People are coming from far and near to the Vallican Whole Community Centre in the Slocan Valley to celebrate its 40th birthday with a three-day party this weekend.
Tonight is the return of the renowned Cafe Voltaire, featuring spoken word, jazz, and wine and cheese. Saturday afternoon is full of music and art, including a bus-painting party and an arts and crafts fair, and then comes the Locavores’ Feast.
Originally known as the 100 Mile Potluck, the Locavores’ Feast has become a well-loved Valley tradition.
“Everyone brings great big bowls of home-grown, home-made food and shares a scrumptious meal with their neighbours and friends, old and new. It’s the best celebration of community and abundance anyone could imagine!” says co-organizer Tamara Smith.
Because people who used to live here will be coming back to the Valley for this event, organizers have agreed to lay on extra food, including Tarzwell Farms’ and veggie burgers, so visitors can buy a meal for $15 if they have no way to prepare a potluck contribution.
“We know we can count on our Valley gardeners to share their harvest and make sure our visitors get salads and veggies with their meat!” says Feast coordinator Delaine Hird.
After the Feast, Corky Evans will take the stage to auction off an array of spectacular art and a couple of unique items, one of which is a sailing tour of Slocan Lake.
Then comes the rock’n’roll dance, featuring Brain Child. These people deliver the boogie-your-socks-off kind of music that has always been a big hit at the Vallican Whole.
Sunday is a family day, with games and activities, a kids’ concert with Bing Jensen and Jeanetti Spaghetti, and a great big birthday cake. The day and the event winds up with the beautiful harmonies of Toinya (Fominoff) Sammartino and Netta Zeberoff.
This event is a fundraiser for the Vallican Whole. Admission is mostly by donation. Weekend passes and dance tickets are on sale at Otter Books, Jennie’s Gardens, and online at vallicanwhole.com, where you can find out more about this fabulous weekend.