SPRING 2026 NEWSLETTER
| Well its Victoria Day weekend and we hope that the cold weather has finally finished and it starts to warm up. There will be lots more people around this week while we get our properties ready for the Summer. Time to catch up with everyone and hear the latest news from CICA. HEALTH & SAFETY: A MAJOR PRIORITY Your CICA Executive has been busy in the off-season when it comes to safety. We took a pulse check of people who use the beach to gauge their concerns and gather ideas for improvements. We met with officials, both local and provincial, to outline the concerns that have emerged over the past few years, and we’re taking concrete steps to make the centre Ipperwash area a safer place to live and visit. Safety Survey: Between late March and early April, we conducted a survey, asking both members and non-members about their thoughts on how safe our beach is, what their experiences have been with safety-related incidents, and what they’d recommend to improve safety in the centre Ipperwash beach area. The survey netted 186 respondents, mostly permanent and seasonal residents. It reveals significant safety concerns at Ipperwash Beach. 62% rated current safety resources as Poor or Very Poor, citing inadequate signage, lack of lifeguards, and poor emergency readiness. Key risks include sudden wind changes causing flotation devices to drift rapidly offshore (especially with children), and dangerous conflicts between swimmers and nearby boats/jet skis. Many near-miss incidents and bystander rescues were reported. The community strongly recommends highly visible signage, designated swim zones with buoys, increased patrols or lifeguard presence, and better enforcement of watercraft rules. Respondents emphasized that “something serious is only a matter of time.” Health & Safety Upgrades from the OPP and Government Officials: Extra Patrols: We shared our main concerns and survey results with the OPP as well as Municipal and Provincial government officials. In our meeting with the OPP, they confirmed the assignment of extra patrols for this season at Ipperwash both on the beach and roads over the weekends. They are also trying to ramp up visible authority in the water. Port-a-pots: The Municipality is providing a couple more port-a-pots this season with daily cleaning on busy weekends. We will be posting “Report It” signs so visitors can call in any issues. Signage: We continue to work with our Municipal and Provincial officials on improved signage related to water safety and motorized vehicles. We’ll be placing a laminated “Did You Know” flyer (attached) at kiosks on the main roads in an attempt to provide more water and beach safety information. Next Generation 911: Ontario has been rolling out a system to enable faster, more precise caller location tracking in an emergency situation. It is unclear if the rollout will reach Ipperwash by this summer. In the meantime, we are pushing for 911 signage, including location information, to be placed on the beach flowing from parking areas to help people know their location when calling 911. CICA Sponsored CPR Training There are still a few slots available for the CPR training we are offering for up to 20 CICA members at a 70%discount on May 26th at the Ipperwash Beach Club. Thank you very much to Fred Newton, IBC Founder, for his donation supporting this important safety training for our community. The cost per person will be $25 and you can choose a morning session 8:30 am – 12:30 pm or the afternoon 1:30 – 5:30 pm. This training will be a standard CPR course (no first aid training) including infant, child and adult CPR provided by a Red Cross Certified First Aid & CPR/First Responder Instructor. Click here to email your name, email address and desired session to register. We will get back to you with payment instructions and to confirm your slot. Sign-ups will be on a first-come first-served basis. |
 |
DUMPSTER DAY & TRASH 2 TREASURES Our annual Dumpster Day/Trash 2 Treasures is fast approaching, and this year we’ve added a new twist. We will be hosting a café for you to meet and mingle in addition to the usual dumpster activity. Jot down the date and time: Saturday, June 6 from 8 am to noon. We need volunteers to assist with filling the dumpster, setting up the sale items and serving at the café. Let us know if you are interested by emailing us at: centreipperwashcommunity@gmail.com. If you have donations you can drop them off ahead of the day by contacting John Kidd at 519-243-2942 or email at jekidd1947@hotmail.com. As usual, it’s an opportunity for members to renew their membership for 2026-2027. |
