Final Results & Data: Quality Foods Sand Sculpting Competition & Exhibition

The sand sculpting masterpieces at Parksville Community Beach have entertained thousands for five and a half weeks and now it is time to see them fall as the exhibition is deconstructed this week. Seeing the sculptures come down is bittersweet for the Parksville Beach Festival volunteers and staff, but they have much to celebrate, thanks to a successful summer. Gate ambassadors for the 2023 Quality Foods Sand Sculpting exhibition featuring “Wonders of the World” recorded 108,349 visitors over the 5.5 week period and event organizers recognize the attendance results as very strong. “Despite the challenges of heat, summer fires and ferry schedules, attendance remains high”, commented Cheryl Dill, President, Parksville Beach Festival Society. “The positive feedback from local residents and visitors supports our hard-working volunteers and staff” says Dill. Additional events included Canadian Tire Sculpt Like the Pros sculpting lessons, the Artisan Market, Party City Buskers and the Coastal Community Credit Union sculpture light-up, which boosted the attendance on the final weekend. The Parksville Outdoor Theatre, in its second season managed by the Society, featured the increasingly popular Tim Horton’s Summer Concert Series and the Mid Island Co-op Rock the Park Music Festival. The Remax Symphony by the Sea culminated Parksville Beach Festival with an engaging performance by the Vancouver Island Symphony. Entertainment Director Lloyd Derry is delighted with these successful theatre events. “The feedback from audience members and performers regarding the quality of sound and performances at the theatre has been tremendous” comments Derry.

During the festival, visitors had the opportunity to select their favorite sculptures. Over 100,000 votes were recorded. The artists behind the two most popular sculptures will be presented with The People’s Choice awards. “These are highly coveted awards amongst the master sculptors in our competition,” commented Dill. “People had many favorites but the winners were clear”. The results are below.

People’s Choice Awards: (Visitor votes)
Solo: Peter Vogelaar (BC) Sculpture Entitled: “Age of Wonder”
Doubles: David Ducharme (BC) and Susanne Ruseler (Netherlands) Sculpture Entitled: “A World of Wonder”

Additional Information from Opening Weekend:
Soloist Results:
1st Place: Karen Fralich (Ontario); Sculpture Entitled: “The Great Barrier Reef”
2nd Place: Thomas Koet (Florida); Sculpture Entitled: “Two Wonders of the World”
3rd Place: Abe Waterman (PEI); Sculpture Entitled: “Themeless”
4th Place: Peter Vogelaar (Winlaw, BC) Sculpture Entitled: “Age of Wonder”
5th Place: Damon Langlois (Victoria, BC) Sculpture Entitled: “Seed”

Doubles Results
1st Place: Fred Dobbs (Mayne Island, BC) & Ted Siebert(Illinois, USA) Sculpture Entitled: Wonderland
2nd Place: Seveline Beauregard (Quebec) & Joris Kivits Sculpture Entitled: “Love Without Borders”
3rd Place: Sue McGrew (Washington, USA) & Dmitry Klimenko (Russia) Sculpture Entitled: “The King”

Competitors Choice Awards: (Peer selection)
Soloist: Thomas Koet (Florida); Sculpture Entitled: “Two Wonders of the World”
Doubles: Wilfred Stijger & Edith van de Wetering (Netherlands) Sculpture Entitled: “Dreams”

Giving Back to our Community & Social, Environmental and Economic Sustainability:
The mandate of the Parksville Beach Festival Society is to create fun, family-friendly events along side Parksville’s main beach and to support community growth. According to their policies, the Society assigns 25% of their gate proceeds to community projects and philanthropic groups. Contributing to the maintenance and development of the Community Park is also a high priority. Since 1999, the Society has donated over $1 Million to numerous non-profit organizations and community projects, which included construction of the park gazebo, community signs and the new Parksville Outdoor Theatre. The Society reserves funds annually to help sustain its future events, which can be threatened by such things as inclement weather. For 2023, the Society aims to donate to 25 not-for-profit organizations which served as gate greeters at the entrance to the sand sculpting site during the public exhibition. The exact donation will be determined in the coming weeks.

Cheryl Dill, President, Parksville Beach Festival Society
250.954.8262
dillc1967@gmail.com or info@parksvillebeachfest.ca