Wide variety of activities planned for Family Day

Face painting is always a popular activity at the Tillsonburg Community Centre’s Family Day festivities, and will continue this year. In this shot from last year, volunteer Kate Nesbitt paints Leia Radev’s face. (File Photo)

Robin Krafft, Post Contributor

The Town of Tillsonburg is hosting a variety of free events for Family Day on Feb. 16 at Annandale House National Historic Site and the Tillsonburg Community Centre.

Celebrated by several provinces on the third Monday of February, Family Day emphasizes the importance of family bonds and time spent together with friends, relatives or found family.

Annandale House NHS, located at 30 Tillson Avenue is hosting a "Wooly" Family Day and Open House featuring free fun for all ages from 10 am to 3 pm. Culture and Heritage Programs Coordinator Kathleen Watkin is looking forward to the event.

“Families are invited to enjoy a variety of historical family games, a hot chocolate station, and a sweet treat,” Watkin said. “Visitors will also have the opportunity to create their own pom-pom animals. Knowledgeable guides will be available throughout the house to answer questions, and guests can participate in our annual family scavenger hunt. In addition, the exhibition Threads of the Past: Wool Artifacts from Our Collection will be open for viewing.”

At the Tillsonburg Community Centre (45 Hardy Ave) a variety of events are taking place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., including inflatables, face painting, a mobile zoo and reptiles, balloon artists, and a magic show. There is a full schedule available online and there will be signage and schedules available at the event. It is recommended that families use the east entrance off the large parking lot.

The rink is open for ice skating and families can also enjoy free swims from 10 - 11:30 a.m. and 1:30 – 3 p.m. Pre-registration is required for swimming due to capacity limits, which can be completed online. Visit the Town of Tillsonburg FB page and use the link; or call 519-688-9011 if you have any problems with the registration process.

The town has been celebrating Family Day for over 10 years, with 1500 people enjoying the events last year. Manager of Recreation and Program Services Julie Dawley explained the variety of events allows for both quiet/creative and active/physical activity, but the most important thing is time spent together.

“Our goal is to create a welcoming, low-pressure atmosphere for families to feel included and really enjoy their time as a family,” Dawley said. “For recreation staff, we just love to see families laughing, moving and making memories; that’s what the heart of this event is.”

Thriver Company will be offering free dance classes: ages five and under from 9 - 10 a.m. and ages six and over from 10:30 -11 a.m. It’s a great opportunity for kids to try something new and see if they enjoy it.

Oxford County Library has organized a story stroll, offering a break from the excitement, at the top of the rink (Memorial Spectator Seating). Katelyn Bennett, Literacy Program Specialist at the Tillsonburg branch, wants to keep the story a surprise, but said that it is connected to the theme for this year’s Family Literacy Day: Make Family Time Meal Time. The story stroll features enlarged panels of a story with different actions under the pages that families can do, following the arrows to participate as the story progresses.

“Following recipes and cooking together is a great way to build early literacy skills together as a family, while doing something fun,” Bennett said. “On our website (OCL.net) we have a booklist if families want to continue with cooking and creating together. We’ll also have flyers at the event with other links and resources.”

Recreation staff and their families often volunteer at the event, and Dawley estimated that she painted 250 little faces last year. Volunteers are welcome at both the community centre and Annandale House; call to express your interest. While the volunteers are the visible supporters, Dawley said the event wouldn’t be possible without the generosity of sponsors.

“Without the help of our sponsors, we couldn’t do it,” Dawley said. "Every smile and every moment we have is thanks to these people.”

“These simple moments in life are the most important time,” Dawley said. “You get to slow down and enjoy your family for the day!”