Category Archives: Cultural

TI History Museum to host Summer Evening in the Islands

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(Gananoque, ON) After three years of extreme caution due to the pandemic and no chance to really get together and have a good time, the Thousand Islands History Museum will be holding its Summer Evening in the Islands Fundraiser on August 11.

The Thousand Islands History Museum will be holding its Summer Evening in the Islands Fundraiser on Flying Mallard Island on August 11. Lorraine Payette/for Postmedia Network

“We are bursting with excitement to celebrate our achievements with you at our first in-person gala in three years,” said Joanne van Dreumel, executive director of the museum. “Brian and Lynn Knudsen will host the celebration at their elegant summer home on Flying Mallard Island. With beverage in hand, you can meander the gardens, greet old and new friends, and listen to live music. And you can keep mementos of the evening from the Live and Silent Auctions, emceed by Alicia Gordon of Gordon’s Estate Services, and know that your support keeps us strong in preserving and interpreting our collective history.”

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Wet’suwet’en protestors stop border traffic at Thousand Islands Bridge

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First Nations Protest - TI Bridge - Lansdowne - February 17, 2020 - IMG_1423cropresizea

About 60 supporters of the Hereditary Chiefs of Wet’suwet’en came out on February 17 to stage a protest at the Thousand Islands Bridge at Lansdowne/Alexandria Bay. The peaceful protest stopped traffic for about three hours as part of a series of nationwide rotating demonstrations designed to bring awareness to the pipeline issue on Wet’suwet’en territory.

 

(LANSDOWNE ON February 18, 2020)  Sometimes people just want to be heard. To be noticed, to have their issues taken seriously, to have those around them acknowledge they are there. And when no one seems to be paying attention, they take action.

A bald eagle was slowly circling the Thousand Islands Bridge at Lansdowne/Alexandria Bay on February 17 as an organized group of protestors marched on the toll booth on the Canadian side. Watching for traffic and remaining soft spoken and well mannered, they carried their signs to the entrance to the bridge, spread out, and refused to move. Continue reading →

In the Beginning – Earth Day 1970

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First published April, 2011 – EMC St. Lawrence

Wednesday, April 22, 1970, was glorious.  It was early spring in southern New Hampshire and the earth had decided to give up its white blanket of snow and push forth as much green as it could get away with on such short notice.  The sun was warm and pleasant, and the black flies had as yet to come out in full force as students from 12 -18 years of age gathered outside the dining hall on main campus to be given garbage bags and instructions. Continue reading →

Waiting for the Parade a Triumph for Those Who Stayed Behind

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by Lorraine Payette, written September 10, 2014

“They also serve who only stand and wait.”
– John Milton

Whether rolling bandages, practicing for possible blackouts, or trying out leg make-up to substitute for impossible to come by silk stockings, the women who stayed behind while their men went to war always had a lot to do. And those whose men stayed home also felt a fierce duty to help in any way they could.

Waiting for the Parade chronicles the time spent by five women, each waiting in her own way for the war to end. One has sent two sons overseas, one a husband. Two have husbands who have stayed at home – one simply through no wish to enlist, the other to continue his job as a radio announcer reporting the daily news. The last is in perhaps the least enviable position of all – a German immigrant whose father has been placed in an internment camp on suspicion of being a Nazi sympathizer. – to read more>

Waiting for the Parade Keeps the Home Fires Burning

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Rehearsal Photos

written by Lorraine Payette, September 3, 2014

Time would come for roll call,
Time for us to part,
Darling I’d caress you
And press you to my heart…
– Lilli Marlene (translated by Tommie Connor, 1944)

(Gananoque, ON) World War II was a hard time for everyone involved, but it had a special significance for those who stayed behind, the women who kept the home fires burning. Always waiting, always hoping, always dreaming of the day when they would once again bring the family circle together they did everything they could for their men so far away and for all of those at home as well.

Waiting for the Parade focuses on five of these iconic women from Canadian history – each with her own loved one, each with her own reasons to stay strong, drawn together by fate to create a special friendship only people in such a situation could ever develop. One awaits her sons, another her husband. Two have husbands who have remained at home while the fifth carries the burden of being a German immigrant and daughter of a suspected Nazi sympathizer. Yet each has her own strengths, her own weaknesses, and contributes in her own way to make the interminable war time bearable for herself and the others. – to read more>

Hot Times Coming with Summer Solstice: Pride in the 1,000 Islands

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by Lorraine Payette, written June 12, 2014

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(Gananoque, ON) Get your pride shined up and prepare for the hottest summer solstice around as Gananoque rolls out its best for the third annual Summer Solstice: Pride in the 1,000 Islands Festival.

“This festival is about celebrating diversity in one of the most naturally diverse regions in the world,” said Kathrine Christensen, executive director of the 1,000 Islands Accommodation Partners. “The flavour of the weekend is fun, meant to showcase the islands, water, theatre, merchants, and diversity in a welcoming community. We try to have (everyone) gather to celebrate summer solstice while having our visitors experience the zest for life that you can only find in the 1,000 Islands.” – to read more>

Mini Powwow in Gananoque a Cultural Delight

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by Lorraine Payette, written August 18, 2013

(GANANOQUE, ONTARIO) It seems to depend on whom and where a person is as to how they define the word “powwow”. But if you are willing to take the time and speak with those for whom it is a major event, it grows into a powerful and dramatic tool to spread love, language, culture and history throughout the world employing riotous colour, splendid dance and infectious music.

“Powwow is a chance to bring all of the people together,” said Kenny Leaf, a Mohawk from Akwesasne. “It’s a chance to meet all the different nations and cultures, and have a good time. Everyone comes from different places and we dance to heal and bring good things to everyone.” – to read more>

APCMA Winner David Maracle Brings Music of the Spirit to Aboriginal Adventures

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by Lorraine Payette, written August 10, 2013

(GANANOQUE, ONTARIO) The air begins to settle as onlookers shift to find a more comfortable position in chairs or on benches. Some close their eyes. And then the magic unfolds, and they become transformed.

Against the sounds of nature herself, a low music begins to rise, weaving itself into the space around them, building in intensity until it mingles with the very soul and takes flight, bearing the listener into strange new worlds of beauty and understanding never experienced before. – to read more>

Second Gourmets of Gananoque Is a Taste of Something Great

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by Lorraine Payette, written August 11, 2013

(GANANOQUE, ONTARIO) Lisa Bird, Executive Director of the Downtown Gananoque BIA, sat in the shade of her tent at the second Gourmets of Gananoque on August 10, happily enjoying a pulled pork parfait that she had just picked up from the True Catering booth on the festival site on King Street East.

“This is wonderful,” she said. “I can’t encourage folks enough to go over and try one out.” – to read more>

Wampum Carries the Proud History of the Peoples at Aboriginal Day Celebration

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by Lorraine Payette, written June 24, 2012

(MALLORYTOWN LANDING, ONTARIO) In the shade of the willows near the shore of the St. Lawrence River, aboriginal historian Darren Bonaparte patiently put some old notions to rest as he spoke to the assembled crowd on the history of wampum, part of the Aboriginal Day celebrations held at the St. Lawrence Islands National Park at Mallorytown Landing on June 23, 2012. He also shared many stories with an eager crowd of listeners.

“Many people think wampum was money,” said Bonaparte. “Not so.” – to read more>