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The CEC is proud to have been named the St. Margaret’s Bay Chamber of Commerce Member of the Year for 2021, in recognition of our work to support the community and enhance partnerships, particularly during COVID.

A member of the CEC’s reception team, Cindy Skerry, is shown with Chris Pelham, CEC president, after accepting the award.

Thanks to the St. Margaret’s Bay Gardening Club, the CEC’s front entrance is blooming with red zinnias, planted from seed as a gift to the CEC and the community by gardening club executive. The Plant Red campaign for the 2022 gardening season is a nation-wide encouragement to plant red flowers (and veggies!) in honour of first responders who worked with such dedication to us safe during the COVID pandemic.

In honour of National Indigenous Peoples Day on June 21, Sipekne’katik First Nation, one of the member organizations of the St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre (CEC), presented the CEC with the Band Council flag (often called the Mi’kmaq flag). Undaunted by the rain, a number of CEC members joined new CEC board member Brian Dorey (right), director of operations for Sipekne’katik, and Chris Pelham (left), CEC president, who placed the flag at the front of the CEC’s building, where it joins the flags of Canada and Nova Scotia. To learn more about the history of Sipekne’katik First Nation, visit sipeknekatik.ca/history.

A big thanks to everyone who submitted nonfiction essays and short fiction to this year’s Winter in the Bay art exhibit and writing contest, presented by the St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre, the Peggy’s Cove Area Festival of the Arts and The Masthead News. More than 50 stories were submitted. All the art in the exhibit and writing pieces submitted will be included in the Winter in the Bay 2022 book.

Nonfiction essays
First place, adult (tie): Jessi Fillmore, Twila Johnson
Third place, adult: Michelle Hollett
Special recognition, child: Katie Howard

Short fiction
First place, adult (tie): Margo Mosher-Swain, Baleigh McWade
Third place: Beth Sherwood
First place, teen: Laurel Davies
First place, child: Bannon Doucette
Second place, child: Sydney Power
Third place, child: Will Black
Honourable mention, child:
Willa Arenburg
Esmond Davis
Sophie Lizotte

The Community Enterprise Centre (CEC), the Peggy’s Cove Area Festival of the Arts (PCAFA), and The Masthead News are teaming up again this year to bring Winter in the Bay, an art exhibit and writing contest, to our area.

From February 4 to March 4, art by members of PCAFA will be on display at the CEC. The art is there to enjoy, but also to serve as inspiration for community members’ writing pieces. Most of the art on display is for sale. In addition to being available to view in person, art will also be displayed on Facebook. Visit www.facebook.com/SMBCEC for details.

All stories submitted to Winter in the Bay must select one of the pieces of art on display as their inspiration or illustration for their story. Writers may choose to submit a nonfiction essay or a fictional short story on the very broad topic of “Winter in the Bay.” Writers may submit only one story per category, but are welcome to submit in both story categories.

Nonfiction essays (maximum length, 400 words) should be either set in or refer to the St. Margaret’s Bay or Mahone Bay areas, but the story need not take place here. For example, one of last year’s adult winners, Joan Redmond, described escaping the Nova Scotia winter to spend the time sailing, only to be shipwrecked in the Caribbean.

Fictional short stories (maximum length, 2,500 words) should also be set in or refer to St. Margaret’s Bay or Mahone Bay. Again, the location can be simply a jumping-off point for the story. Last year’s stories included fantasy and science fiction, making St. Margaret’s Bay a very different place!

DEADLINE EXTENSION! The deadline for all stories is Friday, March 11 at 11:59 pm. Stories should be sent by email to outreach.smbcec@gmail.com. Local writers, editors and librarians will serve as judges. Writers should submit in one of three age categories: Ages 6-9, Ages 10-12, Ages 13 to adult. Consideration will be given by judges to age differences of writers within categories. All writers, regardless of their age, are welcome to have a friend, teacher or family member review and proofread the story before submission.

All stories must be submitted with the writer’s first and last name, email address and telephone number for contact purposes, and writers should grant permission for Winter in the Bay to publish their story. Writers under the age of 16 must submit their essays and short stories with first and last name, age, and contact information and permission to submit from a parent or guardian. Winter in the Bay organizers cannot accept stories from minors without that information.

