by Stephanie Burt-Hillyard
ICE LAKE—On the heels of the resurgence of the Ice Lake Community Canada Day Picnic, the maple trees rustled again as community members gathered to celebrate the coming of Autumn.
The sun shone brightly through the reds and oranges of the leaves as kids and adults alike played and laughed on the Ice Lake Community Picnic Grounds.
In the ball field a giant Jenga game wobbled, a feed trough splashed as children bobbed for apples, and pumpkins rolled to knock over bowling pins. Plastic axes hit a target, children painted pumpkins and contestants took turns guessing how many pieces of candy corn were in a jar while others took the opportunity to sit and chat with neighbours and friends. A couple vintage crank ice cream makers, brought by the Wiwchar family, were also put to good use, as attendees had the chance to churn then sample fresh homemade ice cream, much to the delight of children and adults alike.
When the dinner bell rang, the crowd gathered for some homegrown pork on a bun from Burt Farms and potluck side dishes and desserts made with love by community members.
After dinner a group of eager volunteers put their judging hats on to taste test butter tart and pie entries. Seven dedicated bakers put their best pastries forward, but in the end Ruth Guy and Jessica Clements walked away winners for their butter tarts and pie, respectively.
With crumbs still on their faces everyone moved to the baseball diamond, where a pick-up game of kids’ versus adults took place.
“It was a great idea and executed well,” said one community member. “It’s nice to see this community continuing to get together.”
And get together it did. A committee formed in 2019 to try to bring back and revitalize the Ice Lake Community Canada Day Picnic, but was put on hold during COVID. Last year the community planned their first picnic post-pandemic, this year adding the Fall Harvest Picnic to the roster.
“Thank you everyone for coming,” said Max Burt, committed president. “It’s great to see the community out and gathered together again. And a special thanks to the committee for organizing and volunteers for making this event happen.”
