Start light, star bright

Too bad, not tonight.

Saturday evening Steve Plummer, an amateur astrophotographer, joined us at the Centre to share his hobby. We had hoped for clear skies to allow for some actual stargazing but Mother Nature had other plans and blessed us with a snow storm instead. However all was not lost as the organizers had arranged a great chilli dinner, followed by Steve's presentation (indoors, of course). 

Over the next couple of hours Steve talked about his progression from being a simple telescope user to now being able to take spectacular images of deep space objects that are millions of light years away. He described the technology he used (complicated) and shared with us numerous photos he had taken of the sun, moon, planets, various nebulae, and distant galaxies. And he answered dozens of questions on everything from the technology he used to what can be seen with binoculars, the naked eye, or even a basic cell phone camera. (If you want a simple free app that maps the night sky in real time, check out Skyview Lite, available on Apple and Android app stores.)

I expect all who attended came away with a great appreciation of Steve's skill in creating the images he shared, but probably more so with a deeper respect of the vastness of the cosmos and the unimaginable number of deep sky objects that exist both within and beyond our own Milky Way galaxy. Perhaps some will even dust off that old telescope (moi) while others may look at the night-time sky with a greater appreciation of it's beauty and boundlessness. 

Thank you Steve. And thank you Jacqueline for arranging this Live 'n Learn session. 

And thank you to all the DWLC volunteers who prepared the meal and some fabulous desserts, acted as busboys, and did kitchen and cleanup duty.

Live 'n Learn - India

Twelve years ago Sue Munro (brave soul that she is) took a group of 14 high school students on a 3-week trip to a tiny, isolated village in the northernmost part of India, up tight to the Himalayas. Today she shared that experience with us.

But first we had to have breakfast. After all, learning on an empty stomach is known to be ill advised. And, once again, the DWLC crew came through delivering a great meal with a wide variety of goodies to satisfy anyone's appetite. So kudos to the kitchen and clean-up crews. Well done everyone!

And now back to the main event.

To say the village was off the beaten path does a disservice to beaten paths. The villagers eke out a subsistence living farming poor soil on the heavily terraced sides of a mountain. Daily life consists primarily of completing the many tasks needed to put food on the table for themselves and to feed their livestock. If they are fortunate enough to have a cow, or some goats, they'll have some milk and cheese, but also more mouths to feed. There is no running water and few homes have electricity. Those that do are lucky to get an hour or so of power every few days. Homes are multi-generational and cramped, often shared with any livestock that can generate some much-needed heat during the cold winter months. Interestingly it is the women who bear the burden of all this back-breaking work while the men spend their days just hanging out with other men. Many of the villagers had never ventured beyond the walls of the valley into which they were born.

It's been thus for many, many generations. 

Now imagine 14 teenagers from well-to-do Toronto families being dropped into this environment, billeted with local families where no one speaks English, and Big Macs are definitely not on the menu. The culture shock was as enormous as the learning opportunity for these young people.

That experience is what Sue shared in a fascinating talk that could have gone on for hours. Her photos accompanied by her cultural and social commentary gave those in attendance a vivid glimpse into life in a small community in a part of the world that none of us will likely ever see, or can even contemplate. 

Thank you Sue for an entertaining and insightful presentation.

2025!

Happy New Year, and welcome to 2025.

It seems like Y2K was just last week’s news, not that of a quarter century ago. But time marches on, unconcerned with our feelings or perceptions. 

There’s an ancient Chinese proverb/curse that says, “May you live in interesting times.” And 2025 is certainly shaping up to be all of that. Whether your personal interest is politics, or technology, or sociology there is sure to be something that will either please or infuriate you (or both) in the coming months. 

But in the midst of all that ‘sturm und drang’ there is a small sea of tranquility at the Darling White Lake Centre, where your friends and neighbours come together for fun and relaxation. Most days of the week see some sort of activity at the Centre, whether it’s Tuesday’s knitter-knatter, Wednesday yoga, Thursday coffee hub, or Friday’s darts. Toss in the odd special event such as a Live ’n Learn session (in March it’s Dr. Zoe Bunnell talking about eye care), crafting, or line dancing lessons and the Centre is a busy place indeed.

There’s something for everyone, so come on out.

And, as always, kudos go out to all the volunteers who so selflessly contribute their time and efforts to making the Centre a success. 

We look forward to seeing you in 2025.

