Beinn Gorm Highlanders

10/10/2026

🍁🥁 Happy Thanksgiving Weekend from the Beinn Gorm Highlanders! 🍁🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

As we celebrate Thanksgiving, we’re taking a moment to appreciate the people who make our band family so special.

From our dedicated pipers and drummers to the families who support us, the communities who welcome us, and everyone who stops to listen, cheer us on, or share in our love of Scottish music and tradition, we are truly grateful for each of you! ❤️

Music brings us together, but it’s the friendships, laughter, shared experiences, and memories we make along the way that keep us connected.

From our band family to yours, we wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend filled with good food, great company, plenty of laughter, and maybe even a wee tune or two! 🎶

Slàinte mhath! 🥃🍂

10/04/2026

🥾🎶 Pipes on the Bruce Trail! 🎶🥾

It was another busy day for the Beinn Gorm Highlanders!

This afternoon, Pipe Sergeant Leigh Gallant and Piper Brian Raaflaub took their music into the great outdoors as part of the Fifth Annual Music Hike and Bruce Trail Day at Nottawasaga Bluffs.

The annual event brings music and nature together, with musicians stationed along the Bruce Trail serenading hikers as they make their way through the beautiful trails and lookouts. And what better soundtrack for the Niagara Escarpment than the sound of the pipes carrying through the trees? 💙🥾🎶

After kicking off the CIBC Run for the Cure in the rain this morning, our bandmates were right back at it this afternoon!

We’re incredibly proud of the many ways our members get out into our communities, share their music and represent the Beinn Gorm Highlanders.

Way to go, Leigh and Brian! 👏🥁

10/04/2026

🎶 Celebrating one of our own Kenneth Maher! 🎶

The Beinn Gorm Highlanders would like to join the Collingwood Museum in recognizing and thanking our fellow piper and piping teacher, Ken Maher, for the incredible contribution he continues to make to our community.

Many of us know Ken through the pipe, as a fellow musician, teacher and someone who generously shares his knowledge with the next generation of pipers. But his contribution to Collingwood reaches far beyond the band.

Ken has served as Chair and member of the Museum Advisory Committee, played as the Shipyard Social piper, and for the past five years has been the researcher and voice behind the Collingwood Museum’s Stories from Another Day podcast. Through his work, he has helped preserve and share the stories of our community with more than 10,000 listens from near and far.

There’s something pretty special about someone who not only helps preserve history, but also keeps tradition alive by teaching others. ❤️

Ken, we’re proud to call you a fellow Highlander and grateful for everything you bring to our band, our students and the wider Collingwood community.

Congratulations on a job extremely well done and we can’t wait to see what your next chapter holds! 👏🎶🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

Please join us in recognizing and thanking Ken Maher for his many contributions to the Museum and our community.

Over the years, Ken has worn many hats. He has served as Museum Advisory Committee Chair and Committee Member, Shipyard Social piper, retro video games expert, and most recently the researcher and voice behind the Museum’s Stories from Another Day podcast.

For five years, Ken has brought Collingwood's stories to life for listeners near and far. To date, his episodes have amassed over 10,000 listens and many hours of content that will continue to be available and shared by the museum and beyond.

The very first podcast episode was called “Beginning at the End” and focused on the launch of Collingwood’s last ship, the Sir Wilfrid Laurier. The last episode of the season shared the shipyard’s beginnings in 1883. In endings, there are new beginnings and we can’t wait to see what Ken has in store for his next project.

Please join Museum staff in extending our sincerest thanks to Ken for a job extremely well done, and for the many hours he has invested in sharing Collingwood’s stories.

Thank you, Ken!

10/04/2026

☔️ A little rain wasn’t going to stop these Highlanders! 🎶🥁

It was a wet and rainy morning at Blue Mountain Village, but a few brave members of the Beinn Gorm Highlanders, led by Pipe Sergeant Leigh Gallant and Drum Corporal Tyson Cromwell, bundled up, grabbed their instruments and had the honour of helping kick off today’s CIBC Run for the Cure. 💗

Rain or shine, it’s always a privilege to bring the sound of the pipes and drums to such an important community event, especially one that brings people together to support, remember and stand alongside those impacted by breast cancer.

