Powell River’s Canada 150 celebrations will take place on June 14 instead of July 1 as part of Pacific Region International Summer Music Academy’s annual PRISMA on the Beach concert, representatives of the region’s three local governments announced Monday, March 6.
Powell River Regional District chair Patrick Brabazon, Tla’amin Nation hegus Clint Williams and City of Powell River mayor Dave Formosa said local governments will pool their money to hold a Canada 150 celebration this June with a theme of inclusiveness and multiculturalism at Willingdon Beach.
Formosa said he has confidence that combining Canada 150 celebrations with PRISMA on the Beach, which features music from visiting symphony orchestra musicians, will make Canada’s 150th birthday extra special.
“We’re expecting it to be a real great event,” said Formosa, who said he met with Brabazon, Williams and PRISMA director Arthur Arnold on the weekend to talk about the idea. The idea has yet to be formally approved by any of the local governments.
Planning for the community party is in its early stages and information is limited at this point, but planners are hoping to bring a famous Canadian to Powell River for the event, said Formosa.
Brabazon said he was initially concerned about the celebration taking place on June 14 rather than July 1, but has since come around to the idea as Canada 150 celebrations will be happening throughout the year and will not be limited to July 1.
“Once I had that fixed in my mind, using PRISMA was a natural,” said Brabazon. “You have to use the assets you have.”
Williams said Tla'amin Nation is proud to mark the country’s birthday by celebrating multiculturalism, which is central to Canadian identity.
“We’re very excited about it,” said Williams, “and we think it’s a wonderful way to celebrate cultural diversity.”
[Note: A previous version of this story stated that the city's regular Canada Day celebrations on July 1 would be combined with the PRISMA event, when in fact it will be the Canada 150 celebrations that will happen on June 14.]
