Harrison Hot Springs has a big birthday coming up.
Yes, the village’s 75th anniversary of incorporation is right around the corner, and the village is looking to celebrate later this month.
Harrison was incorporated on May 27, 1949, on the site of the ancient Sts’ailes village of Qwó:íls at the nexus of Harrison Lake, the Harrison River and Fraser River. At the time, it was the largest village area-wise in B.C., spanning 2,020 acres. It officially changed from the Corporation of the Village of Harrison Hot Springs to just the Village of Harrison Hot Springs in 2004, named after Benjamin Harrison, the former deputy governor of the Hudson’s Bay Company.
Now, I’m riding the high of the village council showcasing a rare display of unity in passing the 2024-2028 budget. Forget the streak of collapsed meetings; we can rise above the bare minimum to really make the village’s milestone birthday bash count.
How, you ask? Let’s go for the world record for the most people dressed in sasquatch costumes in one place.
Full credit to local Julie Randell Chamberlain for what could be one of the best proposals I’ve seen so far for Harrison’s diamond anniversary. If Drumheller can set a world record for the most people dressed as dinos in one place, why can’t Harrison pull this off with our beloved, legendary sasquatch?
First thing’s first. We have to figure out what kind of numbers we’re working with. For that, we go to the Guinness Book of World Records. And I have good news – based on a quick Google search, it seems the record does not exist – yet.
This is our chance, Harrison. We are on the cusp of one of the most illustrious titles in world history. Harrison is already on the map, but we can make our spotlight shine all the brighter.
Maybe the logistics of getting all the costumes shipped in or made by May 27 is a tall order at this point, but when has a little thing like that stood in our way? Picture it. Hundreds – possibly thousands – of sasquatch all gathered along the beautiful shores of Harrison Lake. We could recruit weekend visitors, friends, family, the neighbours in the District of Kent.
And why stop there? If we do this right, by the time the official celebration hit, we could be up to our eyeballs in sasquatch from all interpretations and walks of life, celebrating our community like never before. I don’t know who’s officially in charge of the 75th anniversary celebration, but consider this an official suggestion for our milestone year.
What do you say, Harrison? Are you in?