Windsorites share their top moments of 2023

From new marriage to new grandchildren, it's been a good year for some Windsorites.

As the year draws to a close, CBC Windsor asked people what their biggest moment was this year and, what they think were the city and the country's biggest moments in 2023.

"The biggest thing that happened to me this year was getting married to my wonderful wife," said Giulian Carlini, who also graduated from the University of Windsor and became a nurse practitioner.

While Carlini was part of this year's graduating class, it was also a big year for future graduates likeAbishek Joshua Tennyson, who came to Windsor from his home in Coimbatore, India.

"I landed here 15 days ago as a new international student," he said on Wednesday. "Travelling 13,000 miles from home, that's a huge thing for anyone,and spending a lot of money and investing in the future."

Chicago residents Jason VonGerichten and his wife Jamie Aitchison said they werein Windsor for the day while visiting family in Detroit for the holidays.

"Our 20th anniversary was back in May, so that was a pretty big deal," VonGerichten said. "We celebrated by taking a trip to Quebec in the fall."

The couple spent a week travelling across the province testing their French skills, which VonGerichten called "terrible" and Aitchison called "mediocre."

What was the biggest thing to happen to Windsor this year?

Carlini says the biggest thing to happen to Windsor this year is the continued construction of the Gordie Howe Bridge, saying it will ease traffic for cross-border workers and truck drivers crossing on the Ambassador Bridge.

Joe Papa, who became a grandfather for the fourth time this year just two days ago,agrees that the new bridge is big, but also said that the upcoming NextStar electric vehicle battery plant is important.

"Whether that's good or bad, I'm not sure," he said. "But it really seems to be impacting the economy. It's going to create a lot of jobs."

This year, Kyle Lemmon stayed in Windsor to be with his girlfriend of more than a year instead of following his brother to British Columbia. He says the biggest thing to happen in Windsor this year were rallies in support of the Palestinian people.

"There were a lot of people downtown," he said. "That's the first time I ever saw big crowds downtown."

Having both grown up in Detroit, VonGerichten and Aitchison visited Windsor for the first time in years on Wednesday. They say that Windsor's downtown seems to be improving.

"What I like most about Windsor so far is the upcoming restaurant scene," said Aitchison. "We ate some poutine this afternoon for a little brunch, but there's some other bars and restaurants popping up and it looks like it's going to be a pretty vibrant downtown scene."

More on the biggest things to happen in Windsor in 2023