Shake the Lake still a go, will act as a wildfire relief fundraiser

Aug 29, 2023 | 7:30 AM

The annual concert on Shuswap Lake is still set to go ahead as planned, and will be acting as a fundraiser to support people affected by the area wildfire.

Michael Helfrick, owner of Red’s Rentals and the Sea Store and one of the organizers of Shake the Lake, said the concert is set to go Saturday, Sept. 2.

“We had a long conversation with all the sponsors and the co-organizers at Papa’s Marina as well, and we decided we needed a little bit of uplifting in the area, something a little more positive, and it is also a good opportunity to raise money and try and help the people down in the area affected by the fire,” Helfrick told Vernon Matters.

“So we were originally thinking of canceling, but then we talked a lot of local people, we called some of the people who have been organizing a lot of the efforts down in the North Shore, and they were all in strong support of it going ahead and trying to put a little positivity into something. Of course, it hasn’t been that positive for the last while.”

As part of the concert, held on the roof of the Sea Store on Shuswap Lake, organizers will be collecting monetary donations from attendees and also selling Shuswap Strong tee-shirts, with Helfick saying 100 per cent of the proceeds will go to the Shuswap Community Foundation, which has been helping the people who had to evacuate their homes due to the Bush Creek East Wildfire.

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At last update, the wildfire in the area was over 43,000 hectares in size and had led to evacuations for residents from Squilax and the Little Shuswap Indian Band to Anglemont.

Firefighters continue to battle the blaze impacting a handful of small communities in the area, including through the use of aerial resources, but Helfrick stated he does not believe the concert will create any issues with the firefighting efforts.

“Where the concert is we’re in the middle of the Cinnemousun Narrows and we’re not actually near where they’re fighting the fires,” Helfrick said.

“So we’re hoping people come up from the Sicamous and Salmon Arm direction so they can stay clear of the areas on the main Shuswap arm [on the] North Shore where the fires are.”

He added people should be aware of any advisories, look out for BCWS operations, and stay close to the shore when helicopters, skimmers and water bombers are filling up.

Helfrick added, should the fire spread further east and BCWS operations require access to the lake in their area, they will cancel the show, but he remained hopeful that would not happen as the forecast calls for some cooler wetter weather leading up to the weekend.

The Shake the Lake concert has been held annually since 2018, with the exception of 2020, and Helfrick said there largest turnout was around 300 boats. He hopes to see even half that figure this year and that the people who do attend donate to the cause.

Darryl Anderson and his band are the sole act performing at the show, which will begin at the Sea Store at 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 2.