Our Backyard

On August 3, 2008, after a valiant and joy-filled journey, one of our own was taken far too soon.  Harry Venema was a young boy and a dazzling spirit who adored his Wolseley neighbourhood. He loved the #10 bus and he delighted in watching the kids at École Laura Secord School, and he, along with his parents and older sister Lydia, used the playground there as an extension of their backyard.

After Harry passed on, a fund was set up to honour the major teaching of his life, which was to live in joy, thankfulness, and community, and to do so by helping present and future generations of children in the Wolseley community experience the joy of youth by creating a community playground; it was to be a child's universe - where no child would be left inside.

The Venema's project was put on hold when it was announced in 2012 that the school would be getting a new roof, and again with the announcement in 2014 of a new gym.  Now, over 12 years after its inception, the Harry Venema Memorial Fun Fund has been used to plant the seeds that have now finally grown into an outdoor play space where Laura Secord students educational experience will be enriched with elements of nature, music, gardens and outdoor playscapes, and a place that will act as an extension of all our homes and backyards.

Together with the Venema Family, the École Laura Secord School PAC, the Our Backyard Committee, school administration and staff has worked tirelessly over the course of the past 6 years raising over $300,000 to build a backyard that we can all be proud of - because after all, it is OUR Backyard!  It is our sincere hope that children from our school and our community delight in this magical space for years to come, and that future generations of PAC continue to enhance this space to build on this legacy.