Culture Talks

Join us for a captivating guest lecture and live music performance by Stephen Bruce Medd, a celebrated performing songwriter renowned for his historical ballads and spiritual songs. Drawing inspiration from local history, the breathtaking landscapes he explored as a geologist and pressing social issues, Stephen weaves stories that transport audiences to another time and place.

Through his evocative lyrics and melodies, Stephen will share the tales behind his songs, from moments that shaped Canada’s past to reflections on the natural beauty and challenges of our world today. This unique blend of storytelling and live music offers a memorable evening that celebrates history, culture, and the human spirit. 

Biography:

Stephen Bruce Medd is a performing songwriter of historical ballads and spiritual songs. These songs are inspired by Canadian history; the remote and beautiful landscapes he explored as a geologist; and social issues of the day. Stephen’s most recent project entitled, "If Lilacs Could Sing" is a book of ballads and accompanying recordings about fascinating historical moments and people of Upper Canada. In 1999-2000 Stephen recorded 3 Spiritual-Folk songs that he wrote for Avril Lavigne that were her first studio recordings before being discovered by the music industry. Some of his influences include Gordon Lightfoot, Pete Seeger, The Chad Mitchell Trio, Mac Beattie and Celtic Music. His music and performing info is available on Bandcamp, YouTube and Facebook under Stephen Bruce Medd Music.

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Schooner Women is the unique story of Canadian (and American) pioneering women who were hired as tall ship seafarers on the Great Lakes during the Victorian era. Why unique? Because with the sole exception of women working in the remote Labrador cod fishery, until that time, females were never paid for any roles aboard ships in the Western world. They were not just sea-cooks, although that had always been an exclusively male role aboard sailing ships. Many women helmed their ships through terrible storms, became owners, and actively insisted on their rights in the courts of the day. Join local author and historian, David More, for this fascinating presentation.

Biography:

Born in Montreal and grew up in Kingston, Ontario. Educated at University of Waterloo and Queen’s University, graduate of the Humber School for Writers. First writing income from the Montreal Gazette on reviving the Avro Arrow (1977). Published five volumes so far in the historical novel series, the Smithyman Saga, set in colonial Northeastern North America. They have been compared to James Fenimore Cooper’s Last of the Mohicans and Leatherstocking series, and won several Independent Publisher (IPPY) Awards for historical fiction. In June 2024 he published Dark Watershed, a look into the future of Canada-USA relations.

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Sherry Pringle, local artist and author of All the Ships Men and Extraordinary Women and Extraordinary Times, will be sharing stories of WWII and how it impacted the residents of Lennox and Addington County.

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