White Rock Sea Festival showcases Semiahmoo culture
The festival celebrates community, culture, and classic summer fun
The White Rock Sea Festival & Semiahmoo Days event took place on Aug. 4 to 6 at various parks in the city to showcase Indigenous culture. (Christina West)
From the sounds of a local rock band’s music to the smell of grilling burgers and sweet traditional smoked salmon, the White Rock Sea Festival & Semiahmoo Days returned to the city this past weekend.
The 72nd annual festival took place at Memorial Park, East Beach, and Semiahmoo Park over Aug. 4 to 6, showcasing Semiahmoo culture, face painting, and offering ways to learn about the bay area by featuring local animals and sea creatures.
“White Rock Sea Festival & Semiahmoo Days is inherently a celebration of our sea,” Amanda Silvers, manager of communications & government relations for the City of White Rock, wrote in a statement to The Runner.
“Semiahmoo Bay is fundamental to the history of the Semiahmoo First Nation. We are therefore working to integrate the themes of environmental conservation and Indigenous culture into the festival to provide visitors with meaningful learning experiences in addition to a lot of fun.”
While the festival started off with humble offerings like sand castle building, it has now evolved into a multi-station event with a mix of locations, merchandise, stages, and food vendors.
The festival set up at Semiahmoo Park featured carnival staples like a bouncy castle and live music, but also included Indigenous culture like a traditional salmon barbeque and an Indigenous market selling artwork, clothing, and jewelry.
“I think people will come out and be able to relax and sit back and really enjoy some great entertainment, some great food, [and] some great culture. We’re really just excited to be able to share that with the whole community,” says Jennine Cook, the event’s coordinator and Semiahmoo First Nation councilor.
This year was also the initial launch of the Environmental Zone on East Beach. Organizations like Parks Canada, the Strawberry Isle Marine Research Society, and the Friends of Semiahmoo Bay Society created interactive experiences to promote the preservation of local natural spaces.
The zone had a full-size, whale skeleton puzzle with moveable bone pieces, fish tanks of tiny crabs to hold, and dried out starfishes. Families used a giant craft table with branches, coloured yarn, beads, and pinecones to create natural wall hangings.
“I am pleased to report that [the zone] was very well received so I am sure it will be back and likely built upon next year,” Silvers wrote.
A second music stage was set up at Memorial Park with a three meter mermaid sculpture built live in the morning and another marketplace of vendors along the West Beach seawall.
The festival included new performers like Take it to the Limit, an Eagles tribute band, and Daniel Wesley, a Canadian alternative rock musician. On Saturday at 10:00 pm, people came down to the water to watch the celebratory firework show.
Cook says the festival and the City of White Rock is associated with the joys of summer.
“I think there’s some nostalgia … being outdoors, being by the water, having snacks. Getting that kind of carnival community vibe. Just being surrounded by all the wonderful things of summer in this amazingly beautiful setting,” Cook says.
“We are so incredibly proud to be here from Semiahmoo and to be on the bay, and to live in this amazing space.”
