Reprinted from The Packet, August 6, 2009
by Barbara Dean-Simmons
Southport swells with pride at weekend reunion
(Click on photos to enlarge)
Eight hundred pounds of potatoes.
And that was just for the supper.
That’s what it took to make enough beet, mustard and potato/vegetable salad to feed the 500 people who came to the Southport reunion dinner on Saturday evening.
Joyce Avery was a member of the committee in charge of planning and preparing the meals for the reunion weekend.
Alvin Avery (right) and his brother Hayward geared up for the Southport Reunion this past weekend, catching a couple of fish to feed a few visitors. The celebration brought hundreds from far and wide to relive the joys of their hometown and reunite with f
Once the first 250 were seated and fed, the committee had to clear the tables, and set them again for the second 250.
Still, that was easier than the first plan they had.
“First we were going to have four settings, using two smaller halls at Southport. But then the school at Little Heart’s Ease was offered to us.”
In addition to the main meal, the committee also laid out dozens of snack trays for Friday evening’s ‘meet and greet.’
Avery is not sure of the total amount of food used, but she does know they used up 15 pounds of cheese, a couple dozen boxes of crackers, and 50 litres of pop to make the fruit punch.
Pulling the reunion together took lots of effort by several people.
It began two summers ago, with Avery’s annual summer cookout in her backyard for family and folks from away.
Someone expressed the thought, ‘why not have a reunion?’
Over the next several months Joyce, Norma Spurrell, Mary Lambert and several others formed a committee and got to work figuring out what needed to be done, and who would do it, to bring together everyone who had any connection to Southport.
Through a website, and word of mouth, they sent out invitations to whoever they could find. And the responses started pouring in.
Soon they were making preparations to feed 500 and deciding venue for various activities.
People started arriving for the reunion earlier in the week, coming from all over the province and Canada, and some from the United States.
The reunion officially got underway on Friday, with a ceremony to unveil flags in tribute to the families of Southport: the Averys, Deans,, Lamberts, Smiths, Spurrells, and Balsoms.
Mary Lambert Williams presented the Southport flag, which she designed for the reunion. It was hoisted to an almost breathless wind, until a slight breeze awoke to unfurl the standard.
As people trekked over the hill to see the unveiling of the memorial plaque, others took children to wander the rocky shoreline, and a water’s edge view that has been enjoyed by youngsters through the generations.
The sun beamed down as friends and family gathered for long overdue pictures and hugs and to exchange stories of events from their collective memories.
The harbour burst to life once again on Saturday, as people enjoyed punt races, concessions and games of chance, as well as entertainment by local musicians.
The celebrations continued into the wee hours of Sunday morning, as old friends danced through the night.
The event came to a close on Sunday, with a church service to give thanks for the chance to be together again, to celebrate Southport and those who still call it ‘home.’
For these three days, the normally quiet little outport came to life. Whether it was tales of childhood mischief on the water, enjoying a jiggs dinner with family, retracing childhood footsteps on familiar pathways, or landing a catch of cod for supper, the reunion gave complete meaning to the word “community” and made memories to last a few more lifetimes.
