Crowd braves hot, humid weather to celebrate Canada Day in Kincardine

By: Liz Dadson July 2, 2026 489

Crowd braves hot, humid weather to celebrate Canada Day in Kincardine

It had to be one of the hottest days on record but a great crowd braved the weather to celebrate Canada Day in Kincardine, Wednesday.

Thousands enjoyed the Canada Day Parade and then gathered at the bottom of Harbour Street for the ceremony, followed by activities in Macpherson and Dunsmoor Parks.

The parade formed up in Victoria Park, marching over to Queen Street, and down Harbour Street to the flag pole.

Leading the parade, were the Kincardine Legion Colour Party, the Kincardine Air Cadets, Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary, and the Kincardine Scottish Pipe Band, followed by one of the Kincardine fire trucks and the Bruce Shriners (which travelled only to Huron Terrace), as well as Kincardine Scouting, Ontario Power Generation (OPG), the South Bruce 4-H Dairy Club, and the Kincardine Skating Club.

The Kincardine Canada Day Parade marches down Harbour Street to the flag pole

MC Tracy Primeau welcomed everyone to Canada's 159th birthday.

Kincardine councillor Beth Blackwell gave the land acknowledgement, and mayor Kenneth Craig told the crowd this is a fabulous country to live in, with its rich history, and Kincardine, too, has a rich history.

"We remember the people who have gone before us - Christine Sinclair, Terry Fox," he said, "and in Kincardine, we think of Maureen, Tony, Chandra, Mike, Don and Charlie. Happy Canada Day, everyone! We're glad you're here to celebrate with us!"

Christine John of the Saugeen Ojibway Nation sang the national anthem in Ojibway, French and English.

From there, it was into Macpherson Park and Dunsmoor Park to enjoy numerous activities throughout the afternoon, including games, a foam machine, and balloon animals for the children, the Kincardine Lions barbecue, and musical entertainment.

The Kincardine Legion also hosted a Canada Day celebration, featuring HWY 19, on the makeshift patio in the parking lot.

In the late afternoon, a brief rainstorm hit, clearing the Legion patio but the rain didn't last long, and in fact, it felt good after the sweltering heat.

Duncan and Lesley Hawthorne were on hand to announce the winner of the Kin Cares 50/50 draw: Tanya Leppington, who won $9,600. The draw is in support of the Legion, and the Kincardine and Community Health Care Foundation for the redevelopment project at the Kincardine Hospital.

Duncan Hawthorne said Kincardine will reach the $18-million goal for the hospital project because of the huge community support here. "Congratulations to all of you for raising more than $14-million. You're going to reach your goal because of the goodwill in this community."

The Hawthornes then donated $10,000 to the Legion and $10,000 to the hospital foundation.

Meanwhile, the stormy weather caused the Canada Day fireworks, scheduled for dusk at the Kincardine Harbour, to be postponed. They have been tentatively re-scheduled to Friday, July 3, (tomorrow).