The Kemptville District Hospital (KDH) Auxiliary has made the difficult decision to cancel Hey Day 2020, scheduled for June 12 and 13. This would have been the historic sixtieth edition of the Auxiliary’s major annual fundraiser for KDH.
“In light of the amount of advance preparation involved, and the uncertainty around the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, we felt we needed to make this decision now,” explained Hey Day Convenor, Jolene Stover.
Held annually at the North Grenville Curling Club in Kemptville, Hey Day is one of the largest indoor garage sales in Ontario, attracting legions of bargain hunters, collectors, and treasure seekers. The fundraiser is made possible by its hundreds of dedicated volunteers who come back year after year to help.
“The Auxiliary would like to thank the many volunteers who would have joined us again this year as they always have, and the new volunteers who had already stepped up for 2020,” said Jolene. “We also want to thank the local businesses who would have supported us again with donations of much needed supplies and equipment. Without their support, Hey Day would not be the success that it is every year.
“And finally, we want to thank all of our neighbours, friends and family who have been saving items to donate. We truly appreciate it and if possible we ask you to tuck them away for next year!”
KDH’s ‘resident historian’, Lynne Clifford-Ward, noted that Hey Day has only been cancelled one other time in its history: this was in 1967 during Canada’s centennial year, when the ageing Kemptville Arena, Hey Day’s home at the time, was demolished. In place of Hey Day that year, the KDH Auxiliary held a mammoth Centennial Garden Party on the campus of the Kemptville Agricultural School. It featured booths with candy, jam and jellies, a baking table and a wedding dress parade.
“It is poignant that this is also the hospital’s sixtieth anniversary year,” Lynne commented. KDH opened its doors to the public on June 29, 1960.
All of the funds raised at Hey Day are donated to KDH to be used for the direct benefit of patients. Since its founding in 1959, the KDH Auxiliary has raised well over $1 million dollars for the hospital, thanks in large part to Hey Day’s success year over year.
“It has been a privilege to convene Hey Day for the past few years”, Jolene Stover stated, “and I will miss the coming together of this amazing community. I am looking forward to the next Hey Day, on June 11 and 12, 2021, and hope to see you all there!”
