the artist.
The Ten Collective believe the show benefits the artists, the arts community, the town and the museum. Visitors can enjoy the show and a day visiting the area, where they can stop to enjoy a drink or lunch, browse through interesting stores, and enjoy some of the natural sites around Almonte. Reservations at restaurants on the main street (Mill Street) are recommended. If it’s a nice day, you can picnic at Almonte’s Metcalfe Geoheritage Park—the first of its kind in Canada. Check out <almonte.com> and <mississippimills.ca> for more details on our part of our beautiful country.
Visitors to the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum <mvtm.ca> will experience the history of the woolen industry in the Mississippi River Valley and learn about the impact it had on the social, cultural and industrial development of the region.
In addition to the many businesses that support the show, huge thanks go to theHumm for its unwavering support of our arts community and of The Ten Collective. Thanks again to Allan Stanley of HennemannStanley.com who developed the trademark and branding, and creates the promotional material. The Sivarulrasa Gallery and General Fine Craft are solid supporters and excellent venues to explore outstanding artwork and craftsmanship by Canadian artists. Be sure to visit them when you’re in town for the show. Actually, you can’t go wrong dropping in at any of the businesses, as each one supports the arts community year-round. Go in, say hello, and pick up one of the free 2025 Ten Collective bookmarks.
Be sure to bring your friends and family from near and far to enjoy this exciting weekend of creativity by local professional artists. Attendance records have been overwhelming each year. For two intense days there are so many great chats about the paintings with visitors of all ages. The artists appreciate the interest in their work and delight in sharing their backgrounds, their stories and their passion about why they paint. It means so much that there is such support and interest in their work.
The Ten Collective Show takes place on Saturday, April 26 and Sunday, April 27 from 10am to 5pm at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, located at 3 Rosamond St. E. in Almonte. Admission and parking are free.
Lanark County Voices… There is a Place for Me Here is a short documentary centering on the experiences and perspectives of local queer folks. Featuring interviews with multiple 2SLGBTQIA+ residents from around Lanark County, this film highlights coming out stories, hopes for the future, the unique challenges of living in a small-town world, and heart-felt affirmations for the power and joy of queerness.
A production of Queer Connections Lanark, this is a bold contribution to the cultural archive of our home place, a call to all queer folks in the area, and an invitation to the larger community to join us in celebrating the diversity of Lanark County.
Save the Date!
Lanark County Voices… There is a Place for Me Here will be screened on Thursday, May 15 at Studio Theatre Perth. Doors open at 6:30 and the film starts at 7pm, with refreshments and a discussion to follow. This event is free, and more details will be forthcoming. Please visit <queerconnectionlanark.ca> for information.
Come on out to the Market Square Pavillion and the Grand Hotel in Carleton Place on Saturday, May 3 from 11am to 3pm for the third annual EarthFEST! Presented by the Carleton Place Environmental Advisory Committee (CPEAC), this free event celebrates our beautiful world with many fun, sustainable things to do and learn about for the whole family. This year’s event features an expanded range of workshops, presentations, activities, and entertainment for all ages, as well as food and other vendors.
Some highlights include an opportunity to test drive an EV by EVCO, wonderful musical performances by Vicki Brittle and Ian Tamblyn, free face painting, and fun workshops for children thanks to the Carleton Place & District Horticultural Society, Play Where You Live & Yarrow Collective, and Cara Larochelle.
Engage with the many Lanark County organizations and experts who will be on hand to answer your questions about the great things they are doing to take care of our environment—and how you can help. Savour delicious food by Blue Spoon Atelier and Michelle’s Filipino Food, and find quality products and services as well as handmade artisanal creations at the Sustainable Marketplace, including native plants from Kiwi Gardens.
Meet Esteemed Authors & Environmentalists
There’s a wonderful line-up of talks taking place at the Grand Hotel (just across from the Market Square Pavilion at 7 Bridge Street). There is limited seating and no pre-registration, so be sure to arrive early.
At 11am, Lorraine Johnson will speak on Gardens for Pollinating Insects: Friends not Foes! In this talk, Lorraine explores some of the surprising corners of insect and plant relationships and how our gardens can support these dynamic interactions. Moving beyond charismatic species such as monarchs and milkweeds, Lorraine shares inspiring information about lesser-known creatures such as native wild bees, moths, beetles and more.
