This was Kelowna General Hospital in 1929, when the Kelowna Auxiliary started. In 1952 it held it's first Strawberry Tea, which ends tomorrow as the last Blossom Time Fair.
Image Credit: Kelowna Hospital Auxiliary
May 09, 2019 - 5:30 PM
KELOWNA - After 67 years, the Blossom Time Fair that raises money for Central Okanagan hospital auxiliaries, will be held for the last time tomorrow.
“Regrettably and unfortunately, auxiliary members are getting older and it’s an event that has a lot of heavy lifting,” Georgiann Kasdorf, the convenor and past-president of the Kelowna Hospital Auxiliary told iNFOnews.ca. “There are boxes and boxes of collectables and packages and packages of baking. We’re just not able to do that much heavy work anymore. We’re looking at other ways of doing fundraising that are easier on the old body.”
The fair started as a Strawberry Tea that was run inside and outside of Kelowna General Hospital for the first time in 1952. Subsequent events included dances, balls, craft and bake tables, even at times, palm and tea leaf readings.
It moved to the Cottonwoods Care Centre in the late 1980s when auxiliaries from Rutland, Peachland, Winfield and Brookhaven all joined in. Now it’s down to just Peachland and Kelowna.
At one time, Kelowna’s auxiliary alone had 80 members. Now it’s down to 40 and unable to recruit younger members.
Over the last few years, the Blossom Fair raised about $10,000 a year. Kasdorf is hoping to end with an even greater return this year.
The event tomorrow, May 10, runs from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Cottonwoods, 2255 Ethel St. in Kelowna. It mimics an old-fashioned country fair with music, food, a Zumba demo, games for children, a plant and craft sale, bake sale and collectables.
There are a number of projects planned with the funding, including refurbishing a family room at Kelowna General Hospital where people can sleep overnight when visiting family in the intensive care unit. Another project will be for privacy curtains in the Cottonwoods dining room for special family dinners or events.
While it's the end for the Blossom Time Fair, it’s not the end for the Kelowna Auxiliary.
“It’s very, very sad,” Kasdorf said. “I think tomorrow will be quite nostalgic. And, coincidentally, it is Kelowna Auxiliary’s 90th anniversary. We’re proud of our history and we’re going to look at new ways to fund raise that are more manageable for us.”
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