Close to 100 people gathered at the Coldstream Conservation Area on Saturday to remember a true community champion and celebrate the dedication and official opening of the Bruce Alan ‘Al’ Bycraft Memorial Bridge. Al Bycraft was a dedicated member of the community, an advocate for Coldstream Conservation Area, and a hard-working member of the Enviro-Friends of Coldstream, a local grass roots group formed in 1994 who have worked tirelessly to help the St. Clair Region Conservation Authority (SCRCA) and Municipality of Middlesex Centre maintain and improve the Conservation Area just outside of London.

“After Al passed, we wanted to do something meaningful in his memory,” said Janice Dolliver, a member of Enviro-Friends, “We decided on a bridge and began to fundraise, but as you can imagine, as time went on, the cost of constructing the bridge got more and more expensive.”

The long-awaited bridge was successfully constructed in October of 2022 after the Poplar Hill & District Lions Club donated the remaining funds required to make the project a reality. The pedestrian bridge was designed to improve accessibility and constructed of materials that allow it to seamlessly integrate with the surrounding environment.  

“This bridge, built in Al’s memory, is a wonderful and much-needed addition to our park,” said Ken Phillips, General Manager of the SCRCA, “On behalf of the Authority, I want to thank the Enviro-Friends of Coldstream and the Poplar Hill & District Lions Club for their support.”

Remarks were also provided by Mayor of Middlesex Centre, Aina DeViet, who congratulated the two community groups on their joint effort, and by Curtis Watson, Acting President of the Poplar Hill & District Lions Club who expressed how proud the membership was to be a part of the project.

The ceremony concluded with remarks by Al Bycraft’s son, Joel, who described his father as a community member “through and through” whose legacy of community service would continue in his memory through the use of the memorial bridge.  

The Coldstream Conservation Area is located on Quaker Lane in Middlesex Centre and features two trails – the south trail leads visitors through a cedar swamp, a rare habitat in southwestern Ontario while the north trail is dominated by one of the most diverse spring wildflower habitats in the London area.