Members of St. Paul's United Church in Harrowsmith are doing their part in bringing fun to kids and their families in the community. They held their first ever Family Fun Day on Saturday April 13 and children of all ages had a chance to play games, socialize and enjoy a snack courtesy of the church volunteers.

Marni Pedersen said the event is “a great opportunity for kids and families to come together and enjoy each other's company.” She said she hopes to see the another event planned in the near future.

Members of the church are also currently gearing up for their annual Funtastic Street Fair, which will take place on Church Street in Harrowsmith on Saturday May 4 from 9am-2pm. The day will include games (from 10am-2pm), a bouncey castle, pony rides, a bake, yard & plant sale, a BBQ lunch and yummy fair confections. The event as usual will highlight a plethora of live musical entertainment with musicians from in and around the community including Bellphonix, Ianspotting, The Piccadilly Pickers, Brittany Smith along with special guest singer, the young golden-voiced Ava Ludlow. Volunteers hope to see everybody there to enjoy what is always a very worthwhile and special community event.

Bargain hunters mark that date on your calendar.

From top to bottom, the village of Sydenham will be filled with yard and sidewalk vendors selling any and all kinds of items. A number of local businesses will be holding sidewalk sales and/or putting on specials for the day as well.

This first time local event is being organized by Anne-Marie Young, a relative newcomer to the village. By day, Anne-Marie is the Economic Development Officer for Frontenac County, but she has a history with this kind of event, and she wants to bring it to her new home town.

“I was involved in the start of a village-wide yard sale when I was living in Williamsburgh, a small town near Morrisburgh. I was the manager of a local Canadian Tire store at the time, and in the first year 1,500 customers came to the store that day when there would normally have been about 300, so it worked for the business community and the local residents as well. The Canadian Tire store is gone from Williamsburgh now, but the village yard sale is going strong after 20 years,” she said.

Last weekend Young approached a number of businesses and other local residents about the idea, and received a universally positive response, so the event is a go.

“I wasn't sure how people would react to me, because a lot of people don't know me in Sydenham yet, but everyone seemed to like the idea once I explained how it works,” she said.

One of the nice things about this kind of event, Young added, is that there are no real hard and fast rules. All people have to do it set up a yard sale on that day, although she said she would like people, and businesses, to contact her beforehand so she can publicise where there will be yard sales taking place.

A number of businesses are already committed to participating in the event, which will take place on the Saturday after the Victoria Day weekend.

“There are a lot of events scheduled for the long weekend,” said Young, “and I thought the following weekend would be a better idea, even though it is a busy weekend as well.”

It will likely be a busy Saturday in Sydenham on the 25th, particularly between 8 am and 2 pm when the yard and sidewalk sale is scheduled. For further information and to confirm participation, call Anne Marie at 613-376-3519.

On April 6 a wide range of activities took place at an all-day fundraiser at the Arden Legion. The events were organized to help pay back the roof shares that the Legion sold to help pay for roof repairs to the hall in August last year. Legion member Malcolm Sampson headed up the fundraiser, which included a chili cook off, a 16 team dart tournament, silent auction, bake sale, dart supply sale, crafts sale plus a Legion buffet breakfast that saw some 70 hungry diners come out to give their support.

In total 80 shares of $100 each were sold to Legion supporters last year, which enabled the roof repair to be completed. Initially organizers hoped to pay back the shares at a rate of two shares a month over a total of 40 months. Sampson said that after the day’s fundraiser, only 18 shares were left to be paid. He said that that was a result, not only of the success of the day’s fundraiser but also on account of the generosity of many of the share holders. “The biggest surprise came when very often each time a name of one of the shareholders was pulled to be paid back, they turned right around and donated the money right back to the Legion,” Sampson explained. A total of 35 shareholders donated their shares back. As a result the shares have been repaid at a much faster rate than was initially planned, which Sampson said has saved the Legion a lot of money in interest.

Next Wednesday, April 17, the kick-off event for the 2013 Flinton Relay for Life will take place at the Flinton Recreation Centre. The Relay for Life Committee and other local organizers of the event will all be on hand to talk about plans for this year's relay, share some refreshments and show some video footage from the 2010 and 2011 Flinton relays.

The kick-off will also be a good opportunity for new teams or individuals to register for the relay.

Sue Tobia, the chairperson for Luminaria sales, will be there selling, and the cancer survivors' lap co-ordinator Sherry Tebo will be looking to register individuals for the lap, which included about 90 participants in 2011, the last year the Flinton Relay was held.

“We are looking for some more team support,” said Relay Chair Carolyn Hasler, “but we are off to a solid start with 18 – 20 teams already registered.”

A number of fundraising events are coming up to raise funds for the Relay, which will take place on the evening of June 7 on the Recreation Centre grounds.