At noon, you can hear from internationally celebrated biochemist, biologist and author Diana-Beresford Kroeger. Without the global forest there is no hope for humanity’s future on earth. Join Diana Beresford-Kroeger in her mission to share the ancient wisdom of the trees and bring about a renewed connection to the Global Forest. Diana is known for her extraordinary ability to convey a simple understanding and appreciation of scientific complexities to the general public regarding our daily interconnectedness with nature. Diana’s unique knowledge, experience and insight is critical to the preservation and revival of our essential global forests.
At 1pm, Jill Heinerth will be Exploring Water, Climate, and the Unknown. Jill is an author, filmmaker, internationally celebrated cave diver with the Royal Canadian Geographical Society, Ottawa Riverkeeper, and friend to EarthFEST. Join Jill as she takes you on a journey from the depths of underwater caves to the icy interiors of Antarctic icebergs. Working alongside climatologists, archaeologists, biologists and engineers, Jill has contributed to groundbreaking discoveries and brought the mysteries of the underwater world to global audiences. With experience creating programs for CBC, BBC and National Geographic, consulting on films for directors like James Cameron, and producing independent documentaries, Jill is a passionate advocate for climate awareness and water conservation. In this talk she will share captivating stories from her adventures, along with key insights into water literacy and climate change—lessons learned from some of the most extreme environments on Earth.
EarthFEST Circle-tent
Additional events will take place at the EarthFEST Circle-tent, located at Market Square Pavilion.
From 10:45–11:30am, you are invited to be in a collective space to cultivate hope in these trying times at the EarthFEST Climate Grief and Gratitude Circle. Join together to share how we feel as we watch our planet transform and change, to discuss our grief and also our hope and gratitude, and to slow ourselves mindfully at a time when we are being told to carry on as normal with our busy lives. This will be convened by Janet Mrenica, Integral Master Coach, Climate Change Coach, and Master Facilitator Cultivating Safe Spaces.
Then from 11:40am to 12:25pm, you can Get Out There! Discover many local trails and opportunities to connect with nature. From 12:35–1:20pm, Lanark County, EnviroCentre and Climate Network Lanark present Energize Your Home: Discover Funding and Programs for Retrofits; and from 1:25–2:10pm, the Lanark County Master Gardeners present Of Gardening Hoes & Woes. From 2:15–3pm you can learn about Foraging in the Spring: Mushroom Hunters with Loose Morels from Forager Bee and naturalist Tauney Stinson.
This year, there is additional parking at the Independent Grocers Parking Lot at the corner of Hwy 7 and McNeely Avenue, with a shuttle thanks to Lanark County Transportation. Please consider providing them with a donation.
As this wonderful event is still growing, please check the itinerary for any adjustments beforehand at <carletonplace.ca/events-calendar>.
Sivarulrasa Gallery will present two new exhibitions in April, each exploring the Canadian landscape both in time and place. They run from April 5 to May 9, and there will be a combined Vernissage/Artists Reception on Saturday, April 5 from 2–4pm.
Landmarks, a duo exhibition featuring works by artists Wendy Robertson and Jane Irwin, will run in Gallery I. Wendy Robertson’s work is inspired by the natural environment and her intimate observations of nature. Her preferred locations are in Northern Ontario and Canada’s National Parks, with a focus on pristine natural habitats. In contrast to Wendy Robertson’s works in oil, artist Jane Irwin presents several new works in watercolour, from her recent explorations of landscapes in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland and Ontario.
Louis Thériault: Repères will run in Gallery III. Born in New Brunswick, Thériault’s paintings are inspired by the places where he has lived: the Maritime Provinces in his early years, and the Outaouais region in Western Quebec where he currently resides. In this new body of work, the artist explores the concept of landmarks in time.
Meet artists Wendy Robertson, Jane Irwin, and Louis Thériault on Saturday April 5 at Sivarulrasa Gallery, located at 34 Mill Street in Almonte. For more information, please visit <sivarulrasa.com>.
In this era of doom scrolling and anxiety, Learning Again in Almonte offers two last sessions for the spring 2025 season to distract and entertain—and also to enliven the current conversation about what it means to be Canadian.
Heritage Matters
Our sense of who we are lives in our unique history, and the gateway to that history is embedded in and made more accessible by the buildings in which it played out. Those buildings of our past are powerful symbols that provide insights into our traditions and stories. By valuing and maintaining these structures, we honour those who came before us and foster a strong sense of community and continuity, now and into the future.
