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CTV News
36 minutes ago
- CTV News
‘Victoria Park, Home County, inseparable': Home County Festival returns after hiatus
Music fans packed into the centre of Victoria Park Saturday as hometown singer Leanne Mayer kicked off the return of the Home County Music and Art Festival (HCMAF). 'Victoria Park, Home County, they're inseparable,' said Bev Camp, known as the 'Dancing Cowboy' and a fixture at local festivals. 'This is the life of the city, even for a day. Look at the people here from all over. Same as Sunfest, it's the best.' The 49th annual HCMAF returned to Victoria Park two years after organizers with the Home County Folk League (HCFL) paused due to financial constraints. Home County Music and Art Festival 2025 Bev Camp, known as the 'Dancing Cowboy' is a fixture at London, Ont. music festivals (Brent Lale/CTV News London) A year ago, they held a small festival at London Brewing Coop. This year they came back downtown with just one stage instead of five. 'It's a testament to Londoners love of Home County,' said Artistic Director Darin Addison about the large afternoon crowd. 'We normally have five stages, going on all at the same time so there's something for everybody. If they don't like what's on one side, they go to another stage. So we had to be very meticulous about who we put on the stage. We want something that's going to appeal to a broader audience. I think we've done a great job with the lineup.' That lineup included Mayer, a contemporary singer-songwriter, as the opening act. Home County Music and Art Festival 2025 Leanne Mayer of London, Ont. opens the 49th annual Home County Music and Art Festival at Victoria Park on Saturday, July 26, 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) 'It's an honour to be included in the lineup, especially in a shortened group,' said Mayer, who last played the festival in 2019. 'I've been lucky to get a lot of support from London. Home County is London's gem. Everybody loves Home County, all the Indie musicians, so it means the world to me to be included.' This year, the HCFL was taking donations at the park and asking patrons to also spend money in their beer garden or with the vendors. Organizers will assess this year's festival and then regroup as they look toward planning next year's event. Home County Music and Art Festival 2025 Hundreds of people packed the lawn at Victoria Park for the 49th annual Home County Music and Art Festival on Saturday, July 26, 2025. (Brent Lale/CTV News London) 'If we get the donations and the turnout, then that's certainly going to be inspiration to bring it back to a three-day festival and next year will be the 50th. The HCFL's new fiscal year begins in September, so they'll start talking about a return to a three-day event. 'We've got 11 months to put it together,' said Addison.


CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
‘Nowhere else I'd rather be': Africville reunion kicks off in Halifax
Hundreds gathered at Halifax's historic Africville community Saturday, in celebration of the 42nd annual Africville reunion. It was a time for people to kickback with one another, all while commemorating the historic Black community's resilient history. Africville was bulldozed in the 1960s, after the city forced people to make room for what it called an 'urban renewal.' Many of Africville's former residents and descendants were in attendance, celebrating the annual reunion. 'I am a descendant of Africville. My mom was born and raised in Africville. So coming down here is so important to me,' says Saundria Rolle, the owner of Sunlight Designs & Co. ''I'm really happy that everyone's back. The community is here and it's really showing our resilience.' The event also made way for African Nova Scotian businesses, who got the opportunity to put their products on display. 'It's hard for small businesses here in Nova Scotia and then to be African Nova Scotian... I mean, it can be even more difficult. So being able to have that opportunity to network, showcase my work is really, really good,' says Rolle. Saturday's event schedule featured no shortage of food, games and music, as community members flocked to the site amid sunny conditions. Africville Reunion Hundreds gathered at Halifax's historic Africville community Saturday. (Vanessa Wright/CTV News) 'I've always been loving to go back here. It feels like a really good place to be at home, and there's really nowhere else I'd rather be than this place,' says attendee Cedele Elijah Morton Ross. Like many in attendance, Ross has strong family ties to Africville. 'My grandmother, Bonnie Ross, was actually a young resident here in Africville before it was torn down. She told me many stories about how she grew up here…I learned so much stuff about this place through my father, my aunts, my uncles,' he says. 'It's honestly just nothing else but a beautiful community.' The Africville reunion celebrations will continue through until Sunday. For more Nova Scotia news, visit our dedicated provincial page

CTV News
an hour ago
- CTV News
A milestone celebration on Sask. golf course
Regina Watch WATCH: A birthday celebration for a 100-year-old man who still golfs every day was held on Friday. Mick Favel has the story.