UFO Landing Pad Celebrates 50th Anniversary

Rec Centre & Curling Rink also celebrate 50 years.

St. Paul shared a special day with the Nation on July 1st, as Canada celebrated its 150th birthday, St. Paul celebrated the 50th anniversary of the iconic UFO Landing Pad. The landing pad was a Canadian Centennial project in 1967, which celebrated in inclusion and acceptance.

The Landing Pad was conceived after a discussion throughout the town on how to display that St. Paul is welcoming of all. The Town wanted to display its multiculturalism and rich diversion of religions, races, and cultures. It also wanted to be inviting of any other possibly life forms.

There have been countless visitors of the Landing Pad; two very notable, Queen Elizabeth (1978) and Mother Theresa (1982). There have even been orchestras that have performed on the pad.

Mayor of St. Paul Glenn Andersen spoke of the history at a special ceremony on Saturday commemorating the landing pad. “St. Paul was dubbed by the chairman of the committee for the Canadian Centennial as a star of the Centennial; because they had over 100 centennial projects going in St. Paul, at the same time,” Mayor Andersen explains that the town embraced the joy of the nation’s 100th birthday. “The first project to be completed was the Rec Centre/Curling Rink. Give credit to the people that built that, it is still widely used today and in good shape. To build that in 1966-67 was quite phenomenal.” Interestingly, the value of the facility in 1967 was $200,000.

The second project was a wishing well, designed by a man from the neighbouring community of Elk Point, Mayor Andersen explains the well doubled as a fundraising tool, “when you made a wish, you had to put a coin in and that’s how they fundraised for a lot of things. You put in coins and they used that money to go back and put in more projects.” Other fundraising projects included selling of handmade toques and toys.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iq25soK06JI

During the ceremonies, the Town and residents sealed a time capsule to be opened in 50 years to celebrate Canada’s 200th Birthday. At that time the time capsule that was sealed with letters from 1967 will be opened as well.