Canada celebrates its birthday on Friday, and there will be no shortage of celebrations in London.
Some of the biggest festivities will be held in Harris Park, White Oaks, and Byron.
Randy Warden is the Chairperson of Volunteer committee for London Celebrates Canada, the organization that hosts the Harris Park celebrations.
He says the festivities will include a First Nations gathering at noon, 2pm parade with bagpipes and mounted police, a jet flyover, and citizenship ceremony.
But even with all that Harris Park has to offer, Warden wants Londoners to experience all aspects of Canada day.
“People will hopefully make their way around the city to their local communities, and hopefully downtown to the municipal level celebration,” says Warden.
Fireworks will also be held at Harris Park at 10pm to close off the day’s events. Warden believes the day to be “truly a community celebration.”
White Oaks is also hosting its own party with a big turnout expected.
According to Heather Molen, Volunteer Coordinator for the hosting South London Community Centre, the celebrations in White Oaks draw thousands of people each year.
Molen says the White Oaks Canada Day celebrations have incredible community support, with over 130 volunteers offering their time to run games, rides, and other events.
During the event, which starts at 2pm, Londoners can expect live music, rides and activities in the ‘Kid Zone’, movies, and access to the spray pad. Fireworks are schedule to begin at 10pm.
While Harris Park and White Oaks see large numbers of people coming out in celebration, Byron’s experience is a little more intimate.
Hosted by the Byron Optimist Club, the day’s festivities attract up to 7,000 people with fire trucks, a flag raising, and a live DJ.
Richard Pincombe, President Elect of the Byron Optimists, says that their celebrationsattract a loyal crowd that keeps coming back.
“Everyone just expects this thing to happen,” Pincombe says. “We’ve got people who have been at the fireworks since it started who are calling to make sure it’s on, and they want to make sure they get a good seat to watch it. They love being part of the community.”
The Optimists have a lot of experience with the events, cultivated over many years of hosting the area’s Canada Day festivities.
“We’re looking at almost 30 years of doing this every year,” says Pincombe.
Byron’s 10pm fireworks are put together by a professional company from Windsor. No expense is spared, according to Pincombe.
“We blow off about $11,000 in about, I’d say, 12 minutes,” Pincombe says.
London Canada Day Celebrations:
Harris Park Time: 12pm-10pm Website: www.celebratecanada.info/canadaday.html
White Oaks Park Time: 2pm-10pm Website: www.southlondoncanadaday.com
Byron Optimist Park Time: 6:30pm-10pm Flyer: click here
East London Optimists, Argyle Arena Time: 12pm-10pm Website: www.eastlondonoptimists.com
Meadowgate Park Time: 7pm-10:30pm Facebook: click here
Fanshawe Pioneer Village Time: 10:30am-5pm Website: www.fanshawepioneervillage.ca
London Majors, Labatt Memorial Park Time: 6:05pm Website: www.londonmajors.pointstreaksites.com
Eldon House Time: 12pm -5pm Website: www.eldonhouse.ca
**This story was written by Samuel Gallant. Samuel is a student in the Fanshawe College broadcast journalism program. He is performing a summer internship with Blackburn News.**