Port Robinson Community Centre ready to welcome people back in with Santa Brunch

After an extended closure because of Covid-19, and a renovation to the building, The Port Robinson Community Centre is finally ready to open its doors again, to host a brunch with Santa on Sunday, December 19.

Says Marty Wilson, chair of the community centre’s board, “The community centre just re-opened on the third of December. This is our first event and we can’t wait. It’s wonderful to be able to welcome people back in.”

Because of Covid-19, the community centre had to find other ways of staying active within the community in the past two years. So they put on photo competitions, like this month’s #elfie contest, where residents are asked to posts selfies in front of elf hats that are put up all around Port Robinson.

Says Wilson, “All last Christmas we couldn’t do an indoor event. That’s when we came up with ‘Take an #elfie’. We try to keep the community engaged even though we couldn’t hold our usual (events). Truthfully we’ve done a little bit more of that kind of stuff this past year because of COVID. We never used to do anything for Canada Day and Halloween but we did this past year. We kind of worked around Covid and still kept in touch with the community.”

The City of Thorold took advantage of the community centre being closed to install brand new washrooms, but the renovation of the community centre already started a few years ago.

“We were setting up for the ladies tea and two fellas from the community walked in and one of them said, ‘Marty I want to donate new trim for in here,’ and the other fella who happened to be a local contractor said, ‘And I want to donate my time to put it up for you’. And from there things just snowballed. We painted, got new flooring in the back room, and a new ceiling.”

Wilson says Port Robinson is a close-knit community whose members look out for each other, and she hopes the City of Thorold will keep investing in the community centre.

“The community, that’s why I do this, that’s why I spend my time there. Because of the community and the response that we get for almost everything that we do. With the investments of new washrooms, that assures me a little bit that the City is going to keep the doors open.”

There are still spots available for the brunch with Santa on Sunday, December 19 at 12pm. Proof of vaccination is required. To register, please email [email protected].