On June the 3rd I headed to Tim Hortons in Osoyoos to take part in the Annual Camp Day. Camp Day is an Initiative to help Support the Tim Hortons Children Foundation by raising funds to send upwards of 18,000 Canadian Youth to 7 different Tim Hortons Camps in the Country.
By the time I visited my local Tim Hortons over $1300 had been raised.
On June the 3rd when people purchased Coffees a 100% of the proceeds went to the Camp Day fundraising efforts. However people could also round up the total of the bill or donate $1.00 to put their name on a Rent a Tent or give $5.00 towards Renting a Cabin and put their names on little cabins.
I myself donated $1.00 and put my name on a Blue Rent a Tent
The over all day was a huge success with over $12.4 million Dollars raised Nation Wide! I was happy to take part in one of several Fast Food restaurant National Charity Campaigns. I was delighted at how successful the local initiative was at Tim Hortons in Osoyoos. I am excited for all of the Youth who will get to experience time at a Summer Camp this Summer.
On May 30th I along with Viveka my fellow local British Columbia Ambassador Candidate along side some of the Osoyoos Royalty Ladies including one of the Currently Reigning Osoyoos Princesses - Ali and 2 of the Current 2015 Miss Osoyoos Candidates, all volunteered at the Desert Park Derby Nights. This was a fundraiser put on by Desert Park Exhibition Society and was ultimately a fundraiser for the 2015 Derby Races [Horse races.]
[L to R Myself, Tianna, Ali, Emma, Vivekia aka 2 BC Ambassador Candidates, 2 Royalty Candidates & one Princess.]
The event was extremely well attended and was held at the Watermark Beach Resort and Hotel conference room. During the evening the Osoyoos Princess Ali and the two Candidates helped out by serving Appetizers and Vivekia and I spent the evening acting as Door Greeters, opening the door for people as they arrived.
I am eagerly awaiting the First of the Derby Races to take place this Summer and hope that the Desert Derby Night was an extremely successful Fundraiser!
On April 24th I attended the annual Miss Osoyoos Speech night and Auction Fundraiser. This event was held at Troy's Grill and featured the 2015 Miss Osoyoos Royalty ProgramCandidates present a speech on the topic of their choice.
The three young ladies vying for the title of Miss Osoyoos each gave a speech about their passions. Tianna - Miss Buy-Low Foods Osoyoos gave a speech about reading and books.
Bailey - Miss Osoyoos Elks Lodge #436 gave a speech about her participation in Women's Soccer and she even spoke to us about her excitement in regards to Canada hosting the 2015 FIFA Women's Cup.
Emma - Miss Desert Aire Reality spoke to us about what it was like to grow up in a Multicultural household.
We also saw each candidate present a 1 minute presentation showcasing the best parts of Osoyoos. Two of the ladies wrote original poems & one created a Rap to the theme from the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme song. After the judged portion of the evening had ended it was time for the Auction Fundraiser. First up were 3 cakes that were made and decorated by each Miss Osoyoos 2015 Candidate.
The evening also included an Auction Fundraiser Portion. The candidates were each expected to bake & decorate a Cake. Tianna chose to make a Buy-Low themed cake including a Shopping cart. Bailey made a fabulous bear with a crown sitting on some flowers and Emma created a Desert Oasis complete with palm trees & a mermaid. The most expensive cake brought in $280 dollars on the cake auction block and all together the cakes brought in over $700 to the Osoyoos Royalty Program. Next up was the flower center piece auction, where the reigning royalty joined the candidates to display the flowers as they went up for Auction and to hand deliver them to the winners after they were purchased.
The two most expensive floral arrangements [it was a tie] sold for $35.00 each. I counted roughly 10 arrangements and I estimated a total Flower sale of over $250 going towards the 2015 Osoyoos Royalty travel fund.
The last portion of the evening was another Auction sale as the reigning 2014 Osoyoos Royalty Team baked cupcakes that were put up for Auction.
I counted roughly 14 plates of cupcakes were put up for Auction with the most expensive plate selling for $15 and all together the cupcakes accumulated roughly another $125 dollars going into the travel fund. So all in all it was an incredibly successful event that made a lot of Money to go towards the travel expenses of the 2015 Team.
