The crowds at Canada Day In The Park were about par for Prince George's annual July 1 events. That was considered a victory to many of the vendors and organizers, since the holiday fell on a Wednesday, this year, and a cooking hot Wednesday.
The fear was, many families would opt to go to the lake instead of the park, or skip the events due to lack of disposable hours on a non-weekend edition of Canada Day.
"We went to the lake," confirmed one dad with a number of kids and their friends hanging out under the trees near the bandshell at Lheidli T'enneh Memorial Park.
"But we spent our time there and now we want to be here. This is a great event - can't miss it."
This year, being the 100th anniversary of the founding of Prince George, the events went longer into the night and fireworks at 11 p.m. capped off the clear blue-blazer day.
"We weren't sure actually. We anticipated it might be insane with families looking for things to do in the middle of the week, and the hot weather, but we knew it was unpredictable," said The Exploration Place staff member Sue Frizzell.
"I know it was really busy all day long, from opening till closing."
If anyone personified the spirit of the day it was Lee Stewart. A member of the Legion Pipe Band and the regimental piper for the Rocky Mountain Rangers Army Cadet Corps, Stewart arrived at Lheidli T'enneh Memorial Park in his dashing white shirt and black tie, and the requisite kilt and sporrin of the Scots. Not only was he a piper there to perform on the mainstage and at the opening of the new Prince George Fire Department exhibit at The Exploration Place, he is also a Scottish descendent.
By the time he left, though, he was also topped with a stately orange turban.
He wasn't the only one as the local Sikh community had a popular booth, there, putting traditional headscarfs on anyone who wanted one, but Stewart was particularly proud to participate. Both his daughters are of Indian descent, making him an Indian-in-law.
"There were some people who gave me scowls," he said. "Not many, but some open glares at me. It made me think about the change of the name of the park," from Fort George Park to Lheidli T'enneh Memorial Park in honour of the ages-old settlement from which our founding culture, the Lheidli T'enneh people, were swindled and violently ousted a bit more than 100 years ago. This year, Prince George city council voted to change the colonial-laden name to one acknowledging the larger and longer true history of the location.
"I'm a big supporter of the name change," said Stewart. "It doesn't change the region's history and it doesn't undo the wrongs done to the Lheidli people or insult the modern culture that's been created here now, but it tells the story of our community better.
"I'm part Irish, part Scottish, and I'm a Christian," he continued, "but when I go to the Sikh temple, they are praying and I am praying to the same God. We just have different names for God. And we are so lucky and so smart in Canada to celebrate multiculturalism and be accepting of everyone's differences. It makes Canada stronger and an incredible place to live."
