Grand Bend gears up for Canada Day celebration

By Dan Rolph

With Canada Day right around the corner, the annual festivities in Grand Bend are set to be as exciting as ever.

Organized by a committee of local volunteers, this year’s event will take place on Wednesday, July 1, bringing with it a lineup of musical acts who will perform on the Rotary Community Stage, as well as what is being labelled by organizers as southwestern Ontario’s largest Canada Day fireworks display.

“We enjoy doing it,” said Grand Bend Optimist Club president and event organizer Paul Rivard. “There’s so many people and so much planning.”

This year’s lineup of musical acts consists of a mixture of returning performers and artists new to the stage.

The Indigenous worship band Okama will be first on the stage at 2 p.m., followed by Africa DRC Music Band at 4 p.m.

Up next will be Jaboah at 6 p.m., a Latin and urban music band based in London, while the rhythm and blues, soul and funk band Journeymen of Soul will take to the stage at 8 p.m.

While speaking about previous Canada Day events, Rivard said the cultural diversity organizers have brought to the festivities in the past has created a tradition of diversity that reflects Canada, and that today’s organizers are aiming to continue that with this year’s lineup.

“They inspired us by their diversity,” said Rivard. “We wanted to continue that because that’s what Canada’s all about.

“They did amazing work, and we’re following in their footsteps.”

In addition to the many musical acts, the night’s musical lineup will be capped off by a performance of O Canada by the winner of Beachfest’s Karaoke Idol competition. The national anthem will then be followed by the fireworks display at 10 p.m., which Rivard said can be viewed not only from the beach, but from the water as well.

In an age when fireworks displays are becoming more expensive, many Canada Day events are opting to cancel their shows. Rivard said the Grand Bend event has been able to keep the tradition alive thanks to the support of local sponsors and grants, representing a willingness from the community to come together to celebrate the day.

“These local sponsors that we have, we couldn’t do it without them,” he said.

Though the event will in many ways be similar to last year’s festivities, Rivard said one previous offering that isn’t returning this year is the Canada Day after party, which he said would have been challenging to host.

“Even though it was a wonderful concept, it’s just a Wednesday night,” he said. “We all have work, and kids have got to go to school the next day.”

Already looking to future celebrations, Rivard said organizers are planning to bring even more new bands to the stage in the coming years as they aim to offer a consistently fresh lineup.

“Next year, you’re going to see a whole new list,” he said.

For more information about Grand Bend’s Canada Day celebrations, visit canadadaygrandbend.ca.