The place to be for fun and action was the annual spring festival held at the Rec Centre this past Saturday. Mother Nature did her best to cooperate making the event a thoroughly enjoyable time. Those who managed to sneak away from yard duties among other things were rewarded by a warm and lively time.
The launch of the walking program gave citizens an opportunity to find out about the new programs offered by the Thrive on Wellness initiative to promote healthy connections within community. Alberta Health Services were handing out free pedometers as part of their contribution. I’ve never worn one before and have one on the waist band of my pocket now. With the arrival of this warm weather I’m curious how much far I do go in a day walking the dog, doing gardening and the usual running about.
The Rotary Club was having some fun flipping pancakes promoting awareness of their club. On their agenda is the new bike park to be built at Rainbow Falls Elementary School. The club has 17 members and needs just 5 more people to raise the membership to 22 which would allow them to become a charter. This gives the club access to grants as an additional source of revenue. They meet for an hour once a week so if this dynamic club interests you they would love to have you as part of their team. Rotary is an international humanitarian service organization that addresses health concerns, education, economic and community development, and conflict resolution worldwide.
The Kids Zone was a busy and happening place! For just 5 dollars per family the kids could participate in a variety of events sponsored by local church groups, businesses, community groups and the rec centre. There was no shortage of smiles and giggles at the bouncy tents and slides. As well as there was face painting, mini golf, pony rides, a petting zoo, arts and crafts, a batting cage, pretend battle and plenty of puppy love happening between dogs and kids , with puppies brought in from various animal rescue groups such as AARCS and Oops-a-Dazy. It was truly a day for the dogs and their owners with the Pet Fest which included obstacle races, pet grooming, photos and a pet parade, all sponsored by the folks at Chestermere Vet Clinic. I had the opportunity to talk to Anna Thompson, whose daughter Deanna is director of AARCS, a nonprofit program which rescues abandoned and abused animals throughout the province. This organization which runs out of north east Calgary was able to take in over 600 animals last year in foster care. As well as recuing the animals and finding suitable homes, this group also goes into schools providing education programs on animal care as well as providing emergency dog food when needed.
On Stage entertainment was provided continually through the day by OutWestManagementInc. Ann Hutter organized a terrific line up of both local and aspiring acts along with seasoned veterans such as Gordon Gudmundson. She was also on hand for live performances herself. I was able to catch a very entertaining performance from Margarita Macias a young and upcoming star whose warmth of song was definitely felt among the audience. There were fair type goodies available for snacking as well as merchants and artists selling their wares in the main hall and outside. Local artist Wendy Richardson was on hand with her very inspirational photography which she calls We Rich. Her beautiful and compelling work came from a descent out of a debilitating depression which she endured for 10 years. She started walking in the early morning and evenings taking pictures with her daughter’s inexpensive camera. This became her healing, taking her off the beaten path and finding an intimate connection with nature, capturing the mystical elements of light in her work. Richardson now no longer relies on meds to get her through her day, and has found a peace in surrendering to the beauty of the moment with awareness which is self evident in her work and manner.
And then there were the rabbits. Many of them, all kinds, colors and sizes. In the curling rink were the competitions for the Canadian Hopping Club as well as the Rabbit Show. I happened to catch Sophia Wardlow and her 5 year old rescue bunny doing a practice run for the hopping club’s competition, the course much like a super dog track but on a smaller scale. She and her rabbit Fawn have been competing for 4 months now with praise being the motivational factor to get her rabbit around the track. This club meets three times a month and goes to such events as Aggie Days, shows at the Children’s Hospital, and local country fairs.
BMO Parade of Garage Sales was a huge success as well. This was the first time I partook in this event and the traffic throughout the day was amazing. The signage and maps were a marvelous help to market the event. Even more amazing is that my garage is clean, at least for the week!
If you missed the fair don’t fret, you can catch the fall festival or even start cleaning out that garage for next spring.
