Team Fergmeijer: June 2023

Wednesday, June 28, 2023

June 28, 2023

Buckle up, Kagawongians! July is turning out to be a wheely exciting month here in Billings Township. The township is overflowing with activities to fuel your community spirit. Team Fergmeijer has good memories of busy summers filled with get-togethers. Pre-covid, we would climb into a large tire and roll down a hill in it. Those were goodyears.

We don’t know about you, but we could barely sleep last night! Today (Wednesday, June 28), from 10am - 3pm is the first summer market of the season! We’re looking forward to all sorts of crafts, veg, and baked treats. With a reported 70+ vendors making regular appearances this summer, be sure to check out the colourful cabanas, the roofed arena, and the Park Centre parking lot. Markets will continue throughout July and August on Wednesdays.

This weekend! The annual Anglican Church yard sale and delicious BBQ is Saturday, July 1st (10am-2pm). Head to the Kagawong market pavilion to find treasures galore and grab lunch while you’re there!

Let’s Learn ASL! Interested in learning the basics of American Sign Language? Billings Library is pleased to be partnering with Andrea Wist, ASL instructor at Georgian College, to offer free ASL lessons! The session consists of 2 classes, Tuesday July 4th and Thursday July 6th, starting at 10am at the market pavilion. This first session will be for ages 14+ but a children’s session is also in the works so stay tuned! For more information, email billingsreads@gmail.com.

The music continues! Don’t miss fiddling and step dancing siblings The Fitzgeralds: Wednesday, July 5 at 7:30pm. Tickets can be purchased in advance at https://www.thefitzgeraldsmusic.com/tour. Next up in the Kagawong Concerts series is Teilhard Frost & Chris Coole on Wednesday, July 12 at 7:30pm. Tickets for the July 12th concert can be purchased in advance at https://kagawong.ticketspice.com/teilhard-chris Both concerts will be at the Old Church on the Hill just off Carter Crescent in Kagawong.

Jabbawong Storytelling Festival is back as part of the ArtInfusion weekend on July 8th and 9th. Take part in a weekend of creativity and inspiration for all. Check out their page on Facebook for more information.

Don’t get left in the dark (room)! Be sure to catch the vintage camera and photographic exhibit on now at the Old Mill Heritage Centre. The museum is now open seven days a week, so be sure to pop on by and check out the latest displays.

And that’s not all the Old Mill Heritage Centre has up its historical sleeve. Be sure to save the date: “Speakers Night in Kagawong” with Arthur Milnes and Steve Paikin will be July 13th at the Park Centre!

NorthWords Festival (June 21st and 22nd) has so many fun activities lined up! The Book & Brew on the Friday, taking place at Split Rail Brewery in Gore Bay, will have the featured authors mixing and mingling with guests, enjoying tapas style snacks, and of course, dampling delicious Split Rail brews. Tickets are $15/pp and can be purchased at the Billings Library or online (bit.ly/northwordsfest). Tickets for the Knitting Pilgrim performance and pre-registration for the various workshops are also available. Visit the NorthWords Facebook page for more information (FB.com/NorthWordsFest).

And if you’re looking for more to do this month, the Billings Climate Action Committee is planning a community picnic. Stay tuned for more details, and don’t forget to check out their blog at http://billingscac.blogspot.com

Whew! With all this going on, as you’re out and about in the village you might find yourself wondering just how far you’ve walked. Wonder no more! Check out the new Kagawong walk and run routes map located on the back of the MICA sign near the Cedar Maze and discover a new way to explore the area!

It’s true what they say: the clothes really do make the man. Naked people have little to no influence on society. Have a great week!

Wednesday, June 21, 2023

June 21, 2023

This is a long one, folks! There is just SO much going on in the community, we can barely keep up with it all. No jokes today (well, maybe one), we have to get straight to the good stuff!

Today we celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day! Here in Billings, be sure to check out the Billings Connections Trail. The Anishinaabeg (Odaawaa, Ojibwa and Pottawatomi) occupied what is now Billings Township long before European settlers arrived. Archeological and oral evidence has established at least 10,000 years of Indigenous occupation on Mnidoo Mnising (Manitoulin Island). To learn more about the history of Billings’ original and settler inhabitants, visit the full series of historical plaques around the township, link to the QR codes on each plaque, and drop in to the Old Mill Heritage Centre in Kagawong, as well as the Ojibwe Cultural Foundation in M’Chigeeng First Nation.

