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Sea Fair Parade continues on with tradition

Annual procession all that remains of former three-day festival
sea fair
SUMMER CELEBRATION: City of Powell River councillor CaroleAnn Leishman took part in the 2016 edition of the Sea Fair Parade. The 54th annual parade is set to return later this month. Peak archive photo

Sea Fair Parade will march on for another year. Event co-organizer Barry Kosturos said he can confirm the 54th annual parade will take place beginning at 10 am on Saturday, July 22, starting at Joyce Avenue and Barnet Street and ending at Marine Avenue and Duncan Street.

“Sea Fair needs to be rebuilt, but the parade is going forward,” said Kosturos.

The parade is all that remains of a summer event that celebrated Powell River as a seafaring, coastal community for more than 50 years. What had been a three-day festival with entertainment, a fishing derby, food vendors, fireworks and a carnival midway was reduced to a single event in 2016: a Saturday morning parade.

Sea Fair Society said it could not afford the $40,000 to $50,000 required for the event last year and that it did not have a sufficient number of volunteers. Instead, the organization asked the city for a $2,500 grant-in-aid for a parade and received the same amount again this year.

Years ago, Sea Fair was about celebrating the city’s seaside location, according to City of Powell River councillor CaroleAnn Leishman

“There were mermaids and mermen and fish, and all these fish themes,” said Leishman. “I remember being a kid in the figure skating club and we were all dressed in our costumes as different types of fish. My mom probably still has my sand-dollar costume with orange leggings.”

Leishman said she remembers storefront windows along Marine Avenue and around town being decorated in a seafaring theme, and that there was not always a midway with rides.

Kosturos said efforts are being made to bring back the midway next year. He said he has talked to Langley-based West Coast Amusements, the travelling amusement park that brought rides to Willingdon Beach during Sea Fair for 25 years.

“They actually had a time open this year, but of course we didn’t have time to plan the whole Sea Fair,” said Kosturos. He added that the company has expressed interest in coming back next year.

“That’s the agreement I have with them and we’ll talk again in the fall, so we can book something for next year, or try to,” he said.

Kosturos and Leishman agreed if Powell River wants to see Sea Fair make a comeback, it needs volunteers.

“It needs some new lifeblood fused into that organization,” said Leishman, “to perhaps take it on and launch it into a fabulous, new direction with some new, exciting events.”