4 Friday, August 4, 2017 brooklintowncrier.com Helping Kids Discover History Our Brooklin Kids By Leanne Brown My retired father has been researching our family tree. While googling and scrolling through ancestry websites, he's been able to uncover some really interesting things about our ancestors. As we expected to learn, we have a Celtic background of Irish, British and Scottish. But we had a few surprises. We also have in our family tree a connection to the Catawba tribe in South Carolina, descendants who fled the French Revolution and even Spanish royalty . With all this new information, I realized there is an opportunity to share our history with my daughter. But she's from the digital generation and at her age, grainy, sepia photos of people she doesn't know don't capture her attention. So I decided that perhaps I needed to make history a little more interactive. On highway 7 in Greenwood is the Picking Museum Village. It's a hidden treasure which brings history to life. Our visit started in the gift store to pay the modest entry fee of a reasonable $13 for my daughter and me. And yes, there is a Groupon coupon available to give you half price on season passes. Getting a kit The museum staff set my daughter up with a kit to enhance her adventure. There are several kits to choose from, each designed for a specific age group. Choose from I-spy, mystery, and other kits. We chose one and joined the guided tour. Suddenly, we were pioneers. The real learning comes as the children compare and contrasthow things used to be versus how things are today. At first she thought having to sleep in a bed with four other kids would be fun, a sleepover every night. That was until our guide showed her the size of the bed. She changed her mind. Learning that her role as a young girl in the 1800s would have been to sit in a corner and churn butter all day or stuff hay into thick mattresses made my daughter shake her head. "I wouldn't get to go to school?" she asked. No WiFi? She learned that early settlers would often read books (usually the Bible) as evening entertainment. She couldn't imagine a world without WiFi. Carrying the water buckets was a real eye-opener. She learned she would have to walk an hour each way to fetch the water. She could barely lift the buckets. Later that night she asked to see the grainy pictures I'd shown her earlier. She now wants to know who she is. She asked about her grandparents. We googled the tribe with which we have roots. "Am I a real princess?" she wondered as we read about our speculative royal connection to a Contessa. She won't be leading any crusade to take the throne, but the story has her dreaming of her reign. Looking to introduce a little history to your family? Start at home. Brooklin has a wonderful history you can explore just walking through the village and reading the commemorative plaques on buildings. You can also visit the Whitby Public Library's archives for information on Whitby, Brooklin, Myrtle, and Ashburn. Looking to research your own family tree? Ancestry.com and family-tree.com are two websites to help you get started. WORSHIP DIRECTORY WORSHIP DIRECTORY Burns Presbyterian Church 765 Myrtle Rd West (just 4 minutes north of Brooklin) 10am Worship, Kids Zone Fun & Nursery Care "Discovering God, Sharing God's Love" 905.655.8509 www.Burnschurch.org St. Thomas' Anglican Church 101 Winchester Road East Sunday Services: 8:30 and 10:30 am Sunday School & Nursery Program (10:30am) Wednesday 10:00 a.m. Communion and Healing Service 905-655-3883 www.stthomasbrooklin.ca Brooklin United Church 19 Cassels Rd. E. Sunday Services at 10:30 am Sunday School & Nursery Care www.brooklinunited.ca 905-655-4141 Come catch the Spirit! Renaissance Baptist Church of Brooklin 40 Vipond Road (Just West Of Library) Sunday Worship & Kids Program 10:30 a.m. 905-655-4554 www.brooklinrbc.ca We're here for Brooklin! Advertise With Us... yeswomanbrooklin@gmail.com Community Calendar If you have a community not-for-profit event you would like included in the calendar, please email it to editorofBTC@gmail.com with the subject line "calendar." Priority will be given to Brooklin events. Some editing may occur. Wed., Aug. 23: 7 pm - Brooklin Horticultural Society meeting Colin Casin will speak on invasive species and the "Grow me instead" guide. Also, members' Annuals Show. Brooklin United Church, 19 Cassels Rd. Sat., Sept. 9: 1 - 5 pm - G-Moms of Port Perry Present "Birder Murders" Written by Steve Burrows, author of Birder Murder series On Reach Road, Uxbridge - Exact location will be on purchased tickets Also view film "A Murder of Crows" by Susan Flemming Marketplace for bird and nature-themed purchases. Free refreshments Tickets $20 each from Presents, Presents, Presents in Uxbridge or by calling Judy at (905) 471-4651 Fri., Aug. 25: 4:00 - 5:00 pm (4th Friday of each month) Teen Leadership Council at Brooklin Library Whitby Library's Brooklin Branch seeks Teen Leadership Council members to share ideas & assist with special events and programs. Grade 9-12 students earn community service hours. Snacks provided. No registration required. For information, email teenservices@whitbylibrary.ca. Mondays: 6:30-7 pm: French Family Storytime: Children and their caregivers can join Madame Sue for weekly French Family Storytime! A half hour of French stories and songs, with a dash of English! Drop in at Central Library's Children's Program Room 1st & 3rd Tuesdays Community Care Durham (CCD) Basic Foot Care at St. Thomas' Anglican Church. 905-668-6779 Mon-Fri CCD delivers hot or frozen meals. To order: Karen Andrews 905-668-6779 Brooklin High To Host Durham Farm Connections Brooklin High School will host the Durham Farm Connection Program on Sept. 28. Each year a different high school in Durham Region is host to this exciting program. Science classes attend the program for one class (75 minutes) and rotate through eight interactive agriculture-themed stations, each showcasing science in agriculture and encouraging students to consider careers in agribusiness.