CORNWALL, Ontario – Despite the rain, Canada Day festivities were in full-swing at Lamoureux Park.
Kicking off at noon, the event featured a full day of entertainment, wrapping up with a performance by locally celebrated blues musician, Paul Deslauriers.
15-year Canada Day Committee veteran, David Runions says that the rain didn’t dampen the spirits of Cornwall residents.
“We’re pretty impressed, people are slowly making their way down,” said Runions. “All in all, they’re showing resilience – at least it’s not snow.”
While the day got off to a soggy start, Cornwallites perused the array of food vendors, and enjoyed some kid-friendly activities like the petting zoo, bouncy castles, and children’s fun zone.
Runions says that they tried to prepare for the weather, setting up larger tents around, and pushing the bands further back on the stage.
Runions, who was in charge of entertainment, says that he wanted to feature up-and-coming talent, and Deslauriers was a natural fit.
“When Paul Deslaurier’s name came up, a lot of people on the committee were very responsive,” said Runions. “He’s a monster on stage, and I’m talking a real monster, and I think he’s going to blow the walls off this park.”
Runions has seen the celebration grow a great deal since he was first involved in the committee.
“It used to be that you could throw a frisbee and not worry about hitting anybody,” said Runions. “But now it’s monstrous. We get thousands of people in the afternoon.”
With fireworks still set to take place at 10 p.m. patrons were embracing the weather in true Canadian fashion.
