Name: Mark LaVigne
Occupation: Public Relations Professor/Practitioner, Author, singer/songwriter
Connection to YR: Moved here in 1971 from Montreal. Grew up in Thornhill. Have lived in Aurora and area for 33 years. We raised our four children here and thankfully, they still live quite close by in YR.
What makes YR a great place to visit? It is incredibly diverse in both culture and biodiversity, from an urban environment in the south end, the amazing Oak Ridges Moraine in the middle, and Lake Simcoe in the north. There are numerous very strong communities throughout, some small and some bigger, all with their unique identities. There are also many caring people here. We are blessed with a great team that helps us with our spacial needs daughter, and many kind and caring friends.
What attractions or events in YR do you attend? Because of personal circumstances – I care for our adult daughter who has special needs, I cannot get out as much as I would like sometimes. But when I can, local music events in Aurora or Newmarket, and hope to be able to perform music again once covid is over. I also love the hiking and biking literally right out my backdoor.
What are some of your favourite YR restaurants? My mother in law, Sharon Stewart, who is the author of 29 books, treats me once-in-awhile to an all-day breakfast, one of my favourite dinning experiences pre covid, and in-between lock downs. I also love La Joia, and some other restos in the Aurora Newmarket area. I also like meeting in some of the resto enclaves where it is convenient to meet city based friends such as at Hwy. 7 and 404 or Hwy. 7 and 400.
What do you recommend friends and relatives do when they visit YR? Hike and bike throughout the region, there are so many incredible trails. Visit Lake Simcoe beaches. Of course, there is Wonderland in the south end and many smaller towns that still have the vibe. And,as mentioned, there are so many smaller towns in the region that offer great food and entertainment.
Only thing missing here is a ski hill within the region. We need one of those!! Maybe even an indoor one. Sorry, silly dream of mine!
Bio: Mark LaVigne is President, Hunter Lavigne Communications Inc. He is also the author of multiple books, including The Adventures of Matilda the Tooth Fairy, The Broken Ukulele: Advice for our Twenty-Somethings in a Broken World, and his latest, The Broken Turtle. You can follow Mark here – https://twitter.com/hunterlavignepr – and here – https://www.instagram.com/hunterlavigne/
