2023-2024 Events
End-of-Year June Luncheon
Willowbank is located in the village of Queenston (14487 Niagara River Pkwy) and was the family home of Alexander Hamilton (born 1790, died 1839). Construction on the home began in 1833 and Willowbank remained in the Hamilton family until 1934 when it was sold to the Bright’s Wine family. Willowbank had several other owners after the Brights and it was eventually purchased by a developer. A demolition request was submitted in 2003. However, an organization known as the Friends of Willowbank saved the house from demolition.
A School of Restoration Arts was established at Willowbank in 2006, providing students with a mix of theory and hands-on learning. The School of Restoration Arts remains in existence today, focusing on heritage conservation and the adaptive reuse of existing buildings. A special tour of this unique career college and historical home was arranged for the NOTL Newcomers Club.
On Apr 30, coffee, tea and goodies was served following the tour of Willowbank at St. Saviour’s Anglican Church. Located a short walk from Willowbank, St. Saviour’s is perched on the banks of the Niagara River. The parish was established in 1817. The first church building was built between 1818 -1820 and was located on the Parkway. It was rebuilt at its current location in 1879, after the original church building was destroyed by fire. The church features beautiful stained glass and will be open should you wish to see the inside. St. Saviour’s Anglican Church is currently under review by the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake for a Heritage Designation.
Learn more about Willowbank School of Restoration Arts
Learn more about St. Saviour's, The Brock Memorial Church in Queenston.
On April 17, a group of 19 Newcomers Club members attended a fascinating and informative tour of the Salem Chapel in St. Catharines. Salem Chapel was built in 1865 to serve the growing number of enslaved people who had escaped from the US via the Underground Railway.
Harriet Tubman resided in St. Catharines from 1851 to 1858 and belonged to the church’s congregation along with numerous other self-liberators who settled in the area.
The chapel houses historical artifacts and photographs.
Rochelle Bush, our guide, led our tour expertly and shared many stories and historical facts. She is deeply rooted in the community as her maternal great grandfather was the minister in charge of Salem Chapel when Harriet Tubman was a member of the congregation.
Shaw Festival Theatre Backstage Tour
Who knew the amount of work and logistics it takes to bring a play to life at the Shaw Festival Theatres?
The ladies of the Niagara-On-The-Lake Newcomers Club visited the Shaw Festival Theatre on Mar 27 for a look behind the scenes. Volunteer docents from the Shaw Guild guided the ladies through the various departments that contribute to the production and staging of the many plays presented at the Festival and Royal George Theatres, as well as the Jackie Maxwell Studio Theatre and Spiegeltent.
The backstage tour provided us with an overview of set & costume design, sourcing and dying of materials, creation of wardrobes specific to productions, wig making and care, dressing of actors, costume changes, behind the stage logistics, set changes, props, rehearsals, understudies and more….
Our thanks to the members of the Shaw Guild for their sharing their knowledge and time to enlighten us on the inner workings of the Theatre!
On March 20, we enjoyed a visit to Edward Spera's studio at 91 Queen Street. A self-taught artist, Edward's work in acrylic paint has been compared to and rated alongside well-known international wildlife artists. He had lots of interesting stories to tell us about his life as an artist and his travels around the world to see animals in the wild. We got to see some amazing video of snow leopards and tigers from his recent trip to India. More information about Edward Spera. 
Performing Arts Centre Tour and free Concert
On March 6, a group of Newcomers visited the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre (PAC) (https://www.firstontariopac.ca/Online/default.asp) in downtown St. Catharines. The group toured the PAC’s four performance venues - The Film House, The Partridge Hall, The Robertson Theatre and Recital Hall. We got to see not only the venues but also went backstage and saw dressing rooms, the Green Room and other spaces and equipment.
After the tour, the group enjoyed a free lunchtime concert by Brock University music students in the Recital Hall. The program included a soprano, a guitarist, an organist, a clarinet player and a pianist. Details on the concerts are provided at https://brocku.ca/miwsfpa/music/concerts/rbc-foundation-music-at-noon/. Although the concerts are free, tickets must be “bought” in advance online from the PAC.
International Women's Day Shoot
The Lake Report, 2024 celebration of the women of Niagara-on-the-Lake culminated with a mass photo at the gazebo at Queen's Royal Park on Monday, March 4.
The mass photo was part of The Lake Report's International Women's Day coverage on Thursday, March 7.
NOTL Newcomers placed an ad with the paper to celebrate our role in welcoming women to NOTL since 1991. A portion of the proceeds from those advertisements was donated to two women-focused charities: Gillian’s Place women’s shelter in Niagara Falls and NOTL’s own Pink Pearl Foundation, which supports women dealing with cancer.
