Free family fun is promised this Friday - Canada Day
- as UW's north campus hosts a community celebration for
the tenth year in a row.
     It's sponsored by the Federation of Students in
conjunction with the university itself, working through
what's called the Kitchener-Waterloo Canada Day Council,
and it includes everything from dinosaurs to fireworks.
     In a sign of the times, the Canada Day organizers
will be inviting cash contributions to help with the
budget. That's never been necessary before. All the
activities are still free (though refreshments are for
sale, as are candles for the closing candlelight
ceremony).
     Attractions and amusements for the entire family get
started at 3 p.m. Friday with the annual Canada Day
parade. Floats, marching bands, dance troupes, clowns and
antique automobiles will be coming from all over Waterloo
region to parade their Canadian pride. There is a costume
contest for children twelve and under, with prizes for the
most original, the funniest, the best famous character,
the best Canadian, and the best family or group costume
categories.
     Scouts Canada of North Waterloo will be along the
parade route and at Columbia Lake during the day
collecting non-perishable food items for the Waterloo
Region Food Bank.
     The official opening ceremonies take place at 4:30 at
Columbia Lake, where the rest of the family fun can be
found. Children's activities include face painting, mini
Olympics, Fun Fest and Activity World. In addition, there
will be a kite flying contest for all ages, the Merchants'
Village, and the Environmental Fair.
     All UW's museums will be open: visitors can stroll
into the not-too-distant past with a visit to Brubacher
House, return to the Jurassic period at the Earth Sciences
Museum and then look in on society's past diversions at
the Museum and Archive of Games.
     The games museum has a display featuring Bagatelle
and Bilboquet, two games from the Canadian past. Bagatelle
is the father of modern pinball, and Bilboquet is a game
played around the world -  the cup and ball game. The
Earth Sciences Museum will be showcasing two new and ex
citing dinosaur acquisitions. There is a velociraptor on
view (as in the Toronto Raptors) and a troodon, which was
the most intelligent dinosaur that ever lived. In
addition, there are two new displays, one which features
minerals from which cars are made and another display
featuring stereoscopic (3-D) pictures of geological
subjects, predominantly from the last century.
     Back on the north campus, there is a full slate of
live entertainment scheduled for the afternoon and
evening. On stage at 3:30, visitors can enjoy Failte, a
Celtic band featuring music from England, Ireland,
Scotland, and Wales. At 5:00, the kids get a jam session
with The Beirdo Brothers, popular area children's
entertainers.
     More: you cannjoy some easy listening over the dinner
hour with folk singer Nonie Crete. At 7:00, CanaBrava
takes to the stage with their signature Latin American
musical style. To round out the evening and usher in the
closing ceremonies and fireworks finale are the classic
rhythm and blues of the Trailblazers.
     Of course, Canada Day would not be the same without
the traditional candlelight closing ceremonies and
spectacular fireworks display as dark falls.
     Everybody's welcome. Last year's attendance was
estimated at 50,000 people.