It recently came to my attention that someone in the area… or one of the many passers-by… is mimicking the brown-headed cowbird. For those unfamiliar with this avian interloper, cowbirds are renowned for laying their eggs in the nests of other species. These obligate brood parasites, as they’re known in the scientific world, don’t build nests at all. The female cowbird puts its energy into egg production instead, laying over 30 per summer in other birds’ nests and leaving it to the foster parents to raise her young.
Now, I’m not suggesting that this miscreant is abandoning newborn babies along Dunvegan Road. However, she or he is crossing the line into un-neighbourly behaviour on garbage day by adding one of her or his bags to households who have not used their entire two-bag weekly waste allotment. One Fiske’s Corners resident reported being ‘up-bagged’ on two separate occasions. As she told me, it’s the principle of the thing. If she’d been asked, she probably would have said sure. However, to saddle another person with a stranger’s household waste isn’t fair. If the bag contained kitchen scraps, this Fiske’s Corners resident was the one on the hook for roadside clean-up in the event marauding crows or trash-loving hounds made a meal of it. Not cool, as we would have said in the 60s.
Doggie day care?
Last week, a new sign caught my eye on the north side of Dunvegan Road, just before Arkinstall’s Corner. I was in a hurry, but made a point of pulling over on the way home to see what said sign had to say. It read: ‘Bailey’s Glenn, Boarding Kennel’. Delighted that we finally had a nearby pet boarding option (on the slim chance we’ll ever be able to hit the open road again), I decided to reach out and get some details. It turns out that the owner of Bailey’s Glenn Kennel is no stranger. She’s Sarah Jane Raymond, eldest daughter of Kim and Don Raymond. The Raymond’s bought Cy and Louis Walker’s farm… or Grant’s farm, if you prefer. It runs along County Road 30, south of the museum. When I asked Sarah what prompted her to open a boarding kennel, she replied, “I love animals and the idea of working with them was a dream come true.” She went on to say that from the time she was in high school, she had often taken care of people’s pets in their home while the owners were on a trip; this includes our dog and cat. “I’ve looked after a variety of dogs with a variety of personalities and needs over the years, from Great Danes to Pugs,” Sarah told me. “I also have quite a bit of experience with cats, horses, rabbits, turtles, chickens and ducks.” That said, Sarah imagines that the bulk of her clients will be dog and cat owners… although, she will take small animals like bunnies or Guinea pigs, if pressed.
Just off Highland Road and a minute or two from the 417, Bailey’s Glenn is a prime location for Glengarrians on their way to Ottawa or Montreal. It’s obviously a facility in which the young entrepreneur takes great pride. “I designed both our kennel and the cattery to be very ‘homey’… to minimize stress on pets,” Sarah said. Her canine and feline guests also receive lots of attention. “While a pet is in my care, I love and fuss over it as if it were my own,” Sarah admitted.
I also spoke with Sarah about future enhancements to her suite of services. “I would love to do dog training, (open) a boutique where people can browse locally-made pet products and maybe even a doggie daycare.” However, all in good time. She has a realistic business plan that helps insure hers is a sustainable venture with multiple revenue streams. For this she sings the praises of Doreen Ashton Wagner. Ms. Wagner’s Business Sisters initiative offers rural women entrepreneurs the tools, peer-to-peer learning and networking opportunities they need to succeed. “Doreen has been a fantastic mentor to myself, as well as a lot of other women starting businesses.”
Bailey’s Glenn, which is named in honour of Sarah’s special canine friend when she was growing up, is located at 18335 County Road 24. The phone number is 613-872-3471. However, Sarah tells me the best way to reach them is through email (baileysglenboardingkennel@outlook.com) or on Facebook. As for the kennel’s fee structure, the per-24 hour rate is $25 for a dog and $15 for a cat. And, yes, there is a discount for multiple pet families.
As a young person who opted to stay and build a future in Glengarry, Sarah is bucking the trend. In closing, I asked her what is it was about the Dunvegan area that makes it special to her. “Glengarry is home,” Sarah replied without hesitation. “I always felt that way… My parents and siblings have been so incredibly supportive of this venture. I am not sure I could have done it without them.”
“Fencing the Table”
Our old friend Steve ‘Spider’ Merritt recently emailed me to comment on the communion tokens I mentioned in my March 31st column. The reference to ‘tokens’ was actually part of the four-part feature on Dunvegan that Fred Inglis, a reporter with Ottawa’s Evening Citizen, wrote in July 1953. To quote Mr. Inglis, “The Communion Token is an important feature of the old-time Communion service. At the Reformation in Scotland and especially the times of persecution, the token was a means of distinguishing a friend from a foe and later a means of identifying a communicant from a non-communicant. Kenyon Church has its own tokens.” Steve wanted me to know that he was the proud owner of a communion token from Kenyon Presbyterian Church dated 1858.
As Chris Larimer points out in his Adiaphora blog, the use of communion token was once a standard practice in early Presbyterian churches. “Elders visited the home and gave communion tokens to be used on an upcoming Sabbath (quarterly communion being the norm).” I wondered if one earned a token if one’s tithes were paid for the year. But I was mistaken. Before an applicant could claim a token, he had to demonstrate to the elders that he had committed to memory the Lord’s Prayer, the Apostles’ Creed, and the Ten Commandments. Centuries ago, it was all part of an evaluative process known as “Fencing the Table” that helped ensure communion was available to only those who were deemed ready.
I was surprised to learn that collecting Communion Tokens is a real thing. It’s a subset of coin collecting. The tokens, some dating as far back as the 1600s, come in all shapes, sizes and degrees of sophistication. Those from city churches were minted just as coins of the day were, using metal dies. Rural churches though, made do with ruder ones cast by pouring molten lead into two-part hand-carved wooden molds. This describes to a “T” the token that Steve Merritt found in the house across from the church in Dunvegan that he and his wife bought from D.K. MacLeod’s youngest daughter Ruth, back in the days of peace and love. The Merritts paid extra for the home’s contents and the token was discovered in what could have been either a medicine cabinet or man’s shaving cabinet. It had a mirrored door and storage shelves behind. The token itself is made of lead about the size of 25¢ piece, twice as thick as a quarter and weighs in at 15 grams. On one side, the year “1858” appears in raised numerals. The other side reads: “Kenyon Free Church” around the edge and “1 COR 11” in the middle. I assume this is a reference to a passage from the bible, 1 Corinthians 11:27-29…
27 So then, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.28 Everyone ought to examine themselves before they eat of the bread and drink from the cup. 29 For those who eat and drink without discerning the body of Christ eat and drink judgment on themselves.
If you or your family has a Communion Token from the Dunvegan church, or any other Glengarry church for that matter, I would love to hear about it.
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