DUNROBIN – It’s a brand new Canada Day party for West Carleton and its going to light up Dunrobin.

The Eagle Creek Golf Club is hosting “a Canada Day celebration of friends, music and fireworks,” on July 1, under the moniker of Light Up Dunrobin 2019.

Thanks to continued tornado fallout in the community, the Dunrobin Community Centre which usually hosts Canada Day activities in the area, is unavailable due to debris on their fields. The idea of having a special event at Eagle Creek was discussed at the Dunrobin Community Association’s annual general meeting held last winter. Eagle Creek director of operations Ryan Little loved the idea.

Little sat down with West Carleton Online the day before (May 7) the golf club’s official opening day to talk about Light Up Dunrobin, an event that continues to grow even as summer approaches (allegedly).

Just last October, the club raised $45,000 for disaster relief following the tornado. With the West Carleton community now battling a third natural disaster in only two years, the golf club continues to play an important role in the healing.

“Now our event is going to be even more important,” Little said. “We’re hoping to draw from all over West Carleton. For myself, and a few club members and some members of our community, we wanted to do more. Let’s lift some spirits. It’s not really a fundraiser this time.”

And with a line-up of some of Canada’s fastest rising country music stars, those spirits will be lifted.

Headliner Kira Isabella is a Canadian country music singer signed to Sony Music in 2009. Since her debut, she’s had three Top 10 singles on the Billboard Canadian Top 100. In 2013 Isabella was named the Canadian Country Music Association Female Artist of the Year. Also performing at Light Up Dunrobin are the Cory James Mitchell Band, River City Junction, Kelly Prescott and The Retrogrades.

The concert runs from 3 to 9:30 p.m. The evening will be capped off by fireworks sponsored in part by the Dunrobin Community Association. There will be food trucks, there’s a buffet dinner option “there’s a lot of cool options,” Little said.

The event is being emceed by Boom 99.7 FM’s Jon “Gonzo” Mark on the beautifully landscaped grounds of Eagle Creek Golf Club. Other members of the organizing committee include Lynda Boland, Liz Armitage, Elizabeth McCalden, Kelly Greig, Jamie Greig, Kim Wood and Kelly Carlson.

While Light Up Dunrobin is not a fundraiser, organizers are working hard to make sure those who have been affected by the tornado, and now the flood, get a chance to be part of West Carleton’s biggest Canada Day ever.

 Light Up Dunrobin has a family sponsorship program that will allow affected families to attend the event.

“We’re still looking for more sponsors,” Little said. “We already have some great corporations stepping up but, even if you can’t make it, sponsor a family who needs a break. I would love to host it year after year. Maybe not on the scale of this year but let’s cross this bridge first.”

Families affected by flooding and/or the tornado needing support to attend have registered with the organizing committee.

“We’re going to give them the VIP treatment,” Little said.

While tickets are required for the music portion (kids get in free), the fireworks, sponsored in part by the Dunrobin Community Association, are open to the public. To purchase tickets, become a sponsor or for more information, visit the Light Up Dunrobin webpage.