What started as a small gesture to bring some fun to a Kelowna Neighbourhood has turned into what could be the biggest Christmas event Kelowna has ever seen.
Saturday's Parade for a Purpose started humbly in Pam Turgeon's neighbourhood during the doldrums of the pandemic.
She and some family members and friends decked out four vehicles and paraded around her neighbourhood in Kettle Valley.
"I dressed up as Mrs. Claus and we had a Santa Claus and my daughter is always the Christmas Bear and we just drove through the community."
The next year, they had ten floats participating and raised $14,000 for the Bridge Youth Recovery House.
"And then the third year we raised $80,000 and we had 15 floats, and last year we had 17 floats and we raised $118,000."
Turgeon and her family decided to make it a parade for all of Kelowna and bring it downtown.
"We've been working with the City of Kelowna to bring this wonderful amazing parade downtown with 40 floats," she said. "All done up in Christmas."
And it's not called Parade for a Purpose for nothing, this year's event has already raised close to $190,000 in donations before the parade even begins.
"We're really happy to say that we have a match to that money," explained Turgeon. "So there will be an anonymous match up to $250,000."
But she's quick to point out that you don't have to donate to enjoy the event.
"If you can't, we just want you to be a community and come down to the parade," she said.
"We just got a sneak peek at some of the floats and everybody is going over the top."
The parade would have been competing for attention with Saturday night's hockey game at Prospera, but the Rockets decided to move their game to 3 pm.
That way hockey fans can spill out of the arena just in time to take in the parade.
"So we encourage everybody to go to the Rocket game at 3 o'clock. They're having a teddy bear toss and then come on down to the parade."
Organizers are expecting over 10,000 people to line the streets.
The decision to stage an event to support The Bridge Youth Recovery House stems from some tragic events for Turgeon's family.
"We lost two sons," she said, "so we just decided to take our grief and put it to purpose."
For more on the Bridge Youth Recovery House, which is expected to be operational by 2026, click here.
If you get value from KelownaNow and believe local independent media is important to our community we ask that you please consider subscribing to our daily newsletter.
