OXBOW — Canada Day celebrations are becoming a bit of a rarity in the smaller towns of southeastern Saskatchewan. But not so in Oxbow. If anything, just the opposite is happening.
Canada Day was July 1, but in Oxbow, a multi-cultural day took place the day before, making the celebration feel like a two-day event.
It was the third year in a row that Oxbow has celebrated multiculturalism by giving it its own day. It was made possible by a grant from the Canadian Heritage Grant Program, as well as sponsorships from several local businesses and groups.
The day opened at the Friendship Centre. Heather Sparrow of White Bear First Nation led a workshop called Let’s Learn Metawetan. Children aged five to 10 took part and learned through crafts, games and hands-on activities.
Later that day, the focus shifted to Bow Valley Park, where two Tinikling workshops were held. Tiniklings are Filipino bamboo dances and they were taught by the Bayanihan Filipino Arts and Culture Club from Yorkton. The workshops were very energetic and lots of fun.
Later on, the music took over. Two bands – the Moxie Blues and The Leftovers – played songs into the night, from 6:30 p.m. until 11:30 p.m. That kept those in the beer gardens well entertained as they were served by volunteers from the Bow Valley Villa.
At 10:15 p.m. a great display of fireworks went off, signalling the wind-down of one day’s celebrations…and the reminder that the next day’s was about to come
Canada Day may have been even busier. A pancake breakfast provided the energy that was needed to take in the events. At 11 a.m., a parade made its way throughout some of Oxbow’s streets, with many of the entrants tossing treats to the kids who lined the streets. While adults watched the floats, kids watched the curbs for candies.
Everyone then moved on to the Bow Valley Park. Many took in the magic show by Magic With Mike. Being such a hot day, some chose instead to soak themselves and others with the hoses from the fire trucks and the water of the dunk tank. The river was also an option for those who preferred to canoe and kayak.
A little later in the afternoon, 27 teams participated in the third annual Cornhole Tournament. This is a fundraiser for the Bow Valley Villa. Since the villa does not receive government funding, it relies on rent payments and fundraising activities to continue. Half the proceeds from the registration fees and 50/50 draw went back to the villa.
The last major event was the Duck Derby. Over a thousand rubber duckies were unceremoniously dumped off the bridge into the river and slowly drifted for about half a kilometre to the finish line. The money raised by the derby was equally split. Half was distributed amongst the owners of the top five ducks and half went to the Oxbow and Enniskillen Fire and Rescue Department to purchase equipment for a new fire truck that will be coming to them in the fall of 2026.
Canada is a country that highly values multiculturalism. For a couple of days, Oxbow celebrated both – Canada and its diversity.
