A few Canada Day events to tell you about, but first thing’s first. You need to know what’s happening at wonderful Stephenson Park.
DECA is proud to help sponsor the Friends of Stephenson Park (FOSP) 3rd Annual Canada Day Celebration! If you want to know why you should attend, keep reading.
We asked FOSP founder, Peter Woodcock about his work to bring people together around Stephenson Park. Here is what he told us:
When we moved here 6 years ago, Stephenson Park seemed kind of sad and forgotten, and a bit of a hot spot for some undesirable behaviour. Just over 3 years ago, I decided to organize a park group in an attempt to get the neighbours to start coming out and using the park. A group of us brainstormed for ideas of what we could do with no budget.
Our first event was a picnic in the park in 2014. It was Canada Day and Pride weekend, so we decided to celebrate both with donated watermelons from Sobey’s, a huge slab cake from Costco and little Canada & Rainbow flags adorning the entire fence around the park. Kids played in the pool and we had music by neighbour and artist extraordinaire Tak Bui. What more could we want?
The park is slowly becoming more vibrant and more loved. We have music nights, yoga most Saturdays, an amazing ice rink, community clean ups, new trees and organized tree watering.
And here we are, 3 years later, getting ready for our 3rd Annual Canada Day Celebration, which is getting bigger and better each year. This year we will be having more food and music, and an early evening bonfire with marshmallows. We will be selling corn on the cob and having an old-timey lemonade stand to raise funds for permits and other activities throughout the year. And of course, we’ll still have the Costco slab cake!
Stephenson Park is a pretty darn amazing park, and I am so happy when I hear someone say how much it has changed. Kids laughing and playing is an amazing return on investment. No man is an island or a park. All the success comes down to all the people in our neighbourhood that come to Stephenson Park.
Peter and Joey after Saturday morning yoga in the park. Photo credit: Mary-Margaret McMahon
Other Free Canada Day events
East York Canada Day Parade & Festival at Stan Wadlow, including fireworks! eycdc.ca/event.html
Note: they are also looking for volunteers.
Danforth Mosaic BIA – The Danny Loves Music Canada Day concert at East Lynn Park from 6-9pm, Julian Taylor Band (beer, wine & food can be purchased on site)
Are you familiar with a pub crawl? Not sure about a ‘Laneway Crawl’? Well, you’re in for a treat! This summer DECA, East End Arts and The Laneway Project are joining forces to bring you the first ever east end laneway crawl.
Laneway Crawl = Pop-up Festival
What the heck is it? A laneway crawl is a pop-up festival that redefines how we think of, experience and use our city’s laneways. Plans are underway to activate our laneway with all kinds of fun activities including things like art workshops, music jams, pickup sports, games, garage/wall mural painting, pop-up greening and more. We’re also looking for organizations who’d like to be part of the festival.Read on for more info!
Mark your calendars for the afternoon of Sunday, August 28th from 1:00 – 5:00pmand join us in the laneway between Strathmore and Danforth, from Woodbine to Woodmount.
Photo credit Katrina Afonso
Naming our laneway
Inviting people out would be so much easier if our laneway had its own name. So, on August 28th, we’ll ask you for name suggestions – then work together with Councillor Janet Davis to officially name our lane. Bring us your ideas! All participants’ names will be entered in a draw and one lucky person will win a prize!
Want to join in?!
Share your ideas
What activities would like to see? We’d love to hear your ideas! Send us a tweet, post on FB or email us at renew@DECA.to.
Host an Activity
Are you part of a sports club, dance studio or other business / organization that may want to host an activity as part of the crawl festivities? Please send us an email.
Join our organizing team or volunteer at the event
Are you a community keener who loves the sound of this and wants to join our organizing team or volunteer during the event? We want to hear from you! Or just come join us on Wednesday, July 6th from 7:30-9:30pm for our first organizing meeting, at Time Capsule Board Game Cafe, 2183 Danforth Avenue.
Lend us your garage or driveway for the day!
Do you back onto this laneway, either because you live on the south side of Strathmore or you live or work on the north side of Danforth between Woodmount and Woodbine? We’d love to chat with you about using your driveway or garage during the laneway crawl or to hear your ideas about how to participate. Please email us at renew@DECA.to.
Request a new mural
Are you experiencing “tagging” or graffiti on your fences, garage doors or building walls? If you live or work on this laneway, we may be able to paint you a new mural. Just send us a note so we can chat about the possibilities. Murals are one of the best ways to prevent future graffiti and help to beautify our lanes.
