River monsters and vault tours among Doors Open Waterloo Region’s newest digital offerings
Waterloo Region – This fall marks the Region of Waterloo’s 20th annual Doors Open, during which they will release nine new online episodes telling the exclusive, behind-the-scenes stories of some of the community’s most interesting and elusive sites.
Doors Open Waterloo Region is part of Doors Open Ontario, a province-wide event that serves to celebrate community heritage and architecture. Following pandemic closures, the Region’s event went digital in 2020 and has continued this format given its success. Each of the nine new episodes are ten minutes in length, and will be released throughout September on Rogers Television, and through the Region’s website.
The 2022 episodes feature unique, lesser-told stories about our Region and include:
- the tales of two Nessie-like creatures which surfaced in Waterloo Region’s rivers 100 years apart;
- the story of author and historian Marion Roes, who was part of the Dreisinger Funeral Home family dynasty;
- a look at the finest Cambridge architecture and its backstory through the lens of local photographer Michael Johnston;
- the top 10 gems of The Grace Schmidt Room of Local History at the Kitchener Public Library
- an analog revival of the typewriter with Currie Russell, whose pandemic passion project has evolved into a thriving side-hustle for the Waterloo collector;
- a behind-the-scenes tour of the Canadian Clay & Glass Gallery vault;
- a chat with Clarence Cachagee at Crow Shield Lodge — a place for reconciliation, Indigenous land-based teaching and healing;
- the innovative history of Historic Blair Sheave Tower, Ontario’s last remaining wooden water-powered hydro generator tower; and
- the rich heritage of Galt Arena Gardens which turned 100 this year and remains the oldest continuously operating arena in the world.
The first episodes will be released this Saturday, September 3. View the full descriptions and release dates for all episodes.
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