It will be another quiet year for people looking to take part in local celebrations on Thursday.
The municipalities of North Simcoe have either moved to virtual celebrations online or outright cancelled their Canada Day activities for this year, citing a number of reasons.
“This year we are hosting a Virtual Canada Day Celebration with various performances streamed on the Midland Tourism social media platforms,” said tourism and special events manager Nicole Major.
In addition to a lawn decorating contest and photo scavenger hunt, Midland will be live-streaming performances throughout the day on the town’s Facebook and Instagram tourism pages and YouTube channel:
Musician EmRey will perform from 11 to 11:30 a.m.; circus performance company Articus Productions from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.; musician Dylan Lock from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m.; Dispatch Talent from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.; Mark the Magician from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m.; musician Dylan Lock from 8 to 10 p.m.; and the end fireworks display starting at 10:15 p.m.
“Everything is virtual including the fireworks,” said Major, additionally stating that only groups of 25 people are allowed to gather outdoors as a result of the province of Ontario reopening to Step 2 pandemic restrictions on June 30.
The municipalities of Penetanguishene and Tay have cancelled their events for this year.
“We had to cancel our two day event back in March,” wrote Harry Gerstheimer in regards to the Tay Canada Day website, adding there is “nothing planned until next year.”
The Tiny township website states there are activities planned for 2021 Virtual Canada Day Celebrations, but no further information is available.
Quest Art School and Gallery is inviting the community to meet at Discovery Harbour in Penetanguishene on July 1 to work together on a mural reflecting commitment to change with respect to the recent discovery of unmarked graves at former residential schools. Some municipalities across Canada have responded to the news by marking the national holiday as a day of mourning.
Forecasters are predicting a 60% chance of rain for Thursday with daytime temperatures in the mid-twenties.