On Saturday, April 20, one of the teams is putting on a bake sale and silent auction at the Clar/Mill Hall in Plevna, at Jack’s Jam.

On May 28, there will be a gigantic yard and bake sale at Lakelands Family Health Team in Flinton and other yard sales are being planned as well.

Raffles are also being organized, including one for an original oil painting by Don Wise. Tickets for the Don Wise raffle will be available at the kick-off evening.

“We have a number of things happening at the kick-off, and we are hoping for more,” said Carolyn Hasler. “The main thing is to get people fired up for the relay after we didn’t hold one in 2012."

On April 6, the duo Madison Violet, who have made Toronto their home base for the last decade and a half, proved that their good looks are not what has earned them their due as musicians. The multi-talented winners of the 2009 Folk Music Award took to the stage at the Crossing Pub in Sharbot Lake along with stand up bass player Adrian Lawryshyn of Toronto and captured the hearts of the sold out crowd, proving that they are musical forces to be reckoned with.

The duo is comprised of Brenley MacEachern (lead vocals, acoustic, tenor and steel guitar) and Lisa MacIsaac (back up vocals, fiddle guitar and mandolin). They are one solid package who cover diverse musical ground in their original offerings. Brenley has a classic country voice, a mix of Bonnie Rait, Cheryl Crow and the great Dolly, with a voice that can be tender at times, at others, gritty and powerful as all get out, yet is always expressive. Her beefy emotional range brings truth to the duo’s myriad of musical yarns. The two shared many new original tunes like their opener for their second set, “Tennessee”, a crooning, soft lament about looking back in hindsight at certain times in life and knowing how you could have done better.

Brenley, who seems an old soul and who was raised in Kincardine, Ont. is the fourth child of a romance that began when her mother was hitch-hiking in Montreal. She also joked about the pedestrian bridge in her home town, which she mistook as a youngster as the “Presbyterian” bridge and how she was terrified to cross it because she once told a cop she was raised a Catholic. The duo's second offering was a sweet ditty titled “The Small of My Heart”, a gentle sing-along that the crowd was invited to sing along to, which ended with an a Capella harmony beautifully set off by the crowd’s oooing chorus. Some of their best originals were the upbeat bouncy tunes like “Lorraine”, a tune with more blue grass leanings on which MacIsaac played a great fiddle part and chimed in with her pitch perfect back ups, which matched Brenley's expressiveness word for word.

It’s obvious these two have been playing for years together- their harmonies are seamless, their unisons perfectly balanced and their finishes always perfectly timed. Bass player Adrian played solidly on stand up bass and masterfully blended in to the easy groove of the evening, which was no doubt his designated role for the night. Kudos to the Whites, owners of the Country Inn, for continuing to bring new talent to the area, and judging by the capacity crowd, listeners are also grateful. For more information visit www.sharbotlakeinn.com

The North Frontenac Little Theatre play God of Carnage, by Yasmina Reza, will be performed at Sharbot Lake High School Auditorium on Thurs., May 2; Fri., May 3; Sat., May 4 at 7:30 p.m. and at a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday, May 5.

The play is centred around two boys, Henry and Benjamin, one of whom, while playing in the park, accidentally hit the other boy in the mouth, breaking a tooth. Henry's parents have invited Benjamin's parents to their home for the evening to discuss the situation hoping to prevent this kind of thing from happening again.

Alan Raliegh, Benjamin's father, is a lawyer who works for a drug company and is always on his cell phone. He would much rather be working on his case than be at this meeting. Alan is played by Rob Bell who appears for the first time on stage with NFLT and he's really enjoying the experience.

Alan's wife, Annette, tries very hard to be friendly with the Novaks and to discuss the problem civilly. Martina Field, a veteran actor with NFLT, plays Annette. She has acted in a number of plays including The Wizard of Oz (as the Wicked Witch of the West), Annie, Oliver and Midsummer's Night Dream. She also helped with sets for Midsummer's Night Dream.

Michael Novak, Henry's father, has been quite successful in the plumbing wholesale business. While he is interested in discussing and resolving the issue, he would like to do so in a straight forward matter-of-fact way. John Stephen, a long time member of the theatre group, plays the role of Michael. John appeared in last fall's show, Tom Sawyer, as Old Joe and previously in Maple Lodge and Opening Night, among others.

Veronica Novak, played by Karen Steele, is an author whose idea it was to meet with Benjamin's parents to try to iron out the situation with their sons. She attempts to keep the others on track by bringing the discussion back to the facts as she sees them. Karen has acted in a number of plays over the years, including Maple Lodge, Beyond Reasonable Doubt, Noises Off and Opening Night. She has also directed a couple of plays. All four actors are having a lot of fun with their roles this time.

