The dragons are coming to Stratford! Dragon boats, that is.
“This year is the 27th time that the Stratford Rotary Club has run the Rotary Dragon Boat Festival,” explained Rotarian Gary Wreford. “This is the largest fundraising event of the year for the Stratford Rotary Club. The funds raised from this single event help us do so much for our community.”
In 1996, one of the Stratford Rotary Club’s major sources of fundraising ceased to exist. “That was when Kevin McCann, a longtime Rotarian, came forward with a crazy idea that he had seen on his travels: a Dragon Boat Race,” explained Wreford. “The Club decided to move forward with the idea, and here we are, 27 events and almost one million dollars in profit raised, later.”
That first year, there were 37 teams in the races, of which 25 were local. 2022 was the first year back after missing two years from the pandemic but there were 37 teams entered and 33 races. “Last year, there were 46 races and 49 teams, a full day of racing,” said Wreford. “This year, we hope to hit that number of teams and races again,” he added.
The Rotary Dragon Boat festival really does involve the whole community. “We have over 100 volunteers on race day,” said Wreford. “Plus core committee members who work on the event for more than half the year. As well, last year, we had 92 sponsorships from area businesses and Rotarians, which really makes the whole thing possible.”
Last year, the festival made over $51,000 in profit, all of which goes directly back into the community, to support lifechanging initiatives in the Stratford area.
The festival is held on Lake Victoria, and marshalling of all the rowers and boats is done on Tom Patterson Island. “Each boat has 20 oarspersons, a drummer to keep pace, a steersperson to steer the boat, and each race has four boats competing, with four more getting ready…so that island is really key to keeping the logistics of the whole thing operational,” said Wreford. “At the end of the day, we expect to have over 3000 people participating, watching the races, enjoying the food, the Dragon Boat merchandise tent, entertainment, refreshments and visiting the Kid's Tent.”
He added, “It’s really a fun and exciting day out for everyone, and of course, it all benefits people in our community. With the sponsorships and volunteers, it involves the whole community. It really doesn’t get any better than this. We look forward to seeing everyone out on September 14, 2024 for this very exciting event.”
For more information about the Stratford Rotary Dragon Boat Festival, visit the website here.