Everyone attending the second annual Sea to Sky Family Fair were given one important piece of advice from event co-organizer Kay Levis - keep your elbows up.
Juno Award-winning children's performers Bobs and Lolo will appear for the first time in Squamish at the event, which takes place on Saturday (Sept. 17) and Levis said it should be pure pandemonium from the duo's young fans.
"The kids just lose their minds," she said. "You've got to see the kiddie mosh pit that ends up at all their performances. They have such a way with the kids and if you've never seen kids jump for an hour, you will at our event."
But draining the energy of over-excited children isn't the only feature for the fair, which has seen the number of exhibitors more than double for this year. More than 60 different exhibitors will pack the CN Roundhouse and Conference Centre and Levis said she and co-organizer Betty Sheehan hope to build on a successful debut last year.
"We did have a good response last year and because of that response we've been able to more than double in size," she said. "Most of our exhibitors from last year came back and we actually got quite a few from Vancouver this year."
In addition to the increase in size, Par-T-Perfect has signed on as a presenting sponsor, which means more bouncy castles and activities for the kids.
"Instead of just one bouncy castle, they're going to be taking over the whole back of the room," Levis said. "There will be a whole fun zone set up with games, face painting and two bouncy castles."
And perhaps best of all, the event is completely free. Levis and Sheehan, who run the Busy Mums group that organized the event, thought that because of the appearance of Bobs and Lolo, a small admission fee would be needed to offset the duo's costs. However, due to the large number of exhibitors, the event can be offered for free just like last year.
Levis said organizers plan to continue to build on the event and have looked toward the Nanaimo and Vancouver family shows for inspiration for the future.
"I think we're about halfway there to being recognized in that same vein as those two shows," she said. "Realistically it's more feasible to aim for Nanaimo because we're more similar population-wise, but I think for the feel we're already there. We have the concerts, the entertainment - our room is full and quality-wise we're on par. We're just not there for size yet."
She added that the Roundhouse and Conference Centre is a great venue because of the natural light available from the large windows at the front of the building. She noted that most family fairs are held in gymnasiums or conference rooms, while the Roundhouse Centre is far more inviting. She also said the hope is to potentially make the event a two-day fair as soon as next year.
As for Bobs and Lolo, Levis said they are scheduled to perform twice, at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. and will do two completely different sets. She said getting Bobs and Lolo was a dream level of entertainer for the fair and she's thrilled to have them at the event.
The Sea to Sky Family Fair will run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the CN Roundhouse Centre on Saturday. Admission is free but donations and notes of support will be gathered for Baby Lina and the Palethorpe family at the door as the youngster continues to battle cancer. Donations for the food bank will also be accepted at the front entrance.
For more information on the event, visit www.seatoskyfair.ca.
