OSOYOOS GIVES WARM WELCOME TO OLYMPIC TORCH!
Official Osoyoos torchbearer Tony Batista lit the cauldron on-stage at the community’s huge celebration at Gyro Park on Jan. 24. Flanking him, from left, are VANOC official Jim Richards, an unidentified RCMP officer, Boundary-Similkameen MLA John Slater, Osoyoos Mayor Stu Wells (hidden), and Kelowna-Lake Country MP Ron Cannan. VANOC photo
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Osoyoos gave “Canada’s Warmest Welcome” to the Olympic Torch on Jan. 24 when a wildly cheering crowd estimated at up to 2,000 people greeted the Flame at a two-hour evening celebration.
A succession of local torchbearers carried the Torch along Highway 3 from nearby Anarchist Mountain, right into downtown Osoyoos. When official local torchbearer Tony Batista carried the Flame through the celebrating crowd at Gyro Park and ran onto the bright, high-tech VANOC stage to light the Olympic cauldron, the huge gathering erupted in ear-splitting applause and happy shouts. Batista, a Special Olympic medalist, is a popular well-known local resident who has worked for more than 20 years at Osoyoos Home Hardware.
VANOC’s Jim Richards interviews Osoyoos Mayor Stu Wells on-stage during the celebration, as the Mayor holds the Olympic Torch. Destination Osoyoos photo
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The fast-paced celebration show included acrobatic and musical presentations by Torch Relay sponsors RBC and Coca-Cola, brief speeches by Osoyoos Mayor Stu Wells, Boundary-Similkameen MLA John Slater and Kelowna-Lake Country MP Ron Cannan, and lively performances by area entertainers 7 Grand The Show Band, Elvis tribute artist Jace Netherton, guitarist Rick Woods, Desert Oasis Dance Studio, and singers Maureen Terrel and Kansas Hatherly. The night ended with a spectacular fireworks show over the lake, produced by resident Frank Zandvliet, who produces Osoyoos’ renowned annual Canada Day fireworks display, the largest in Western Canada.
The Olympic Torch spent the night at Spirit Ridge Vineyard Resort, in the Osoyoos Indian Band’s NK’MIP Resort on the east side of Osoyoos, and the next morning it was blessed by Band elder Modesta Stelkia-Betterton before being carried by the day’s first torchbearer OIB Chief Clarence Louie, escorted by a large number of young band members, on foot and horseback.
Osoyoos Indian Band Chief Clarence Louie was the first torchbearer on Jan. 25, taking the Torch from NK’MIP Resort on the east side of Osoyoos, after it was blessed by OIB elder Modesta Stelkia-Betterton, right. VANOC photo
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Other dignitaries carrying the Torch on its way out of Osoyoos included China’s first Winter Olympic medalist Ye Qiaobo and Canadian Olympic snowboard gold medalist Ross Rebagliati. Qiaobo was filmed in Osoyoos by a Canadian Tourism Commission film crew, and the segment was later broadcast on China’s main television network to a dinner-time audience of more than 500 million people.
Destination Osoyoos Board Chair Derek Noske says everyone who took part in preparing and presenting the Osoyoos Torch celebration is to be congratulated. “The excitement, enthusiasm and joy expressed by the turnout of our local citizens exemplified the true spirit of the Olympics, that of bringing people together in a common goal,” Noske says. “We extend a special thank you to Osoyoos’ veteran Special Olympics medalist Tony Batista, who inspired the assembled crowd with the heartfelt emotion he expressed about what the Olympics mean to him. Well done, Osoyoos!”
Osoyoos was the final location for the Torch on its first day in the B.C. Interior, Jan. 24. Over the next five days it wound its way through Oliver, Okanagan Falls, Penticton, Summerland, Peachland, West Kelowna, Kelowna, and points north – including Vernon, Sicamous, Salmon Arm, Kamloops, Clearwater and Valemount.
Dozens in the crowd at the Osoyoos celebration were able to get their complimentary photo taken holding the Olympic Torch, in a booth set up by RBC, one of the corporate sponsors of the Torch Relay. Osoyoos resident Joyce Cronmiller hands the Torch to an excited participant. Destination Osoyoos photo
Torchbearer Sue McKortoff, left, passes the Olympic Flame to fellow-torchbearer Chantelle Gilbert in downtown Osoyoos during the Torch Relay on Jan. 24. VANOC photo
China’s first Winter Olympics medalist Ye Qiaobo ran a segment of the Torch Relay in Osoyoos on the morning of Jan. 25. A Canadian Tourism Commission film crew filmed her and interviewed her, and some of the footage was broadcast in China to an audience of 500 million people. (Rick Graham / Tourism BC photo)
Torchbearer Ken Naylor, left, passes the Flame on to Olympic snowboarding gold medalist Ross Rebagliati at the junction of Highways 3 and 97 in Osoyoos on Jan. 25. VANOC photo
With Osoyoos Lake and local vineyards and orchards in the background, torchbearer Stephanie Klym passes the Flame on to Paul Varian on Jan. 25. VANOC photo
D.O. AWARDED NEW CONTRACT FOR TOURISM MARKETING
A new agreement announced Jan. 26 will have Destination Osoyoos (DO) providing key tourism marketing services for at least the next three years in support of the Osoyoos area’s $70-million-per-year tourism industry.
Under the agreement, the Town of Osoyoos, the Regional District Okanagan Similkameen, and the NK’MIP Resort Association are jointly contracting DO to provide these services from 2010 through 2012, based from its offices in the British Columbia Visitor Centre @ Osoyoos.
