Greetings to all of our readers across Canada and beyond. Today, July 1st, we celebrate a national holiday honoring our country. This is a fairly new celebration for us, as Canada is a relatively young country (we only officially became Canada in 1867). I (Cathy) vividly remember our school celebrating Canada’s 100th birthday when I was a girl in school. In 1980 the Canadian government began to encourage and financially support the establishment of local celebrations. Start-up funding was provided to support popular activities and performances organized by volunteer groups in hundreds of communities. In 1981 fireworks lit up the sky in 15 major Canadian cities; a tradition that continues today. As we are such a multicultural country, I am always fascinated by the many other diverse ways this holiday is celebrated: family dinners of a wide variety of traditional fare; back yard BBQ’s; sailing, swimming; playing sports; concerts; picnics; hiking; camping; parades; and festivals .
One of our national treasures, Colonel Chris Hadfield, is a retired Canadian astronaut. He was the first Canadian to walk in space. An engineer and former Royal Canadian Air Force fighter pilot, Hadfield has flown two space shuttle missions and served as commander of the International Space Station. Interestingly, he is also a musician. To celebrate this Canada Day, click on the ink below to see Col Hadfield and his brother sing about Canada. They highlight some of the unique cultural aspects of this vast country. Enjoy! And Happy Canada Day where ever you may live.
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