THUNDER BAY — Winter FunDays celebrated spring with a touch of green this St. Patrick’s Day.
Dozens of families came out for the weekend for a lucky twist to the family-friendly event at Minnesota Park on Sunday.
“The final Winter FunDays is a celebration of spring and St. Patrick’s Day,” said Brayden Cassidy, the City of Thunder Bay’s community program developer.
“We’re partnering with Children and Youth Programs to have a St. Patrick’s Day barbecue with free food. We have Green Persians sponsored by Rapport (a Division of the WFCU) Credit Union and we have some outdoor activities as well and it’s just a really fun community gathering.”
These green Persians were not only available at the park for residents wearing green. The Community Arts and Heritage Education Project (CAHEP) also hosted a craft grab bags activity with the Persians at the Baggage Building Arts Centre.
“For the 11 weeks of Winter FunDays programming, we’ve partnered with countless community organizations, which is so special to be able to celebrate everyone in our community but then also show people in the community what we have to offer,” said Cassidy.
“And so that’s really exciting. But we’ve had a range of recreational activities. We have arts and crafts at the Baggage Building (Arts Centre) each week. Different creative stuff, so it’s just nice to bring all that to the community.”
Amanda Pacholczak joined the event with her sister, Veronica, alongside other youths as part of the Big Brothers Big Sisters Program run by Our Kids Count. She said she and the other kids love these kinds of activities.
“Well, it’s St. Patrick’s Day, so we’re here for the community barbecue. It’s been a lot of fun so far,” said Amanda.
She explained that Winter FunDays makes it really easy to choose and that they’re always excited to come and see other people and celebrate.
“We’ve gone to the Bannock making at the West Arthur Community Centre and we did some fun crafts at the Baggage (Building Arts) Centre and then this one, I think, is our top three definitely this year,” said Veronica.
She agreed it’s nice to get out, get some snacks and do some activities.
For Cassidy, he said Sunday's program differs from the other weeks because it really is a celebration.
“This is our last one during the winter, so we have free food that people can come hang out and just enjoy getting together and celebrate this coming of spring,” said Cassidy.
Coming next, he said the city is about to start its 2025 event series with Quest: Tech and Gaming in May.
Cassidy recommends residents look out for that event before the city rolls into its summer event series right after with back-to-back fun free events for the family.
