HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2016-09-08, Page 19THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 8, 2016. PAGE 19.
Entertainment & Leisure
Brussels couple's wedding a boon for local charities
A charitable couple
Bob Kellington and Marguerite Thomas were married earlier this year at Brussels United
Church and instead of accepting gifts, they asked their guests to donate to a handful of
charities near and dear to their hearts, including the Brussels United Church, the Brussels
Legion and the Canadian Food Grains Bank's Fields of Faith project. The gesture resulted in
well over $2,000 being donated thanks to the couple's happy union. Kellington and Thomas
encourage others to give the gesture a try in a situation when more "stuff" is the last thing
someone needs. (Shawn Loughlin photo)
By Shawn Loughlin
The Citizen
The generosity shown by the
Brussels community through a local
wedding has resulted in thousands of
dollars to support local
organizations and charities.
On July 16, when Bob Kellington
and Marguerite Thomas said their
vows at Brussels United Church,
they encouraged their guests to,
instead of bringing gifts, to make
donations to handful of charities the
couple has supported over the years.
The charities include the Fields
of Faith Growing Project (a
project to benefit the Canadian
Food Grains Bank), the Brussels
United Church or the Brussels
Royal Canadian Legion.
The pair figure that between
donations they know about and those
they don't, the community has raised
well over $2,000 for these charities.
Thomas said that she and
Kellington are both "givers" and that
at their age, they have everything
they need in their household. In
short, Thomas said that she and
Festival winner writes novel
Central Huron author Sandi
Plewis has penned a book about the
great storm of 1971 — a tale with
which she thinks plenty of residents
will relate.
Plewis's book, Broken Chain, has
just become available at The Maple
and Moose in Blyth, after selling
well in Clinton and Goderich for
several months.
In an interview with The Citizen,
Plewis said the tale follows a young
grocery truck driver named Brody
Rivers who travels the real route
Plewis remembers the truck taking
when she was a child.
In addition, Rivers is of First
Nations heritage, which presents a
challenge in a less -than -accepting
setting.
Plewis says that while she wrote
the book many years ago, it is her
first work that she's actually
endeavoured to market and have
published. It took her one year to
write and another year to revise
several years later before it was
ready to be published.
Broken Chain is the first of four
novels Plewis is hoping to publish in
the coming years.
Plewis has been a creative writing
teacher for nearly 10 years and has
been featured prominently in the
Alice Munro Festival of the Short
Story in a number of years. She has
finished third twice and won the
competition once.
The book is now available at
The Maple and Moose in
Blyth, Made in Huron in Clinton
and Fincher's in Goderich. It
will also be available on Amazon
later this month.
www.movielinks.
ca long distance?1-800-265-3438
Get entertainment
information on the
Entertainment section
of our
website at
www.northhuron.on.ca
Kellington didn't need more "stuff'.
Both Thomas and Kellington were
widowed in recent years after
decades of marriage. Thomas said
that both of their spouses were in
poor health for a number of years, so
they were both forced to take on the
role of a caregiver, which is an
experience the two have bonded
over.
After losing their spouses, the two
lived one block away from one
another in Brussels having never
met.
After church one day, Thomas was
speaking with some of her friends
from the church, saying that she
needed some help around the house,
specifically with gardening work. A
friend suggested that Kellington
might be the man to help and a
meeting was set.
The pair had a few encounters and
it was when Thomas needed a drive
to and from an optometrist
appointment in the winter that their
relationship took a turn for the
romantic.
Kellington took Thomas's hand to
"ensure she didn't slip" and through
a discussion later that day, a mutual
admiration for one another was
discovered.
It wasn't long until Kellington
proposed to Thomas and she
immediately accepted.
Over the years, Thomas, whose
first husband was a veteran, had
been heavily involved with the local
Legion, often cooking and baking
for fundraisers. Kellington has held
V
several fundraisers for the United
Church and the Food Grains Bank,
raising thousands along the way.
Through their wedding, over
$2,000 was donated by community
members, which includes a $500
donation to the Canadian Food
Grains Bank, but does not include
the government matching funds
($2,500) that go along with that
donation.
"We've always been moved to
give back. That's just who we are,"
said Kellington.
The couple hopes that perhaps
their idea of giving back on the
occasion of a special day might be
adopted by local people celebrating
a milestone birthday or a wedding
anniversary.
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Glenn Lamont
and
Tina McClure
announce their
forthcoming marriage
to take place on
Saturday,
September 24, 2016.
Join us for an evening of dinner, silent
auction and musical entertainment
by
Wingham Physicians
Thursday September 15th
Wingham
Knights of Columbus Hall
5:30 Cocktails & Music
6:30 Dinner
Music and Silent Auction
to follow
$35 per person
Available at:
Wingham & District Hospital
Christine$Clothes Closet
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Table of 8 can be reserved by calling
Jan McKague Weishar
519-357-3711 ext 5294 before Sept 8th
Wingham
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