Swiss Club Matterhorn
In celebration of Switzerland 700th birthday, the Swiss Club of Calgary put their heads together to commemeorate the occasion in a truly festive fashion.
Under the proficient direction of our Consul for the Weiss Abroad,
H.P. Ficher, the idea of a weeklong celebration, in conjunction with
the touring exhibit "Face to Face with Switzerland", was born. The
University of Calgary was selected as a suitable site to display
this exhibition.
The month of September was chosen for the CH-91 festivities because the Festival of Nations at Spruce Meadows has become an event all Swiss Clubs participate in, It was felt that if both events could somehow be tied together it would be feasable to invite a band from Switzerland to liven up the activities.
Looking back now, this idea proved to be the most important factor in making our celebration such an enjoyable and memorable event.
The Swiss were given special recognition at Spruce Meadows on Sunday,
as it was proclaimed "Swiss Day". We were honoured to have Consul General Max Inhelder from Vancouver in attendance on that day, as well as the following Sunday at the official opening of the Exhibition at the U. of C.. A wine and cheese Party at the Faculty Club followed the ceremony which included Calgar's own Jodlerklub Heimattreu, our Ladies Folk Dance Group Alpenroesli, as well as the visiting Kapelle "Echo vom Saum" from
Heisau.
For optimal exposure the McEwan Student Center was undoubtedly the best location to display the Exhibition, and it came to life every noonhour when the Swiss band was present to entertain.
On Wednesday night the video "Red & White" was shown and on Saturday
the festivities concluded with a Gala Dinner Dance at the Dining
Center. Besides the authentic Swiss band and performances from both
the jodlerklub and the Dance Group, an appealing Tombola was the
feature attraction with 3 trips to Switzerland; once was donated
by KLM and two were presented in person my Mr Max Colpi, Finance
and Personnel Manager for Swissair in Montreal.
Indeed, our fesivities finished on a high note. We are proud of the spirit that was displayed by the Swiss community of Calgary in working together to make this milestone in the history of Switzerland a time we will all fondly remember.
Elsbeth Peterer
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