Annual Migration Festival enjoys perfect fall weather

Now in its 54th year, the Migration Fall Festival Parade marched through the streets of downtown Kingsville on a beautiful October 21 morning. Kingsville’s oldest parade, the Migration Parade was back for the first time since 2019 and featured close to 30 entries this year.

The Two Hour Quick Paint Competition, part of the Great Migration Paint Out, put 30 artists to the test at Mettawas Park in Kingsville on the morning of October 21.

Organized by local artists Elaine Guitar and her husband Layne Van Loo, painters from all over Ontario and Michigan attempted to capture elements of the waterfront while under the clock.

 Van Loo said, “We’ve been to a lot of events like this and thought it would work well in Kingsville.”

Guitar shared, “This plein air competition allows the public to view artists at work and gives people a chance to see the process of painting. These pieces require lots of editing and try to capture the essence of the various scenes.”

Mayor Dennis Rogers was this year’s judge and chose a watercolour by Jacqui Herron titled Mettawas Beach as the winner of the $300 first prize.

Meanwhile, further north of town, a highlight of the many events for Migration Festival held at Jack Miner’s Bird Sanctuary Oct. 21 included a live demonstration of birds of prey by the Canadian Raptor Conservancy.

The sanctuary grounds were open with lots of children’s activities, including a fish pond, hay maze and crafts.

The Birds of Prey show included Hudson, a Harris Hawk, Gordon a six-year-old Eastern Screech Owl, a female American Kestrel Falcon also know as a Sparrow Hawk, a Red-tailed Hawk and Bruce the 13-year-old male Bald Eagle.