For the basics, see
- Website & Privacy Policies
- How To Get Involved
- The Role of the Park
posted September 12, 2006
It is open and free for youth (12-24), no registration is necessary. They usually meet in the middle of the park.
posted September 12, 2006
Join the drop-in program from Seventh Generation Midwives Toronto for pre/postnatal yoga led by First Nations yoga instructor Rhianna Keon. Yoga happens from 4-5:30pm, followed by a campfire at the park. We will be making bannock over the fire. Please wear comfortable clothing.
See the Neighbourhood section.
posted September 7, 2006
After supper there’s dancing with Eroca Nicols and the kids from her summer dance classes. Special guest: a teacher of traditional Arabic circle dancing.Then Park DJ Ted Carlisle will play disco, soul, funk, and old-school hip hop. On the grass beside the basketball court.
See the Picture Gallery.
posted September 7, 2006
See the Picture Gallery.
posted September 7, 2006
The Pugalug rescue group is having a pugalug gathering at Dufferin Grove Park. There will be t-shirts, wristbands, and plush pugs for sale to raise funds for more rescues (they say they’ve rescued 29 pugs since October 2005) and for a veterinarian medical fund.
posted September 17, 2006
Native Child and Family Services will be presenting their annual “Honouring our Children” Pow Wow at Dufferin Grove Park again this year. This event is a very popular, very colourful occasion with many craft vendors, dancers in beautiful costumes, free food and a big “give-away” of donated goods at the end. However, having over a thousand people in the park all afternoon can lead to some problems. Last year these problems led park staff to the idea that perhaps the pow wow would be better located at a regional park like Christie Pits, which is set up with internal roads for all the vehicles. It has no adventure playground area, and therefore no loose parts like tipi poles, rocks, wooden pieces, pails, and shovels that can become weapons if there are too many kids packed into the playground together.
However it appears that the pow wow will not be moving up to a regional park like Christie Pits this year. Instead, Tino Decastro, the Recreation supervisor of this area, will assign 5 or 6 recreation staff to be at the playground this year to supervise. Park staff Mayssan Shuja and Native Child and Family Services staff person Beverly Fanjoy are collaborating directly on how to make the playground work better for this event.
City: No kids allowed
posted September 7, 2006
This is the public meeting about the community-built composting toilet for the playground area. The meeting is on site, near the cob courtyard. The food cart will be there and the park staff will entertain the kids, so their parents can address the regulatory obstacles to building the toilet. If it rains, the meeting will be in the rink house.
Yes! Kids allowed after all
posted September 13, 2006
Since it rained, the meeting was held in the rink house instead. We now know that 95 adults and a whole lot of children can crowd into the rink house if necessary. The complainants who had called for the meeting didn't come, but City Parks manager Sandy Straw came, and so did her Parks supervisor Peter Leiss, and so did Recreation supervisor Tino Decastro. City Councillor Adam Giambrone was the moderator. Children as well as adults talked about wanting to help build the cob structure, wanting to have a toilet by the playground, and wanting to do something better with the environment. Georgie Donais answered questions about the way the toilet works. Many people asked the City staff and the councillor to go back to City Hall and find a way to remove the blocks to the project. They said they'd try.
They were as good as their word. Early Wednesday morning Georgie went to the Park supervisor's office for a meeting with architect Martin Liefhebber. They looked at the plans and the architect said they needed only very minor changes for him to certify them. The Buildings Department said they would fast-track the approval as soon as the certification reaches them.
Peter Leiss said that when the foundation hole is level with the ground, the project would be categorized as no longer a construction site but an art project. That means that children can help again and the fence can come down. Later, when the roof goes in, the fence will go back up briefly until that bit of construction is finished.
See also Meeting The By-Law Blues and the editorials David And Goliath and David And Goliath Two. See the Main Composting Toilet Project page.
September 13, 2006
Pictures from the meeting (pictures by Wallie Seto)
Part of the crowd |
One of the speakers |
posted September 15, 2006
The Garden Club of Toronto celebrates its 60th anniversary of community involvement at St. Anne's Anglican Church. [See map.]
This National Historic Site is Canada's only Byzantine Anglican church and houses the sole collection of religious art by members of the renowned Group of Seven. The front garden will be restored to complement St. Anne's unique design and a Floral Carpet will lead you into this beautiful church where floral artistry will enhance the rich interior.
There will be seed packets for children to take home.
The church will be open to the public on:
Saturday September 30th, from 9:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. and Sunday October 1st, from 11:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Admission is free.
Some of the stained glass and art inside St. Anne's church.