A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of addressing the members and guests of the Glengarry Highland Lodge No. 418. Formerly known as the Maxville Masonic Lodge, the organization’s first meeting was held on January 31, 1887. And its Charter was granted seventeen months later, on July 18, 1888. This Charter — or a true copy of it, as the original was lost in the 1921 fire that devastated Maxville’s Main Street — proudly hangs in the Lodge’s present home on the second floor of the Metcalfe Centre.
Naturally, when Dunvegan’s Gordon White invited me to break bread with his fellow Lodge brothers and make a short presentation, I went on-line to brush up on the group to which my grandfather had once belonged. I learned a Masonic Lodge is not a service club. It is more of a fraternal organization, the purpose of which is to “teach morality, encourage charity, and practice worldwide brotherly love.” Because of a bequest from a member who passed away, the Glengarry Highland Lodge No. 418 is in the fortunate position to having a benevolent fund. Each month, the names of two members are drawn from a hat and they’re invited to make a donation to the individual or cause of their choice.
In my case, I was making a request for assistance with the purchase of a bulletin board for the Cornwall Community Hospital’s new Inpatient Psychiatric unit that would allow the Cornwall & District Family Support Group and the new Mental Health Family Advisory Council to reach out to families with loved ones on the ward.
Normally, this sort of corkboard would be a very modest expenditure. However, because of the possible dangers, our bulletin board had to be lockable, with rounded corners and shatterproof plastic doors. Because of this, the price tag was much more substantial.
A few days after the dinner meeting, I was tickled pink to learn from Gord that John Thomas, one of the Lodge’s members from Ottawa, had assigned the funds he was allotted in the Lodge’s draw to the Family Bulletin Board project. Now this was very generous, considering that my presentation was probably the first time he had learned of this initiative. However, Mr. Thomas didn’t stop there. He also pledged an additional personal contribution to ensure our project was fully funded. This was truly heart-warming.
On behalf of the Family Support Group and the Family Advisory Council, I would like to thank the members of the Glengarry Highland Lodge No. 418, and Mr. Thomas in particular, for their generosity.
“(This) course probably saved my life!”
Once again this spring, the Cornwall & District Family Support Group will be offering its Family-to-Family Education Program. While usually for family members, a daughter whose parents were taking the course asked to attend the final lesson to express her gratitude. As she told the class, “The fact that my parents took the course probably saved my life. Without the education they received, I wouldn’t have called them to help me when I overdosed.”
This life-altering course provides family caregivers with both hope and the tools needed to help a loved one struggling with serious mental health problems like bipolar disorder, schizophrenia and depression. Taught by local volunteers who have a relative with a mental illness, the free, 11-week course helps families better understand and support their loved one.
The one-night-a-week sessions start Thursday, March 31st in Cornwall and run from 6:00 to 8:30 PM. A few of the topics covered include: communicating with loved one who’s mentally ill; dealing with feelings of guilt; learning about symptoms, diagnoses, medications and side effects; and coping with crises and relapse.
While there’s no charge to take the classes, you must register ahead of time by calling Suzanne at 613-936-9236. The course is limited to fifteen students, so I’d advise you to call as soon as possible.
New blood for Heart & Stroke
Over the years, a goodly number of Dunveganites have accepted the call to canvass for the Heart & Stroke Foundation. Most recently, it was Marj Munroe our neighbour just down the road. However, 2016 brought a new face to our door: Cindy Claus.
Cindy moved here just a few years ago with her then husband, John Glasner. They bought John Dashney’s old house so they could be close to his mother, Penelope ‘Penny’ McMillan, who was struggling with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease or COPD. Penny and her husband John MacMillan lived next door in the little log home directly across from the late Kathleen Phillips’ place.
As we sat around the kitchen table getting to know Cindy (who hails from Burlington, Ontario and now works in Ottawa), Terry and I were shocked to learn that Penny had died last March from COPD… and Penny’s husband, John, died a few months later of cancer. Penny’s daughter-in-law went on to explain that after his mother’s death, John Glasner and Cindy parted ways. Cindy opted to stay in Dunvegan, as her daughter is attending college in Ottawa.
