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History, rides, community, celebration and of course, cake. That is what Mennonite Heritage Village’s (MHV) Manitoba Day Celebration is all about.
Steinbach and area residents visited the MHV on Saturday to celebrate Manitoba’s 153rd birthday.
While Manitoba Day lands on May 12th, Program Manager Robert Goertzen says they decided to celebrate it a day later to fall on the weekend "because we want to have a larger part of our community a part of it.”
From planting pansies, horse-drawn wagon rides, the new Russlander exhibit, and birthday cake, the free-admission event was packed with many activities for everyone to enjoy. Many also explored Main Street and picked up sweet treats at the newly renovated General Store.
“We're kind of welcoming spring," Goertzen explains "It's our way of saying we are happy to see the trees budding, we're happy to see the grass growing. Just enjoying nature because we've got a large campus that people can enjoy. There's just lots to do, and that's why we made it a free admission day. I want the community to enjoy the day here at MHV,”
The program featured speeches from Steinbach MLA Kelvin Goertzen and Steinbach Mayor Earl Funk. The Accent Women’s Ensemble also performed.
Goertzen says that along with staff, they have 25 to 30 volunteers for their Manitoba Day Celebration. He adds his favourite part of events like the Manitoba Day Celebration is the “interactions that people have with volunteers.”
“We've got millers in the windmill, and they're not going to be milling grain, but there's enough wind that the sails will be turning, and you'll be able to see the gears turning and how the wind can actually be a large machine, and so that's fantastic. Then, just talking to people in the General Store and the house barn. Even the driver who's giving horse-drawn wagon rides, he'll have stories as well. So, it's listening to stories and telling stories,” he says.
Finally, Goertzen adds that Manitoba Day is more than celebrating our province.
“We love the people in our community," he says. "We are so appreciative of the opportunities that Manitoba gives us to be inclusive and welcoming of people from around the world.”
Check out the photos from the event: