There won’t be a Family Day festival at North Delta Community Park this year as the event is being merged with Canada Day at Chalmers Park.
On Wednesday (May 22), the City of Delta announced it is partnering with the North Delta Lions Club to expand the local Canada Day celebrations taking place on Monday, July 1.
The move means amalgamating the Lions-hosted North Delta Family Day parade and festival, traditionally held in late June, with the city’s Canada Day festivities “to deliver enhanced programming to the community,” according to a city press release.
“The North Delta Lions Club is an outstanding service club dedicated to investing in North Delta and its residents,” Mayor George Harvie said in a press release. “The City of Delta is proud to partner with the club to host an exceptional Canada Day celebration, combining the two well-loved community festivals to provide an enhanced and expanded event for our community.”
The Lions have put on North Delta Family Day for more than 50 years, with proceeds from the event going to support various community initiatives.
Delta has long been a partner in and sponsor of the event, but has taken on a greater role in since Family Day returned after a two-year pandemic-related hiatus, largely due to reduced availability of Lions Club members to shoulder the burden of organizing the festival.
In 2022, the first year port-COVID, the city took on planning the parade portion of the event, and in 2023 took over organizing both the parade and the festival, with the Lions focusing instead on arranging the kids zone inflatables, providing volunteer support and cooking up their famous barbecued burgers, hot dogs and fries.
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Speaking to the merger of the Family Day and Canada Day celebrations for 2024, North Delta Lions president Nicholle Dhaliwal said the club appreciates the many years of support from the city and the community at large in celebrating North Delta Family Day.
“The North Delta Lions Club has had the honour of hosting the North Delta Family Day Parade and Festival for decades,” Dhaliwal said in a press release. “We will continue our legacy in North Delta and our renowned community barbecue to give this Canada Day the celebration it deserves.”
This year’s Canada Day event will retain many elements of Family Day, such as the iconic Lions Club barbecue, an inflatable lion slide and other bouncy apparatus for kids, and a parade through the streets of North Delta (albeit along a different route).
The event will also feature the usual Canada Day activities — opening ceremonies and cake cutting, a cultural corner, carnival games provided by Delta Church, Indian and other food options from Punjabi Maihi Church and Delta Church, live entertainment (this year featuring headliner Soulstream) and fireworks to cap off the celebrations.
New this year, the event will also feature an adult beverage garden sponsored by the Delta Firefighters Charitable Society.
The Lions are receiving $7,000 in financial assistance from the city to help offset the costs of planning the parade, food service and children’s activities.
A full schedule of events has yet to be released, but a report to council on April 8 indicates the Canada Day celebrations in North Delta will be from noon to 10 p.m.
In addition to celebrations in North Delta, the Tsawwassen Boundary Bay Lions Club will be hosting Canada Day festivities at Diefenbaker Park and the Kirkland House Society will host the celebration at Hawthorne Grove Park, home to the historic Kirkland House and Harris Barn.
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