Donald Teuma-Castelletti
QUYON April 7, 2018
Gavan’s Hotel was packed and cheerful on Saturday night, when the crowd was treated to not just one or two world-class comedians, but three laugh-riot inducers in a benefit for the local Lions.
Seeing around 160 comedy enthusiasts – and more than a few hecklers – guests enjoyed over an hour of jokes from Absolute Comedy stand-ups, skewering topics from trying to find Quyon on Google Maps to attempting to get in shape.
“Truth. I think comedy should be truthful, but not necessarily factual,” said comedian Julien Dionne. “I try to be as honest as possible onstage.”
While many of the jokes seemed to fall back on the small-town lifestyle, guests seemed hardly offended as they laughed along with the comedians.
With Dionne opening the show and maintaining emcee duties, Josh Williams and Matt Carter soon followed.
“They’re all headliners, we’ve all toured nationally,” said Dionne, who currently resides in Wakefield.
Ticket sales for this event helped support the Quyon Lions, who have had to rely on other facilities in order to maintain their regular level of community involvement. They admitted that it’s been hard on their fundraising efforts to be without a hall of their own.
“This is all-new as a fundraiser for us,” said event organizer and Lions member Rolly Bernier. “We’ve been without a building for a long time.”
The Lions, of course, have not been without their community’s support.
The group has regularly held events at the local Legion building, including their recent Shrove Tuesday dinner, and enjoyed Saturday’s collaboration with Gavan’s.
“We got lucky because there’s a band playing afterwards, so it seems to be working out great for all parties,” said Bernier.
As well, Bernier said the support from the Municipality of Pontiac Mayor Joanne Labadie and Councillor Sue McKay has been a huge factor in ensuring a smooth construction process, helping to keep the facility on track.
The new community centre is hoped to be functional by the end of the summer, with the Lions working alongside the Quyon Waterfront Revitalization Committee and municipal council to meet all regulations and concerns.
“It’s great to have the cooperation of the community when we need it,” said Bernier.
As for the potential of more laughs coming out of Quyon in the future? Well, Bernier seemed optimistic on that front.
“It’s something that we’ll probably extend into the new building when the time comes,” said Bernier, adding that the comedy show was more successful than the Lions had ever hoped for.