A huge shoutout to everyone who showed up, walked, ran, volunteered, donated and cheered despite the weather. THAT is community spirit. 💕

And to Leigh, Tyson and our hardy Highlanders who braved the rain this morning… apparently kilts really are all-weather gear. 😉🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

10/03/2026

🇨🇦✈️🥁 What an incredible way to start a Saturday morning!

This morning, a small handful of our Beinn Gorm Highlanders bandmates, along with some wonderful friends from other bands, had the privilege of coming together under the leadership of Colonel Rory McKinnon to play at the Edenvale Aerodrome for the opening of the Avro Arrow replica exhibit.

There was something pretty special about standing there with pipes and drums, surrounded by a piece of Canadian aviation history and the people who gathered to celebrate it. 🇨🇦

And this is one of the things we absolutely love about the pipe band community. We may come from different bands and wear different uniforms, but give us a reason to gather, some pipes and drums, and we become one big band family. ❤️🥁

From marching through Meaford last night celebrating Peace, Love & Happiness to helping mark a piece of Canadian history this morning… what an amazing 24 hours of music, community and memories.

Definitely one of those “how cool is it that we get to do this?” kind of mornings. ❤️🇨🇦

10/03/2026

☮️❤️😊 Peace, Love & Happiness with a little pipes and drums thrown in! 🥁🎶

Last night, the Beinn Gorm Highlanders had the pleasure of participating in the Meaford Scarecrow Parade, and this year’s theme was Peace, Love & Happiness.

We were lead by our amazing Pipe Major Sheila Stewart, Drum Sargent Don Foley and Drum major Sam.

Such a fun evening marching together, making music, sharing some laughs and being part of a community event that brings so many people out to celebrate. There’s just something pretty special about hearing the pipes and drums coming down the street and seeing the smiles along the parade route. 💜

And I have to say… Peace, Love & Happiness feels like a pretty good message for all of us right now. ☮️❤️

Another great night with my band family, doing something I absolutely love. 🥁

09/12/2026

⚓️ 40 Years Ago Today The End of an Era in Collingwood

For 103 years, Collingwood built ships.

The shipyards weren’t simply a place people went to work. They were woven into the fabric of this town, into our families, our stories, our economy, and our identity.

On September 12, 1986, the Collingwood Shipyards closed their doors for the final time.

Forty years later, we still remember. ❤️

Every year on the anniversary of the closure, former shipyard employees and their families put on their hard hats once again and walk together from Town Hall to the Collingwood Museum honouring the men and women who worked there and the incredible legacy they helped build.

This morning, Beinn Gorm Highlanders, alongside Town Crier Ken Templeman, had the privilege of leading that parade.

There is something incredibly powerful about hearing the pipes and drums while watching those hard hats make their way through town knowing each one carries a story.

Ships may no longer be built on our shoreline, but the shipyards helped build Collingwood.

Today we remember the workers.
We remember the families.
We remember the craftsmanship, the sacrifice, the friendships and the pride.

And we honour a legacy that still lives in this community 40 years later.

⚓️ Here’s to the shipbuilders of Collingwood past, present in memory, and forever part of our town’s story.

09/01/2026

🥁 EVER WANTED TO LEARN THE BAGPIPES OR DRUMS? 🎶

Maybe you’ve heard a pipe band and thought, “I would LOVE to learn how to do that!”

Well… this might be your sign. 😉

The Beinn Gorm Highlanders Pipe Band is welcoming new students this fall, and you don’t need previous experience to come check us out!

Join us at our Tuesday evening practices and learn more about playing:

🥁 Snare, or tenor drum
🎶 The Great Highland Bagpipes

But joining a pipe band is about so much more than learning an instrument.

It’s great music.
It’s performances and adventures.
It’s challenging yourself and learning something new.
And honestly, one of the best parts is the friendships and community you build along the way. 💜

📍 Collingwood Legion
🗓 Tuesday evenings
⏰ 6:00 PM

We welcome new students every fall, so if you’ve been curious about learning, come out to a practice, meet the band and see what it’s all about!

Kids, teens and adults are welcome, you’re never too old to learn something new. 🥁🎶

Know someone who would LOVE this? Tag them or share this post with them!

08/29/2026

Our 2nd performance of the day was also well received at the 39th annual Creemore Copper Kettle Festival.

A great fun day was had by all, thank you again Discover Clearview and Creemore Springs for inviting us to be a part of this amazing community event.