A staple of Kelowna’s Canada Day will be no longer.
The Kelowna Canada Day Concerts Society announced Friday that that it will no longer stage its annual symphony concert known as the Canada Day Spectacular on July 1 and disband the society.
The free concert has been held at the Memorial Arena and Prospera Place for 23 years, but the board of directors upon review concluded, due to declining volunteer availability, difficulty recruiting directors and downturn of financial means, it is dissolving the society.
“It has been a wonderful 23 years of music making, none of which could have been possible without the full dedicated support of the board of directors, volunteers, and musicians,” said Leonard Camplin, Kelowna Canada Day Concerts founder and music director. “Furthermore, it has been a pleasure to work with young musicians, which in turn has expanded their music education. I applaud all those wonderful supporters who have spurred me on in the performance of these concerts. I thank them whole-heartedly.”
The Kelowna Canada Day Concerts Society was formed in 1994 as a non-profit organization, to co-ordinate and produce the ‘Canada Day Spectacular’, the purpose of which was to advance the public’s appreciation of the arts by providing a free concert, thus enabling everyone to attend.
“The society, although it is dissolving, such an amazing musical legacy will not be forgotten,” reads a statement from the organizers. “Hopefully, another group celebrating Canada’s birthday with an annual concert will take it up. We hand the baton over to them.”