"Being able to see the Sun was a unique experience; and, one that I was excited to tell my kids about. As a team event, it was great because it really took us outside of our regular routine and had a chance to experience something that puts the world in a different perspective."
- Telus Communications (Scarborough, On)
"We want to thank you again for the wonderful sky tour you provided, and especially your erudition and patience (a rare and excellent combination). All of us felt that, due to your skillful guidance, the clear skies above us that night became sharpened, not only in terms of us becoming more acquainted with the sheer immensity of the starry welkin turning above our heads, but also becoming more aware of the variety of celestial objects to be seen. We would highly recommend your sky tour to anyone who has an interest in expanding their horizons.
P.S. (We still want one of those green laser pointers)"
- Dr.Bill and Esther (Port Perry, On)
"Thank you Gil for a wonderful experience! A great time was had by all :) We all thought that you definitely should charge more $ for these sessions."
-Neta S. (Toronto, On)
"We arranged to have a private star-gazing party with Gil Tennant, Lead Astronomer for NightSkyTours on November 10, 2007. My family and all other participants were extremely impressed by Gil’s enthusiasm and professionalism as he conducted the 2 hour tour of the sky. His dedication to the science of astronomy and knowledge in the topic is outstanding only to be matched by his patience with almost 16 kids of various ages in attendance.
Perhaps even more impressive is his preparation and follow up. Gil makes absolutely sure that viewing conditions are at least acceptable before the star gazing party and he sends very useful information in advance about what to expect from the weather as well as what to expect during the tour. He then follows up with a summary of the tour and even goes to the trouble of answering questions that come up during the tour.
I believe that I speak for everyone in attendance that his tour of the sky is both extremely educational and fun for both children and adults.
Thank you Gil, for your outstanding ‘show’. We will be sure to pass around your contact information as we feel that this is one very good way to enhance any party or provide the main theme for a birthday party."
- B., D. (12), B. (7) Tomkay and I. Riss - (King City, ON)
"Thank you for coming out to Richmond Hill last Friday night... The boys had a good time and they are still talking about it. I have passed your info onto our boy scout troop..."
- Amy U. (Richmond Hill, ON)
"Thanks for a wonderful tour! My son loved it and it was the perfect birthday present for him!"
- SK (Toronto, ON)
"Night Sky Tours is a great way for families to get outdoors and experience astronomy together. Both of the event (Daytime & Night Time tours) that we organized this summer were extremely successful! I look forward to organizing more events of this nature in the future."
- Today's Parent KidSummer
"The tour was fantastic. The children and the adults alike were entertained and amazed by our host. He was knowledgeable and fun to listen to. The time went by much too quickly. We will absolutely be doing this again in the future."
- S. Boulanger (Toronto, ON)
"We completely enjoyed our tour. It was a thrill to see three planets on one night. We will recommend the tour to our friends and family and I am sure that we will be in touch again for another booking."
- S. White & family (Ajax, ON)
"We were both very impressed, enlightened and intrigued enough to look at the sky differently from now on! We now have a wonderful new hobby. Thank you for that."
- S. Spencer (Williams Pt., Lake Scugog, ON)
"I had been asked to organize some evening entertainment for a group of about 50 adults with a wide variety of backgrounds including farmers, teachers, and government employees. The entertainment was meant to be something people do not usually experience, and informative. I decided to hire Night Sky Tours. I made an excellent choice! Gil provided an outstanding and professional two hour tour of the sky which included facts, humour, folklore, history, and of course, the visual treat of using his professional equipment. I would highly recommend Night Sky Tours to any group. One last important point, the price is very reasonable!"
- A. Margetson - Prince Edward Stewardship Council - Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources
"I really appreciated how easy you were to work with. You really helped me put on a great first event as an SCC chair. Thanks so much. I thought, at first, I might have bitten off a little too much, but you made sure everything ran very smoothly. You were really great with the kids and I think they sensed your patience. It was also really nice to have a reason to spend these past two beautiful days outside."
- L. Hamilton - SCC Chair, C.E. Broughton PS
(pictures here)
"The night sky tour was an absolute treat! Since the tour, I now look out every night to try and find all the points that you showed us. I found the tour interesting and educational. It was worth every penny to see my kids get an idea on just how big our universe is, and what is actually out there.
I think that the space station sighting was one of the highlights for me. Now I can impress my friends when I tell them about it and show them the station going by!
Thanks again Gil, for an incredible experience and memories that will last for a very long time."
- I. Lacoursiere & Family (Toronto)
"Gil and Steve,
A sincere thank you for the sky tour. It was well worth the wait. my grandson hasn't stopped talking about it - I've never known any one to have all the answers to his questions - well done! He'll now be better prepared for night sky watching opportunities while away at camp this summer.
For me, the full impact of the experience didn't really sink in until the next day. Thank you for introducing a wondrous new interest - I'll never look at the night sky in the same way again - (or the day sky for that matter).
Thanks again."
-A. Whitworth and family (Blackstock)
"This is the second time we had this tour! And my son (age 4), still loves it soooo much! After the first tour [ed. just over a month ago],
he said his favourite planet was Saturn! Now that we saw Jupiter on this tour, of course it now becomes his favourite planet too! The tour was on Saturday and he had a birthday party to go to on Sunday. So before he went to the tour, I asked him to choose either one, or the other, because he would be too busy on the weekend (of course I was teasing him). He chose THE TOUR!
From this you can see how much he looked forward to it and his desire to see Jupiter! I will recommend this tour to anyone who is interested in seeing the stars! One will actually wonder how Gil - the astronomer - can recognize all the stars! (They all look the same to me!) It was a great experience!
We will definitely go back when there's something new to see!"
-G. Yuen & Family
"It was such a wonderful experience! My son is 4 1/2 years old and likes space a lot lately. So I found Night Sky Tours and brought him to SEE space instead of just reading from books. He was so excited before and after. Before he went, he refused to have dinner, thinking this way we might be able to go earlier. After the event, as soon as he got home, he took all his space-related books off the bookshelves and started to point to the ones that he saw. I think this is a good way for him to learn. To learn by seeing the actual stars instead of just reading from the book. We are ready to go back in a couple of months to see Jupiter!" [ Astronomer: Steve Bevan provided the spectacular views. ]
- G. Yuen & Family
"Gil, thank you so much for a very educational and amazing experience. I know the girls had a great time looking at the sun and learning more about outer space. I have told countless people about your business and what a great time we had. I know I will be coming back in the winter with my own family to see the planets and stars. Once again thank you, we had a great time."
- C. Clark - 26th Whitby Brownies
"Despite the cold weather, and the wind...the girls and I had a fabulous time! Many of the parents have already commented to me that the Guides couldn't stop talking about it! It was a wonderfully unique experience that has given the girls a greater appreciation of the world in which we live. Who would've known that something as beautiful as the night sky can be enjoyed by so many, thanks to you. The tour is something that I will definitely be recommending to the many other Guide and Brownie groups that I have contact with.
Thanks for everything."
- M. Tucker and the 14th Oshawa Girl Guides
“I was searching for a unique and novel gift for my fiancé for his birthday – Gil’s Night Sky Tour was that gift. Gil was professional, knowledgeable and so enthusiastic. You can tell he loves to introduce clients to the science of the sky – and he does it through story-telling. He has a gift.
Thank you, Gil. This tour earned me a lot of “brownie points” with my fiancé. I will be sure to sing the praises of Night Sky Tours to friends, family and colleagues.”
- D. Murphy (Toronto, ON)
"Wow! What a great evening you put on Gil... I was so glad to see the kids so interested in your presentation... The sky is such a great place to let your imagination run wild. My son fell asleep on the way home but after getting him home and into bed I found him scanning his star map and reviewing what he saw. Thanks for such an entertaining and informative evening. I'll be telling friends about this for some time to come."
