Help save Holiday Gardens!

Imagine the perfect ‘backyard’ getaway. A place where friends and family can come together and catch up after the long winter months apart. Where children can play in the adjacent park and cool off in the pool over the hill. Where you can escape the busy city to enjoy nature and outdoors, but just close enough for food and necessities. Where everyone can laugh and eat and sing together as a community. That is Holiday Gardens Slovenian Country Club and it is our home away from home.


Holiday Gardens was established in 1957 by Slovenian immigrants who resided in and around Durham Region. These founders constructed the buildings on the property by hand and created the beautiful country club we have today. The women brought recipes from their various Slovenian regions passing on the traditions of well-known foods such as Strudel, Pražen Krompir, Ćevapčići, and many more delicious meals .


During our summer picnics, we bring in traditional Slovenian musicians to sing, dance, reminisce and teach new generations of our culture. The special part about HG is that we allow everyone to immerse themselves in our family heritage. Over the years we have had many weddings, gatherings, picnics, meetings, holidays, and so much more. This is what helps support our club survive the ever-growing cost of upkeep.


Unfortunately, like most small business and non-profits, COVID has stripped us of all social gatherings, therefore, making it impossible to keep the land. This past year has been a struggle: leaving many of our members at a loss of income and our club’s bills climbing upwards of $200k. We understand that many people were hit hard, but if anyone is able to donate any bit they can, we are determined to do everything in our power to find the money and continue on our grandparents’ traditions by keeping this place alive. We will not only rely on generous donors, however. We also plan to initiate multiple fundraisers that include, but are not limited to: meals on wheels, booze wheel barrels, silent auctions, fundraisers, and hopefully bring back picnics. The club has built over 60 years of memories around our Holiday Gardens community; we are not going to give up easily. Please help up fight the odds to keep our heritage alive!