A familiar figure strolled through the village earlier this month: Wayne Aelick, along with his many supporters on Team Aelick participated in the Stroll for Liver, raising money for the Liver Foundation. This is just one of many reasons Wayne was crowned Senior of Year by Billings Township! Congratulations, Wayne and thank you for all the work that you do in the Island community.

In just one week! Come out next Wednesday, June 28, for the first of the Kagawong markets featuring all sorts of crafts, veg, and baked treats. With a reported 70+ vendors making regular appearances this summer, be sure to check out the colourful cabanas, the roofed arena, and the Park Centre parking lot. Markets will continue throughout July and August on Wednesdays.

The annual Anglican Church yard sale and BBQ is just around the corner! Saturday July 1st (10am-4pm) head to the Kagawong market pavilion to find treasures galore.

The next event in the Kagawong Concerts series has been announced! Don’t miss fiddling and step dancing siblings The Fitzgeralds at the Old Church on the Hill, Wednesday July 5 at 7:30pm. Tickets can be purchased in advance at https://www.thefitzgeraldsmusic.com/tour

Local artist Willa Wilson is opening a new show! Willa is achieving interprovincial fame with the opening of a show with two friends in Baie St. Paul, Québec, that has been forty years in the making. Félicitations, Willa!

We shutter to think you might miss out… on the vintage camera and photographic exhibit at the Old Mill Heritage Centre! The museum is now open seven days a week, so be sure to pop on by and check out the latest displays.

Excited about NorthWords Festival coming June 21st and 22nd? Keen to get tickets to the Book & Brew or to The Knitting Pilgrim show? You are in luck! In addition to purchasing at the library, tickets are now available online at https://northwords.ticketspice.com/northwordsfest or go to the NorthWords Facebook page to find the link (FB.com/NorthWordsFest).

The annual Elemental Festival is back! Some fantastic plans are in the works to celebrate the beauty, bounty and history of Mnidoo Mnising, September 23 & 24 in Kagawong. Artist Announcements and Festival Schedule will be coming soon. Interested in getting involved? Contact info@4elementslivingarts.org to learn more.

Whew! That is a lot of goings on. You know, they say that good looking people are always busy. Team Fergmeijer would love to tell you why, but we just don’t have a spare minute right now. Have a great week!

Wednesday, June 14, 2023

June 14, 2023

Team Fergmeijer is always happy to see spring in full swing, but we know not everyone shares our joy in the season. Our neighbour refused to believe it was already June. She has always been such a May-sayer. We focus on the positive: April showers bring May flowers. But she leans to the more pessimistic: May flowers bring June bugs. We tend to think her lack of enthusiasm stems from the family reunion they hosted last June. During the potluck dinner, most of the attendees got sick from eating some bacon that was a bit past its best before date. It was May-ham!

At the time of writing, there is a total fire ban in place in Billings Township due to the dry conditions. Check in with the township for up-to-date information (billingstwp.ca and FB.com/billingstownshipkagawong).

Congratulations to Brad MacKay, recipient of the Billings Township Volunteer of the Year award for 2023! Brad does so much around the community, most of it inconspicuously and out of the spotlight. Of course, the main exception to this are his annual Christmas displays. Nothing inconspicuous about that! And we wouldn’t have it any other way. Be sure to congratulate him when you see him!

The annual Anglican Church yard sale and BBQ is just around the corner! Saturday July 1st (10am-4pm) head to the Kagawong market pavilion to find treasures galore.

Friends! Kagawongians! Countrypeople! Lens me your ears! Don’t miss out on the vintage camera and photographic exhibit at the Old Mill Heritage Centre. The museum is now open seven days a week, so be sure to pop on by!

Rumour has it that there would be no selfies or autographs, so being superfans, we are thinking we might bring our life-sized Steve Paikin standup with us.