At the end of the evening I was presented with a beautiful floral arrangement that was given to me by my good family Friend Lloyd who also happens to be a Elks Lodge member & a HUGE Osoyoos Coyotes Hockey fan :) I was extremely happy because he bought me a truly gorgeous display.
I want to commend the Osoyoos Royalty Program for putting on such a successful public event. I also want to congratulate the 2015 Miss Osoyoos Candidates for making it this far in the program. As a Miss Osoyoos Candidate myself I always felt the first two First judged public events were the toughest. Having said that each of the 2015 Miss Osoyoos Candidates showed a tremendous amount of self growth between their First and second judged events. I was extremely proud for all three of the Young Ladies for their superb speech presentations and highly creative Osoyoos Promotion speeches [the quick 1 minute Poems & Rap.] Well done ladies, one more event to go before you embark on your Journey as Sparkleheads.
For those who wish to attend the 2015 Miss Osoyoos Pageant the coronation ceremony will take place on Tuesday June 30th, 2015 at the Sonora Centre with the doors opening at 6:00 p.m & the Pageant beginning at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are for sale at the door or from any of the current reigning Royalty or Candidates for $15.00 for adults aged aged 13 and over, with tickets for Children available for $8.00. Don't miss your chance to celebrate the success of the 2014 Osoyoos Royalty Team as they reflect upon the end of their Journey as Sparkleheads and join in as we welcome and support the incoming 2015 Miss Osoyoos Royalty.
In Case you didn't need more motivation to go, not only will the Osoyoos Royalty be on stage, but all of the Visiting Royalty as well as myself & Viveka Jensen as we will be introduced on stage as British Columbia Ambassador Candidates. So come on out for will be a fabulous final judged event for the 2015 Miss Osoyoos Candidates & the last event for the 2014 Osoyoos Royalty Team as they pass on their titles and tiaras onto their successors.
In Case you are unable to attend the festivities on June 30th come and say hello to all of us on July 1st which is Canada Day as well as the annual Osoyoos Cherry Fiesta. There will be no shortage of Crowns, sparkles, and enthusiastic Youth of British Columbia out and about taking part in the day's festivities. You will not only see the Retired & newly crowned Osoyoos Royalty as well as myself & Vivekia as British Columbia Ambassador Candidates but plenty of visiting young men and women from all over the Province. Let's show everyone as a community on a whole a good Old Fashioned Canada's Warmest welcome from Visitors and residents of Osoyoos alike all gathering together to celebrate our town & our Country!
On Sunday May 24th I spent the afternoon experiencing my first Local car races during the Wine Country Racing Association 2015 season opening Race Day. I was super excited going to the races as I had never been to car races in this kind of style before. Not knowing what to wear I choose a very different kind of outfit, layering my Yellow patterned dress from Wander Home & Cafe Osoyoos paired with my bright purple tights from Lyssa's Stitchery with my Mint Converse shoes, black sweater, pink sunglasses and I even wore my Pink knit hat. Lucky that I did wear layers because we had everything from Sunshine, to bouts of wind, to light rain showers.
The races themselves were quite interesting as it was a straight track, I did not arrive in time to watch any of the Time qualifiers but thankfully for me I was sitting next to some very nice people who kindly explained it for me. I more or less understood the gist of the event by the end of the afternoon.
The excitement for me was mostly from seeing the really interesting looking cars and getting to see my Uncle Greg's Sign shop front and center. He owns & operates Oliver Brake and Muffler [minus the weeds]
Anyway during the afternoon I thoroughly enjoyed my time spent watching the cars race around. I even saw a Snowmobile racing.
I would like to Wish the WRCA a fantastic 2015 Season
Check out the rest of the race days on June 21st, September 27th, or October 11th!
During the afternoon of May 17th I took part in my second Meadowlark nature Festival Event and attended Tour 66- Explore the Okanagan Nations which was held at Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre. For the first part of the afternoon we spent some time listening to an Osoyoos Indian Band Elder. The elder passed along her knowledge of local food that is still commonly used by the OIB. She also talked a lot about her culture. For instance she started off with a Prayer. She told us that although she speaks the local Okanagan Language she is not fully fluent is and is still learning more about it today.
