When you could spend Canada Day eating hamburgers, dancing and playing on the beach, and listening to bands, why would you choose to work all day instead? Almost 100 volunteers come together to make the Canada D'eh Party at Baishawan (白沙灣) beach happen; last year the same volunteers who were checking tickets at the door at noon were still working at sundown.
"When you do something difficult, and it goes off well, there's a lot of satisfaction at the end of the day," says volunteer and Canadian Society board member Brian Rusk. "You get to meet people, talk to people and be a part of something that went off smoothly." Nonetheless, with so many fun things to do throughout the day - volleyball, foosball and tug-o-war, with four Luxy DJs spinning on the beach - there is a need to balance work and play.
"This year we want the principal volunteers to be able to enjoy it more," Rusk says. "Last year we were so concerned with making sure things were going well, which they were! This year we want to make sure people have the time to really enjoy it."
PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CANADIAN SOCIETY TAIWAN
Pascale Dangoisse, chief organizer of all the volunteers, says volunteers are usually "people that you've asked straight out. There was direct contact with a lot of the volunteers - 70 percent to 75 percent are Canadian Society of Taiwan members or friends of members - it was mostly done by word of mouth." Despite wearing a cast this year, Dangoisse is enthusiastic about the event, and concurs with Rusk that meeting people is one of the main benefits of volunteering. "It's great to have all these Taiwanese, French-Canadians and English-Canadians come together and work on this one day: young, old, different professions - all these people come together to make it work."
A key figure behind the event is Pierre Loisel. "[H]e set up the first Canada day parties out at his place 25 years ago. It ran for several years then faded out," says Canada D'eh organizer Kevin Dempsey. Six years ago, when Dempsey joined the Canadian Society, the two met. "Pierre told me the stories and encouraged the idea to try it again. He says 'why don't we have a party' and then I started talking with [ICRT DJ] Rick Monday."
Three hundred people were expected to show up for the first Canada D'eh event; actual attendance was 600. Organizers expect 5,000 people to attend tomorrow's fest but have enough food and drink for 6,000.
At sundown the event moves from the beach to a field, where Aboriginal dancers will perform, followed by five bands: David Foster Syndicate, Johnny Fatstacks, .22, BoPoMoFo and 2 Acres Plowed.
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