Niagara College Tour & Lunch
A group of 25 Newcomers enjoyed a visit to Niagara College’s Niagara-on-the-Lake campus on January 24. We started with a campus tour where we watched students in their “labs” (learning at the College includes a lot of practical hands-on activity) in the teaching spa, learning about wine, cooking and baking. We also visited the greenhouse. All the faculty work in the industry so that they are up to date. When we stopped outside the baking lab, we saw Professor Catherine O’Donnell (from Willow Cakes) teaching a cake and pastry course. She came out and spoke to us about the importance of passing on your knowledge.
Finally, we went to the lovely Benchmark restaurant which is staffed by students both in the kitchen and in the dining area. We enjoyed a lovely lunch there.
Members of the public can book aesthetician services (ncteachingspa.ca), have lunch at the restaurant (booking through OpenTable), buy plants and vegetables from the greenhouses, have a wine tasting or beer tasting and tour and buy products (ncteachingwinery.ca) and buy take home meals (in-person at the entrance to Benchmark while stocks last).
Newcomers Holiday Luncheon
The NOTL Newcomers Club held their annual holiday luncheon on Wednesday, December 6that the HobNob Restaurant in the historic Charles Inn in Old Town, Niagara-on-the-Lake. The beauty and historic elegance of the HobNob restaurant provided a “Hallmark” card setting decorated with festive decorations, garlands and florals.
Lunch was served buffet style and offered a delicious range of options to choose from. Many lucky winners took home draw prizes, adding to the festive spirit of the afternoon.
All in all, it was a very enjoyable afternoon and was a wonderful way to kick off the holiday season. Special thanks to the Charles Inn and their staff for creating an amazing holiday experience!
  
Holiday Planter
On November 20, a group of NOTL Newcomers Club members visited Gauld Nurseries in Niagara Falls to make holiday planters. Staff from the nursery demonstrated how to create planters using three different plants for the “spill, fill and thrill” and then adding other decorative elements. Everyone left with a lovely planter that fitted their own needs and preferences.
Community Awareness Event
The Community Awareness Event was held on Wednesday, November 15th at the Niagara-on-the Lake Community Centre. The event included information tables featuring 27 organizations from the community of Niagara-on-the- Lake. It was well attended by the public and provided everyone with an opportunity to learn more about the various organizations’ services and community work.
The following organizations were represented at this year’s Community Awareness Event:
  
Wednesday, October 18, 2023
On Wednesday, October 18 ladies of the NOTL Newcomers Club visited Plant No. 01, a plant based kitchen located on Westwood Court in Niagara-on-the-Lake. The afternoon was hosted by the owner, Carolyn Bernacci and her daughter Lindsay. Carolyn & Lindsay provided an informative introduction to plant based eating and the fresh and organic ingredients used to create traditional dishes.
All dishes are prepared on-site including baked goods. Plant No. 01 has tables available to eat in and the ladies were treated to a range of popular dishes including lasagna, Caesar salad, sweet potato gnocchi, mac n’ cheese and vegetable casserole. And who knew that it is possible to create a delicious charcuterie board using plant-based products? The delicious lunch was topped off with organic teas and cookies and a little goodie bag to take home with homemade organic Caesar dressing.
No one went away hungry! A very enjoyable afternoon was had by all learning about, and best of all tasting the delicious plant-based dishes prepared for us.
  
Welcome Back!
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
NOTL Newcomers Club held their first meeting of the season at the Niagara-on-the-Lake Community Centre. New members were welcomed into the club and existing members were welcomed back after the summer break.
Interest group tables were featured around the room and provided members with an opportunity to learn about the various groups that meet throughout the year. There was no shortage of options to choose from. Interest groups ranged from walking, cycling and golf to painting, book clubs, card playing, knitting and more!
We were excited to have Town Councillor Sandra O’Connor as our guest speaker and also honoured to have the Lord Mayor, Gary Zalepa attend the meeting to show his support for Sandra and for Newcomers!
Sandra is a second term Councillor with the Town of Niagara-on-the-Lake. She grew up in St. Catharines and often visited her grandmother’s farm located here. After graduation Sandra moved from the Niagara area to work in management and consultancy specializing in geomatics. She worked for various scientific organizations across Canada and lived in various locations including Victoria, B.C. and Ottawa.
After retirement, Sandra returned to the Niagara area and became a resident of our town. Having been involved in community service throughout her life, Sandra decided to run for Town Councillor and is now serving her second term.
Sandra provided insight into the early days of Niagara-on-the-Lake and the changes over the years. The wine industry in Niagara-on-the-Lake is a more recent addition to the agricultural landscape with the early days of the industry starting to take shape in the 1970’s. It was also in this time period that the Shaw Festival Theatre opened, giving a boost to the number of tourists visiting the town. In addition to providing lots of interesting facts and anecdotes about the community, Sandra also provided an overview of the services provided by the Niagara Regional government vs the local government of the town. It was all very useful information for those of us who are new to the town and the region.
