Wilmot Heritage Day last of its kind in the region
Have lunch, see exhibits at Castle Kilbride and enjoy the theme of area mills
The designation of the second Monday in February as Ontario’s “Family Day” holiday has tended to overshadow celebrations of Canada Heritage Day around this time of year. But there are some remnants.
The 22nd annual Heritage Day Workshop organized by the Grand River Conservation Authority’s Heritage Working Group happened in Brantford yesterday.
I always found these full day, lecture-based conference-style gatherings of people involved with heritage from all parts of the watershed stimulating and inspiring.
The theme this year was “Brantford: Celebrating our Past, Building our Future.” One of the panels included a presentation from Dr. Kate Carter, associate vice-president at Wilfrid Laurier University, titled “Let’s Keep Brantford Weird: Regenerating our Arts and Culture Legacy.”
Meanwhile, Heritage Wilmot, an advisory group appointed by Township Council, is getting to host Wilmot Heritage Day a week from today, Saturday Feb. 23, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
There used to be a number of these events throughout the region. Wilmot has been hosting one the longest: for close to 30 years now. It’s the only one left. Committee members have been joking about getting Tshirts made one of these days emblazoned with the motto “Last One Standing.”
The theme this year is “mills.” As Tracy Loch, curator/director at Castle Kilbride National Historic Site, explains, everyone is “invited to come browse displays, learn about mills specific to Wilmot, chat with heritage exhibitors that are from Wilmot and surrounding area, share memories, attend a presentation which highlights historic recognitions in our township.”
You can also purchase a “delicious homemade lunch provided by the New Dundee Women’s Institute.” They’ll be on hand to offer food and refreshment from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.
There were once 33 branches of the Women’s Institute here in Waterloo County. The New Dundee WI isn’t the last one standing — there are three others — but it’s appears the most active, and is certainly the largest: it happens to be the largest WI chapter in all of Canada.
The official Heritage Day program begins at 1:30 p.m. The emphasis will be on heritage preservation in the township, and on several “heritage milestones,” including the 25th anniversary of Castle Kilbride as a museum and the 75th anniversary of the New Dundee Bandshell.
Tracy Loch also filled me in on Wilmot’s first Arts and Culture Master Plan. Township Council endorsed the final version last November, making Wilmot one of the 72 (out of a total of 444) Ontario municipalities with an approved culture plan.
Loch explained that, with a Parks and Recreation Master Plan put in place in 2016, municipal leaders felt that “it was finally time to focus specifically on the arts, culture and heritage of our township.”
The objective was to set goals, objectives and priorities for the next five years.
A Toronto-based consulting firm was hired to work with the steering committee. An outside observer can be invaluable, especially for putting things in context. Not surprisingly, Wilmot comes out well compared to other places. The study shows they’d been on the right path all along. Of the 18 actions recommended, 16 entail carrying on with existing efforts, and only two are new departures.
Jon Linton, the consultant who did the work, reached the conclusion that: “Wilmot is a very progressive community. Not many municipalities this size have arts and culture on their radar at all. But the Township of Wilmot understands that there are significant community and economic benefits to nurturing and growing its cultural base. Wilmot ‘gets it.’”
The Wilmot advantage is a special kind of community spirit that I haven’t seen anywhere else in our region. Wilmot Heritage Day 2019, the New Dundee Women’s Institute and the Township’s new Arts and Culture Master Plan confirm that impression.
Martin de Groot writes about local arts and culture each Saturday. You can reach him by email at mdg131@gmail.com.