Tourism Winnipeg

75 75 in Winnipeg and Manitoba » Building community and capacity, both now and tomorrow » Nearly 6,000 volunteers stepped up to put on the 2017 Canada Summer Games. Today's leaders were called upon to foster the next generation of leaders both on and off the field of play. By participating in Folklorama festival, some cultural groups have identified their ability to purchase, open and operate community cultural centres (such as the Ethiopian Socity of Winnipeg and Winnipeg Chinese Cultural and Community Centre) through revenues. Participating in the festival allows other organizations such as the Belgian Club, German Society of Winnipeg, Irish Club, Casa do Minho Portuguese Centre and more to maintain venues through funds raised during the Festival that support their year-round operations. Use by Folklorama pavilions of community centres, schools, curling rinks, hockey arenas, event centres and the RBC Convention Centre provides important revenues to those venues towards sustaining their operations. Over its 48 years of operation, the Folklorama Festival has provided a platform for numerous diaspora communities who have settled in Winnipeg the chance to preserve their intangible heritage, to grow and develop their community and the individuals who participate, who in turn contribute to the city and province. The local talent has been fostered through annual participation in the Festival, and has grown to where many members are now invited to perform on the world stage at international events and are lauded as being leaders in their various folkloric art forms. Internally, the Festival has allowed the Folklorama organization to create, develop and grow programming through its Folklorama Talent and Folklorama Teachings offerings that provide year-round opportunities for members to celebrate and share their intangible heritage through shows and educational formats. They reach over 14,000 students annually through Folklorama Teachings while delivering programs that support and encourage the multiculturalism that is important to the community. Folklorama has also developed itself as one of the few festivals and major events in Canada operating as a receptive tour operator within the tourism industry, predominantly through the motorcoach tourism sector. This has evolved to include activity beyond the two weeks in August. The Winnipeg Comedy Festival (WCF) has been produced by the Gas Station Arts Centre (GSAC) for 16 years and is a source of funding for the theatre. GSAC is a not for profit theatre with a mission to foster multi- disciplinary artistic development through mentorship, production and co-production. WCF is now presenting comedy shows all year at the GSAC that also have an educational workshop component included for local comics. Some of Festival du Voyageur's revenues are put in a reserve fund, which funds repairs and upgrades to its venue, Fort Gibraltar, annually. Recent upgrades include adding a bread oven, shed, new masonry work and general repairs. From May-September, the organization provides historical interpretation at Fort Gibraltar with people in costume to interpret the fur-trade era. Dan Harper

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