The play is directed by Kelli Bell, who recently directed Sara's Getting Married but this is her first time directing her husband, Rob (on stage, that is). Kelli has also performed in some plays, including Maple Lodge, Beyond Reasonable Doubt, The Wizard of Oz and Opening Night.

While the evening begins with the two couples conversing logically and amiably about the situation, before long irrational arguments begin and angry words are thrown back and forth. As the evening wears on things get more intense and one begins to wonder if things would have turned out better if the boys had been left to work out the situation on their own. Do they end up with an agreeable solution? To find out how this ends you will have to see the show. See you there.

Caution: The play contains coarse language and is not recommended for children.

Love was definitely in the air on March 21 in Sharbot Lake as music lovers filled the Legion for the third installment of the Centre Stage Cafe. Members of the CSC house band, Jim MacPherson, Gary Giller and Terry Reynolds and Dave Limber demonstrated their love for the recently deceased Canadian music giant Stompin' Tom Conners who passed away on March 6 with their renditions of his classics Big Joe Mufferaw and Sudbury Saturday Night. Jim MacPherson tackled the two densely lyric'd, rapid fire tunes with precision and heart-felt enthusiasm and left the crowd wanting more. The band then cleared the stage for couples duo Rob and Nancy Moore, whose set of sensitive covers that included Willow Tree, Birds and Ships and a beautiful rendition of Sarah Harmer's classic Basement Apartment. They quickly won over the capacity crowd in what was just their third public performance. Last up was old world, but still young, country crooner Mitch Barker who demonstrated his love for two of his favorite older musicians, Dan Gibbs and Lorna Cooke, who shared the stage with him and who in his early years helped to give this amazing vocal talent his musical start. Dan performed numerous favorites, such as “He Stopped Lovin' Her Today” with Lorna playing some impressive dobro solos throughout the evening. Mitch, always a humble performer, shone brightly in his classic country covers of “Please Release Me”, Dwight Yoakam's “Heartaches by the Number”, and Ray Price's “Don't You Ever Get Tired of Hurting Me”.

Mitch's voice and delivery never fail to meet the mark with his perfect pitch, subtle phrasing which are the backbone of his exquisite gifts, along with his guitar playing.

The lack of dance floor space due to the capacity failed to deter a few dancers in the crowd who were obviously taken over by the musical love in the air. The final Centre Stage Cafe event will take place in April, featuring the Cellar Hounds and more. Watch Northern Happenings to see who will be joining them at the final installment in what has been a very popular first winter season.

Ample food and ample prizes are what attracts regulars to the bi-annual Harrowsmith S & A Club’s biggest fundraiser of the year. The club’s Chinese Auction and dinner, which took place on March 23 at their hall, included an all you can eat Chinese food buffet and numerous prizes donated by generous individuals and businesses in and around the local community. Club member Linda Stewart drew the prize balls for the over 80 guests who attended the popular event and bet their quarters on the plethora of colorful bagged surprises that filled a table at the front of the hall.

Funds raised go towards supporting the numerous events and programs that the club offers families in the community, which include the annual Canada Day celebrations at Centennial Park and the Santa Claus parade. Club members are now recruiting volunteers to assist with the Canada Day celebrations. “Volunteering or becoming a member of the club is really fun and a great way to give back to the community so we are really encouraging people to come out this year and get involved for the Canada Day celebrations”, Linda said. Anyone interested in volunteering can contact Kim Gow at 613-372-0018, Linda Stewart at 613-372-3797 or Pam Morey at 613-372-1578.

Clarendon Central Public School in Plevna will be celebrating its 50th anniversary on Sat. April 13 from 10 a.m. -4 p.m. Everyone is welcome whether you attended the school or not. For community members who moved into the area in retirement, you might wish to see how the little country school evolved. In the Sixties Decade room there will be a display about the schools that amalgamated prior to the construction of CCPS.

Photos still misssing! Students from the sixties and seventies do you have at least one photo to share? It might not be one taken at school, but one from home when you were school age. The Decade room organizers have worked very hard to put together great displays and we do not want to miss seeing your cute or funny face. Please contact Heather @ 479-5549; Mona @ 479-2868; or Cindy @ 479-2561, if you can loan any photos or items from the 60's and 70's.

The Committee has arranged parking at the back lot of North of 7 for all visitors. A shuttle will take you to the school and return you to your vehicle as needed. Because the school parking lot is so small, we ask that the limited spaces at the school be reserved for those with mobility issues. Parking along the highway is always discouraged for safety reasons.

A memorial wall has been organized by Marily Seitz (479-2855) to remember those former staff and students who passed away. She has collected a photo, years they were at the school and birth and death dates. If you have not been contacted by now about your loved one, please check that Marily has the information.

