Up up and away!
Saturday
Sep 17, 2016
Well party Pagan people, that’s a wrap! Thank you to everyone who has made this event possible over the past 20 years. Special thanks to all our generous sponsors, in particular, Darner Media, TAV Creations, Take Charge Tea, Raven’s Knoll, and Bridgehead Coffee, who supported us year after year without question. HUGE thanks to all our volunteers for postering, decorating, judging contests, running the door and coat check and, even more importantly, hanging out and helping with the tear down when everyone was tired and/or hung over. Thank you to my fellow organizers, in particular, our High Priestess and leader, Michelle Hrynyk, who has been the heart and soul of the Witches’ Gathering in its various forms for over 20 years. Finally, thanks to the Ottawa Pagan community for supporting our weird little event with your time and hard-earned money. Your continued passion made all this possible and has supported many worthy causes in Ottawa.
I am deeply grateful and honoured by all the positive support we’ve received from everyone. For me, the Witches’ Gathering has been an amazing opportunity to connect with fellow Pagans, to honour our Gods together, and to grow as a Wiccan through conversation and ritual. We’ve tried to push in new directions to explore the meaning of Samhain. Inevitably, things work differently on paper than in reality and we’ve always appreciated your patient good humour with our wacky ideas, even when your feet were sore and it must have seemed like that chalice was taking forever to make it around the circle.
The central message of the Witches’ Gathering, I think, is not to fear change and that endings give way to new beginnings. So it is with the Gathering itself. Already, people have come forward with ideas for new events. I wish them all the very best in those efforts.
Bright blessings to all of you and thanks for everything!