- J. Gilbert (Oshawa, ON)
"We would like to express our thanks for the amazing tour of the night sky that you provided for us. With all of the light pollution present in the city it is rare to get a good glimpse of the treasures found in the night sky. Your knowledge of space is incredible and we are glad that to have had the opportunity to learn about and see many things such as Jupiter, Vega and even a black hole, Cygnus X-1 :) Thank you once again, take care, till next time."
- Lukomski Family (Oshawa, ON)
"It was the best Birthday party ever!"
and...
"We had an awesome time!
The Space Centre (International Space Station) was cool!"
- Comments from a recent Birthday party - The Rutherford-Conrad family (Kirby, ON)
"I would like to thank you on behalf of the grade 6 students and myself for the thoroughly enjoyable viewing of the sun, and in particular, the night sky. Both students and parents were impressed with your promptness, equipment, and knowledge.
I am definitely planning a return visit with you in 2006 as your program is very supportive of our expectations for Grade 6 as laid out in the ministry's documents."
- G. Duval - ST Worden PS (Courtice, ON)
“The tour was very informative, interesting and professionally conducted. Our whole family enjoyed the evening and came away with new appreciation for, and knowledge of, the universe we live in.”
- D. Robinson & Family - Bridgenorth, ON
"The girls had a great time and Jayne and I thought you were wonderful with them. Your passion for astronomy comes through in your presentation and you gave the girls the right amount and level of information. Everyone thought it was very cool to see the stars. We all appreciated your patience with the kids. It was clear they enjoyed the activity since they braved the cold temperatures for quite a while. Thanks for a great job."
- B. Mathews - First Uxbridge Girl Guides
"Our Sparks group had a lot of fun with our Night Sky Tour. I was a little concerned that the girls (5-6 year olds) may get distracted during the presentation, but you kept things at their level & were really good at getting them to participate. As one of the parents said that evening, we've all seen pictures of the stars & planets, so it was really neat to see everything in real life. I highly recommend attending your presentation. It's a treat for all ages! Thanks again for having us & making it such a fun & educational evening!"
- J. Armstrong - 19th Whitby Sparks
"My family and I really enjoyed the tour last night. We will definitely pass on the word of your business to our friends and family. We would like to have another tour one day when the weather is warmer, and also observe the summer sky."
- S. Lambden & Family (Pickering, ON)
"I wanted to thank you for an amazing and wonderful experience on the Night Sky Tour last week... I have talked enthusiastically with all my friends about our tour, and raved about it to everyone I know... Learning something about what's up there in the skies really sparked an excitement in finding and identifying different things, like star clusters and constellations. I hope I have an opportunity to get together with some friends and do it again sometime. I know Aunt D. certainly plans to do it again with her own family. She hasn't stopped talking about it. So again, thank you for taking us "up" there, and sharing your passion. We had a great time."
- S. Wright (Durham Region, ON)
"I just want to thank you and tell you what a fabulous, awe inspiring time we had. ...we can't seem to stop thinking about the experience, so that tells you how highly we rate it. I can't wait for my next view through a scope and I don't think we'll be able to look to the heavens with quite the same perspective again."
- P. Dykeman (Markham, ON)
"Gil... Thank you so much for the great "Night Sky Tour".
It was very amazing to see the stars through the eyes of a telescope. Gil, your knowledge was clear and understandable, you have a gift. All the very best in the future. Take good care & thanks."
- The Seman Family (St. Stephen, NB)
Here's what some young ones had to say, after a recent day/night set of sessions, part of an earth sciences study, for Summer Youth Nature Camps; put on by the New Brunswick Field Naturalists:
"I really liked the E.T. constellation [ed. Asterism]...that was really cool!"
