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ARCHIVES: Vancouver Symphony Orchestra vows 1993 crowds

From the Archives of the Free Press
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Free Press Archives

28 YEARS AGO (1993): South Cariboo citizens showed up in force for a performance by the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra in the Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School gymnasium. The 80-piece orchestra was conducted by Clyde Mitchell and featured Montreal Symphony Orchestra violinist Ramsey Husser. Aurora Borealis was the symphony’s opening number penned by the VSO’s own Fredrick Schipsky, who composed the piece after a visit to Prince George. Throughout the night residents were delighted by the music and gave a standing ovation after a rendition of Antonin Dvorak’s Symphony No. 8 in G Major.

24 YEARS AGO (1997): After its closing out sale, Royal Male had one final ‘shopper’ grab some late-night deals. Jean-Anne Robitaille, Royal Male’s manager, said that on Oct. 12 a Sunday shopper came through a roof vent and left with $2,000 worth of merchandise. The unknown suspect fell through the roof and broke a rack, Robitaille said and made off with 20 pairs of dress slacks, 10 small cotton shirts, 10 pairs of jockey underwear and assorted bits of jewelry. “I guess they didn’t like our ‘Closed’ sign,” Robitaille said.

16 YEARS AGO (2005): Around 70 students from Peter Skene Ogden Secondary School put the old adage “one man’s trash is another man’s treasure” to the test. They were taking part in a cleanup around the perimeter of the 100 Mile Marsh for the Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. Over the course of two hours, the students filled 30 bags full of trash, including 1,000 cigarette butts, 150 plastic bags, 250 food wrappers and hundreds of other assorted items. The strangest item, according to student Alex Dufrense, was a five-metre long piece of old carpet.

8 YEARS AGO (2013): Emmett Collens inadvertently predicted his future when he stepped off of the community bus at 108 Mile Ranch. He’d notice four deer hanging around and joked “I hope I don’t get attacked by a deer.” The Horse Lake teenager, 15, approached a fawn to take a picture when a doe came up behind him. Before Emmett could back away the doe kicked him in the chest before stomping on his face for about 12 seconds. The protective deer then stalked him all the way to his nearby grandparent’s house and hung around long after he went inside.



patrick.davies@100milefreepress.net

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Patrick Davies

About the Author: Patrick Davies

An avid lover of theatre, media, and the arts in all its forms, I've enjoyed building my professional reputation in 100 Mile House.
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