by Pat Asling
Goodbye, November; hello, December! That was brought home to us on Sunday when we got our first, and fortunately, short-lived, snowfall. We have been fortunate so far, let's hope we don't pay for it in the days and months ahead.
Two funerals this week. Frank Millman on Thursday. Frank's wife Diane and her sister Sharon, who married Franks's brother, Albert, were Simpsons and came from Uxbridge, where Sharon and Albert still live, and their daughters work at Zehrs. Bill Anderson's funeral is on Saturday in Epsom. His wife, Deanna Vance also came from Uxbridge.
Few celebrations this week, but John and Nora (Corrigan) celebrated their 40th anniversary. John and his camera are ubiquitous at any Uxbridge event. Congratulations to Allan and Caroline McGillivray (Zephyr), who became grandparents for the sixth time. Nathan Elliot Collingwood was born to Bethany and Lea on November 16th, brother to Felicity and Sybil (son Matthew has three boys). Nathan is also the grandson of Margaret and Milton Collingwood of Uxbridge. Big congratulations also to Xanthe van der Gulik, daughter of Amanda, who graduated from Toronto Film School and was awarded the Scott McSkimming Leadership Award. Scott was an actor known for Mission 28 (2018), Cesarean and Orbit (2019) and died on September 1st, 2022, in Toronto, age 52.
At the Senior's lunch last Tuesday, close to 80 people sat down to a delicious turkey dinner. This is the largest crowd ever. We were entertained by a gentleman who sang Western-style songs throughout. His band will be at the Music Hall shortly. Then we were informed by Derek Connolly about the work of the North Durham Nature. Did you know Uxbridge has now officially been designated a Bird Friendly City?
The Rotary Club held their Christmas Home Tour once more with great success. There were eight homes and 950 tickets sold. That's a lot of people traipsing through your house. Congrats!
The Uxbridge Genealogy Group met at the Library or on Zoom on Thursday evening. The guest speaker was Roger Blinko, who has done extensive research on every soldier who came from Uxbridge, whether he was killed, returned to Uxbridge or moved elsewhere; a tremendous amount of research over the years with several websites you can peruse. He also mentioned the Cenotaph built in 1930 by the Daughters of the Empire, where 130 names are engraved.
A very successful Bag of Books for a Buck was held in the Zephyr Hall on Saturday. There must have been thousands of books donated to the cause so plenty for another round soon. All was in aid of the Library.
This Saturday, November 30th, the Breakfast with Santa for Sandford will be held at the hall from 9 to 11 a.m. Admission is something for the food bank. Pictures with Santa will be taken. There will also be several vendors on site. On December 7th Santa will visit Zephyr Hall from 8 to 11 a.m., with Santa arriving at 9 a.m. Admission is $5 per person. Donations for the Food Bank are also accepted.
Of course, the Christmas season is always brightened by many musical events, and there certainly is no shortage around here. On November 29th, at St. Paul's Anglican Church, the Monday Morning Singers will perform once more at 7:30 p.m. tickets are $25. On Sunday, December 1st, Northern Trails Vocal Connection, joined by a large band, will be performing in Port Perry United Church at 3 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at Threads or at the door (if you want to risk it) for $35! Leah Daniel's and Friends will be at the Music Hall on December 23rd for two performances, 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased through ticket master for $34.
As I mentioned before, the Ladies of the Foster will not perform this year due to construction difficulties. This has not been a great year due to road construction the whole time. Our thanks to those folks who still managed to show up. We are badly in need of volunteers to join our "Friends of the Foster" group as greeters, set-ups, assistants with ideas, etc. Although the Township owns the building, it is a very small group led by Bev. Northeast who are responsible for all that happens. We are also now starting the hunt for a young person who might wish to work there over the summer. Contact Bev if you know a suitable candidate.
There was a good turnout for church this morning. Following the service, coffee and dessert were intermingled with setting up the Christmas Tree and other Christmas decorations! Next Sunday is First Advent, and along with a "Greening" event (a very old but new to us activity, we will have a special "White Envelope" offering (formerly White Gift), which will go to our Food banks. Please designate if you prefer Mount Albert or Uxbridge. On December 8th, 2nd Advent, we will be dedicating socks, mitts and hats, which have been placed on their own tree. These will go to Mount Albert. Everyone is encouraged to join us at 10 a.m., Sandford Zephyr congregation!
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