Making Global Connections
By Gerry Bird
On two occasions in the past I’ve had the pleasure of accompanying small delegations of Lakefield students and staff to South Africa to attend Round Square International Conferences. Highlights of both trips were the pre- and post-conference tours we participated in that were organized by Dave Carr, the Round Square Representative for St. Cyprian’s School in Cape Town, and Paul Rhodes of Bundi Tours. In 2012 we joined delegations from half a dozen other Round Square schools for an 11-day overland camping trip along the Garden Route of South Africa’s southwestern coast, while a year ago in the fall of 2017, we found ourselves exploring Namibia’s arid landscape in Paul’s rugged overland truck/bus, followed by a 4-day rafting trip down the magnificent Orange River which forms Namibia’s southern border with South Africa.
Last month, it was our turn to repay the hospitality as Dave had approached me about organizing a pre-conference experience in the Lakefield area for his school’s delegation of six girls and himself, in advance of the Round Square International Conference that we would all be attending in Montreal near the end of September. In discussing the idea with my Global Learning colleagues, Vicky Boomgaardt and Tim Rollwagen, I think our initial question was likely “What does our area have to offer that could possibly compare with Cape Town’s rugged coastline and spectacular Table Mountain?” But looking at our own picturesque part of Southern Ontario through the lens of a first-time visitor, we began to imagine the possibilities.
From the moment the South African group arrived on September 13, they became immersed in the culture and landscape of the Kawarthas and Lakefield College School. Hosting them was truly a team effort on the part of our school community. Much to the surprise of the visitors, our Head of School, Anne-Marie Kee, had generously opened up her home and hosted the six St. Cyprian’s girls for the first two nights of their stay. Later they would be billeted with the families of two Grade 10 LCS students, Fiona Hickie and Abigayle Strano, to whom we are all extremely grateful. Our sincere thanks also go out to LCS’ Coordinator of International Student Affairs Jen Horrigan, for organizing and hosting a wonderful cross-cultural dinner for the South African visitors and the student members of the LCS International Club.
Surprisingly, one of the highlights of their visit for the South African students turned out to be taking the LCS day student bus between their host families’ homes and the school each day. It turns out that they had only seen yellow school buses in Hollywood movies and so they got a real kick out of the daily commute.
The first day of the pre-conference tour featured a scenic river cruise along the Trent-Severn Waterway and passing through the famed Peterborough Liftlock. We then visited the Canadian Canoe Museum where, in the Inuit tradition, the girls carved soapstone figurines and learned about the historical importance of the canoe to the original First Nation inhabitants of the area, in the early exploration of the Canadian wilderness by Europeans, and to the economy of the Lakefield-Peterborough over the past century and a half.
The next morning, we embarked on a “wilderness” canoe adventure of our own with a three-day trip through the picturesque Kawartha Highlands Provincial Park. Both Fiona and Abigayle joined us for the canoe trip which was led by two outstanding guides from The Land Canadian Adventures. It was a far cry from the previous paddling experience the St. Cyprian’s girls had enjoyed - navigating the Orange River in inflatable rafts - but they quickly became comfortable with balancing and steering the tippy canoes. The weather was unseasonably hot – more like July than mid-September – which made the portages a little more challenging, but there was little complaining. Highlights of the trip included the rugged Canadian Shield landscape, enjoying a cool swim at the end of each day’s paddling, marveling at the star-filled sky and sharing stories by the campfire, and even seeing a beaver – Canada’s national animal – up close, in the shallow water near our final night’s campsite.
Upon returning from the park, the visitors were ready for some more urban, commercialized sightseeing so the following day we headed for Niagara Falls. After a thorough soaking aboard one of the Hornblower (formerly Maid of the Mist) boats, the group explored the sights and sounds of the tourist hotspot, Clifton Hill, followed by a quick stop on the way home for some retail therapy at the Niagara Outlet Mall.
The next day we visited Petroglyphs Provincial Park where a knowledgeable guide from Curve Lake First Nation interpreted the significance of the images – Canada’s largest known concentration of Indigenous rock carvings (petroglyphs) – to the local Ojibway (Nishnaabe) people. After some free time in Peterborough, the girls retired to their host families’ homes to pack and catch up on some sleep, in preparation for the next phase of their Canadian adventure.
The following morning, the St. Cyprian’s students said goodbye to their LCS friends and along with Abigayle, Lakefield’s lone student delegate, we drove to the town of Cobourg and boarded a train bound for Montreal and the annual Round Square International Conference.
School Information
4391 County Road 29, Lakefield Ontario K0L 2H0 705.652.3324 admissions@lcs.on.ca
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Lakefield College School is a private, coeducational boarding and day school for students in grades 9 through 12, located in Lakefield, Ontario, Canada.
We respectfully acknowledge that Lakefield College School is located on the Treaty 20 Michi Saagiig territory and in the traditional territory of the Michi Saagiig and Chippewa Nations, collectively known as the Williams Treaties First Nations, which include: Curve Lake, Hiawatha, Alderville, Scugog Island, Rama, Beausoleil, and Georgina Island First Nations. Lakefield College School respectfully acknowledges that the Williams Treaties First Nations are the stewards and caretakers of these lands and waters in perpetuity and that they continue to maintain this responsibility to ensure their health and integrity for generations to come.
We respectfully acknowledge that Lakefield College School is located on the Treaty 20 Michi Saagiig territory and in the traditional territory of the Michi Saagiig and Chippewa Nations, collectively known as the Williams Treaties First Nations, which include: Curve Lake, Hiawatha, Alderville, Scugog Island, Rama, Beausoleil, and Georgina Island First Nations. Lakefield College School respectfully acknowledges that the Williams Treaties First Nations are the stewards and caretakers of these lands and waters in perpetuity and that they continue to maintain this responsibility to ensure their health and integrity for generations to come.
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