This week’s column is dedicated to a good friend of the DeHart’s, Bill Scutt who passed away suddenly on April 27th. Bill was a wonderful, unique individual with a huge smile and a great sense of humor. He had a huge heart to go along with that smile and sense of humor. Bill and my husband Chris have been friends for many years, enjoying their renowned scotch club with many other long-time local friends. Bill will be missed by many in Kelowna. Personal condolences to Pamela, all his family, colleagues and many, many friends. Bill’s Celebration of Life will be June 2nd at 2:00 p.m. at the Kelowna Yacht Club.
Well-known, local postwar contemporary artist Don Makela is hosting an Art Show/Exhibition on Saturday, May 11th from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Specialty Bakery, 833 Finns Road. You are invited to a showing of a series of landscape, contemporary and abstract paintings. Don grew up in Montana and studied painting and illustration at Denver University and the University of Kansas. After graduation he spent three years in the US Army doing illustrations for the military. Don then went to Europe travelling and working in Italy, Switzerland and England. Back in North America, Don emigrated to Canada in 1975 and since then has been a self-employed artist in Kelowna. His paintings are shown in collections in Canada and the US, and in several European countries. Don has a collection of painted murals and public art works in venues throughout the Okanagan. Everyone is welcome to attend the art show and meet Don.
Globally Fair at 1789 Ross Road, beside Restore in West Kelowna is celebrating their 10th Anniversary. Owned and operated by Kate and Cindy Henderson, the shop has many beautiful, fair trade, handmade items from 43 countries around the world as well as many sustainable products, Canadian and locally made. For the month of May, you can enter their draw to win a $50.00 gift certificate, or a beautiful Turkish blanket valued at $200.00. They are also donating 5% of their sales for the month of May to the Central Okanagan Food Bank. Make sure you have lots of time to browse when you visit their store.
Callahan Property Group has supported the Central Okanagan Food Bank by sponsoring the organizations fuel cost over the next three years, with a total huge contribution of $100,000.00. With the Callahan’s support, COFB can continue it’s vital food rescue effort, through the nutritional hamper program. The food rescue program redirects surplus perishable food away from landfills and transforms it into nutritious meals for those facing food insecurity. The program operates 365 days a year, forging partnerships with 18 local retail grocery partners and farmers to salvage all perishable food.
The Okanagan Xeriscape Association‘s (OXA) annual spring plant sale is Saturday, May 11th from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at Wild Bloom Nursery, 840 Old Vernon Road. There will be a pre-sale for OXA members on Friday, May 10th from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the same location. Along with the OXA, Wild Bloom and XEN Nurseries, the Master Gardeners will be on hand to answer any of your plant questions. More than 30 drought-tolerant plant varieties will be available for sale, while native plants will be sold by XEN and other drought-tolerant plants by Wild Bloom. www.okanaganxeriscape.org
The public is invited to join Mia’s Ride at Paynter’s Market on May 11th from noon to 7:00 p.m. to support Mia’s Ride, a fundraiser for accessibility. Mia’s sister will be selling candy to support her sister’s cause and Paynter’s will be donating $1.00 from all ice cream sales for the day. www.miasride.ca
James Davison is the new Branch Manager of Scotiabank’s location at Orchard Place at #101 – 1835 Dilworth Drive. James is not new to the banking industry as he joined Scotiabank in 2018 as a part-time teller. After one year James became a financial advisor and then three years later became the Assistant Manager of Scotiabank’s Lakeshore Road Branch. James leads a team of 13 at the branch with motivation coming from his love of finance and helping people with their finances. James received his degree in economics at UBC Okanagan.
On May 19th Rob Siddon will be riding in support of awareness for men’s mental health and prostate cancer research. The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride 2024 is a global event that has raised over $45 Million since inception. Last year Rob raised over $7,000.00 and this year he is aiming to top $10,000.00. To donate https://gfolk.me/RobSiddon510123; www.gentlemansride.com
Global music solo violinist Sophie Armstrong is set to make an anticipated comeback to the stage after a five-year absence, after suffering a major injury in a devastating car accident. With a new album currently in the works, she will be gracing the stage at the Rotary Centre for the Arts where she will join ASPIRE Gala & Reception presented by Central Okanagan Performing Arts Festival as a special guest with other performing arts professionals and festival winners in an evening of outstanding entertainment and celebration. For more information visit https://copafestival.com/festival/ and tickets https://rotarycentreforthearts.com/event/event/180202/
Kelowna is a leading provider of Systemic Therapy, a life-saving approach that combined chemotherapy with personalized drug therapies. To help accelerate a new Systemic Therapy Suite, critical for improving wait time and increasing treatment capacity in the region, Crowe MacKay LLP has donated $50,000.00 to BC Cancer – Kelowna. Over the past 20 years, Crowe MacKay LLP has donated more than $200,000.00 to fuel progress at BC Cancer – Kelowna. Dave Gautier is Crowe MacKay Kelowna’s Office Managing Partner.
