On Tuesday, January 14th the DECA Board will be meeting a a local establishment to talk ideas and initiatives for the neighbourhood. If you would like to attend, please contact us.
Local Skating – Monarch & East Lynn Parks Open
Time to sharpen those blades! Looks like a fun day has planned by the Friends of Monarch Park group for a day of skating this Sunday from 2:30 to 4:30p.m. Also, the East Lynn Park skating rink is also open for business! Thank you to all the volunteer for bringing so much winter fun to our neighbourhood.
We are doing our best to keep up with the neighbourhood, but with jobs, kids, vacations and a relentless summer cold, we’ve been a bit behind! Here are a couple of events and volunteer opportunities to note!
First off, our dear friend, Board member, pop-up queen and all-around volunteer extraordinaire Catherine Porter is leaving us for a year abroad. Here is her own column about her latest adventure to Senegal – we’ll miss you Cath!
Events:
Wheels on the Danforth – Saturday, August 10
It might not be on our section of Danforth, but there is a pretty fun-sounding event going on east of us that you should know about: Wheels on the Danforth. Car show, kids zone, entertainment, craft fair, beer garden – all to raise money for the community! Check out their website for more info: http://www.wheelsonthedanforth.ca
Movie Under the Stars @ East Lynn – August 22
We’ll remind you again, but mark you calendars with this year’s date for Movie Under the Stars at East Lynn Park. On August 22, come for the market and stay for the Princess Bride. Bring your blankets, snacks and six-fingered friends for this family classic.
Volunteer Opportunities:
Monarch Park Adopt-a-Tree
In addition to DECA’s own adopt-a-tree program, (click here for our blog post about that) the Friends of Monarch Park have a program in Monarch Park and are looking for more volunteers. Please visit http://friendsofmonarchpark.com/adopt-a-tree/ for more information.
Canada Day at Stan Wadlow
Did you attend this year’s festivities? Were you waiting around for hours for the rides to get going? Did you think the rides were a bit rough around the edges? DId the roller coaster operator keep your kids waiting while he walked around under the ride tightening all of the hitches with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth? There were lots of great things about the event, but there’s definitely room for improvement – I mean, Canada’s birthday deserves nothing but the best!
A casual chat about it in passing with Janet Davis revealed that the organizing committee needs people on it. If you are able to volunteer to add your 2 cents to the decisions that are made about East York Canada Day 2014, please email Councillor Davis by clicking here. CIty money goes into this event, so it’s in all of our interest to make sure that it’s spent on top quality fun for our whole community!!
DECA
Since I’m writing about volunteer opportunities, I would be remiss if I didn’t put in a plug for DECA. While people may think that we’re a well-oiled machine of neighbourhood do-gooding, (ha!) we are actually just regular neighbourhood volunteers, and we’re always looking for more help. Do you have a great idea for our ‘hood? Let us know! Email us here with your thoughts and we’ll figure out the next steps.
Come one, come all! The hottest event in town Tuesday, February 12 (aka today!) is the DECA Board Meeting. Okay, maybe not the hottest event but I don’t get out much so I’m really looking forward to it. There will be updates on the pop-up shops, East Lynn Farmers Market, DECA Arts Fair and so much more. If you’re interested please send us an email.
Makin’ a Racket at the Rocket – Friday
This Friday, February 15, there will be another edition of the Spoken Word Celebration at the Red Rocket Coffee House via Open Minds. This open mic night for poets, storytellers and authors will also feature author Eufemia Fantetti and playwright Sandra Cardinal. Show start at 7:00 p.m.
More Fitness Options at Monarch Park
There seems to be no shortage of options one has to stay fit in this neighbourhood. And now Monarch Park Stadium has expanded their offerings to include boot camps with kettle bells. And if that wasn’t enough, they are also offering ‘spin & run’ classes. Because there is nothing I want to do more after a spin class than go for a run. Really. But apparently the first class you try is free so you might as well try it out and let us know if you can walk the next day.
Tonight at 6:00 p.m. Amanda Gomm, Manager, Volunteer & Community Engagement, LEAF, and Councillor Paula Fletcher, Ward 30 Toronto-Danforth, will lead a guided tree tour through the Monarch Park neighbourhood in Toronto’s east end. Tour participants will explore this section of the tree canopy and learn about initiatives by local community members. Stresses faced by Toronto’s trees and benefits of a healthy urban forest will also be discussed.
Meet at Monarch Park, 115 Felstead Ave. (At the corner of Gillard Ave.)
To learn more about Ward 30 Toronto-Danforth or the urban forest follow Councillor Fletcher (@PaulaFletcher30) and LEAF (@LEAF) on twitter.
Thanks to Sarah K. for this update from DECA Parks!
There’s a lot going on in our DECA-area parks this summer and we wanted to provide an end-to-end update for our park-loving readers.
East-End DECA – Stephenson Park
First up we have Stephenson Park (one block south of Danforth and one block west of Main) a little-known green haven just inside of DECA’s eastern border. This recreation space has a baseball diamond, a great playground, and a wading pool – there is as much fun to be had here as we would find in our beloved East Lynn Park.
DECA Board Member and renowned illustrator, Tak Bui, recently orchestrated a painting project on the wading pool surface, for which he generously volunteered his own amazing illustrations. The result is an ethereal watery illusion of sea creatures under the little ones’ feet – a perfect destination on a hot summer day!
This past winter, Tak also dreamed up a plan to transform a barren bit of tree-lawn on Stephenson Avenue into a mini-urban garden. The garden is now ready for planting, thanks to all the hard working volunteers who got down and dirty to make this project a reality. See the before and after pics below. Props go out to Danforth Lumber for donating materials for the project!
BeforeAfter
West-End DECA – Monarch Park
On DECA’s western border we find the beautiful and busy Monarch Park (at the south end of Monarch Park Ave). The biggest news of late is that the water slide has finally re-opened after lying dormant for many, many years. As the mercury rises, folks from other ‘hoods in Toronto will be jealous of our local attraction. If you are 43” or higher, this super soaker will have you cooled off in no time!
Speaking of Monarch Park, a group of local residents have organized a Friends of Monarch Park group that will be spearheading future improvements within the park. After two community meetings, a Steering Committee has been formed and a number of sub-committees have been created. If you are interested in volunteering with this group, please visit the group’s Facebook page and let them know. You can also email them at friends.monarchpark(at)yahoo.ca.
And we bet you’re wondering what’s going on behind Monarch Park Collegiate, right? Last year, the TDSB approved the lease/sale of their athletic field for the construction of a state-of-the-art athletic facility for both students and the community. Monarch Park Stadium will include a field, track, clubhouse, field lighting, and a winter dome – click here for more information. Tentative completion date is fall 2012.
Please leave a comment telling everyone about your favourite DECA neighbourhood park!