Keith Blades, one of Canada’s most highly regarded architectural conservation specialists, along with his daughter Alex Blades, MSc. Historic Building Conservation, will share their vast experience and a family legacy reaching back four generations. Entitled “Heritage Matters”, this course will be offered at the Almonte Library for three Monday evenings starting April 28 and ending with an optional walking tour of Almonte heritage buildings. They will explore the rich history and evolution of the movement dedicated to preserving architectural heritage. Their personal experience with buildings like Lincoln Cathedral and Westminster Palace in the UK, and the Parliament Buildings, Ste. Marie Among the Hurons, and others here in Canada, exposes the values and challenges inherent in each setting.
With their inimitable passion, expertise and humorous banter they will examine the core values of the field, such as sustainability, cultural significance, and community engagement. They will also look at the decline of traditional crafts and the implications this has on conservation practices. In addition, they will discuss the impact of legislative protections on preserving historical buildings and the challenges faced in maintaining their integrity in a modern context.
Northern Impressions
Ron Williamson is an award-winning educator, pioneer of outdoor education, and tireless advocate of the natural world right here in Mississippi Mills. His adventurous spirit has taken him on countless self-guided adventures north of sixty, and his quiet powers of observation inform the incredible tales he brings back with him. On May 9, join Ron at the Almonte Library for an evening of stories and images told in two parts.
Part one, “Northern Impressions”, is an overview of some of the highlights of extended canoeing/hiking experiences, along with numerous awe-inspiring and sometimes heart-stopping wildlife encounters, within three different parts of Yukon, two diverse regions within the NWT /Nunavut, Baffin Island and Iceland.
Part two is entitled “Nahanni: River of Gold, River of Dreams”. The South Nahanni River is located in the mountains east of the Yukon/NWT border, one of the most spectacularly diverse areas on the planet. It is Canada’s most celebrated wilderness river, with thrilling rapids, three towering canyons, Nailicho (Virginia Falls—twice the height of Niagara), geothermal hot springs, and the highest tufa mounds in Canada.
To register for Heritage Matters or Northern Impressions, please visit <learningagainalmonte.ca>.
Does a love-struck young couple standing at the altar wonder where they’ll be sixty years hence? Caught up in the moment of tulle and wedding cake, do they know what lies ahead, the good and the not-so good? They’ll get on with day-to-day living, making plans but not too far ahead, thinking they are immune to the inevitable march of time.
They’ve got each other, and with their youthful exuberance nothing seems impossible. What more could they possibly need?
But life throws curves. Asking for help is really difficult. Every one of us wants to maintain our independence with at least a show of dignity. Young or old, it’s hard to admit that we aren’t able to perform a task, so many will struggle until they falter and fail. We fear rejection or judgement if we say we need help. Why would anyone want to admit they’re “getting on in years” and can’t climb that ladder or wield a paint roller? (Never say “old”. That makes us all snarky!) The very words “I can’t” are indicative of failure in many respects, when what is meant is “I can’t anymore”. Further, there are times when it should mean “I must NOT anymore”, the ladder issue being the main one!
There are lots of things we can still do easily: cook, drive, walk the dog, mow the lawn… the list is endless. However, there are some times when even those things need a boost of help, and then we have to put our pride in our pocket and find the resources we need, and ask.
Here’s the opposite side of the coin. We have a human desire to be needed. How many times have we declared “Just call me”, knowing we’d drop anything to help someone we love? We are pleased to be asked; we want to offer support, and we do it with an open heart. There are agencies in our midst that can do this for us too. Help is one phone call away, with qualified people who are there to give you resources aplenty. Find them—they’re waiting for you.
We are afraid of intruding on another’s time if we ask, and yet there they are, ready and willing to assist. Being needed gives us connection with our neighbours and our community. Look at Meals on Wheels, Carebridge and volunteer drivers, the Food Bank, Community Living, and just our friendly next-door neighbours. What would become of any of us if we didn’t know these people were there? It’s a network of willing able people. These volunteers will attest to the beauty of what they do, the people they meet, the friends they make, the stories they hear. No pay in the world makes up for those times when someone relies on you for help. They needed you; you were there.
What’s the hard part? Simply saying, “Can you help me”. You might already have heard “Just ask me”, and now it’s your turn to do that very thing. Let’s pretend that you are offering the donor your time, that you are giving them the opportunity to have that special needed feeling. Don’t fear a negative answer, just go for it. If one can’t help, another likely can.
