They came, they sawed, they conquered
North Dundas councillor John Thompson teamed up with Mayor Tony Fraser of North Dundas for the log sawing contest. With a smile on his face, Thompson explained their official time of 19.2 seconds to saw through the log was “not bad for a couple of old guys!” The log sawing competition was one of the more popular events at the 2019 Morewood Carnival on Sat., Jan. 26. Thompson Goddard photo
MOREWOOD – It was perfect carnival weather this past weekend when the 2019 Winter Carnival was held at the RA Centre in Morewood. Working with the firefighters from North Dundas Fire Station No. 1, the Morewood Recreation Committee organized an action-packed weekend of recreation for people of all ages.
The Morewood Recreation Committee hosted the annual Morewood Winter Carnival on Sat., Jan. 26, which included a three on three hockey tournament. There were 12 teams involved but only one team came out on top. That team was team Paas as they defeated team Ryan Byers by a score of 9-5 in the A final. The winning team members are Rob Sadler (GM ND Rockets), Derek Vingerhoeds (former Winchester Hawk), Brent McFaul (former Winchester Hawk), Mark Mitchell (former Carleton Place Canadian ), Nik Paas (head coach ND Rockets) and goaltender Jon Thornton (former Winchester Hawk). The team donated their winnings back to the Carnival committee. Courtesy photo
According to fire chief Ken Byers, the Friday night Fireman Family Bingo on Jan. 25 had over 140 people in attendance with Jason Lesage calling out the numbers at the event. Byers mentioned many of the fun prizes were won by children with Erin Kapcala, president of the Morewood RA, describing the event as filling the centre while providing a lot of fun for a lot of people.
The firefighters from ND Station 1 were back at the RA Centre early the next day to cook up a hearty pancake breakfast for over 150 people and start off the full day of activities. Outside there was a four-on-four hockey tournament, tug-of-war and log sawing contest to watch, with parents and children heading up the snow hills at the edges of the parking lot to slide down or watch the events from a vantage spot at the top.
Inside the RA Centre, there was a constant buzz of activity as people popped in to warm up or grab a bite to eat from the canteen, take a look at the silent auction or enjoy a coffee while chatting with friends and neighbours. For the younger set, there was face painting, craft activities, a colouring contest or the chance to rest for a minute before heading back out.
The day ended with a spaghetti dinner and fireworks display with firefighters from the fire department in Russell setting off the fireworks across the road from the RA Centre. During the spaghetti supper North Dundas mayor, Tony Fraser complimented the volunteers who worked to make the carnival successful before mentioning the Morewood RA Centre would be a poker stop during the 2019 Ride for Dad.
Kapcala took a few minutes from a hectic schedule to sit down with the Chesterville Record. She took the opportunity to thank all the volunteers, the businesses and people who donated to the silent auction or sponsored the winter carnival as well as those who came out to participate in the Winter Carnival. She mentioned how it was “nice to see all the community support” for the event.
While the weather necessitated the Sunday events at the Morewood Presbyterian Church being cancelled, there is no doubt the 2019 Morewood Winter Carnival was full of fun and fellowship for people of all ages thanks to the hard work of the organizers who made it all possible.
Carolyn Thompson Goddard, grew up in Chesterville and attended North Dundas District High School. After completing her BA in Political Science at Carleton University she has worked as a medical secretary and library technician. In 2020 she graduated from Algonquin College with a diploma in Journalism and has been a reporter and column writer for The Chesterville Record for over 10 years.
