So proud

Fort Frances was urged last week to “rock this house”—and did we ever!
Our enthusiasm, spirit, and hospitality was front and centre when the “Kraft Celebration Tour” came to town—culminating with the throng of people who turned out Sunday at the Sorting Gap Marina for the community barbecue and live broadcast of TSN’s “SportsCentre.”
Despite the scorching heat, with humidex values hitting at least 40 C, the crowd never let up—cheering wildly while waving signs and flags from the moment the show began until co-anchors Darren Dutchyshen and Jennifer Hedger signed off an hour later.
And by all accounts from those who watched the broadcast on TV at home, that passion and excitement really came through.
As the final stop on this year’s 10-town “Kraft Celebration Tour” across Canada, we certainly delivered a great send-off. While TSN obviously will tell every community what a wonderful time they had, to hear one producer say Fort Frances “raised the bar” is a real feather in our collective hats and a testament to the great job the organizing committee did.
It first had only three weeks to co-ordinate the online voting campaign needed to defeat Dryden, then had barely a month to organize a weekend of events to showcase our community from coast to coast.
Their efforts were truly inspiring—and a real lesson on the right way to stage an event.
Fort Frances starred in our moment in the spotlight and everyone should be so proud.