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Torchbearers sought for Pan Am relay, deadline looming

November 26, 2014   ·   0 Comments

Orangeville will have the opportunity to be part of Pan Am history as it welcomes the  2015 Pan Am Torch Relay to the community next year. This also means that the Town will have the opportunity to select a member of the community to be the torchbearer who carries the Pan Am flame through the town.

The Town is seeking the help of members of the community in picking the torchbearer, by asking them to nominate a resident who they feel exemplifies the core characteristics of the relay: community, celebration, participation and pride.

The nominee could be a person who has excelled either athletically or personally, is a role model, and has made a positive contribution to the lives of others, made a significant contribution to the community, or is a hometown hero.

The relay for the torch will begin on May 30, 2015 with the traditional Aztec torch lighting ceremony at the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan, Mexico, and will conclude on July 10, 2015, with the dramatic lighting of the cauldron at the opening ceremony in downtown Toronto.

During the relay’s Canadian portion, the torch will journey through five other cities in Canada, along with 130 communities in all corners of Ontario, prior to it’s final stop in Toronto. Three thousand torchbearers will proudly carry the flame for the 2015 relay.

The Torch Relay isn’t the only part of the 2015 Pan Am Games that Dufferin County will leave their mark on however, as the Town of Mono will play host to the one-day equestrian cross-country event, at Will O’ Wind Farm. The farm received funding from the Government of Canada to “develop a world-class equestrian eventing course.”

According to the web page for the Cross-Country Centre, the course will be designed to challenge the skills of both the riders and their horses, aiming to leave a legacy of the sport in Ontario.

At Tuesday’s Mono Council meeting, Councillor Elaine Capes expressed her hopes to see someone from Mono also have the opportunity to carry the torch during the relay, to represent the contribution of the Town to the event.

“People are very excited about this in the community, and being a part of the Hills of Headwaters Horse Country initiative, people are also excited from that,” said Councillor Capes. “I think that I would like to see the Town be more involved in helping to encourage community excitement about the games.”

While the Hills of Headwaters is active in the equestrian community, their main focus is on promoting tourism, rather than local excitement, so engagement is left up to the town.

“I know that we entered into an MOU [memorandum of understanding] for the torch run, but I don’t know what we’re doing with that or how we’re getting the community involved in that,” she said. “It would be really great to see Mono represented in the relay.”

With one week remaining for the public contest for becoming a torchbearer, it was suggested that the word be spread amidst Mono and their equestrian community to have people put forward their names as a potential bearer. The public contest works through an application-based process, and closes on December 1 at 11:59 p.m.

While the Town of Orangeville also has to select a torchbearer, its deadline is a little later, as it is an already confirmed ‘carrier’ position in the relay. Nominees for the community torchbearer are required to be a Canadian citizen and resident of Orangeville. They must also be at least 13 years of age or older on or before May 30, 2015. The deadline for nominations is January 5, 2015 at 4 p.m.

For more information or to enter as a torchbearer to represent the Town of Mono, visit www.toronto2015.org/torch-relay/ torchbearers.

To nominate a member of the Orangeville community to carry the torch through town or to find out more information on the process, visit http://bit.ly/11FQMi0, or contact the town directly by phone at 519-941-0440 ext 2253, or by email at info@orangeville.ca.


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