Athol Day, returning in a new imagined way, held at the picturesque Cherry Valley Lions Memorial Park, was a day to remember! From the moment the event started, families, friends and neighbours came down to enjoy the plethora of activities we had organized. It was a free event with a suggested donation of $5 upon entry for all the activities and BBQ the Athol Recreation Committee had provided.
We also sold raffle tickets for the opportunity to throw pies in Athol Councillor Sam Branderhorst and Athol-South Marysburgh School principal Heather McMaster’s face. All proceeds from the suggested donations and raffle tickets will go to improvements to Athol-South Marysburgh school yard, that will not only benefit the school but the community as well.
There was something for everyone. Kids and adults alike were awed by the amazing tractors from C.S Raistrick and Wierstra Farms. A mega slide, obstacle course, Jousting pad and cactus shooting gallery inflatables kept kids busy. Not to the mention the impressive face painting and balloon animals!
We also had some friendly competition with County Cooperage’s barrel tossing game, Escape Camp Picton’s puzzle game and a mobile Axe throwing trailer by County Axe.
Jeremy Kelly played an earlier set and a highlight of the day was the performance by the county’s own Isabella Hoops AKA Kiki the outrageous. She entertained kids and adults alike with her hoops and afterwards taught them a few of her tricks.
A couple of other highlights of the day were the Dog Show and Pie Eating Contest. Judging for the Dog Show was done by a handful of students from Athol South-Marysburgh school with 13 categories to judge, including longest tail, largest ears and biggest dog which went to Monty the dog. Athol’s Best went to Louis, and his brother Archie took home Best Trick, both new additions to the community! Congrats to the all the dogs and their owners for a successful show.
The Pie Eating contest turned out to be quite competitive with all 3 categories filling up just before taking place. The first kids’ category winner was Magnus who did the most amount of eating of all three! He even asked if he could enter round two. The second kids’ category winner was Damien, and Russell took the adult category! Congrats to all who won and participated! Apparently, it’s a lot harder than it looks.
We are super pleased at how our 1st Athol Day was received. What truly made Athol Day special was the unity and solidarity of the community. Businesses from the area came forward as sponsors, providing resources and prizes for our various activities. Local volunteers worked tirelessly to ensure the event ran smoothly, and residents of all ages joined in the festivities, contributing to the vibrant atmosphere. There were close to 400 ppl who came out to enjoy the day and have some fun together!
We are also very excited to announce that the many attendees that generously donated to our cause helped raise $2,019.00 for improvements to Athol-South Marysburgh school yard! If you missed coming out to Athol Day and would like to donate to Athol-South Marysburgh school please use the following link: https://donate.stripe.com/bIYeXa8N97HF3GEfYY
Athol Recreation Committee and Athol-South Marysburgh School cannot thank the greater community enough for your generous support of the school and community. We look forward to doing it again next year!
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(Photos submitted by community members and borrowed from CountyLive.)
The Athol Recreation Centre 