We were also very pleased to receive a complimentary one-year membership to the NOTL Museum that was won by one of our new members.
It was a great start to our 2023 season! We look forward to the year ahead and hope that you will join us for the various activities, events and coffee & conversation mornings.
   
2022-2023 Events
NEWEST Newcomers BBQ Lunch - St David's Lion Club
June 28, 2023
End-of-the-Year Lunch - Pillar and Post Hotel
June 21, 2023
On June 7, we enjoyed an interesting slide presentation by Elizabeth Murphy at the St. Catharines Flying Club located at the Niagara District Airport, 468 Niagara Stone Road.
Elizabeth Murphy is a former member of the Canadian Armed Forces and has been an aerobatic pilot for nearly 18 years. We got to see her plane and many sat inside …a Cessna 150, which she calls Odessa von Cessna, a bright orange two-seater with the code C-GLZY on the side and a rubber chicken hanging from the wingspan.
Elizabeth encourages women and girls to take to the skies. She will tell you that it’s the best hobby in the world and extremely therapeutic for her after a life-changing diagnosis of multiple sclerosis. Her love of flying has made her a feature character in a new children’s book “Stella and Lizzy Take Flight”.
The Watering Can Garden Tea
May 23, 2023
We enjoyed a delightful Garden Tea at The Watering Can in Vineland. There was lively conversation at tables surrounded by lush tropical plants in a greenhouse setting. The three tiered trays included tea sandwiches, salad, mini quiches, scones, and sweets. There was a choice of tea from a selection of 15 flavours of Sloane tea. At the conclusion, each person was presented with a red gerbera daisy flower.
Annual General Meeting. May 17, 2023
On Wednesday, May 17, we held our Annual General Meeting at the NOTL Community Centre. About 40 members attended this event. During the business portion, we voted in favour of a By-law amendment adding the position of Vice President to our list of Directors. This position will give a member a year to get to know the workings of the Executive Board and then the following year to take on the position of President.
We elected our 2023-24 Executive Board members who bring with them a variety of experiences and skills.
|
President: Susan Snelgrove
|
Past President: Pauline Miller
|
|
Treasurer: Karen Steyn
|
Interest Groups: Mary Varacalli
|
|
Program: Carolyn Donald
|
Special Program: Vivienne Lipman
|
|
Membership: Connie Cristovao
|
New Members Liaison: Sylvia Kaptein
|
|
Newsletter: Sue Henry
|
Website and PR: Karin Winkelmann
|
|
Secretary: Lorraine Trapani
|
Hospitality: Judy Guidoccio
|
|
Vice President: Megan Wood
|
|
It was interesting to hear from our guest speaker Minerva Ward, President and CEO of the Niagara-on-the-Lake Chamber of Commerce and Tourism NOTL who has just completed her first year in this role about what she has learned as a newcomer and her vision for our community going forward.
Visit to RiverBrink Art Museum
April 26, 2023
We enjoyed a presentation about Fusion Gardening by Joanne Young, NOTL garden
expert and coach, and past president of NOTL’s Horticultural Society. We learned
about the importance of introducing native plants to our gardens to create a habitat for
pollinators, collecting our rain water and putting nutrients back into our soil.
We also got to see A FAMILY PALETTE, a wonderful exhibition circulated by the
Ottawa Art Gallery, with works by Canadian artists Frances-Anne Johnston, her father
Franz Johnston and husband Franklin Arbuckle … three members of the same family.
PHOTO Franklin Arbuckle, an illustrator, painted over 100 covers for Maclean’s
magazine from the mid 1940s to the mid 1960s.
Shaw Festival Props and Costumes Warehouse Tour
On March 15, we enjoyed a fun afternoon touring the Shaw Festival Props and Costumes Warehouse in St. Davids. We were welcomed by Suzanne Merriam, Senior Manager, Education and then given an introduction to props by Lauren Rebelo, Design Co-ordinator and costumes by Beyata Hackborn, Designer.
The largest prop warehouse in Canada, 50,000 square feet, it holds thousands of pieces from the past 60 years of Shaw performances. There are endless, floor-to-ceiling racks of furniture, lamps, china, rugs etc. Repurposing and reusing existing propos provides cost-savings for productions. There are thousands of costumes and all of the accessories in a climate controlled environment that helps to maintain the integrity of the items. Of particular interest are the large collection of hats on the second floor, the actors’ closets that hold previously worn costumes from past productions that might be worn again and a binder that holds all the actors’ costume sizes.
All along the Waterfront/Black History Month - NOTL Museum
On February 16, we visited the NOTL History Museum at 43 Castlereagh Street for a presentation for Black History Month and a talk about the "All Along the Waterfront" exhibit in the museum that showed us the industries that used to be part of NOTL's economy and have now disappeared.
