Farmworkers mourn colleague and friend at roadside vigil
Those who knew Sínhue Garcia are grieving the loss of someone they say was a generous and caring person — and whose death has deepened fears about the rural roads farmworkers cycle every day.
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Immigration cuts will gut Niagara farm labour, migrant workers warn
As the federal government moves forward on plans to continue cutting Canada’s immigration levels, migrant farmworkers and their advocates pressed Ottawa for permanent residency at a Virgil rally.
Canada’s World Cup breakthrough raises stakes for NOTL’s youth soccer club
For a sport that’s often fought for attention behind hockey, baseball and basketball in Canada, this year’s World Cup is giving soccer a boost that’s being felt across the country — including by players and their families here at home.
St. Andrew’s Strawberry Fest sells out berries by noon
More than 5,000 residents and visitors returned to Simcoe Street for the annual, one-day, volunteer-run, start-of-summer festival, which supports the 200-year-old church.
Drums at Ryerson Park welcome summer at the lake’s edge
Drums, handpan music and a sunset over Lake Ontario marked Niagara-on-the-Lake’s ninth summer solstice celebration on Sunday, after flooding washed out the larger Port Dalhousie event one city over.
Second-hand bookstore opens in Virgil to support NOTL’s seasonal farmworkers
A new used bookstore in Virgil is turning readers into donors, with every book, puzzle and game sold helping fund programs for seasonal agricultural workers in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
Shaw Guild opens eight private gardens for milestone garden tour
Visitors toured the gardens across Old Town and Queenston, with the biggest draw this year, and a new feature of the tour, being the McArthur Estate’s garden.
Music Niagara opens 28th season with young classical artists at the helm
A rainy Sunday afternoon provided an unlikely backdrop for Antonio Vivaldi’s “Spring,” as Music Niagara opened its 28th summer festival with a concert featuring emerging Canadian musicians.
Rain cancels farmworkers cricket match, but gathering proves bigger than the game
The annual Niagara-on-the-Lake versus Vineland farmworkers cricket match washed out Sunday for the first time in its roughly 35-year history, but the rain couldn’t stop the good vibes.
No medium off-limits at this year’s tour of artist studios across NOTL
Now in its third year, the tour spanned 16 locations across town, giving the public a rare look inside daily routines behind artworks they would otherwise only ever see hanging on a wall.
NOTL Book Expo opens sales floor for local authors shut out of major stores
Thirty-nine vendors, most with roots in Niagara, paid for tables at a new annual book expo Sunday to reach readers who will never find their work on a shelf at Indigo or through an Amazon search.
NOTL Pickleball Club celebrates 10 years with town yet to replace closed courts
More than 80 members competed in the Tin Cup Pickleball Tournament across women’s, men’s and mixed divisions, marking a decade that saw the club’s formation and growth from a handful of players to roughly 575 members.
Garrison Village market turns 20 in new square, but needs more farmers to grow
Niagara-on-the-Lake’s annual farmers’ market’s organizer says it’s waiting for more Niagara farmers to sign on, hoping to accommodate up to 40 vendors in its new, larger space.
Fort George resurrects the training camp that built Canada’s First World War army
Fort George National Historic Site brought Camp Niagara back from the dead last weekend, staging a full First World War re-enactment on the grounds where more than 75,000 soldiers trained before shipping overseas.
Workers Welcome concert 60 years of seasonal farmworkers in Niagara
The 2026 Welcome Concert marked the 60th anniversary of Canada’s seasonal agricultural workers program and returned the Toronto Mass Choir to the stage for the first time since 2016.
‘It’s not one-size-fits-all’: Psychotherapist opens holistic wellness studio in NOTL
With six or seven instructors and roughly 35 classes a week, the studio directly addresses the mental health demand psychotherapist Stacey Stemplowski has watched grow across Niagara since COVID-19.
Four generations deep: Meyers Farms flower sale blooms again
The annual sale, which began in the early 1980s, runs Monday through Saturday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. until late June.
Virgil Stampede bets on families: Changing ride lineup helps create calmer atmosphere, organizers say
The Stampede celebrated its 59th year this past weekend, and an organizer says focusing on families and adding more children’s rides has eliminated most security problems the carnival had in the past.
Fort Mississauga lives again: Visitors flock to reopening of War of 1812 historic site
A thunderstorm did not stop people from turning out on Saturday for the opening of the military fort in Niagara-on-the-Lake that has overlooked the waters of the Niagara River for 210 years.
‘Every little bit helps’: Spirit of Niagara launches in NOTL with wellness retreat
A new wellness event series raised its first funds for Niagara Health Foundation last weekend, starting small but backed by an organizer who previously helped raise $1 million for Niagara hospitals.
NOTL Lawn Bowling Club rolls into 149th season with big plans for 150
What may be Canada’s oldest lawn bowling club is heading into its 150th year with one problem: not enough people know this timeless sport exists.
Animal group celebrates second year as kitten season pushes shelter limits
Kitten season is here in Niagara, meaning animal shelters are beginning to experience an influx of newborn kittens coming in — some more than they can handle.
Green thumbs snap up perennials at Horticultural Society plant sale
An hour before the annual plant sale opened Saturday, shoppers were already queueing outside — by 9 a.m. the line stretched the length of the building, and two minutes later, every hellebore was gone.
Town enforces bylaws against tulip festival on opening weekend
Blue skies brought a smoother opening weekend at TASC Tulip Farm than last year, but a storm is building as the town says the festival is operating in violation of its bylaws.
‘That’s our drinking water’: Shoreline cleanup tracks plastic pollution in Lake Ontario
Persistent plastic litter and microplastics along the Lake Ontario shoreline are driving a summer-long cleanup campaign that launched Saturday at Queen’s Royal Park where 24 volunteers collected 5,640 pieces of litter.
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