Gerry Fraser and the team at Fraser Hawley Group of RE/MAX Kelowna hosted a Magic Night at The Village at Gallagher’s Canyon featuring Magician and Illusionist, Ryan Michael. The Gallagher’s resident’s donated a whopping $2,585.00 to the Okanagan Food Bank in appreciation of the evening.
Well-known law firm, Pushor Mitchell Lawyers LLP has unveiled their new look. After recently celebrating 50 years in business, the firm is looking ahead to the next 50 years with a refreshed look and presence in the community. The new branding presents a fresh face to clients while representing a renewed and revitalized pledge to uphold Pushor Mitchell’s dedication to relationship-driven legal excellence. While the brand is new, the firm will continue to provide and enhance its wide-ranging legal services across their many areas of practice. In addition to providing trusted advice to clients, the firm has built lasting relationships with charitable, athletic and cultural organizations throughout the Okanagan helping the community to thrive.
May is Okanagan Heritage Month, celebrating the diversity of Asian cultures in our community. Along with many events that can be found at www.asianheritage.ca the association is hosting Family Sundays at the Kelowna Art Gallery. Join them for Japanese Origami Flower Bouquet on May 12th by Luna Taniguchi, Korean Traditional Wrapping Style on May 19th by Yewon Yin and Paper Plate Filipino Craft on May 26th by Bella Fermin. Fei Lin, MEd is the Executive Director of OCCA Communities Association.
Kelowna & District S.H.A.R.E. Society at 581 Gaston Avenue has an exciting new project that they are launching called Tee-Tote Project. They are hoping that the project will make an impact on the environment, the economy and our society. S.H.A.R.E.is committed to reusing by selling and giving away clothing and household items. The Tee-Tote Project is upcycling T-Shirts into Tee-Tote bags. They have help from their students and volunteers to create these reuseable bags. This project is another way to reuse, repurpose and recycle. S.H.A.R.E. welcomes the community to check them out and volunteer where needed. Heather Makortoff is the Program Coordinator.
Save the Date for the 2nd Annual Garry Benson Memorial Golf Tournament on September 12th, 2024 at Sunset Ranch Golf Club. Title Sponsors are Benson Law LLP Lawyers and Canco. For registration or sponsorship contact Marek Buryska at marekb@live.ca or 250-258-1793 or Kent Harris at kent.harris@arlingtonstreet.ca. Early Bird ends June 1st. Proceeds to BC Cancer – Kelowna.
ArtframeR is a custom picture framing studio at 1125 Pacific Avenue, just south of the Capri Center off Gordon Drive. Owned and operated by Roger Lee, who returned home to the Okanagan from Vancouver last spring, the company is celebrating his first anniversary. Roger has 20 years of custom picture framing experience, a keen eye for detail and a personal interest in customer satisfaction. To celebrate, for the month of May all custom picture framing is 15% off. For custom framing or inquiries you can visit the studio from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. weekdays and until 5:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday. You can also call/text/email to arrange an appointment at 778-881-2102 or info@artframer.net. Another special note for arborists and flora-fans. In addition, the ArtframeR property features a cascading bloom of a gorgeous pink Leptospermum tree (from the Myrtle family or tea tree) in late May. Definitely worth a look and a good backdrop for selfies.
Birthdays of the Week – Happy 100th Ola Cassan (May 15); Lori Metcalf (May 7); Bonnie Redman (May 7); Rhonda Lindsay (May 8); Susan Johal (May 8); Becky Marks (May 8); Ron Cannan (May 8); Joanna Bernath (May 9); Melanie Hall-Szyszkiewicz (May 9); Kamlesh Patel (May 10); Grant Wolfe (May 10); Clair Jantzen (May 10); Michael J. Ballingall (May 10); Justin Lu (May 10); Sandi Deschner (May 11); Rick Essler (May 11); Rob Balsdon (May 12); Arnie Schneider (May 13); Joy Huculak (May 13); Marian Grimwood (May 13); Shane Osborne (May 14); Mike Schell( May 14).
Maxine DeHart is a Kelowna City Councillor and local hotelier. Phone her at 250-979-4546 or 250-862-7662. E-mail max@maxinedehart.ca