Events like this one will help us transform our laneways into vital, vibrant parts of our neighbourhood’s public realm. You can read more about the amazing 2016 Laneway Crawl Series or check out this article in the Globe & Mail. We are very grateful for the advocacy work being done by the Laneway Project and for all their support to make this crawl happen!
If you have any questions or ideas or if you would like to volunteer for the event, please email GayStephenson at renew@deca.to.
Murals can transform graffiti from this………………………………… to this.
For the first time ever, DECA is celebrating Pride at the East Lynn Farmers’ Market this week, led by our newest group, DECA Pride.
A rainbow-themed market works so well because so many colourful fruits and veggies are making their appearance at this time of year, along with increasing numbers of farmers’ stalls each week.
And for all of your Pride/Canada weekend fun, you can also buy wine (from Niagara’s Rancourt Winery this week) cheese, baked goods and other delicious things.
Silly Goose Kids’ annual pride window! 2054 Danforth Ave
Market Help Needed
Market volunteers are still needed, especially for tear down help at 6:45pm each week. Please send an email if you can help. Perfect for a high school student looking for hours or any other kind soul(s) who can be available.
The East Lynn Farmers’ Market runs every Thursday from 3-7:00 p.m. between June 2 – October 13 at East Lynn Park, located on the south side of Danforth Ave, just west of Woodbine Ave. Stay up to date by visiting theEast Lynn Market Facebookpage or by following us on Twitter.
Danforth Avenue Planning Study – Community Meeting #1, June 27 from 7-9pm
The first public meeting for the city’s Danforth Avenue Planning Study happens Monday, June 27, 7 p.m. at Hope United Church (at Main, northwest corner). DECA’s Visioning Committee, which has for the past three years been advocating and preparing for this study — with help from planners, architects, academics and a community members from many walks of life – urges that you attend this public consultation.
The Avenue Study (Phase 1 from Victoria Park to Coxwell avenues) presents a once-in-50-years opportunity for getting the east end’s main commercial street back on track toward being a lively, safe, vibrant and economically healthy destination.
Was there an extra Tuesday this week? Good news, neighbours – this never-ending week is finally ending, so here are some fun things to do this weekend.
Ride your bike across the whole Danforth! If you can’t ride, plan to be on the Danforth to cheer them on – it’s quite a sight and they always love to see bike-loving fans! http://bellsondanforth.ca
New and Expectant Parent Night @ Silly Goose Kids, Sunday @ 6:30pm, Free
Three sure signs of summer: 1) the scorching 30 degree + temperature on Monday (coincidentally the first official day of summer), 2) school lets out this week and 3) our amazing East Lynn Park Farmers’ Market on Thursdays from 3-7:00 p.m.
If you haven’t yet made it out to the market, this is the week to go! Here is a line-up of things to see and do:
PlayFit for Kids: Oaks ‘n Acorns and CareerFit Mom are joining forces at the market! They’ll be running PlayFit activities for families including obstacle courses, parachute play, and games to get your heart pumping and happy endorphins flying! This activity kicks off at 4:30 p.m.
Origin Wellness: Enjoy a complimentary chair massage and chat with a naturopathic doctor from Origin Wellness between 3:00 and 6:00 p.m. Meet Karen Seymour, RMT and Sarah Grammaticos, ND, to discover how they can help you maintain a healthy lifestyle.
DesignNook Crafts: Kids can join the talented team from DesignNook between 4:00 and 6:30 p.m. to create some crafts to officially kick-off summer!
And we be remiss if we didn’t mention the final showdown that is expected at the market this week. The Table Tennis for Tuition ping pong tournament, a fundraiser for a joint DECA and Scadding Court Community Centre student scholarship, wraps up this week. We have already awarded the first recipient of the scholarship to Chantelle. You can read more about her in a previous DECA Diaries post or come meet her in person at the tournament this week. The final match will be played around 6:00 p.m. and the fun continues until we’ve crowned our DECA champions. It’ll be a great night so come cheer on the finalists. Donations to the scholarship fund are also welcomed. Check out some of action shots of players over the weeks below courtesy of Stephen Caissie.
Finally, mark your calendar for next week as DECA celebrates PRIDE at the Market on June 30th. In addition to all the usual market fun, Silly Goose Kids will be leading a Pride-themed craft. Hope you can join us! Learn more about DECA Pride at https://deca.to/pride and watch for details in next week’s blog post.
See you at the market!
Action shots courtesy of www.stephencaissiephoto.comAction shots courtesy of www.stephencaissiephoto.comAction shots courtesy of www.stephencaissiephoto.comAction shots courtesy of www.stephencaissiephoto.comAction shots courtesy of www.stephencaissiephoto.com