Billings Library has officially announced that their first annual NorthWords festival is coming to Manitoulin on July 21st and 22nd! NorthWords celebrates all the ways in which we use language. With the support of the Ontario Arts Council, authors Shelley Pearen and Claire Ross Dunn, poet Sophie Ann Edwards, playwright Kirk Dunn, artist Michael Cywink, and former Sudbury poet laureate Vera Constanineau are bringing their creativity to the festival. You can get full details on all the events and featured guests on the festival Facebook page (FB.com/NorthWordsFest) or email NorthWordsFest@gmail.com.

A very happy 29th birthday goes out to honorary Kagawongian Karlene S who celebrates today! Always remember that age gets better with wine.

Only a few more weeks until the first Kagawong market of the summer! Be sure to come out to the Park Centre Wednesday, June 28 for the first of the weekly markets, featuring all sorts of crafts, veg, and baked treats. Markets will continue throughout the summer on Wednesdays.

If we are honest, the biggest difference between May and June is every single letter. Have a great week!

Wednesday, June 7, 2023

June 7, 2023

Turns out that Team Fergmeijer has a real issue with procrastination. We never seem to finish anything. It’s like we have a black belt in the partial arts. In an effort to overcome this, we have started making lists. And instead of calling it a ‘to do’ list, we’ve started writing ‘side quests’ at the top to make it seem more fun and interesting, and man has that not worked at all.

This Sunday! On June 11th, Team Aelick will be heading out for the annual Stroll for Liver in Kagawong and you can join them! The 5km stroll starts at the Park Center at 11am, and will make its way through the village. You can support Team Aelick and the Liver Foundation by donating online (https://tinyurl.com/teamAELICK).

Billings Library has officially announced that their first annual NorthWords festival is coming to Manitoulin on July 21st and 22nd! NorthWords celebrates all the ways in which we use language. With the support of the Ontario Arts Council, authors Shelley Pearen and Claire Ross Dunn, poet Sophie Ann Edwards, playwright Kirk Dunn, and artist Michael Cywink are bringing their creativity to the festival. You can get full details on all the events and featured guests on the festival Facebook page (FB.com/NorthWordsFest) or email NorthWordsFest@gmail.com.

Speaking of authors, our most faithful readers know that yours truly have a cookbook in the works. It has been a definite learning process and although we’ve made a lot of mistakes along the way, adding more cheese than what a recipe calls for has never been one of them.

Candice Irwin of Body Stories Dance Instruction will be hosting drop-in dance classes for children throughout the month of June at the Kagawong Park Centre. There are opportunities for youth aged 3 and up exploring creative movement and contemporary dance. Classes are $15 at the door. Check out the Kagawong Facebook page for more information.

Happy 29th Birthday wishes go out to Morgan E, Trish T, and two Kagawongians who really know how to crack us up. Don’t worry about aging: you only look as old as the last selfie you took!

Candice Irwin of Body Stories Dance Instruction is holding drop-in dance classes for children throughout the month of June at the Kagawong Park Centre. There are opportunities for youth aged 3 and up exploring creative movement and contemporary dance. Classes are $15 at the door. Check out the Kagawong Facebook page for more information.

Mark-et on your calendars - the first Kagawong market of the summer will be Wednesday, June 28! The market is moving up into the covered rink, colourful cabanas, and part of the Park Centre parking lot. Markets will continue throughout the summer on Wednesdays.

Need a last-minute idea when visiting Kagawong? Make the snap-shot decision to visit the vintage camera exhibit at the Old Mill Heritage Centre!

The Manitoulin Tennis Club is up and running for the summer! Players of all ages and abilities are welcome to come out to the courts at Manitoulin Secondary School in M’Chigeeng for fun and fitness Sunday mornings and Wednesday evenings. First Sunday and Wednesday of every month there are free lessons for new players! Visit Manitoulin Tennis Club on Facebook for more information.

Rumour has it the Billings Climate Action Committee has some summer plans afoot! Don’t forget to check out their blog at https://billingscac.blogspot.com/ for regular updates.

It’s shocking to think that someone out there has eaten the most potato chips in the world, and they have no idea of their achievement. Have a great week!