 |
GRAB & GAB Our Wednesday Grab and Gab is back! The first of the season will take place on Wednesday, May 13th at 9am.Volunteers should meet in the area around the Ipperwash Beach Club. The Grab & Gab’s run each Wednesday through mid-October. |
 |
A POIGNANT MESSAGE Over the winter, Michele Ferri (CICA’s vice-president) received a heartwarming letter from a family that holds Ipperwash dearly in their hearts. Here is what the Galbraiths, from London, Ontario, wrote, verbatim: Ipperwash means so much to so many… This small sentence evokes so many happy memories for my immediate & extended family. My dad trained at the Ipperwash Army base asa young adult in the 1940’s. Our family grew up in Waterloo and drove to Ipperwash every summer. I remember parking on the beach even. As our family grew we camped and started renting the Grandadute cottage. We had all 3 units for the same 2 weeks every summer dating back to the 1980’s. Wallygators, Prongs, “The Dute” (as we called it) the big waves, the fry wagon, beach volleyball, bocci in the dunes!!, the red tractors, sand castle competitions, and Cobblestone Lodge are all part of our many happy Ipperwash family memories. Our son & daughter in law were engaged on the beach, right in the same spot where we and over 30 family members enjoyed the sun & fun of Ipperwash Beach. While we don’t rent the “Dute” anymore (my niece still does) we return every Labour Day weekend to honour our son Rob Galbraith, who we lost to cancer 5 years ago. His wife, along with his 2 small children love the Beach, Ipperwash Beach Club + the ice-cream! |
  |
PLANTERS ARE COMING BACK April showers bring May flowers, and this year they’ll bring back our planters. The end of May marks the return of the decorative and commemorative planters to their usual locations: Army Camp Road/East Parkway Drive East Parkway Drive/Ipperwash Road West Parkway Drive/Ipperwash Road West Parkway Drive/West Ipperwash Road Arbor Acres |
 |
And owing to the continual success of memorial plaque sponsorships, we are once again offering the plaques, which are fixed to the planters as an elegant and poignant way to remember loved ones. There are 11 different images to choose from and up to three lines of text. The plaques are 2” by 8”. For those interested, order forms can be found here or available online at MemorialPlaque – Order Form – CICA (centreipperwashcommunity.ca). |
 |
BLUEWATER RECYCLINGASSOCIATION – CHANGES |
 |
| Descriptively, you can now recycle: |
| Tetra packCoffee & plastic juice cupsChip pack & candy packagingStyrofoam packagingJuice boxes, milk containersBlack plastic traysPlastic bags – not ziplockPaper plates, no food residueSmall items, e.g. bread tagsCereal box wax paper linersClean tin foil & foil pansCardboard & paper |
| You CANNOT put into recycling: Kleenex, paper towels, dirty paper plates, cups, cling wrap. ST. CLAIR CONSERVATION – MERGING OF GROUPS IN ONTARIO The Ontario government seems to be proceeding with plans to consolidate the province’s 36 Conservation Authorities (CAs) into nine regional authorities by early 2027. CICA works with the local St Clair Region Conservation Area (SCRCA) and hopes that the local office and staff will be able to continue the good work that they do. Provincial plans include SCRCA merging with the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority, Essex Region Conservation Authority, and Lower Thames Valley Conservation Authority to form the new Western Lake Erie Regional Conservation Authority. BEACH SIZE The beach at Ipperwash remains fantastically wide, and it’s projected to remain like that throughout the summer. While predicting lake levels (and by extension beach width) is subject to several variables, researchers in both the U.S. and Canada have forecast levels close to what they were last year. Which means a very big beach again. |
 |
TOY LIBRARIES We are in need of more sand toys. If you have any sand toys to donate pleaseput them in the libraries located at IO beach access at Area 1 and 4. |
 |
MEMBERSHIP REMINDER! Membership renewals due July 1! Full Membership – $50 per yearAssociate Membership – $25 per year IMPORTANT DATES Wednesdays (5/13-10/7): Grab and Gab Saturday, June 6: Dumpster/Trash 2Treasure Day Wednesday, July 1: Canada Day Walk Saturday, July 25: Beach Art Contest Saturday August 8: AGM Sunday, Sept. 6: Last Sunset of Summer Wednesday, December 2: CICA ChristmasDinner |
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.