Kara Burton (file photo)
Kara Burton says one of the most positive experiences of her childhood was becoming a part of the Osoyoos Royalty program.
More than 20 years after being selected as the Queen of the Osoyoos Royalty, Burton has come full circle as she has moved into the position of program co-ordinator.
This comes after longtime co-ordinators Cathie Baskett and Anne Murseli decided to step down after more than a decade.
Murseli stepped down in July and Baskett followed in December after working together to co-ordinate the hugely-successful program designed to improve self-esteem of young girls, and enhancing public speaking skills, while travelling and representing the Town of Osoyoos at various public functions all over the province for a period of 12 months.
Burton, who was named Queen of the Osoyoos Royalty in 1991, will now run the program with the assistance of former Royalty member Natasha Schroeter and Marie Launier.
“I’ve sort of remained involved with the committee for the past several years, but I was very excited to be asked to become the co-ordinator after finding out that Cathie and Anne were stepping down,” said Burton, who is well known in Osoyoos as the longtime curator with the Osoyoos Museum and Archives.
Burton said Baskett and Murseli deserve a great deal of credit for doing an outstanding job with the Osoyoos Royalty program for more than a decade.
“They both put in a lot of time and effort for more than 10 years and they did a fantastic job,” said Burton. “I want to personally thank both Anne and Cathie for all of their good work and ensuring that the Osoyoos Royalty program remained strong.”
Burton said she has nothing but fond memories of her time as Osoyoos Royalty Queen when she was a young and shy teenager.
“It was a great experience,” she said. “I thoroughly enjoyed it. We got to travel a lot and I met so many wonderful people during my year with the Royalty.
“Back then it wasn’t as big as it is now and we didn’t travel as much and did a lot more here in Osoyoos, but I still have very fond memories of that year.”
Because she and Schroeter – a teacher – have full-time jobs, they won’t be travelling with the current Osoyoos Royalty (Queen Emmaleigh Diwell and Princess Laura Devries) as much as Baskett did, but she will try and get to as many events as possible, said Burton.
“With my job and kids at home, I won’t be able to travel as much as previous co-ordinators, but I will do as much as I can,” she said. “Marie and Natasha will also try and join the girls when they travel … there will still be a lot of travelling involved and the girls will have a lot of opportunities to represent the town.”
Schroeter, Launier and Burton have met with the current Royalty members and their family to notify them of the transition in leadership and everyone involved is excited.
“The torch has been passed and we hope to continue the great work done by Cathie and Anne over the past decade,” she said.
Baskett said she has thoroughly enjoyed her many years in running the program along with Murseli.
“I started on the committee back in 2002 and Anne joined the next year and I took the co-ordinator position back in 2006,’” she said. “After 10 years, I just thought it was a good time to step back and pass the torch and let someone else take over
“It has been a really great experience and I’ve really enjoyed myself.”
The biggest source of pride in being involved with the Osoyoos Royalty program is watching young teenage girls blossom before her eyes, she said.
“Just watching them develop and become more confident is what I always enjoyed the most,” she said. “I will definitely miss working with the girls and I will also miss getting to meet so many other women involved as co-ordinators because I’ve met an awful lot of good friends because of my involvement in the Royalty program.”
Working with Murseli on co-ordinating the Royalty program for more than a decade has been a pleasure and they developed a very good friendship as a result, said Baskett.
With people like Burton, Schroeter and Launier taking over the program, Baskett said she has no doubt that the Osoyoos Royalty program will continue to flourish and offer wonderful opportunities to teenage girls from this community moving forward.
The annual Osoyoos Royalty Pageant will continue to take place during Cherry Fiesta celebrations as part of the Canada Day festivities in Osoyoos and the new management team has already began work on this year’s pageant, said Burton.
They are also getting the word out in the community to encourage teenage girls that might be interested in running for Queen and Princess to come forward to become the newest members of the Osoyoos Royalty.
KEITH LACEY
Osoyoos Times
Cathie Baskett (Richard McGuire file photo)