Judging will take place later in March, and winners will be notified by email and/or telephone. Prizes will be awarded for first, second and third place in the three age categories. First-place nonfiction essays will be published in The Masthead News, and all the essays and stories submitted, not just winning entries, will be published in a book available to purchase, thanks to support from HRM Deputy Mayor Pam Lovelace and an HRM grant, and publishing support from The Masthead News.

Visit the Winter in the Bay project page for writing resources.

Huge thanks to our wonderful friends with the Safety Minded ATV Association, who spent Sunday, November 28 giving free hayrides to more than 70 families and groups!

Thanks also to The Rustic Crust for donating all those cups of hot chocolate, to volunteers from the Seniors Association of St. Margaret’s Bay for event coordination, and to the SMB Community Enterprise Centre for giving the event a home base.

Even Santa and Suzie Reindeer went on a hayride! See more on the second annual Suzie Reindeer’s Christmas in the Bay Show on Sunday, December 5 at 5:30 pm, here on Facebook!

You came, you shared, and together we raised over $2,500 for the St. Margaret’s Bay Food Bank. Thank you!

Special thanks to:

Our event partners, St. Margaret’s Bay Gardening Club, Seniors Association of St. Margaret’s Bay, Peggy’s Cove Area Festival of the Arts, Transition Bay St Margarets, Western Halifax Community Learning Network.

Our sponsors, Bay Equipment Rentals & Sales, Redmond’s Home Hardware, The Rustic Crust, NSLive.tv, We Create & Stamp.

Our supporters, Pam Lovelace HRM13, Ben Jessome, Danielle Barkhouse.

Our entertainers, Brian C. and the creators and performers of Troubling Joy: A Bicycle Puppet Circus.

The many donors of product and produce, our wonderful volunteers, and our neighbours, who came out to support the event. You are all amazing!

Making a welcome return to the summer line-up of wonderful activities in the Bay, The Peggy’s Cove Area Festival of the Arts (PCAFA) is back with three events in July. Two events, Paint Peggy’s Cove and the Studio Tour, are cherished cornerstones of the Festival, which started in 2010. The third event is new, a Members’ Exhibit at the Community Enterprise Centre.

With 100 member artists, PCAFA has reached a milestone of its most members ever, representing all ages, media, styles and area locations.

Here is more information on the three Festival events this year:

Paint Peggy’s Cove, July 10–12 (10 am–5 pm, Saturday and Sunday, 10 am–4 pm Monday)

A plein air event with over 40 artists creating new works at Peggy’s Cove. Works are on view and for sale the same day they are created. Visit 124 Peggy’s Cove Road in the village. A children’s art area offers free creative activities.

The Studio Tour, July 16 –18 (10 am–5 pm)

A showcase of the diverse works of over 70 local artists at more than 40 studios, community locations, and galleries. Chart your own free, self-guided tour and meet the artists. The tour is laid out online here: https://halifaxartmap.com/art-map/pcafa.

Stop One this year is the Community Enterprise Centre at 5229 St. Margaret’s Bay Road.

Members’ Art Exhibit, July 8–29 (hours vary, see below)

This show, at the St. Margaret’s Bay Community Enterprise Centre, 5229 St. Margaret’s Bay Road, offers works by 50 participating artists. Weekdays, 9 am–4 pm from July 8 to 29, 10 am–5 pm on July 10, 11, 17 and 18.

Throughout the Studio Tour weekend, visitors may enter their names in a draw for an art gift certificate worth $500.

For more information, visit www.peggyscoveareafestivalofthearts.com.

Image:  Gretchen Amirault, “Rockway Beach,” oil on canvas.

BayRides, the Community Enterprise Centre (CEC), and Bay Seniors are partners in a different kind of Friday happy hour in February, designed to lift the spirits of Bay residents who have difficulty getting out of the house and accessing the community.

BayRides is giving free rides to Bay residents who would appreciate an outing and don’t have access to a car. The funding for this comes from a grant from the Covid-19 Emergency Community Support Fund and United Way.

BayRides, Bay Seniors and the CEC are providing an afternoon excursion every Friday in February to bring up to 6 people to the CEC to see the Winter in the Bay art by Peggy’s Cove Area Festival of the Arts member artists and check out some of the Bay Seniors jewellery. A CEC receptionist and two Bay Seniors volunteers will host the visitors between 3 and 5.

Covid precautions are in place in the BayRides vehicle and at the CEC. To book a spot, call Lynn at BayRides at 902-820-6600. Please book at least 48 hours in advance.