Ellis Chapel announces new event lineup

PUSLINCH — After a hiatus due to COVID-19, the historic Ellis Chapel is announcing a lineup of two in-person events for the next few months. 

Starting with its 161st anniversary celebration,  the chapel is hosting a service on Aug. 14 at 2:30pm. It’s open to all, with guest speaker Rev. John Phillips from St.  James Anglican Church in Cambridge. The service will be followed by refreshments in the garden. 

The chapel typically hosts one service a month in the summer, bringing in guest speakers from various denominations for each service.  The Aug, 14 event will be the only service this year, as the chapel and its volunteers reaclimate to an in-person event season, after two summers of no services or events being held due to the pandemic. 

Rescue Junction, a Canadian bluegrass band, will play a concert of gospel, traditional and contemporary bluegrass music on Oct. 2 at 2pm at the chapel. Admission by donation. 

“They had been in touch with us before COVID, and we had been planning to have a concert using this band, and we had to cancel it,” said volunteer board member Marilyn Murray, adding officials are happy to finally have the band perform. 

Now that it’s back for in-person events, the chapel and its volunteers are ready to host weddings again, as well as other celebrations.

The historic site is a popular wedding venue, said Murray, typically seeing 30 weddings between May and October, pre-pandemic . 

The venue has already hosted several weddings so far this season. For more information, visit ellischapel.ca, call 519-767-2462 or email ellischapel@sympatico.ca.

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