Globe's "Juno Beach" Connection

"The War Show" of 2007 and our Juno Beach Connection

By Lois Fraser

The War show was a very meaningful and touching experience for all involved. For me personally, it was the most meaningful musical that I have ever been in or associated with. Our cast, production crew and many in audience were moved to tears on many occasions. We performed for many veterans during the run at the Norval hall and then we did a special show at the Legion in Georgetown.

Several of us were crying so hard at the Legion show, that it was hard to get the lines out. To commemorate this special time and the connection that we all felt towards the veterans who were we were portraying, I bought a brick at Juno Beach in honour of our brave Canadians. It seemed a fitting way to pay tribute to the thanks that we all felt.

Our thanks, Nanci and Mark for taking the time to find this brick at the Juno Beach Centre so that all of us at Globe can see it and remember! Lois

A brief recap of the significance of Juno Beach for Canadians...

Juno Beach - The Canadians On D-Day
(Excerpt taken from http://members.shaw.ca/junobeach/index.htm)

"On D-Day, June 6, 1944, “Operation Overlord”, the long-awaited invasion of Nazi-occupied Europe, began with Allied armies from the U.S., Britain and Canada landing on the coast of Normandy. On D-Day, the 3rd Canadian Infantry Division landed on Juno Beach. The Canadian assault troops stormed ashore in the face of fierce opposition from German strongholds and mined beach obstacles. The soldiers raced across the wide-open beaches swept with machine gun fire, and stormed the gun positions. In fierce hand-to-hand fighting, they fought their way into the towns of Bernières, Courseulles and St. Aubin and then advanced inland, securing a critical bridgehead for the allied invasion. The victory was a turning point in World War II and led to the liberation of Europe and the defeat of Nazi Germany.

Fourteen thousand young Canadians stormed Juno Beach on D-Day. Their courage, determination and self-sacrifice were the immediate reasons for the success in those critical hours. The fighting they endured was fierce and frightening. The price they paid was high - the battles for the beachhead cost 340 Canadian lives and another 574 wounded. John Keegan, eminent British historian who wrote Six Armies in Normandy, stated the following concerning the Canadian 3rd Division on D-Day: “At the end of the day, its forward elements stood deeper into France than those of any other division. The opposition the Canadians faced was stronger than that of any other beach save Omaha. That was an accomplishment in which the whole nation could take considerable pride.”

For more information on Canada's involvement at Juno Beach:

Wikipedia

The Juno Beach Centre

David Olive - The Toronto Star

ACT-CO General Meeting

A Letter from ACT-CO President,  Anne Currie-O'Brien...

Hi Everyone,

We are winding down to the end of yet another successful season of community theatre. The Theatre Ontario Festival is fast approaching and most ACT-CO community groups are currently mounting or in rehearsals for their last shows.

It is also time for our ACT-CO Annual General Meeting and this year's shindig will happen at the Curtain Club Theatre at 400 Newkirk Road in Richmond Hill on Monday, June 6th with sign-in starting at 7:00pm and the meeting to commence at 7:30pm. (please visit the website at thecurtainclub.org for further directions and there is free parking available) As per usual, if you are not currently on the ACT-CO board, and you attend the meeting, you will receive a ballot and could possibly win your theatre group's ACT-CO membership for the 2011-2012 season - how's that for yet another reason to come and join in on the FUN!!!

Please come and learn more about what has happened over the year and consider joining the board! We are always looking for volunteers and this is one of the best opportunities to see some great shows, create long lasting friendships and learn some tips and tricks about the various aspects of theatre. We also look to you, our members, for feedback on the services we currently provide and how we can support even better in the future.

This year, in addition to our AGM, you will have the opportunity to tour the recently renovated Curtain Club Theatre and hear all about the 2011 Theatre Ontario Festival which will have wrapped up right in Richmond Hill on the May long weekend. (try not to miss it!)

Attached you will find the agenda for the AGM, minutes of last year's AGM and the President's award form. Please complete the form and submit it asap if you have someone from your group that you would like to recognize.

Hope to see you soon.

Cam & Anne
(President and Secretary)

ACT-CO Searching for New Board Members

ACT-CO Groups,

Your Group is a member of ACT-CO and benefits from the services ACT-CO provides. These services are only possible through the efforts of the ACT-CO Board. The ACT-CO Board of Directors is a made up of volunteers from Groups such as yours. Some people serve on the Board for many years and finally decide that they’ve done enough. Other people serve for only a few years and, for various reasons, find that they can’t continue. The upshot is that, every year, ACT-CO is in need of volunteers to run for election to the Board.

If your Group has sent members to the ACT-CO Board in the last few years (or perhaps over many years) then you have done your “duty” and can ignore this request with a clear conscience (but don’t discourage willing persons from volunteering anyway). If your Group has NEVER, or hasn’t for a long time, nominated members to the ACT-CO Board, I URGE (beg?) you to survey your members and encourage them to consider the ACT-CO Board. Please contact all of your members as soon as possible to inform them of this OPPORTUNITY to contribute to the Theatre community. While being on the Board isn’t FUN, FUN, FUN all the time, sometimes it is. And you get to know so much about Theatre and Theatre Groups it’s almost illegal.

New members to the Board usually join as Director-Without-Portfolio and, over time, discover what role they best suit on the Board. The portfolio most sought after (there is usually a fistfight over who is going to get it! J) is SECRETARY, so I recommend that you advise interested candidates to get they’re nominations in ASAP.

Nominations should come to us by June 1st but it is also possible to nominate candidates from the floor at the ACT-CO Annual General Meeting on June 6th. Click here for a Nomination Form.

You are the only way ACT-CO has of communicating directly with our Groups (we do not have a general mailing list of all your members) so please help us get this important request out to your members as soon as possible.

Email nominations to either:

John Wyman: actcomembership@actco.ca

Vicki Drier: actco_vdrier@actco.ca

Thank you in advance,

John Wyman
Vicki Drier
2011/2012 Nomination Committee