By Don Urquhart, Times Chronicle
The return of Cherry Fiesta after a two-year hiatus drew huge crowds that were clearly revelling in the mostly sunny day.
The entire event ran as smooth as silk with Ken Baker president of the Osoyoos Festival Society (the organiser of the event) saying: “this year’s Cherry Fiesta went over fantastic, no question about it!”
Baker reckoned, “there didn’t seem to be quite as many people to me.” On the other hand Sgt. Jason Bayda of the Osoyoos RCMP estimates the parade crowd was larger than in previous years, noting that it remained fairly heavy even past AG Foods which it normally doesn’t.
Baker notes that two of the highlights of the afternoon entertainment were the Desert Oasis dancers as well as the Punjabi performers. “When the Punjabi performers came on stage the park just filled up, it was really something. It was very very well received, everyone in the crowd was up and dancing. That was a highlight of the afternoon!” he said.
He added that the performers called him on Monday to ask if they could have an hour and a half next year rather than the 45 minutes they were allotted this year.
Baker expressed his thanks for all the volunteers that made the event a success.
“We were all run off our feet from 6:30 a.m. until after the fireworks… it was a long day.”
