MUSKOKA CASUAL FINE DINING TRADITION Thank you for 25 years of <strong>com</strong>munity support! We look forward to serving you for many more • Exciting new items on our handcrafted menu • Enjoy our outdoor wrap around patio • Traditional Prime Rib everyday • Fridays – Fresh Catch of the Day 88 Manitoba St. TOP OF THE HILL, DOWNTOWN BRACEBRIDGE 705-645-9776 WWW.OLDSTATION.CA
Helping others one kilometre at a time Around Lake of Bays By Judy Vanclieaf Thanks to G8 f u n d i n g , Baysville’s facelift should soon be <strong>com</strong>pleted. Along with the new additions of the public washrooms and the band shelter, new street signs have appeared. The old green finger signs have been replaced with beautiful red heritage street signs. It’s a stunning addition, I must add. The Baysville Friends of the Library will be holding a Hawaiian Luau on Saturday, May 22 at the Baysville Arena. Along with dinner catered by Tall Trees in Huntsville, there will be a silent auction to help raise funds for the Friends. Roger Abbott from the popular TV show, the Royal Canadian Air Farce will be the Master of Ceremonies for this spectacular evening. Over one hundred people came out in support of the Baysville Autumn Leaves “Drop in for Tea” which was held in memory of Shirley Ellis, a dedicated volunteer for the Canadian Cancer Society. It was a huge success bringing in over $2500. The Autumn Leaves group would like to thank everyone for their support. Across the lake, the Dwight Friends of the Library held their second annual archery tournament on Sunday, May 2, which was hosted by the Logging Chain Lodge in Dwight. Last year 80 people came out to participate in the tournament. With three D targets located throughout lanes in the woods there were archery experts available for those who needed assistance with the arrow and bow choices. The event was open to all ages and abilities. On May 1, Sherry Welsh from Scotland, Ontario and her dog Scruffy, were escorted through Dorset by the Dorset Fire Department and the Corrections Canada Beaver Creek Pipe and Drum Band as she set out on her 600-kilometre walk from Lions Camp Dorset to the Parliament buildings in Ottawa. The walk will take her 37 days to <strong>com</strong>plete. Sherry is walking to raise money for the Lions Camp Dorset, a resort that caters to people wtih kidney disease. Sherry’s late sister Karen suffered from kidney disease and needed dialysis on a regular basis. Thanks to the Lions Camp Dorset, Karen, her husband and two daughters were able to get away from their everyday stresses and enjoy a vacation together while Karen received the treatment she needed. The disease ultimately took her life 10 years ago. Over the last two years, Sherry has walked over 1,000 kilometres and has raised $70,000 for Lions Camp Dorset. For approximately 13 weeks each summer, the camp is home to a full medical staff and dialysis equipment is on location. The camp is especially in need of money this year, as it will have to replace 20 new dialysis machines in the <strong>com</strong>ing years. Each machine can cost up to $25,000. The camp has been in operation for 31 years and maintenance on the buildings and the pool is required. There is also a wish list. If anyone would like to donate materials, they are in need of electric smoke detectors, new pots and pans, new fleece blankets, cleaning supplies etc. For a <strong>com</strong>plete list of items needed, or for information on how to donate to Karen’s Quest, visit Lions Camp Dorset’s website www:// lionscampdorset.on.ca/wishlist.html If you know of any happenings going on in or around the villages of Dwight, Dorset or Baysville, call me at 705-767-1080 or e-mail suite@surenet.net. More than just tourism The G8 Summit in Huntsville is still more than a month away, but Muskoka is already making a name for itself on the world map during the lead up to the event. Sanjeev Chowdhury, director general of the Summits Management Office, was a guest speaker at the Muskoka Tourism annual general meeting on April 28. The animated Chowdhury walked around Deerhurst Resort’s Tom Thomson Room as he provided information and answered questions from the floor. He touched on promoting the region, up<strong>com</strong>ing events and the success of various G8 related initiatives. “Our view is that Muskoka is a lot more than just tourism,” says Chowdhury. “I always promote the fact that there is an investment angle, a business angle to this region as well . . . We’d be damned fools if we didn’t realize that tourism is important to this region, but there is a lot more, in my view, to Muskoka than just tourism.” Chowdhury updated the audience on the Muskoka Corridor, which is set to be part of the International Media Centre in Toronto. “Since we could not bring all 2,000 media members up here, we decided to bring Muskoka to them,” says Chowdhury. “ A 30,000-40,000 square foot structure called the Invest In Canada Alley is being built by Lord Cultural Resources, which designed the extremely popular Ontario House at the Winter Olympics. The Muskoka Corridor portion of the alley will be roughly 10,000 square feet. “People don’t want to be handed out pamphlets anymore,” says Chowdhury. “People want an experience. They want to walk into somewhere and be told a story.” The hope is to continue to promote our region and nation on a large-scale to the media, much like the January visit by the handful of international reporters. “Sixteen international articles and pieces were done from the trip in January, including one on the BBC,” says Chowdhury, who mentioned an up<strong>com</strong>ing visit from 23 more international media on the Victoria Day weekend. Following the media visit, potential clients from the U.S. will be visiting Deerhurst Resort from June 6-8 to get a behind the scenes look at how they prepare for a big event. “These are big players from the United States,” says Chowdhury. “We are going to expose these top convention planners to this region.” So far, so good in the lead-up to the G8 Leader’s Summit and let’s hope the good times keep on <strong>com</strong>ing. The continued promotion of Muskoka as a world-class destination will remain a top priority for Chowdhury. “Every time we talk about (the region) we focus on tourism and investment,” he says. ACT NOW! Limited Time Offer Take advantage of Viceroy’s home designs and our ability to modify them, or bring us your own plan and receive a free quote. 2009 Top Dealer Independently Distributed by ALGONQUIN PROJECTS LIMITED Serving Haliburton Highlands and Muskoka Cottage Country 705-286-6730 1-888-842-3769 705-766-9604 12197 Hwy. 35 Minden algonquinprojects.<strong>com</strong> 1053 Main St. Dorset www.whatsupmuskoka.<strong>com</strong> May 2010 21
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