When I asked how it came about she was collecting for Heart & Stroke, she acknowledged that, in addition to being a very worthy cause, it was also a good way to become more involved with her new community. And she is so right. I hope you will welcome Cindy into YOUR home when she knocks on the door. Or you can give her a call at 613-527-1029 to arrange a time for her to stop by with her Heart & Stroke receipt pad.
For the record, last year 100,000 volunteers like Cindy called on 1.6 million households across Canada and raised $9.5 million in the process!
“Hookers” set up shop in library
If you find yourself in Alexandria with a few moments to spare, I urge you to stop by the SD&G Library (located in the Glengarry Sports Palace, 170 McDonald Boulevard) to see the Martintown Wild & Wooly Rug Hookers’ exhibition.
Where’s the Dunvegan connection in all this? Well, Terry is a dedicated (rug) hooker and a long-time member of the MWWRH group. As is Shastin Winchester, a honourary Dunveganite for her performance in DRA’s Christmas Music & Mayhem concerts.
Shastin, along with Mary Hughes and Jane Desjardins, organized the exhibit and put together a remarkable display. “There are about 30 rugs, big and small,” says Shastin. “Ten local rug hookers each contributed several rugs to the show.”
The exhibit runs for the entire month of February. The library hours are as follows: Monday — 3pm to 8pm; Tuesday and Thursday — 10am to 8pm; Wednesday 9am to 1pm; Friday — 1pm to 4pm; and Saturday — 10am to 1pm.
Take that China!
Shastin Winchester is also the focus of my next story. She and her husband, Jim, invited Terry and I to a small dinner party a few weeks ago. The food was superb, the hospitality was impeccable (they even had Diet Pepsi in a can on ice for me) and the company was engaging. But one of the highlights of the evening, for me, was what I noticed on the stoop outside their front door… a simple doormat that consisted of a few spruce branches laid on the ground.
When I asked about the branches outside their door, Shastin told me that it was an age-old Swedish custom. Shastin was born and raised in Eksjö (which she tells me means Oak Lake) in the southern part of Sweden. A small town of 10,000, its historic wooden-building district is a World Heritage site.
When she was young, her father and her grandfathers used to saw off the lowest branches from their Christmas tree and use them for wiping boots at the front stoop. And Jim Winchester has continued this old-world custom ever since the couple moved here in 1999. I’m told that the Winchesters don’t replenish the branches. Snow and ice build up make them pretty solid and they last until spring. “The spruce branches also smell wonderful when we get a mild spell,” reports Shastin. While she and Jim keep the tradition alive, she doubts anybody in Sweden still does. “They probably buy some awful door mat made in China, with a ridiculous Santa printed on it.”
“Minions” coming March Break!
For those unfamiliar with the story, three minions… Kevin, Stuart and Bob, their lovable little brother… leave their base in Antarctica seeking a new master. Their journey ends in London where two super villains who want to rule the world recruit them. There, the three minions face a new challenge: saving the Minion “tribes” from annihilation.
This animated film was a HUGE hit when it was released in July of last year, grossing $115,200,000 in ticket sales on the opening weekend alone. And now it’s coming to the DRA Hall in Dunvegan for you and your children, or grandchildren, to enjoy.
The DRA March Break movie matinee will take place on Wednesday, March 16th starting at 3:00 PM. That way parents with little ones who still nap can come and everyone will be home in plenty of time for supper.
The event is FREE and includes hot popcorn and cold drinks. Moreover, everyone is welcome! So bring your family and be Dunveganites for day®.
An e-thanks for Laurie
Before I sign off, Ben Williams has asked me to publically acknowledge Laurie Maus and her ongoing contribution to the Dunvegan Recreation Association. In addition to serving on the Executive Committee as a Director, Laurie is also the DRA’s web master and social media coordinator.
Ben credits the recent influx to DRA events by families with young children to Laurie’s expertise in getting the word out via Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and the like. Well done, Laurie.
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