Canada 150 celebrations mark milestone all year

Yorkregion.com
June 22, 2017
By Heidi Riedner

The Caesar cocktail is a Canadian invention (and it’s red).

Lacrosse, basketball, hockey, table hockey, five-pin blowing and Trivial Pursuit are examples of Canadian inventions.

Those interesting facts and many other Canadian discoveries, inventions and favourites such as Canada Dry ginger ale, poutine and McIntosh red apples, are part of the tales of Canadians and their connections to the country being brought to life as Canada turns 150 this year.

Celebrations marking the 150th anniversary of Confederation will be held in communities throughout York Region’s nine municipalities leading up to Canada Day celebrations.

Richmond Hill’s, for example, will feature Canada 150-themed interactive areas, a lumberjack show and aboriginal entertainment.

Local groups have been encouraged to take part by gearing their events to the Canada 150 theme.

Recipients of Ontario’s 150th Community Celebration Program and Community Capital Program grants included Shadow Path Theatre Productions, which will use the funding boost to create Dine with Canada - a four-seasonal pop-up theatrical dinner party in Markham, Richmond Hill and Vaughan venues reflecting the four first provinces, including seasonal foods, national recipes and dramatization of historical characters and events.

Windfall Ecology will enhance its annual festival to include indigenous cultural programming, guest chefs and outdoor learning experiences, and it is expected to attract 8,000 attendees to Aurora’s Sheppard’s Bush in June.

The North Newmarket Lions and Knowledge Probe will launch an online scavenger hunt that will take people through 150 years of Newmarket’s culture and history.

Aurora’s Canada 150 celebrations will include a full military tattoo, pow wow and a grand fireworks display.
The City of Vaughan plans to celebrate the milestone all year long.

Among the initiatives being planned by the city is a collective arts project dubbed Catching the Dream.

Vaughan schools, community service organizations and businesses will be invited to create one-of-a-kind dream catchers that will be displayed in various public spaces city-wide.

It is also planning a “friendly” interactive gaming challenge to take place in September in the emerging downtown known as the Vaughan Metropolitan Centre (VMC).

Celebrating Canada’s sesquicentennial will also be a theme at all other city sponsored events, including Winterfest, Concerts in the Park and Canada Day, which is being moved to Boyd Conservation Area from Mackenzie Glen District Park.

Thanks to a $25,000 grant secured through CN EcoConnexions From the Ground Up, the city is funding local tree planting projects as well as a special plaque and ceremonial tree to commemorate Canada's 150th anniversary.

The Canada 150 logo is free and available for everyone to use.

For information on how to apply, visit the Government of Canada website at Canada.ca/150.

Browse the ParticipACTION 150 Play List for activity ideas.

Passport 2017, launched in January, is an online and mobile app that gives the user a personalized list of sesquicentennial events and stories all year long.

It will also track the user's journey, giving virtual badges for experiences.