There was a deep-rooted sense of community in Conquest last weekend as scores of familiar faces, long-time family and friends, and names from the past came down to the area as the village celebrated Canada 150 with a day of events.
Held on Saturday, August 5, the festivities began with a pancake breakfast at the rink before moving on to kids’ activities and opening up the beer garden area just north of the facility in the old Elks Park campground area. Hot dogs, fresh popcorn and drinks were available for purchase, and a couple of teams had a blast playing a smaller, looser version of baseball with a plastic bat and ball, which seemed to have no age limit as far as enjoyment went.
Over in the community centre, formerly the old Conquest School, a ceremonial cake cutting was held as village mayor Doug Lemon and his wife Debbie gave greetings on behalf of the community. The celebratory cake made by Macrorie-area resident Sheryl Olson proved to be a hit, as did the cupcakes made by volunteers. From there, the museum was open in the south end of the building, and many people who walked through the exhibit were taken back on a trip through Conquest’s decorated past, whether it involved the Royal Purple or the Elks organizations, the history of education in the village, or the military efforts of notable past residents who served in the great World Wars.
Whether they continued to visit at the community centre or down at the campground, by the time supper rolled, everyone began heading to one central location as the main lobby of the rink began to fill up quickly with upwards of 200 people for the catered roast beef meal by local favourite Chris’s Kitchen.
Following supper, there was plenty of more visiting and socializing between family members and friends who hadn’t seen each other for years, and more ball games started up at the campground next door.
By 9:25, the fire truck signalled that it was time for the fireworks, paid for by local producer Cor Van Raay and done by Outlook fire chief Dalas King. The ten-minute show was a bold, colourful and loud display that got rave reviews from everyone watching.
Back in the rink was the dance, which began as Greg McJannet and his son Benjamin took to the stage, and the father/son music duo had plenty of feet tapping and people dancing to some classic rock hits and even a few country numbers.
The Canada 150 celebrations in Conquest brought with them a sense of community pride and plenty of praise for the volunteer committee, who worked tirelessly behind the scenes to ensure everything ran smoothly; whether it was decorating the rink to the nines in festive and patriotic red-and-white colors or lining up everything in the campground to make room for the crowds of people coming in to enjoy the outdoor element to the day of events.
Efforts such as this go to show that even in the smallest of towns, all it takes is some will and manpower to pull off something that will be remembered fondly for a long time.