The fundraiser to cover anniversary expenses is the sale of raffle tickets. Prizes are: Sunbonnet quilt and quilt stand, an oak blanket box, a painting and a sketch. Other items from the committee will be sold as close to cost as possible. These include: a full color yearbook (also available on DVD), coffee mug and anniversary cards.

Please support your local school as it celebrates 50 years of educating children.

Lovers of folk music packed the MERA school house in McDonalds Corners on March 9 to welcome two exceptional singer/songwriters who are making waves in the folk/roots traditions both here and abroad.

P.E.I. songstress Catherine MacLellan took to the stage first and impressed the crowd with her sultry, sensitive voice, pensive lyrics and strong acoustic playing. Guitar virtuoso Chris Gauthier joined her on stage and more than held his own with his deft guitar soloing and spot on harmonies. The two played a beefy set of MacLellan’s mid-tempo newer original tunes, which she joked was perhaps due to an inherited short term memory from her uncle. Tunes like her opener, “Frost in the Hollows” demonstrated both her deep sensual and seemingly effortless vocal gifts and her solid and strong finger picking, with the latter providing the rhythmic foundation to many of her songs. The duo’s beautifully balanced and timed harmonies lead one to believe that these two have been playing side by side for a long while.

Blame it perhaps on the whiteout winters on PEI, but MacLellan's songs have a unique, nest-like coziness that fully envelopes the listener and lovingly lulls them along on a dreamy musical trip that is simultaneously wondrous and thought provoking. In one new song, yet to be named, she speaks of her “love/hate relationship with winter”. In it MacLellan wonders “if bears can sleep through these long snowy days, it’s only fair that we can do the same.” Her song, “Trickle Down Rain”, one that she wrote after seven straight weeks of PEI rain had a soft, lazy feel, a mood that seems to bring her and her listeners comfort. MacLellan has that rare ability to get up close and very personal with her audience and she spoke at length of what inspires her: her now deceased grandmother Louella from Manitoba, who loved curling but not so much little babies, and who inspired her to write one plucky, old style bluegrass tune in which MacLellan sang, “The last time I saw her she was smiling; looked like she had one last game to play.”

For her finale MacLellan thrilled the crowd with a version of her father Gene MacLellan’s famed Canadian hit “Snowbird”.

Jonathan Byrd, the flat-pickin’ son of a Baptist preacher man, is a seventh generation flat picker who hails from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and his star has long been on the rise. Byrd seems to have a soft spot for Canada and recorded his last three musical offerings here. He delighted the MERA crowd with a selection of his original musical yarns, with which he has toured all over North America and Europe. Byrd is a natural storyteller and was introduced by Danny Sullivan of Shakey Acres as a songster who writes “some of the best songs going.” Byrd jumped head long into his set with “I was an Oak Tree” a slow, sweet lament that has come to exemplify his triple treat talents as a poet, accomplished picker and soulful singer. Byrd has one of those southern, honest, pure and poetic voices that cuts right to the heart and can easily change mood depending on what kind of tale he is in the mood to tell.

At MERA he told it all. In “I Saw a Coyote” he sang tenderly of one fellow down on his luck who “hugged the brush and ran the ridge, dropped down and headed for the bridge, quiet as the rising moon...with a barbed wire scar across the face, fading like a midnight mile.”

Chris Bartos, who accompanied Byrd admirably on guitar, violin and mandolin, masterfully assisted him in setting the mood with some very well played special effects. Bartos mirrored this sombre tale to perfection with his exquisite fiddle soloing.

Some of Byrd's lighter side shone through in his southern-flavored, farmyard favorite “Chicken Wire”, a toe-tappin' ditty about a beloved little hen that needs a little fencing in. Byrd let out his earthier, gospel North Carolina roots with his a capella tune “Poor Johnny”, which tells of a poor soul who drowns in the lake. The song had the crowd belting out the chorus in time with his hand claps.

Like MacLellan, Byrd also let the crowd in on some of his personal life; his marriage to a Jewish woman from New York and his immediate need to explain in his first love letter to her his love for pig meat. With that he launched into “White Oak Wood”, a tune that tells of the requirement for that particular type of wood to cook one 300lb pig. He spoke of his love for Texas “ the well spring of song writing” that inspired “River Run Dry”, a tune he co-wrote with Toronto singer/songwriter Corin Raymond in Grafton, Ontario following their tour of the southern states.

Before he closed the show, Byrd reminded the audience of his great love for this country and recited Gabrielle Roy’s quote on the back of our $20 bill, a quote that he said remains his “favorite thing on any money in the world”. He read to the crowd. “Could we ever know each other in the slightest without the arts?” No, definitely not this stellar North Carolina songster.