We learned some interesting things about the history of our town from our two speakers Barbara Worthy, Community Engagement Coordinator and Shawna Butts, Assistant Curator and Educational Programmer.
For more information about the self-guided Black History walking tour please check out the NOTL Voices of Freedom Park website https://www.vofpark.org.
Here is a short documentary that compliments the “All Along the Waterfront” exhibit: https://youtu.be/eKNdrjv3Wcw.
Butterfly Conservatory - January 18, 2023
On a cold wintery day, a group of Newcomers escaped to the warmth of the Niagara Parks Butterfly Conservatory. It is one of the largest glass-enclosed butterfly conservatories in North America. The day was overcast so the conservatory was not as hot and humid as we expected. A short video presentation introduced us to the world of the butterflies. The pupae of butterflies or chrysalis are shipped from around the world to hatch at the conservatory. Through the emergence window, we saw a number of hanging butterflies just hatched and waiting for their wings to dry before flying. We wandered around the stone pathways among the towering tropical plants and waterfalls looking for the colourful butterflies. There were feeding trays of oranges and bananas where butterflies gathered and we saw a number butterflies visiting flowers for nectar. Because if was an overcast day it was rather quiet for the flying residents, on sunny days you see many more fluttering by.
Festive Lunch - December 7, 2022
We had a wonderful buffet lunch at the Hilton Garden Inn on Wednesday, December 7.
What a great way to start the Christmas season and an excuse to dress up!
Community Awareness Event
We had a great turnout for our Community Awareness Event at the NOTL Community Centre on November 16. This was an opportunity for us to meet and talk to representatives from 22 community organizations that are active in our region. They came to provide us with information and answer our questions.
Niagara Falls History Museum - October 19, 2022
On October 19, we enjoyed our guided tour of the Niagara Falls History Museum with Suzanne Moase, head of the museum’s curatorial services.
We also got to see the current exhibition “A Woman’s Work is Never Done”. Suzanne Moase explained how the idea for the exhibition came about after hearing the story from a man who donated an antique cabbage cutter used to make sauerkraut. It was one of several that he made as Christmas gifts for his granddaughters. Wood from the same tree was used to make sleighs for his grandsons.
Women described in this exhibit include Elizabeth Lundy (1828-1919) who knit 300 pairs of socks for soldiers, historian Wilma Morrison, politician Judy LaMarsh, para-cycling world champion Shelley Gautier, journalist Barbara Frum, tailor Lorna Mary Miller, teacher Ruth Redmond and artist Emily Andrews.
We learned that in the early part of the 20th century approximately 250 women worked for the Spirella local corset factory.
To learn more about the museum, you can check out the website at
Niagara Falls History Museum - The Exchange Niagara Falls (nfexchange.ca)
Welcome Back - September 21, NOTL Community Centre
At our Welcome Back Event members enjoyed a chance to catch up and reacquaint themselves after a summer off. Baked treats and beverages were provided by Sweets & Swirls Cafe. This meeting is always an opportunity to sign up for our Interest Groups, returning to some and joining new ones. To see a list of all our Interest Groups they are on our Groups page.
We enjoyed a performance by six members of The NOTL Ukesters, a local group of ukulele players and singers. They perform a full range of wonderful tunes from the 1950s to the present from pop, country, R&B and jazz.
All skill levels from absolute beginner to advanced performer are always welcome to attend their weekly workshops that are held Sundays from 2:00 - 3:30 p.m. at the NOTL Community Centre. Feel free to drop in and check them out with or without a ukulele.
You can find the NOTL Ukesters on Meetup.com, Facebook or you can Google them at Niagara-on-the-Lake Ukesters.
2021-2022 Events
New Kids on the Block BBQ Lunch
New Kids on the Block BBQ Lunch
– for the newbies!
The executive of the Newcomers Club held one last event on June 29 for members who joined during “the COVID years”. We felt these members missed out on the many opportunities the Newcomers Club offers members to meet new people in NOTL and also to learn about our beautiful community.
We met at the Picnic pavilion at the St Davids Lions Club where the Lions Club volunteers made us a yummy BBQ lunch of burgers and salads. Almost 30 members attended. Not deterred by the weather which threatened - then delivered some rain, we enjoyed lunch then a boisterous trivia challenge.
How much do you know about NOTL? We had five teams each with 10 questions to answer. We encouraged members to use their phones to find the answers if they didn’t know – that way everyone learned more about our lovely town. Not your usual trivia contest – it wasn’t about what’s in your head, but if you can find information when you need it!
At the end of our trivia challenge the sun was shining! Picnic door prizes finished the event.
Here’s the Trivia questions and answers. How well would you do?
Thanks everyone who attended and those who organized the event. Have a good summer – see you in September……
|
