Strange goings on at Jõekääru these days. While the Estonian population in Udora has been in decline over the last ten and twenty years, a community spirit of times past has come back to life with unprecedented numbers of property owners participating in the annual talgud. The event took place Saturday, June 5, under sunny and warm blue skies.
Normally, talgud, when friends and neighbours gather for a day of cleaning, cutting and clearing roadsides of brush and other debris, as well as improving ditch water flows, trails and forest conditions, participants were few (and solely of the Estonian variety), usually ten or less. Last year, the first year with Jaan Schaer in the role of Estonian Summer Homes Association president, saw 19 Jõekääru property owners in attendance. This year talgud numbers swelled well past 40, with one-third or more being non-Estonian. Of the approximately 150 property owners at Jõekääru, about one-third are now non-Estonian and are predominantly year-round residents..
The event started at nine in the morning, with an official finishing time of three in the afternoon, followed by delicious and bountiful vegetarian snacks, beer and pop, and a hamburger and sausage barbecue, hosted by Jaan Schaer and his charming wife, Maimu, at his recently completed upscale year-round home on Narva Ave.
Following the chow-down at the Schaer residence, many talgud participants transformed into celebrants at the riverside where are a gargantuan fire blazed into the night. Young and old made great fun feeding the fire with the debris gathered up during the day. To one side of the fire was parked an assortment of vehicles, the blue Jõekääru tractor with an old hay wagon clinging to its rear, a couple of ATVs, a car or two and a van, from which blared the evening’s tunes. An elderly truck, heading to its final destination, served as part of the evening’s entertainment, becoming a vehicle for male bonding as boys and men, with much laughter and mirth, stripped the old dying clunker of dignity and essential parts. And so the night progressed, with truck wrecking alternating with fire feeding. Canadians and Estonians, together partaking in the time honoured tradition of the loke.
Forsaking the traditional "us and them" attitude of many Estonians to the growing non-Estonian population within Jõekääru, this year’s talgud marked the beginning of a cultural openness and neigbourliness sorely lacking for decades. Estonians and Canadians, in significant numbers, sharing the responsibility for the care of Jõekääru was a sight that warmed the hearts and sensibilities of many long-time residents. While some Estonian organizations languish in "old school" and insular ideologies, the Estonian Summer Homes Association, recognizing a new reality, now appears to be on a course to grow stronger with each passing year as it slowly but inexorably moves toward embracing the wider Canadian community.
Jõekääru talgud
Eestlased Kanadas | 17 Jun 2004 | Erik TannerEWR
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