Welcome home.
The 103rd Buxton Homecoming. September 4 to 7, 2026, at the Buxton National Historic Site in North Buxton, Ontario.
I know there is strength in the differences between us. I know there is comfort, where we overlap.— Ani DiFranco
With all things and in all things, we are relatives.— Sioux proverb
Strength lies in differences, not in similarities.— Stephen R. Covey
It takes a village to raise a child.— African proverb
The sense of community is the most essential element in building a better world.
Community is not just about being together; it’s about doing life together.
The strength of the team is each individual member. The strength of each member is the team.— Phil Jackson
Communication is merely an exchange of information, but connection is an exchange of our humanity.— Sean Stephenson
I remind myself that I am always more satisfied by human interaction than by a digital connection.— Maulik Pancholy
There is immense power when a group of people with similar interests gets together to work toward the same goals.— Idowu Koyenikan
Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.— Muhammad Ali
The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.— Coretta Scott King
One of the most important things you can do on this earth is to let people know they are not alone.— Shannon L. Alder
Communication leads to community, that is, to understanding, intimacy and mutual valuing.— Rollo May
We have all known the long loneliness, and we have found that the answer is community.— Dorothy Day
The future of every community lies in capturing the passion, imagination, and resources of its people.— Ernesto Sirolli
Friendship also seems to be the bond that holds communities together.— Aristotle
We cannot live only for ourselves. A thousand fibers connect us with our fellow men.— Herman Melville
When ‘I’ is replaced by ‘We’, even illness becomes wellness.— Malcolm X
We belong to each other. We are sister and brother. Born to love one another.— Garth Brooks
The only way we are going to make it is in the company of others. We need each other. In all ways.— Mia Birdsong
The larger your beloved community, the more you can accomplish in the world.— Thich Nhat Hanh
Nobody is free until everybody is free.— Fannie Lou Hamer
Alone, we can do so little; together, we can do so much.— Helen Keller
There is no Power for change greater than a Community discovering what it cares about.— Margaret J. Wheatley
The power of community to create health is far greater than any physician, clinic or hospital.— Mark Hyman
Community is the spirit, the guiding light, whereby people come together.
A letter to the community
Friends,
On Labour Day weekend, for the 103rd year running, Buxton again throws its gates and hearts open. Come and join us. We're calling everybody home for the famous parade down A.D. Shadd Rd, grudge-match baseball and basketball all day, thirty years of shined-up classic cars, live bands, a Saturday-night DJ dance party that runs late, a marketplace full of untold treasures, and every corner filled with kids who will not sit down.
Why do we do it? This ground was cleared by hand before Canada was even Canada. This is Raleigh Township, farmed into being through determination and faith. Some of us followed the North Star up the Underground Railroad and built this Elgin Settlement into a place to be free. Some of us came as Loyalists and settlers to find better lives. We stayed. We farmed. We raised our children up the road from one another. We became friends and neighbours.
We became a community.
There's a bell at the museum that used to ring the day somebody made it to freedom. Everyone would drop everything and come running with blankets, food and support. One hundred years back, our great-aunts and great-grandmothers did the very same thing again under a pear tree and called it a picnic. We've been coming home every September since. The power of community isn't just our theme for the weekend; it's the reason any of us are here at all. Think about that. Nobody came to freedom alone.
A hundred years later, that same togetherness looks like a grudge-match ball game and a swarm of kids high on glitter tattoos. Same spirit, better snacks. Big fun weekend, very deep roots. You don't have to be from here to belong here. Whether your people helped clear this land or you just heard the music from the road, you're one of us the minute you show up.
Welcome home.
The 103rd Buxton Homecoming
Four days
- Friday · the Buxton History and Genealogy Conference, nine to five, and the Walk to Freedom at the end of the day
- Saturday · the ball tournament, the Farmers and Maker's Market, and Party in the Park after dark
- Sunday · church, meals, the Beyblade tournament and the Barn Gathering in the evening
- Monday · the parade at half past twelve, the car show, the vendors and the whole grounds open