Pre-spring. That wondrous time of the year when the daylight hours begin their ascension, the sun’s power waxes and Dunvegan’s Glengarry Pioneer Museum awakens from its winter slumber and begins to fill my in-box with e-mails. So let me tackle the coming GPM events in chronological order.
Friday, March 4th – “Steak Night” fundraiser
I’m told that the Windsor Tavern in Vankleek Hill is famous for their Friday steak nights. A claim that Terry and I will test this coming Friday, March 4th. And I hope you’ll join us to help raise funds for the museum’s annual “Battle of Glengarry” War of 1812 re-enactment event. The Windsor has kindly offered to donate a portion of each steak special served on Friday evening to the event’s coffers.
From 5:30- 9:00 PM, re-enactors dressed in period clothing will welcome you to the Windsor and show you to your table. (Hopefully not at musket-point.) The cost is only $15 per person which, in addition to a delicious steak dinner, affords you the chance to win a host of door prizes, including a SD&G Highlanders print and a signed copy of Silvia Pecota’s Remembering Our Fallen. Jennifer Black, Jim Mullin and all the museum volunteers and 1812 re-enactors hope you come out to help support this important fundraiser. And I hope the Windsor’s chef has a “rare” setting on his grill.
Saturday, March 5th – Strategic Planning Session
The board of the Glengarry Pioneer Museum is holding a strategic planning session this coming Saturday, March 5th. The discussion will be held in the basement of the St. Michael’s and All Angels Anglican Church in Maxville and run from 9:30 AM until 1 PM. Given that one can’t think productively on an empty stomach, coffee, snacks and lunch will be provided.
The meeting’s broad objective is to update the museum’s short-term and long-term goals by getting as wide an array of views and ideas for the future as possible. Facilitated by Carma Williams, the session promises to be interesting. Our little museum is at a crossroads. Government funding is evaporating and fundraising is hard-pressed to keep up. So some hard decisions must be made.
Now to the question of whether this event is open to the public? The answer is a qualified yes. Potential participants must understand that this is a “working” session. So if you’d like to attend, you need to be prepared to participate constructively. And as luncheon arrangements must be made in advance, you must also RSVP by calling Jennifer Black at 613-527-5230 or Matt Williams at 613-525-0796.
Saturday, March 12th – 1812 Clothing 101
Have you ever wished that you too could be dressed in period-appropriate attire when you’ve attended certain key events at the museum? Then the museum has an upcoming workshop just for you.
Organized by the museum’s War of 1812 group and taught by Sue McLean, a local historical re-enactor, a FREE workshop on clothing from the 1812 period will be held at the DRA Hall (19053 County Road 24) on March 12th from 11:00 AM – 2:30 PM.
Some of the topics Sue will explore include: an overview of civilian clothing for both men and women in the Regency Era; where to obtain patterns; which fabrics to use and which one NOT to use; where one can obtain uniforms; a list of reliable seamstresses and tailors for those who can afford to have their clothing made; and the art of taking measurements. Sue asks that you bring a pen (need not be a quill-based one), paper and a cloth tape measure.
The workshop is open to re-enactors from across Eastern Ontario, as well as anyone who is interested in learning more about making their own historical clothing that can be worn at events such as the annual Battle of Glengarry re-enactment and Harvest Fall Festival.
Beverages will be provided, but you should plan on bringing your own lunch. As Sue emphatically points out on her poster for this event, there are no restaurants in Dunvegan. Haven’t been since the late 1800s, I suspect. Except for possibly a brief period in the 1960s. But we won’t go there, yet.
Presbuteros induction
This coming Sunday, March 6th is a special one at the Kenyon Presbyterian Church in Dunvegan. The service, which will be held at 9:30 AM, will feature the induction of two new elders, Bobbi Jo MacLeod and Ashley McRae. I’m told that, following the service, there will a time of informal fellowship and coffee. All are welcome to attend.
Never content to leave well enough alone, I wondered when I received the e-mail invitation precisely what an “elder” was, in the context of the Presbyterian Church. What I learned was that the word “Presbyterian” comes from the Greek word “presbuteros”… which means “elder.” Early references in the New Testament describe elders as “assisting church ministers.” They were the church leaders who met with the apostles and helped guide the church.
And this tradition of elder continues today. The Presbyterian Church in Canada gives its elders significant participation in their church’s decision-making process. They work closely with the minister to oversee the membership, pastoral care, worship, education, stewardship and the like.
An elder is not expected to be perfect, to have all the answers or even to be of an elderly age! An elder receives training, learns from other elders and grows in the role.
Congratulations Bobbi Jo and Ashley on becoming elders.
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