Canada’s 158th birthday won’t go unnoticed in the City of Meadow Lake. According to Regan Beck, the city’s parks and recreation manager, a wide range of activities is planned for Lions Park July 1, all in celebration of the country most members of this community call home. “We have a little bit of everything happening, and hopefully things that appeal to most people in the community,” Beck said. “We try to keep all the events free-of-charge, and we welcome everyone to come out and enjoy what we have to offer. That’s what Canada Day should be all about – an event with the spirit of the community behind it.”
Things kick off from 9 to 11 a.m. with a free pancake breakfast. “This is one we’re excited to bring back,” Beck said. “It’s also very nice of the mayor and city council to step up and run the breakfast this year.” Meanwhile, from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., Eric Adams will host a Major League Baseball pitch, hit and run event. “Eric is doing this in partnership with Meadow Lake Minor Baseball,” Beck stated. “It’s a skills competition for boys and girls who would like to try out their skills. If athletic enough, they could move on to deeper parts of the program.”
New this year, Royal Canadian Legion Branch 76 will host a decorative bike rally on the Lions Park track from 11 a.m. to 12 noon. “They’re inviting all the kids to come out, decorate their bikes and show off their hard work,” Beck said. “There will be prizes for four different age groups. We’re very excited to add this to the program this year.” The always popular bouncy castles will be up and running from 12 noon to 3:30 p.m., while the Zone 7 ‘AAA’ 18U SunDevils were awarded the all-star game for the Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League (SPBL) this year. Beck is the head coach of the SunDevils, and July 1 will see two games take place at Assman Field including the rookie all-star game at 1 p.m. and the veteran all-star game at 4 p.m. “Each team in the league sends two athletes to partake in the rookie game, which is exciting,” Beck added. “The veteran all-star game will feature three local kids – Meadow Lake’s Reid Beck and Brandt Spencer, as well as Colton Parker of Maidstone. We’re looking forward to hosting this game, which will see teams from all over the province take part.” The main event will be come dusk with the annual fireworks display. “The fireworks are always well attended and extraordinarily well done,” Beck said
“Dennis Baldinus at the General’s Bait and Tackle helps us run those each year along with the support of the volunteer fire department. I don’t think anyone has ever gone away from a fireworks show in Meadow Lake disappointed,” Beck said there was concern about dry weather preventing the fireworks from going ahead, but that concern has since passed. “My more recent concern is it won’t be able to happen because we may get rained out, but now it looks like we are setting up for a really nice day,” he said. “Canada Day is a great opportunity to celebrate and be proud of where you’re from… This is an extension of that. We want to acknowledge it and celebrate it.”
Meanwhile, Canada Day celebrations are also shaping up in other communities within the region. In Goodsoil, a parade is scheduled for 4 p.m. with festivities at the ball diamonds to follow including a Canada Day ceremony, best float awards and sparkle tattoos. Carnival games at the Goodsoil ball diamonds from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. will include axe throwing, barrel racing, the bean bag toss, disk drop, a duck pond, jumbo Jenga, the ring toss, roping, sac races and more. A local artisan and vendors’ market will take place at the Goodsoil Recreation Hall from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. followed by a barbecue supper at the local rink from 5 to 7 p.m. The Canada Day Cup East versus West baseball game starts at at 6:30 p.m. at Diamond 2 with a tug-of-war tournament taking place between innings. The day will also feature 50/50 raffles, a beer garden, silent auction and a fireworks display at the ball diamonds starting at dusk.
In Green Lake, the fun begins at 9 a.m. with a pancake breakfast at the hall. That will run until 11 a.m. There will also be a scavenger hunt, as well as a parade which starts at 1 p.m. at the local health centre. The day will also feature a horseshoe tournament with prizes for best Canada Day attire and best Indigenous attire. Live entertainment will also be provided by Stan Morin and Cree, there will be bouncy castles for the kids and more.
Over in Loon Lake, Canada Day celebrations will include a photo scavenger hunt, a pancake breakfast from 8 to 10:30 a.m., drinks at the bar area in the recreation centre from 8:30 to 10:40 a.m. (and following the parade while supplies last), a farmers’ market and museum tours from 10 a.m. to 12 noon, a parade (weather permitting) starting from the village/RM office parking lot at 11 a.m., a book sale and story walk at the local library, beverages and burgers at the Legion from 11:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., a pie sale at the seniors’ centre beginning after the parade while supplies last, and an animal exhibit at the recreation centre from 1 to 3 p.m.
“Canada Day is always a big day for a small community like ours, especially being a resort area,” stated Loon Lake mayor Brian Hirschfeld. “We have a lot of tourists in the area at this time of year, along with the cabin owners. The big event for us each year is the parade. You actually have to see it to believe it. There’s a ton of floats and a ton of participation from everyone. The RM, Makwa Sahgaiehcan First Nation, the businesses, we have old tractor, horses, you name it. Afterward, the Legion offers beer and a burger, which is always another big gathering.” Hirschfeld said it’s about bringing people together. “Community spirit is always strong on these weekends,” he added. Hirschfeld went on to say Canada Day is always a great way to kick off the summer season in Loon Lake. “It’s huge – a lot of people come to town just for that weekend,” he stated. “The big attraction used to be the fireworks, but conditions have been so dry this year we’re not going to be doing that. People used to book their holidays around the fireworks because we would have about a half-hour or 35-minute fireworks show. It was a big deal, and there was live music. Because of regulations, we can no longer do it on the beach – the park has its rules… We had been doing it on the reserve as a result, but seeing as it’s been so dry, it won’t be happening this year. It’d disappointing, but we didn’t have fireworks last year either and the event still went very well.”
Canada Day in Loon Lake, meanwhile, will only be the first of two huge weekends of celebration in the community this summer. “We have our 75th homecoming on the August long weekend,” Hirschfeld said “It’s going to be a huge one. We will have the beer gardens, live music, a car show, karaoke in the afternoon, tours of the museum and school, as well as the old churches in town. It’s going to be a huge weekend.”