Two Goderich women, one friendship and a shared fight to protect a place they love

Elizabeth Van Den Broeck (left) and Jennifer Morris (right).

From friendship to a shared commitment to protecting one of Huron County’s most loved natural and cultural landscapes, Elizabeth Van Den Broeck and Jennifer Morris are fighting to protect a place they love.

Although the fight for Ball’s Bridge and Little Lakes has been exhausting, it has shown how powerful friendship and shared purpose can be.

First connecting because of their love for dogs and casual conversation, Morris and Van Den Broeck developed a strong friendship based on their shared passion and care for this community.

Yet, it was the issue now at the centre of Friends of Ball’s Bridge and Little Lakes (FOBBLL) that strengthened the bond between these two women. What began as friendship, became solidarity.

Van Den Broeck has long been known as a visual storyteller of Huron County. Her gallery – Elizabeth’s Art Gallery in Goderich – opened in 1992 and has grown from a frame shop and venue for Canadian artists into a creative space featuring original artwork, custom printing, framing, art supplies and artware.

Van Den Broeck describes her work as beginning with a camera and a pair of hip waders rooted in a lifelong love of Huron County’s landscapes and hidden beauty.

“Landscape has always shaped my work as an artist,” said Van Den Broeck.

“This place – Ball’s Bridge, Litle Lakes, the river, the woods – is part of the story of Huron County. Once you really see it, you understand why people are willing to fight so hard for it.”

Morris’ community work took a different but equally public form.

As the owner of CrossFit Goderich, Morris is known for coaching, nutrition, and helping people, especially older athletes, move past perceived limits.

Her connection to the outdoors and community services extends well beyond the gym. Morris serves on the board of the Maitland Trail Association (MTA), volunteers with the G2G Rail Trail, and is part of the executive for FOBBLL.

As a past CrossFit Games athlete, Morris brings the same discipline, endurance and willingness to do hard things into her advocacy work.

For both Van Den Broeck and Morris, the Ball’s Bridge and Little Lakes Road area is more than a scenic rural road. It is a historic, ecological, agricultural, recreational and cultural landscape west of Goderich.

Described as an area of irreplaceable culture, history, agriculture, and biodiversity, it is surrounded by the Menesetung River, and used by wildlife photographers, hikers, snowmobilers, foragers, Sunday drivers, and families celebrating weddings at Ball’s Bridge.

Built in 1885, Ball’s Bridge remains one of the region’s most beloved landmarks.

To fight to protect this area from aggregate extraction, Van Den Broeck and Morris have been involved in late nights, fundraisers, public meetings, art, advocacy, difficult conversations, and the emotional strain of watching a place they love become the subject of a long and complex planning battle.

While FOBBLL continues to raise the last of the much-needed funds to finish the case at the Ontario Land Tribunal (OLT), both Van Den Broeck and Morris are turning to the skills and talents that have shaped their lives.

Money raised helps cover the expert reports, technical studies, and legal support required to present a strong case at the OLT.

Morris is meeting the moment in a way people who know her might expect – with a physical challenge.

On May 17 Morris took on the challenge of completing 1,000 burpees on Ball’s Bridge, a demanding, symbolic effort meant to raise both funds and awareness for the fight to protect the place itself.

According to Morris, it was a challenge rooted in endurance, discomfort, grit and public purpose, the same qualities that carried FOBBLL through years of hearings, setbacks, and community organising.

As of May 22, a total of $7,610 has been raised, with the goal of $10,000 to reach.

During the challenge on May 17, one donor gave $5 per burpee, and one gave $1 per burpee. It took Morris two hours and 10 minutes to complete with several amazing supporters joining in to do burpees with her, including an on-duty OPP officer who was at the bridge on patrol.

Donations are still being accepted.

Van Den Broeck used her own medium – art. Through limited-edition prints created in support of FOBBLL, she is offering people a way to bring the beauty and meaning of the landscape into their homes while directly supporting the effort to defend it.

As of May 22, a total of $2,130 has been raised out of her $10,000 goal, with only 79 prints left. Van Den Broeck has already contributed over $10,000 to the cause and has worked hard to fundraise using her artistic talents.

Fundraising will stay open until FOBBLL has enough funds to pay for the fight to save Ball’s Bridge and Little Lakes area.

According to Rebecca Garrett of FOBBLL, the group has always been powered by ordinary people doing extraordinary things.

“Jennifer and Elizabeth’s friendship is part of that story,” Garrett said.

“A story of local women, local businesses, and local love for a place that cannot be replaced.”

Both bringing something different to the fight – one the eyes of an artist and the other, perseverance of an athlete – together they remind the community of the fight to keep Little Lakes and Ball’s Bridge area untouched by aggregate mining.

One is raising money through movement, while the other through art, but both are using what they know and love to try and protect a place that shaped their lives.

For more information about FOBBLL visit: FOBBLL.org

To support either the burpee challenge or to purchase local art, visit: https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/peer-to-peer/burpees-for-balls-bridge-and-little-lakes or https://www.zeffy.com/en-CA/ticketing/friends-of-balls-bridge-and-little-lakes-fobblls-shop