The elder taught us a lot about the Food of the Okanagan. One of the things she focused on was teaching us how to make Bannock [Fried Bread.] She also handed out samples of locally caught Salmon that had been dried. During our mini indoor picnic of delicious Okanagan Nation Edibles we were presented with a buffet of locally produced Jams & Jellies. There was Elderberry, Mullberry, Saskatoon Berry, Blackberry, Strawberry, Black Currant, Wild Cherry and my personal favorite Rose Petal Jelly.
To make her rose petal Jelly she gently picks & cleans the rose petals. She let's them soak in warm [not boiling] water over night. She then strains the water and follows the gelatin instructions. It turns out this lovely pink color if done right and it was scrumptious!
She also had a pie there for us to sample as well as a selection of berries to eat.
Just before our time with the elder ended she asked her granddaughter [who was one of two young women helping her out] if she would sing us the Okanagan Song. The Okanagan Song is similar to o Canada in that it is an anthem of the Okanagan People. The Okanagan Song means Beautiful Land & we are grateful.
After our time with the OIB elder had ended we made our way to the theatre to watch 1 one of the movies that was produced by the Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre. After that we met our tour guide in the cultural area to learn more about the history of the people.
Our tour manager talked to us about the importance of Inkameep School. We were shown surviving pieces of artwork that was made by the first students of the school. Most fascinating was the fact that we got to listen to a sound clip of the students of Inkameep school singing.
There is a huge amount of original artwork created by the students that has been meticulously preserved and displayed for future generations to continue to enjoy and most importantly learn from.
Just before we made our way outside we entered an indoor Campfire area and heard stories about the salmon in Osoyoos.
This was a very fascinating short film because the movie was projected above, below and all around us.
The Sights and sounds around us including a 3D diagram of the fish, was ever changing all around us to fully immerse us into the tale we were being told.
After learning about the journey of the Osoyoos Salmon and how things have changed for them [both the good & the bad] it was time for us to start exploring outside!
Once outside we enjoyed a brisk walk around the grounds [following the pathway of course.] Whilst learning about the beautiful Nature surrounding the grounds.
During our tour we were allowed to smell one of the trees because this particular tree smells like Vanilla, or cookies. It's the Ponderosa Pine tree.
Side note this tree was on a marked path. Meaning no nature was harmed in the smell of this tree. They didn't let us all stray off the path to go smell trees, I promise!
One of the unique parts of the Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre is their re-creation of Aboriginal outdoor Village areas. This is the field. Did you know that the elders would work on the outer edges of the field with the Younger women working the inner parts. This was to ensure the protection of the young women and keep an eye on them.
This is a Sweat Lodge which was used to physically and spiritually cleanse the body. Lodges were created near creeks or lakes with the entrance facing east. Men and Women used the lodges in separate groups. The entrance tended to be covered making the inside pitch black and the ground was covered in Fir boughs, with water being poured over the heated rocks.
The Lodge represents the womb of mother Earth with the frame representing her ribs.
The last part of the village is the Pit house.
The Pit house is a Winter lodging used by several families. It's Earth covered and sturdy providing safety, protection and warmth during Winter Months.
This portion of the afternoon was set aside for a Q & A and provided an opportunity for open discussion.
Afterwards the afternoon ended and with it ended my first experience with the Meadowlark Nature Festival and the first afternoon I had spent at Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre in several years. All in all I had a truly wonderful day and learned soooooo much about my Community and it's culturally rich History and breathtakingly beautiful surroundings.
I cannot highly recommend both a tour at the Nk'Mip Desert Cultural Centre nor a tour with the annual meadowlark Festival enough!
On June the 3rd I headed to Tim Hortons in Osoyoos to take part in the Annual Camp Day. Camp Day is an Initiative to help Support the Tim Hortons Children Foundation by raising funds to send upwards of 18,000 Canadian Youth to 7 different Tim Hortons Camps in the Country. 
On June the 3rd when people purchased Coffees a 100% of the proceeds went to the Camp Day fundraising efforts. However people could also round up the total of the bill or donate $1.00 to put their name on a Rent a Tent or give $5.00 towards Renting a Cabin and put their names on little cabins. 
