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It was so long ago that it's hard to remember all the stories from the early days. But the reunions - now that's a different story. I remember one reunion at Bruce Mines (then the home of Elaine Switzman and Michael Corbett) in 1987. I was a single mother of a two- year-old. Donna was into letting kids explore and do their own thing. There was painting available for the little ones. But I was trying to keep mine a little cleaner than painting would allow. I was so exhausted a lot of the time and the suggestion to just let my son get covered in paint to explore was more than I could handle, and I didn't feel I would get any help in cleaning him up.
I remember another Bruce Mines reunion in 1985, when my son was just over 2 months old. I brought my tent, but Elaine was so generous and said, since I had a baby, I could sleep in the house. What a relief!
In 1989, the reunion was at Ron and Liz's in Saskatchewan. Brian Iler and Arel Agnew had their youngest, Andrew with them. My son, 4 years, and Andrew, 2 or 3, were youngest ones there. But my son, Jordan, was so thrilled by all the attention from the adult males in the group, he was really annoyed by the attention from Andrew. He protested, "Why does he keep bugging me". Jordan's biggest thrill was going for a walk with John Dufort and, I think, Ron?, all by himself. He felt so grown up.
The reunion in 2000 in Ktchener:my son had died earlier that year; Arel and Brian had split up. Arel and I spent a lot of time in my tent, just talking. We formed a close friendship that continues to this day.
Gary Robins
Ten years and 117 crises later, the collective at Dumont Press decided it was time for a break, time to pause and reflect, time to breathe in some clean country air and count those previously hatched chickens. Yes, it was time to celebrate a significant anniversary and catch up with long-time friends, colleagues and extended family. Late June seemed appropriate for the occasion. Sunday the 28th was chosen, with a raucous kick-off party the night before in town.
Again, folks trekked in from across the country to a scenic rural setting just north of Waterloo, rolling hills, fields and woods. As usual, the day was marked by music and volleyball, great food, visiting and political discussions. We were a chatty crew, and the weather was perfect for celebration. No decisions were made, no one got lost in the bush. It was just what we all needed. Happy anniversary, Gabe!
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About 150 people, from Newfoundland to British Columbia, made the trek to the farm at Chicopee (just outside of Kitchener) in June 1976 to help celebrate Dumont Press and the community of activists, writers and publishers it fostered and supported throughout southern Ontario. This is part of a photographic portfolio created that day by Brian Cere.
The specially-constructed anniversary cake was baked and assembled with loving care by Brenda Wilson, who used 14 carrot cakes to put it all together. The official welcome, and reflection on Dumont's five years of existence and adventures, was made by John Dufort, making it up as he went along, pretending to expound with poetic grace and profound insight from an imaginary script that was actually a child's colouring book. He did a great job, and we were all in awe!
Two years after the first Dumont reunion in 1985 (a rousing success, as we all agreed), we decided to do it all again, back at Elaine and Michael's farm just north of Bruce Mines. It was centrally located, with lots of room for camping, great feasting and assorted shenanigans. Eddie even built a three-hole golf course! Good times all round.
Photos here by Gary Robins, Doug Epps and David Cubberley.
After a series of biannual Dumont reunions in 1985 and '87 in Bruce Mines, then 1989 in Oxbow and the big 20th anniversary gathering in Waterloo in 1991, folks weren't sure where (or when) to go next. 1993 slipped by quietly, socially ungathered, an empty void in the fabric of time. Remember, in those dark days, nobody could afford email or even cellphones, and texts were to be found only on carefully-bound and correctly-spelled type on pieces of paper. Even long distance phone calls were expensive.
At that point, Elaine Switzman was alone on the farm at Bruce Mines. Even the goats had wandered off. Always up for a good visit, Elaine welcomed the opportunity to host another gathering of the Dumont crew, their associates and fellow travelers. We all welcomed the opportunity to get together again... long weekend in August, 1994.
John Dufort's video from the 2000 Dumont Reunion can be seen at You Tube Dumont Reunion 2000. Click on it to play the video. Excuse the rough quality... it was old analog technology transfered to digital.
During those dark foggy days at the end of the Twentieth Century (often referred to as Y2K), when a planetary panic set in as nobody could agree on whether the New Millennium would commence at the beginning of 2000, or 2001, but it didn't really matter anyway because all the world's computer systems would be crashing at the end of December 1999, it was a time of grave uncertainty throughout the land.
Fainter hearts might have faltered, but when the Dumont Organizing Committee, those faithful caretakers of the spirit of Gabe, initiated preliminary conversations on another celebratory event, the question of timing prompted a certain amount of contention. Should we gather in 2000 because it was a special year and we all survived Y2K? Perhaps we should wait until 2001 when the new millennium was truly upon us, and Dumont Press would be turning 30. It was a tough call, and discussions soon broke into the usual factions, between the mathematicians, the pragmatists and the anarchist. The Marxist-Lennonists had long since been banished from the village, as they didn't really like to party, unless it was their own Party, in which case they demanded loyalty and complete control.
Fortunately, solidarity prevailed, and a Dumont reunion was scheduled for the long weekend in August of 2000 at a secluded, yet well-appointed, camp in the woods just north of Waterloo. It had already been six years since the previous reunion, and we had lots to catch up on.
I took the train from Mattawa, ON (a whistle stop on the CN line but where I lived at the time) with my son, Jordan, then 4. We arrived a couple of days later in Moosomin, Sask at 2 a.m. Dorothy Wigmore was waiting there to pick us up. I had sent my tent and equipment ahead so that when we arrived at Ron and LIz's farm in Oxbow, we could just crawl into our sleeping bags until morning. It was a great reunion. My son was now old enough to hang out with "the guys", which he just loved. Here a few pics.
The attached photo was taken at a Dumont gathering in Bruce Mines at Michael and Elaine's in summer 1987, and brings many smiles of memory for me. I had it on my hallway wall of photos for many years, always calling it (tongue-in-cheek) an example of male-bonding, with each guy looking in a different direction, rather than with each other. Really they were waiting for another activity, possibly departures. It brings so many other happy memories too, seeing Steve, Brian, Barry, and Ken in one pic - all people who have been important to me.
In particular - this Bruce Mines gathering was significant for me as I met Barry Lipton at that gathering. I was desperately seeking good strong coffee, and he was making Turkish coffee over the fire. We went on to camp and hike in Pukasaw park along Lake Superior, and then a year later Barry moved to Toronto, and for 30 years has been an Island resident, neighbour and dear friend. His partner Daina scanned the photo and we shared a chuckle over the title I'd given it.
Now it might be called 'social distancing circa 1987'.
This reunion was just west of Waterloo at Glen Soulis' dad's place.
Three days and nights at a quiet and unassuming lodge in the Kawartha Lakes north of Peterborough, Ontario. Name tags proved to be a handy resource and the mood of the assembled crows was warm, kind and comfortable. So many stories shared, memories restored and most of us just wanted to keep on going...
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