Weekend Garden Tour aims to inspire young minds

Whether you're looking to get some fresh gardening ideas, immerse yourself in architecture, or simply to spend a nice day outdoors for a good cause, consider coming out to this Sunday's Aurora-Newmarket Home & Garden Tour.

Hosted by the Canadian Federation of University Women Aurora/Newmarket, the June 9 event will raise funds for the organization's Charitable Trust Scholarship Program for young women. This year's tour aims to raise $35,000 for the cause.

Among the Aurora stops on the tour include the residence and studio of noted artist Vicki Carruthers and a property on Steeplechase that has been “transformed” by King's Pathways to Perennials. Newmarket stops include the Sutherland House, a Victorian architectural gem on the corner of Prospect and Timothy Streets.

“The (scholarship program) is about taking that pressure off and trying to ensure whether it is a university program, a college program, or young women who are going into apprenticeships that the money is there to support them. We wouldn't want to see a door being closed and if it is a difference between a student being able to attend post-secondary or not, this gives them a leg up and the [financial] reassurance that they can move forward,” says Anne Marie Devine of the CFUW Aurora/Newmarket, who notes the local chapter works with 15 different secondary schools in northern York Region for program delivery.

“100 per cent of the sponsorship dollars and advertising revenue we receive goes directly into our scholarship fund and that's a promise we're able to make to our sponsors and advertisers. We're up almost $90,000 in the last three years we've been able to contribute just to this initiative. The name of the tour is Come Be Inspired. People are curious about the lifestyles and the living spaces of others. We also pride ourselves on the fact we're able to inspire these young women with this little leg up…. We're inspired by them and we want to inspire them to continue with their education.”

Among this year's sponsors are realtors Angela Jones and Doug Sabiston, Roadhouse & Rose, Scotia Wealth Management, the Town of Aurora, New Roots Garden Centre, Amica Aurora Promenade, H.J. Pfaff Audi, and Oakridge's Fashions – with Oakridge's owner Deb Clark recently contributing $1,650 in proceeds from the store's annual Giving Shop to the initiative.

For more, including tickets, visit cfuwauroranewmarket.com/our-home-garden-tour.

By Brock Weir