The Picnic Crier

We headed into Owen Sound yesterday to see my orthopedic surgeon one more time.  Between driving and waiting it was nearly 3 hours, but he came in for 30 seconds and said 'the x-rays are good, you're free to go!  No more worrying.

Dropping down over the Niagara Escarpment into Owen Sound.

After seeing the doctor we drove to Harrison Park for lunch and a walk, parking right beside the outdoor artificial rink, used a lot by kids during the summer as an all-purpose biking and basketball court.

The Order of Good Cheer is a remarkable group of couples who have banded together to do things for the community, raising funds to build facilities like this.

We were close to the take-out window of the restaurant, so we waited for lunch - hamburgs big enough we later needed no supper!

As we headed out for a walk toward the Black History Memorial we were surprised by this town crier and his partner in a dignified walk toward the memorial, ringing his bell.  We guessed that maybe there was some filming going on.

They soon walked back for another take, and were happy to pose for me.  Turns out the famous Emancipation Picnic held here will be a virtual event (for the first time in its 158 years), and they were doing a video for the on-line presentation.

This celebrates the first picnic in 1862 for those who followed the Underground Railroad to Owen Sound.  I am well aware that recent protests have underscored the fact that Canada did allow slavery, until 1834, as part of the British Empire.  American slaves used the Underground Railroad, a network of safe houses, until the U.S. abolished slavery in 1865 in the 13th Amendment, so it's this historical period that is referred to.

They marched back and we were able to move up, getting a picture of them at the memorial.

We went on for our walk and returned to see more filming, this time with the town crier reading out a speech.  Listening to his deep booming voice I understood how he got the job.

Then the trees and this cameraman obscured them, but I was glad to hear enough of the speech to realize that it was not just platitudes; it had been updated to refer to George Floyd's death and the ensuing recent Black Lives Matter protests, one of which happened right here in Owen Sound, here at this memorial.