Walking Their Way for a Year Riverbend’s BackRoads Walking Group celebrated its first anni - versary this past October with a big walk and cake on Saturday, October 11. “We had 20 people come out, including six new people,” says Maria Cunningham, the group’s coordinator. The group meets every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Saturday at 9:15 am, in front of BackRoads Brews + Shoes. “Scott Goodyear at BackRoads Brews + Shoes is incredibly supportive of our group,” adds Maria. “He even bought us a birthday cake to celebrate!” In the past year, the group’s numbers have increased steadily. The group is free, drop-in, and no commitment. Walkers come from all over London and the surrounding area, including West - mount, Byron, Komoka, and as far north as Lucan. For David, who drives in from Delaware, the BackRoads Walk - ing Group is a great way to combine exercise with friends. “I love the camaraderie. It’s a great way to meet new people be - cause you often walk with someone different each time. You never know where the conversation will lead.” Maria started BackRoads Walking Group last year as a way to create community and explore local paths to promote physical ac - tivity. Typically, the group walks 3 to 5 km. Maria always ensures there are places where people can opt out easily, if they need to. As a retired healthcare worker, Maria knows the value of walk - ing to move your body, calm your mind, and socialize. “This is a supportive group where strangers become friends and cheer each other on,” she adds. For more information, visit BackRoads Walking Group on Facebook.
BackRoads Walking Group celebrating their first birthday
BackRoads Walking Group
The Riverbend area had once been a tight-knit farming com - munity that included the Kains and other families such as the Shores, Kilbournes, Cassadys, and Bainards, most of whom had dispersed by the time ur - ban development arrived in the late 1990s. Kains Road itself was to have
The Road of History Winds Through Riverbend
To advertise here please contact Barb@villagerpublications.com Kains Road was once the well-trodden path leading to Archibald Kains’ farm from Commissioner’s Road. Today, it is the main thoroughfare leading into the new Riverbend subdivision from the intersection of Oxford Street and Commissioner’s Road. Archibald (Archie) Kains was born in Quebec in 1825. After farming near Exeter, running a distillery with his brother in St. Thomas, and searching as far away as Texas for a property suitable for his cattle ranch, Archie finally settled on land in the northwest corner of Westminster Township in 1863. He acquired a 400-acre farm and named it River Bow Farm. Archibald’s greatest accomplishment, in his view, was the herd of Ayrshire cattle he built from a single heifer calf. Following Archie’s death at age 60, each of his four sons inherited a part of the farm.
disappeared with that development. However, Sifton Properties, one of the developers in the area, convinced the City of Lon - don to retain part of it. Kains Road now runs north from Oxford Street and Commissioner’s Road in almost the same location as when Archie Kains lived at the end of it.
Page 5 Riverbend Villager November 2025
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs