Once again, the weatherman cooperated for the annual Labour Day parade in Port Elgin (Saugeen Shores) on September 2nd (2024).
The parade was led by Saugeen Shores Police and the McLaren Pipe Band from Wiarton.
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Hundreds of union workers, their families, supporters and retirees marched along Goderich Street from the gathering location at Home Hardware south to Ivings Drive.
Several unions were represented as busloads of various members arrived in Saugeen Shores from across Ontario and Quebec.
The parade is one of the largest in Ontario and this year’s attendance along the route was also one of the largest to date.
Following the parade, the entire community was invited to a public BBQ and fun activities at the UNIFOR Family Education Centre on Bruce Rd. 25 (locally known as the CAW road), where everyone enjoyed a large buffet, prize draws and speakers.
Lori Kewaquom of Saugeen First Nation welcomed visitors to the territory of the Chippewas of Saugeen, along with her grandson Hunter. She explained the value of sweetgrass to First Nations people and how the three strands intertwined represent mind, body and spirit.
“Our walk here on earth through life is just that … mind, body and spiri,” said Kewaquom. “When it comes to the retirees here, all their knowledge and experience is important to teach the younger generations. Looking at our Indigenous gatherings and the one here, we come together to plan, to organize, to look at how things are going, reconnect with each other and to look after each other. The work that we are doing is for the children and thank you for everything that you do.”
Labour Council Vice-President Dave Trumble also spoke saying that “We stand on the precipice of an existential threat to our unions and our movement that must be overcome by understanding that what is at stake is not only our work, our future, progress and ethics and morals that we must stand for. We must stand for progress, equity, diversity and inclusion and accessibility. Today, we come together to celebrate all that we have done … we will not take one step backwards.”
Although the parade came to end, retirees continued the week with a conference featuring several guest speakers and seminars at the Centre.