WLPOA - 2024 Merry Mingle

On November 30, the White Lake Property Owners Association held their 2024 Merry Mingle at the Centre, bringing together 36 'Minglers' to enjoy a great meal and lots of laughs. A heartfelt thank you goes out to the WLPOA, the organizers, the decorators, the volunteers, and all those who contributed prizes and food. (The venison meatballs were my personal favourite.) 

As this is the last post of the year, we at the Darling White Lake Centre wish you and yours the very best of the holiday season. Merry Christmas!

We are not alone

While this blog is specifically related to the Darling White Lake Centre, it is not the only group that operates within our small community.

The earliest established local organization is the White Lake Property Owners Association. Dating back to the original Snye Road Owners in the late 1950’s the WLPOA has evolved and continues to advocate for the residents of the area. They were also instrumental in getting DWLC off the ground, assisting with early days fundraising and working with the Township to advance the project. No longer directly involved with the Centre the WLPOA continues to be one of our strongest supporters.

After the closure of the Snye Road fire hall, a local group saw the potential value in using the now-vacant building as a sports venue, specifically for a pickleball court.  After a lot of work by volunteers the White Lake Sports Centre came into being in 2023 and pickleball became the local sport of choice for residents who wished to maintain an active lifestyle without having to travel to Arnprior or Ottawa. Badminton is also available if desired.

Most recently, a 3rd group was established, the Highlands North Network. This organization acts as a resource hub supporting the Lanark Highlands community centres located north of Lanark Village. This support includes coordinated access to funding sources, including provincial and county grants, information sharing between centres, and the creation and promotion of events and activities that benefit the community as a whole.

We are certainly well-served by the volunteers who run these groups and who, collectively, make the Darling White Lake area a true community. Please give them your support.

I have been somewhat remiss in maintaining this blog since the last post in August. Rest assured, the doors have not been closed; in fact there’s been lots of activity at the Centre since then.

The Labor Day weekend saw a celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Centre opening its doors for the first time in 2014. Hosted in conjunction with the White Lake Property Owners, approximately 40 people came out for a delicious feed of fresh corn and BBQ hamburgers and hot dogs.

September also saw the annual fall clean-up at the Centre. Outdoors, the property was cleared of dead trees, and inside, a dedicated crew brought the building back to its normal spic-and-span condition.

In October, the Centre hosted the Ottawa Heart Institute for a Valvular Heart Screening clinic. 37 individuals from the community took advantage of this free, potentially life-saving, clinic, part of the Ottawa Heart Institutes outreach program. (For a recent Ottawa Citizen story, click here. (https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/ottawas-heart-institute-is-going-mobile-to-catch-heart-disease)

Yoga, Knitter-knatter, and Darts have all started up again for the winter. These are among the most popular activities (along with year-round Coffee Hub) that local residents host at the Centre for their friends and neighbours in the community.

You might also have noted that the banner for this blog (just below the photo) now includes a link to an aerial video shot of the Centre and surrounding environment. This video is part of a series undertaken by Highlands North Network to document all the centres within its purview.

So, in closing, a heartfelt thank you goes out to all those volunteers who keep the Centre operating as a valued social hub for the community; it’s a great place to spend a few winter-weary hours with your neighbours, participating in various recreational activities.

And if you have any suggestions for other activities that would be of interest, please reach out to us at darlingwhitelakecentre@gmail.com and we will be pleased to help you get up and running.

Good samaritans

With the closing of the Snye Road fire station, a local group, headed up by Dan White and Matt Moffitt, have been busy trying to become established as a resource available to assist in medical emergencies while awaiting paramedic/ambulance services from outside the immediate area.

An obvious requirement for anyone participating is they be well trained in basic first aid.

To that end, the Darling White Lake Centre has been made available as a training venue for the group, the first sessions of which were recently successfully held.

The following is a note received from the organizers, as well as some photos from the sessions. 

Thanks to all the participants for their commitment to the health and safety of area residents.

Good Afternoon,

I hope this message finds you well.

I wanted to extend our heartfelt thanks to the Darling White Lake Community Center’s volunteers and committee members for allowing us to use your facility for our CPR and AED training sessions. Your support was instrumental in making these sessions a great success.

We were thrilled to be able to certify 25 individuals during the two training sessions. The positive feedback we received was overwhelmingly favorable. Several participants who had never visited the community center before were particularly impressed by how clean, well-kept, and organized the facility is.

Thank you once again for your generosity and support. We truly appreciate it and look forward to future opportunities to work together.

Sincerely ,

Matt , Dan