Destination Osoyoos has provided tourism and economic development services for the Town of Osoyoos since the late-1990s. The new contract will focus DO’s efforts on tourism services, with the Town taking on the management of economic development directly from Town Hall. The Town will also assume the administration of Osoyoos’ revenue of approximately $200,000 per year from the provincial Resort Municipality Fund, which goes towards local tourism-related improvements.
In addition to carrying out major tourism marketing for the area, DO will continue to work closely with the Osoyoos tourism industry, through the local Tourism Advisory Committee, to co-ordinate spending of the approximately $200,000 raised each year in town by the two-per-cent Additional Hotel Room Tax (AHRT) – money which is earmarked for tourism promotion. DO also retains its contract with Tourism BC to operate the BC Visitor Centre @ Osoyoos.
DO Board Chair Derek Noske says, “This agreement begins a new day in the tourism marketing development of our community, which is so critical to the well being of our businesses and our residents.” He adds, “The prudent investment of the monies generated by the AHRT will create a return on investment for our vibrant community for many years to come.”
Noske says this revenue and growth, coupled with a new DO governance model that will be announced at the Annual General Meeting of the Destination Osoyoos Development Society on March 5, “will provide our organization with the continued mandate to serve the community as it has done faithfully over the past many years.” The Board Chair also issued a special thank you to everyone who has volunteered countless hours over the years to help Osoyoos grow and prosper. “We could not have done it without you.”
All parties to the new DO agreement say it makes great sense for the Town, the Regional District, and the NK’MIP Resort Association to jointly contract Destination Osoyoos, since all three organizations have been extensively involved in tourism developments in the area for many years.
Osoyoos Mayor Stu Wells says the Town looks forward to a continuation of the strong tourism services that Destination Osoyoos has provided in the past. “We recognize the excellent work that DO has done over the years to position Osoyoos as a highly desirable destination for travellers, with great visitor experiences. With this new, multi-party agreement, these services can now carry forward for our whole area.”
RDOS Area ‘A’ Director Mark Pendergraft says, “‘I am excited about the partnership. It makes a whole lot of sense to me. When everyone is working together on something there are usually wonderful results. It is great to have DO continue on with promoting tourism in the area, and I am particularly pleased with the new governance model that will consist of a Board made up of those directly involved in the tourism industry. It does not get much better!”
NK’MIP Resort Association Chair Chris Bower says, “We recognize the importance of partnering with the Town and the Regional District in marketing Osoyoos through DO. We have worked closely with the Town, RDOS and Destination Osoyoos in the past – and this is an excellent next step, giving us the opportunity to help fund DO.”
Noske says DO is optimistic about the future of tourism marketing for Osoyoos. “With the economy improving and the world’s attention focused on British Columbia during the Winter Olympics next month, we are excited about the prospects for tourism growth in our area in the coming months. We have energetic plans for marketing, and we look forward to working with the Town, the Regional District, the Band, and everyone in our local tourism industry to develop this important part of our economy.”
Under the new agreement, the Town will provide $72,876 to Destination Osoyoos per year, RDOS will provide $12,000 per year, the NK’MIP Resort Association will provide $15,124 per year, and $50,000 will be provided from the local two-per-cent Additional Hotel Room Tax (AHRT).
JO KNIGHT APPOINTED EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF D.O.
Destination Osoyoos Board Chair Derek Noske announced this week that DO has a new staff leader as it embarks on its fresh mandate to provide high-quality tourism marketing services for the Osoyoos area. He said the DO Board of Directors has appointed Jo Knight to the top position of Executive Director of the Destination Osoyoos Development Society, effective immediately.
Knight has been with Destination Osoyoos for three years, serving as Manager of the BC Visitor Centre @ Osoyoos – the beautiful ‘gateway’ provincial Visitor Centre at the junction of Highways 3 and 97. For the past two years, Knight also served as DO’s Director of Tourism & Visitor Experience.
“Jo has an extensive background in tourism marketing and visitor experience development with her three years of Visitor Centre management here in Osoyoos, and before that having spent four years managing the Pacific Rim Visitor Centre in Tofino/Ucluelet on Vancouver Island,” Noske says. He adds that Knight has shown leadership by becoming an accredited WorldHost trainer and achieving national certification in Visitor Services Management.
“Jo has distinguished herself with her forward thinking and team-building expertise,” Noske says. “In her new role, she is ideally positioned to carry out the mandate of the recently announced partnership agreement between Destination Osoyoos, the Town of Osoyoos, the NK’MIP Resort Association, and Area ‘A’ of the Regional District Okanagan Similkameen. The Board congratulates Jo and wishes her continued success with her new and exciting challenges.”
Knight says she feels honoured to have been appointed Executive Director of DO. “The work and vision of Destination Osoyoos and former Chief Executive Officer Glenn Mandziuk is what inspired me to move here from Tofino/Ucluelet,” she says. “I love challenges and I love Osoyoos – and I am committed to having us share our story with the world and provide visitors with an amazing experience!”
Knight says she is pleased to announce that Millie Jarrett, until now Assistant Manager of the BC Visitor Centre @ Osoyoos, has been promoted to the position of Manager of the Visitor Centre. Jarrett has an extensive background in the Hospitality & Tourism industry and recently earned her national certification in Visitor Services Management. Jarrett will manage the day-to-day operations of the Visitor Centre and will report to the Executive Director.
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