Canada Day celebrations are already in the planning process.

Guaranteed to be a great event, this year Cochranites will be able to enjoy activities all day long thanks to a partnership of community events people.

Cochrane Area Events Society (CAES) was awarded the opportunity to lead the all-day celebration and Marina Chabbert, the President, is excited. "It's a new direction and we're hoping to bring new vigor and excitement to this year's Canada Day."

In previous year's the Town of Cochrane has taken the lead on organizing the event in collaboration with groups such as CAES but this year the day is being planned by Chabbert and her committee. Being part of Canada Day celebrations is not new for CAES as they have been involved in partnering with the town the last couple of years. "The town has done a great job in organizing it, kudos to them, we have big shoes to fill."

Organizing the full day will be a steep learning curve but Chabbert says they are already looking at injecting new ideas over time. "This year we are looking at bringing in more local well-known bands or even lesser known bands known to our community and surrounding area, so it will be nice to showcase the talent that Cochrane and area have because we don't often have that opportunity."

Chabbert is also looking for other event groups and organizations to partner with them. "We are looking for a partnership to help bring this whole day together. Let's get everybody involved in one way or another because the theme is 'community celebration' and that is a name we want to stress, not just for the people enjoying it but for the people putting it on. "

There have been some groups that have already stepped forward including the Cochrane Light Up committee. Stephenie Shelstad, President of Light Up, shares there will be so much to see and do including the addition of an all-day market. "Live music all day, petting zoo, ponies, over-sized board games it 's going to be a great day."

The day will start out with a pancake breakfast, flag raising, and cake cutting at the Legion and then will move to Mitford Park to continue celebrating Canada's 151st birthday. The all day event will be free to the public at large and Chabbert is hoping the event draws in thousands of people. "We want to encourage as many people as possible to come and treat it as a day in the park. Bring a blanket, plan to spend many hours there, relax, have a snooze if you want, enjoy the activities, network, and socialize with new and existing friends in the community."

If you have a church, group, business, or organization that would like to get involved with the Canada Celebration you can email Chabbert at caes.cochraneevents@gmail.com. In addition to community partenrships, CAES will be looking to fill roughly 80 to 90 volunteer positions as the event draws near.

You can also follow the event group HERE for details as they unfold.