Summer 2024 Happenings
by Valerie Thornton
Ah! I will never tire of the wonder of spring as the earth comes to life again after the dormancy of winter; all the rain that we had earlier has resulted in a lush green landscape, accompanied by the annual bloom of the amazing trilliums and other spring flowers and blooms that paint our seasonal landscape at this time. Summer has arrived also as I write, over our long weekend, with its heat and humidity, accompanied by fairly brief but very heavy intermittent rain showers.
The annual Spring Clean-up in the community, organized by the HVPOA, was held on May 4 this year and several dozen garbage bags were collected by the adult and children volunteers.
Thank you to all those who volunteered including Debbie Palmer and her crew who cleaned up the garden at the entranceway at Line 4 and Highland Drive (and Laurie Forbes and her crew at Line 3 and Highland Drive who were out a couple of weeks before sprucing up the garden entrance there.)
Councillor Lori Hutchison visited and thanked all the volunteers for their work. Thank you to Jason Holman and the staff of Tim Hortons on Dunlop Street in Barrie for providing coffee, hot chocolate, and yummy Timbits for all the volunteers. A special thank you to Ron Barry who again used his pickup truck to collect all the bags of garbage that were left by the volunteers. Can you believe it, Ron has been doing this for about ten years! Lastly a thank you to the HVPOA President Sonia Faryna and her executive for organizing this.
Again this year community yard sales (garage sales) were held in both Horseshoe and Sugarbush on May 25. A great opportunity to get rid of some items you don’t need any more and perhaps to purchase some other goods that you were looking for. You never know what treasure you may find (although I am at a stage of “getting rid of stuff’ and have to be careful).
It is also great to see people either selling or giving items away on local Facebook sites; there are SO many items that are not ‘dump’ items but often end up being taken there. These sites and community yard sales are essential to the circulation of good used items and save overloading our dump on Old Barrie Road.
There is also a “Clothing” Garbage Collection pick up in June the week of June10 for items that are not suitable to donate to charities. Items must be clean and dry but include all used clothing (yes even coats, hats, belts, shoes, socks, mittens, purses, backpacks and luggage) and towels, pillows and linens. Place items in clear, sealed bags, maximum weight 20kgs per bag. Have your bag(s) out by 7 am on collection day.
The week beginning June 24 there is also a pick up for electronics. Again, quite an extensive list: computers, printers, televisions and monitors (remember to delete all personal data), cellular phones and video gaming consoles, small appliances (toasters, kettles, mixers etc.), hair dryers, electric shavers etc. and cords and small corded power tools.
Packing material and boxes, disk/games, batteries and toys, plus coffee pots, light bulbs and large appliances are NOT included in this pick up. Larger loose items like printers, televisions, etc. can be placed out at the curb, small items in clear bags. Large appliances are NOT included in the County garbage collection, but I know at least one person who picks up these on a regular basis: Doug Henderson in Sugarbush. Again, have your items out by 7 am on your collection day.
Information regarding these two pickups is in the Simcoe County Waste Management Calendar but I am posting here as many people may have misplaced this. I do think that it is VERY important to recycle in some manner, if at all possible, rather than just throw items into the garbage.
On April 28 the ladies winter Marathon Bridge luncheon was held at Horseshoe Resort. An excellent lunch with an extra large serving of Horseshoe’s famous “Sticky Pudding”. A big thank you to Debbie Palmer and Anne Collins for organizing this again for 2023/24. Thirty-two women played and I know that we all enjoyed it.
Congratulations to the winners Jan Howe and Anne Randall (1st), Lynn Holden and Marlene Cercone (2nd), Barb Coutanche and Nancy Haggerty (3rd), and Lesley Agnew and Bev Jackson (4th/last year they were in the first spot).
Isabel Shepard who organized Marathon bridge many years ago is always remembered and taught so many people here in Horseshoe how to play the game. Isabel’s special ‘Grace’ was read (she wrote it herself so it is very special with her message re life and friendships, ending with “But while we’re here…let’s squeeze every last drop of joy out of each and every day”).
We also remembered dear Janet Sutcliffe who left us early this year, way too soon; Janet had such a lovely positive attitude, always smiling and such a generous spirit; she is dearly missed and loved by so many.
The driving range is open at the Golf Zone at 85 Highland Drive, and there is food and refreshments available. So many people are so happy to see this facility being used again; for so many years it was an important venue and so many golfing events were held there. I remember especially the annual Tundra/Tundress couples golfing event, LON golf, plus also the ladies and men’s golf sections. A great driving range, neat restaurant to pop into for a snack or drink and a warm welcoming deck to sit on…it was a gathering spot for many locals. Ah…memories!
There is a Noise By-law in our Township. “Between the hours of 11 pm and 7 am the following day, no person shall disturb the peace, comfort or repose of any person. Please ensure that you respect your neighbors.”
Because there has been some concern regarding the old golf course lands in the Highlands, especially regarding dirt bike riding I thought I should mention this as some residents had been complaining about these bikes racing up and down way past 11 pm on some occasions, in fact in some cases in the early hours of the morning.
This May, members of Copeland Forest Friends have been actively out in the forest pulling up the invasive garlic mustard plant “which is a threat to the diverse varieties of plant life that make the forest such a treasure”. It is important to pull it out before it goes to seed.
This grows everywhere so if you see any in your garden, please pull it out, but as Debbie Palmer says “put it in a plastic bag, lay it in the sun to bake, then toss in the garbage, NOT yard waste!” You cannot miss the plant as it smells of garlic and has many little white flowers on the stalks. So, keep your eyes open as there may still be some around in flower by the time you read this. I remember pulling this out of my garden in Oakville years ago. Thank you to the very active members of Copeland Forest Friends for all that they do in maintaining this wonderful Nature Preserve.
I still feel that we are very fortunate living here in Oro Medonte, although our latest concern appears to be “jumping worms”. Could they be worse that the gypsy moth invasion a couple of years ago? I don’t think so! To be honest I am more concerned with the state of the world, including Canada. It’s a ‘bl__dy mess’ (that English expression pops up in my mind after 51 years in Canada) and it is getting worse. Although I guess I have more chance of dealing with “jumping worms” than changing the world!
We Unite has a Butterly Release on July 18 after 5 pm in Sweetwater Park to “Honour your loved ones passed”. Attendance is free (there will be some light snacks and musical entertainment) but butterflies must be purchased in advance. The We Unite Group supports their community through hands-on volunteering, events and gatherings that feed the souls of our community so they can feed the souls of others.
Here’s to a great summer. We don’t really have to venture far as we have so much in our Township and adjoining Orillia and Barrie. Please support our local businesses as much as possible, it is amazing the hidden gems in Oro. Please contact me at vmt4141@gmail.com if you are starting up any groups that need members or have some information that you wish to share.
“There is no intelligence where there is no need of change. If we don’t end war, war will end us. We should strive to welcome changes and challenges, because they are what help us grow.” H.G. Wells from his book “The Outline of History” (a book written after the First World War when Wells realized at how little people knew of world history and how important it was to our understanding of events and conflicts).
—photo by Deb Halbot