Just saying the phrase “Can you help me” usually emits a sympathetic response, even if it’s from a complete stranger. Especially in our close-knit community, we all look out for one another, and really, how long does it take to give a person that little boost of assistance that could make their day? As hard as it might be to admit, we will all need help at some point, and not asking will only exacerbate a problem.
We’re all in the same boat, some with longer oars than others, so if we all row together we’ll get to the other shore and can celebrate. Let’s not leave anyone behind.
Not long ago, a new situation arose that posed a serious problem. Living in the country means having to drive, and suddenly I found I needed a driver for a medical appointment. I waffled for a few days, knowing Uber isn’t a possibility, so what to do: reach out for help. My dear friend responded right away. We know we can count on each other in troublesome times. However, I also called Carebridge, and within an hour I had a response with friendly door-to-door service for the day. We’re going to need more help before long, and I’m already in planning mode to find it. I’m learning to ask, but it’s still hard.
Based in Carleton Place, Art for Aid is a non-profit, volunteer-run project that provides art supplies to remote First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities to enable youth to connect to their culture through art <artforaid.ca>.
Art is a powerful tool that breaks isolation, invites the creative thought process, and facilitates healing. It also supports positive mental health and provides a healthy outlet for emotions. But creating art requires tools, so Art for Aid collects art supplies and fundraises for shipping costs to ensure all Indigenous youth have access to this creative opportunity.
The fourth annual Indigenous Cultural Fair, to be held on Saturday, May 3, is a fundraiser for this important work. This free event runs from 10am to 3pm at Zion-Memorial Church (37 Franklin Street in Carleton Place), the Carleton Place Library, and the Veterans Memorial Park.
Indigenous vendors will display and sell their unique crafts, and Lanark Drum Circle will share music and teachings with the heartbeat of the drum to guide listeners. There will be information on Indigenous work such as Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, the Moosehide Project, and Legacy of Hope. There will also be hands-on activities for children and youth as well as craft-making workshops. Indigenous food will also be available.
The Indigenous Cultural Fair is more than a fundraiser. It is an opportunity to explore Indigenous culture close to home. The journey to reconciliation requires learning. Wandering through the vendors’ displays, talking with them about their work and taking home a hand-crafted piece will invite each and every visitor to learn more about Indigenous culture and story.
Grounded in traditional and contemporary Indigenous culture, activities for children will include Inuit leg wrestling (sometimes known by older generations as NDN leg wrestling), axe throwing (the child-friendly version), pick-up sticks, Anishinaabemowin language-based word searches, and rock painting.
As the Truth and Reconciliation Commission reminded Canada, reconciliation requires truth-telling. The Legacy of Hope will be at the fair to share their work to support Residential School survivors. The Moose Hide campaign, a project that began on the Highway of Tears, will present their work to end gender-based violence.
Since the focus of this event is art and culture, the day will include two craft workshops. One will teach participants how to make porcupine quill earrings and the other dreamcatchers. As well as going home with a creation, participants will learn about Indigenous spirituality and practices of harvesting from nature. Registration through Tickets Please (TicketsPlease.ca, 485–6434) is required for these workshops. Payment for materials is included in the registration fee, and space is limited.
Exploring Indigenous culture is not complete without food. The Fry Bread Queen will be selling Indian Tacos, Three Sisters soup, wild rice with cranberries and blueberries, fry bread, and strawberry juice (anyone who attended the Art for Reconciliation event on September 30 at the Mississippi Mills Textile Museum will tell you how good her food is!).
Art for Aid will also have their cards, archival quality art prints and more for sale; their sales all support the work of providing art supplies to First Nation, Inuit, and Métis schools across Canada. Other vendors will include handcrafted beadwork, cards, paintings, cloth bags, dreamcatchers, porcupine quill work, jewellery, moccasins, candles and more.
This event is again hosted by Zion Memorial United Church and the Carleton Place Public Library. If you are interested in working with the dynamic and engaged committee or volunteering at the event, please reach out to the committee at <indigenousfair@zion-memorial.ca>.
No event honouring Indigenous Culture would be complete without a ceremony to ground and centre the experience. The opening smudge will take place at about 9:30am. Come for that time of reflection and for the activities and displays of the day. This event can be part of our journey of reconciliation, and will support Art for Aid’s work in remote Indigenous communities.