Orillia Canada Day celebrations are thriving away from their usual home in Couchiching Beach Park.
Because of safety concerns caused by construction on Centennial Drive, this year’s celebrations had to be moved to the Orillia Recreation Centre.
At one point last month, committee member Mike McLaughlin admits he questioned if the usual Canada Day traditions, which began in 1980, would even happen this year.
McLaughlin says moving most of the festivities to the Orillia Recreation Centre has been challenging.
“It’s not our normal setup,” he said. “Things kept changing later in the game but the city stepped up to help and we’ve been able to make it happen.”
Mayor Don McIsaac says this year’s Canada Day celebration shows the resilience of Orillia residents.
“We can overcome any obstacle,” he said. “The Canada Day committee has been wonderful and this has been a great event.”
McLaughlin says the turnout of community members and volunteers has been more significant than normal.
“I can’t remember the last time the Wheely Great Parade was as big as it was today,” he said. “This is the first time where we’ve had someone say we have too many volunteers in some areas. It’s been fantastic.”
McIsaac says Canada Day is an important holiday to celebrate in Orillia.
“Today is a day of celebration and we wanted to make sure everyone could enjoy it," said the mayor.
McLaughlin says the celebrations are important for the sake of community involvement.
“This event is for families,” she said. “Everything we do is to bring our community together because it’s pretty important.”
Because of the pandemic and waterfront construction, McLaughlin says this year’s Canada Day festivities seem more important to people than in previous years.
“There hasn’t been a lot of stuff to do,” he said. “People want to get out of that and want a community event.”
Debbie Daniel and her husband Tom, two local seniors who have been attending Canada Day festivities in Orillia for a decade, say this year's festivities feel “very different.”
“It’s good that they still have different things for the kids to do because they don’t have the rides in the park,” Daniel said. “It’s a better atmosphere when it’s at the park with the lake.”
While Daniel is missing the Couchiching Beach Park vibe, she says the atmosphere at the rec centre today feels festive and patriotic.
“Everybody has got their red on,” she said. “People seem to be having fun.”
Kari Kerteston, an Orillia mother who has been attending Canada Celebrations in Couchiching Beach Park her whole life, says the move to the West Street recreation facility has worked out “really well”.
“I’m impressed with it actually,” she said. “It’s different than it is at the beach, but it’s nice that we don’t have to worry about the sun or the extreme heat.”
Kerteston says the festivities at the rec centre are just as fun as they are at the park.
“This is more relaxed and easier to keep an eye on the kids,” she said. “With having young kids, I like having it here better, but my teenage kids aren’t here for a reason.”
Kerteston says her teenage kids are really missing out on the midway this year. McLaughlin says the committee “pushed really hard” to have the midway, but it just didn’t work out.
Next year, McLaughlin hopes the Canada Day celebration will move back to the park.
“Things are usually kind of set up to drive people to the park,” he said. “It works because we have the midway, the parade, and all the vendors. It’s easier from an organizing standpoint.”
Tonight’s fireworks show at Tudhope Park will ignite at dusk around 10 p.m.
“It’s going to be a great show like always,” he said, noting that shuttles will be available from the Rec Centre parking lot to Couchiching Beach Park from 7 to 11 p.m.
Downtown, at Couchiching Brewery, there is a fully stocked beer garden, a coffee tent, and specialty cocktails and cider. Alair Homes are on sight, partnering with the Orillia Museum of Art and History to create a piece that will form a beaver out of beer lids.
"We are going to have the community write what Canada means to them on Canadian flags,” explained Jocelyn Kent, project manager with Alair. “Once the piece is completed, we are going to hang it in the museum.”
