Renfrew-Collingwood's Greek community is inviting Vancouver to live a day (or 11) the Greek way at the Vancouver Summer Greekfest. The annual festival, which started this week, features a plethora of Greek foods, including staples like soulvaki, roast lamb, spanakopita and loukoumades. Vivian Ready, treasurer for the festival, said that another important part of the festival will be dancing and music.
"Dancing and music is a huge part of Greek culture," Ready said. "Every society has an aspect of their culture that they consider to be very important. For England it's literature but for Greece it's dancing and music."
Bouzouki, a Greek string instrument similar to the guitar, will be well incorporated. Italian and Serbian musical groups will also be present at the festival. A raffle offers a grand prize of a trip for two to Greece.
The first Vancouver Greek Summerfest was held in 1987 as a small weekend church fundraiser, but over the past 27 years it has spread across the calendar into an eleven day event, encompassing Canada Day weekend and attracting 40,000 visitors every year, according to the Vancouver Summer Greekfest website.
Vancouver's Greek community is no longer as large or as concentrated as it was in decades past, as the rising cost of living has sent many immigrants and their children to surrounding cities like Richmond and Langley. The festival is seen as not only a display for outsiders, but also a bridge for the Lower Mainland's Greek diaspora and a place for young Greek-Canadians to learn about the motherland.
"It's important to keep our heritage alive," Ready said. "The festival allows us and our children embrace our culture, and build a sense of community. We're getting spread out - we don't work together and we don't go to school together, so this is something that brings us together."
While the location may not be well-known to many Vancouverites, and most festivals are held downtown or in a more central location, Ready said that keeping the location is a key point for the festival organizers.
"It's important to keep [the festival] in our community, and not downtown," Ready said. "Its great to have an event happening in people's backyards. The Greek community in Vancouver isn't as big as it used to be, but those who are left are close and everybody likes to get together. This festival and other fundraisers are the only think keeping this church alive. The city isn't as prosperous as it once was but people still help out by donating their time."
The event is organized entirely by volunteers, and proceeds go towards the St. Nicholas and Demetrios Greek Orthodox Church and other organizations within the community. It runs until July 7 from noon until 11 p.m. daily near 4641 Boundary Rd. For more information, visit vancouvergreeksummerfest.com Drew_McLachlan@hotmail.com twitter.com/LachedAndLoaded
