The annual Collingwood Mayor’s New Year’s Levee will be put on pause until the health unit gives the green light, the town announced this week.
According to a letter to businesses and organizations from the Simcoe Muskoka District Health Unit on Dec. 3, COVID-19 cases in the region continue to rise and Dr. Charles Gardner points to data that suggests that social gathering with people outside of one's household members continues to be an important contributor.
“We are very much committed to having a live event this year to honour our recipients,” Mayor Brian Saunderson told CollingwoodToday.ca on Friday. “With the rising (COVID) numbers, we thought at this point in time it was a wise choice to postpone it until we get a better idea of what the situation will be in January.”
Saunderson said he’s hopeful the event can run in late January or early February.
“We’ll try to say as early as possible what the plan is,” he said.
The letter from the health unit states that businesses and organizations should host holiday gatherings remotely to avoid larger groups of individuals congregating, that can assist in spreading the virus.
The levee and awards ceremony were initially scheduled for Jan. 2, 2022.
The 2021 recipients of the Order of Collingwood and the Companion to the Order of Collingwood were announced last week:
Order of Collingwood
- Su and Tim Cook
- Christine Macfarlane
- Ivy Martin
- Margaret Mooy
Companion to the Order of Collingwood
- Norman Wingrove (awarded Order of Collingwood in 2010)
The town annually honours those who, through their volunteer efforts, enrich the social, cultural and/or recreational conditions, by bestowing upon them the Order of Collingwood.
The Order of Collingwood committee also recognizes former recipients who improve the social, recreational and cultural conditions in Collingwood, with a Companion to the Order of Collingwood award.
