FINCH – The Ontario East British Home Child Family is pleased to announce the organization’s annual general meeting on Tues., May 22, which will be held at the South Nation Conservation head office located at 38 Victoria Street in Finch.

Prior to the AGM, a ceremony will be held in the gazebo located at McIntosh Park on County Road 12 in Berwick beginning at 5 p.m. to dedicate a Native Red Maple Tree. This tree has been donated in commemoration of the contribution of British Home Children in the local area and across this country.

The planting of a Native Red Maple Tree in McIntosh Park continues a tradition begun when then SDSG MP Jim Brownell arranged to have a Native Red Maple Tree planted at Aultsville Station in memory of British Home Children on Sept. 28, 2011 the first British Home Child Day in Ontario. A Native Red Maple Tree was planted on the grounds of the Loyalist and NorWesters Museum in Williamstown where the commemorative weekend activities were held in late September 2017.

Following the tree dedication, people are invited to attend the AGM being held at South Nation Conservation. A social hour is planned from 5:30 to 6 p.m., followed by a relaxed dinner featuring pizza from Fat Les’s in Finch accompanied by fresh vegetables, dessert with hot and cold beverages and the opportunity to meet guest speaker Maggie Wheeler author of All My Worldly Goods her latest Farran MacKenzie Lost Villages Mystery which features as a main theme – British Home Children.

The Ontario East British Home Child Family was formed in 2011 to promote the story of British Home Children locally, provincially and nationally. Their website can be found at www.onteastbritishhomechildfamily.com.