In just over a week's time, Grande Prairie will be bustling with a weekend full of Canada Day celebrations featuring some exciting, new additions this year.
Festivities begin on June 30 at 8:00 p.m. at Muskoseepi Park near the Ernie Radbourne Pavillion. The Canada Day Kick-Off includes two stages of entertainment, children's activities, and food and community vendors. The night concludes with the signature fireworks display over the reservoir at midnight.
Official Canada Day celebrations begin on July 1 at 1:00 p.m. with the Canada Day Parade. New this year, the parade is being temporarily re-routed on 108 Avenue from 94 Street to 105 Street to accommodate construction on the Downtown Rehabilitation and Streetscapes Project.
Nearly 100 floats have entered into the parade, with the theme this year being "Proud to Be Canadian." As a new feature this year, the City of Grande Prairie float, which will have a rustic farmhouse style décor, will be available in Muskoseepi Park for photo ops. It will be located in the main parking lot behind the centre stage. Residents are encouraged to take their picture with it and share to social media with the nationwide hashtags #CanadaDay and #FeteduCanada.
The Canada Day Celebrations at Muskoseepi Park take place from 2:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Official opening ceremonies commence around on the amphitheatre stage with introductions and dignitary speeches. Live entertainment on two stages follows. Headliners include variety act Bob and Jane Cates, who recently won the Best Variety Act at the 2018 Canadian Comedy Awards. Their fast-paced, interactive show is captivating for all age groups and features advanced juggling, balancing, illusions and much more!
Food vendors, community groups, inflatable bouncing castles, face painting and other children's activities and a giant cake will also be part of the festivities.
The Grande Prairie Museum is also hosting a free community carnival during this time. This event will include popular carnival games, kettle corn, face-painting, body art tattoos and entertainment such as stilt walkers, jugglers, hula dancers and more!
These events have been made possible in part by funding from the Government of Canada.
For more details on the events including free Park N' Ride shuttle services, event guidelines to help everyone have the most enjoyable experience possible and much more, visit cityofgp.com/CanadaDay.