- A. McWilliams
"The Red Giant was pretty neat and I didn't know that we could see the flares on the sun."
- T. Wright
"That was so cool! I wish we could have done that every night. I didn't realize how many different constellations we could actually see."
- K. Tomah
"I thought the Globular Cluster was outta this world."
- Misha
"I really liked the star that looked like a disco ball (ed. Antares)...it just kept spinning and you could see all these colours...like a disco ball!"
- B. McPhee
"Thanks so much for the fantastic solar tour and amazing night sky tour. The kids really enjoyed it and couldn't believe a lot of what they were seeing. I think this is a great way to get people into astronomy and I believe you have sparked a great deal of interest in these kids."
- S. Brander, Camp Director: Summer Youth Nature Camps
(St. Andrews, NB)
"Thank you so much for your time last night and for the follow up summary this morning! We were still on a 'high' at breakfast, talking about all that we had seen. What a treat! We are part of a home-schooling group, and I will be sure to share our experience and your contact information with the group. We all felt like we learned a lot. And now we want more!"
- C. Dixon & Family
"We really enjoyed it (ed. our night sky tour) and found it fascinating.
I especially enjoyed the sparkle in my son's eyes as he observed the sky...thanks for that! My wife and I were commenting last night about how well you spoke to our children and how patient you were in taking the time to not only answer their questions, but explain the answers to them in simple terms that they could understand. Best of luck to you in this venture! I am certain it will be a successful venture and a very rewarding one as well!"
- Sam P. and Family (Mississauga)
"Just a quick thank you for a thoroughly enjoyable tour of the night sky!
Since childhood I have always been interested in the sky, but I was only occasionally somewhere dark enough to really enjoy it. Our trip to [your dark sky site] gave me the chance to see the sky at greater magnification than I ever had before, and rekindled the sense of wonder I have always felt. The cool, clear, and quiet dark of the countryside reminded me of what we are all missing just above our heads."
- C. Monster (Toronto)
"I would like to say how much our family enjoyed our participation in your night sky tour. We were all impressed with your presentation and the quality of the equipment. The expressions from everyone when they saw the size of the telescope was most entertaining.
Your knowledge and skill in fielding the questions of our home schooling group was most impressive. I don't think you had a respite from talking during the whole time from 10pm to 1am and I don't recall that you were stumped on any of the questions!
I found it very interesting to note the change in the discussion as we all moved from having a light hearted close up view of the moon and mars to considering the unfathomable size and distance of the objects in the universe which you showed to us.
I know that the children enjoyed the experience just as much as the adults and I think that a night sky viewing experience will be included in our kids curriculum in the future."
- R. Stevenson & Family (Fergus, ON)
"I came to the night sky viewing not really knowing what to expect. I know next to nothing about astronomy and I thought I might feel out of place. This was the least of my worries because Gil explained everything simply for less experienced sky viewers and went into greater detail when asked. I really enjoyed learning about the sky I have so often marvelled at the beauty of!"
- R. Baker (Fergus, ON)
"Thanks for the very informative night. My 3 children and I were quite struck with your presentation. You have helped to open up a new world for us to explore, just by exhibiting your passion and knowledge of astronomy.
It is very contagious! One thing that might be of interest to participants of your group viewings would be a list of astronomy book that you may know of that are interesting to all ages." [ NOTE: We've done just that - see our Recommended Reading section on the "Fun" page. ]" We had a great time. Thank you"
- T. Hall & Family (Guelph, ON)
"Dear Gil, I really enjoyed the night sky viewing esp. learning how to locate with the naked eye, the Pleiades, the Andromeda Galaxy and Cassiopeia.
The talk was very informative and I was impressed that you took so much time answering our individual questions. I never felt rushed looking at the stars and the price was extremely reasonable. We had studied a little about the colouring so it was a thrill to see the blue and yellow . I would certainly be interested in doing this again."
- T. Pigozzo (Fergus, ON) |
