What: Our Whistler: Honouring our History
When: Saturday, Oct. 27, 6 p.m.
Where: Four Seasons Resort
Tickets: $125
Joan Richoz remembers when the Whistler Arts Council was nothing more than a series of cardboard boxes passed on from one board member to another 25 years ago.
“We had no office until 1999,” Richoz said. “Until then, if you were president, then you got a certain file box, and if you were the treasurer, than you had all the financial files and if you were the secretary, you had all the minutes.”
One year, a dog chewed up the treasurer’s cardboard box including all the financial statements.
Along with not getting audited for the missing, dog-eaten box, Whistler Arts Council members have a lot to celebrate for their 25 th anniversary, which includes programming, people and most importantly stories that have culminated over the years.
Ten storytellers will relay their yarns to celebrate the council’s quarter of a century milestone with a storytelling gathering called Our Whistler: Honouring our History on Saturday, Oct. 27 at 6 p.m. at the Four Seasons Resort.
“We are really celebrating our accomplishments and dedication of everyone involved,” she said. “When you look back and see everything that has been done, it’s pretty amazing.”
Story tellers include Brian Brown, One of Whistler’s original surveyors; Colin Pitt Taylor, Whistler resident of almost 40 years; Florence Petersen, friend to Myrtle Philip; Garry Watson, one of Whistler’s first councilors; Hugh Smythe, 1966 lift operator; John Hetherington, one of Whistler’s original heli-skiing guides; Lynn Mathews, original marketing staff for then Whistler Mountain; Marika Richoz, born and raised Whistlerite; Stephen Vogler, Whistler historian and author; Terry “Toulouse” Spence, national team member for 25 years; and Drew Meredith, former Whistler mayor.
While the Whistler Arts Council celebrates 25 years of supporting and cultivating arts and culture in the Sea to Sky corridor, Joan Richoz will celebrate 24 years of involvement with the council — 23 of them as a board member and now current chair.
She watched the registered charity grow from roaming cardboard boxes to a Resort Municipality of Whistler trailer that shared storage space with the library and museum to a building donated by the Whistler Centre for Business and Arts to its current residence behind Marketplace.
For years, only volunteers ran the organization. There was no governance. All energies were spent on mounting events.
“We were a hands on board that organized and volunteered for a lot of events,” Richoz said. “We didn’t have any staff. Things like policy don’t get done until you have a permanent staff.”
Six years ago, the municipality commissioned a cultural consultant to report on the state of arts in Whistler. Based on the report’s recommendation, an executive director was hired, stakeholder members were brought to the board (RMOW, Whistler-Blackcomb, Tourism Whistler) and the council was formulated into an umbrella organization for the arts.
“Once we were able to hire Doti (Neidermayer), it changed everything,” Richoz said of the Whistler Arts Council’s current executive director.
The council is now run by four full-time staff and a new development manager position will be created in November. Various contract positions are also hired for specific events.
The Whistler Arts Council hosts the Whistler Children’s Art Festival, Art Workshops on the Lake, ArtWalk, ARTrageous, Bizarre Bazaar, Performance Series, Celebration 2010 and various funding initiatives such as community grants, art awards for elementary and high school students, student bursaries for summer cultural camps and the council’s latest adventure, the 2010 Cultural Olympiad Festival’s live site performances.
Neidermayer is writing the largest grant application in the history of Whistler’s arts scene. Through the municipality, Whistler is applying for a $5 million grant to fund programming of the live sites during the Cultural Olympiad. Another $5 million grant application is going through the municipality to fund construction of the live sites. These sites will come alive with arts and cultural showcases and performances during the Games, providing visitors and residents with entertainment outside of the ticketed events.
“This is a huge opportunity to get our local artists involved in that programming and make sure that they are going to be at the level that is needed, so that they are hired,” Richoz said. “They are going to be up against the same criteria as anywhere else and we want them ready.”
For 25 years, visionaries such as Glenda Bartosh, Margaret Long, Sonya McCarthy, Tamsin Miller, Dixx Milestein, John Hewson and Richoz, have worked hard to ensure this will happen.
“The greatest legacy for the Games is in 2011, when (visitors) come back here because in 2010 the arts and culture was so amazing, they just had to return,” Richoz said. “We want to put Whistler on the map for arts and culture.”
Our Whistler: Honouring Our History begins with a reception at 6 p.m. followed by dinner at 7 p.m. and storytelling at 8:15 p.m. at the Four Seasons Resort. Advance tickets are $125 and now on sale. (A $100 tax receipt per ticket will be issued.) Funds raised by the event will support Whistler Arts Council events.
Tickets are on sale at whistlerartscouncil.com or by calling 604-938-9221.
