Photo: Contributed

The Greater Vernon Chamber of Commerce is looking for participants for its annual golf tournament.

The Chamber’s Day of Golf, presented by White House Mortgages, will take place at The Rise on Friday, Aug. 13, for chamber members.

The entry fee of $600 for a team or $150 for an individual will get you 18 holes of golf, starting with a shotgun start at 1 p.m., a cart, lunch and spectacular views of Okanagan Lake.

Hole sponsorships are available by contacting Dan at [email protected].

More information about the tournament can be found here.

Bright orange electric scooters will be seen zipping around Vernon this summer.

The e-scooter pilot program officially launched Thursday at downtown Vernon’s 2900 Plaza.

The Neuron scooters will stationed at various locations around Vernon, and acting mayor Akbal Mund was impressed after taking one for a spin.

“I took one from city hall to the mall. It took six minutes,” Mund said. “I was actually quite surprised at how reliable, efficient and easy they are to ride. The advantage is they will cut down on traffic in the downtown core.”

Neuron will be the sole provider of scooters for the City of Vernon. Neuron’s arrival will bring 250 e-scooters and create some 25 new permanent and part-time jobs. Neuron riders, who must be at least 18 years of age, will be able to book and use the e-scooters through Neuron’s app, ready for download on the App Store or Google Play.

Neuron regional manager Anknsh Karwal said the scooters come with a variety of safety features.

“These are bigger and sturdier than other commercially available scooters,” said Karwal, adding the scooters have larger wheels and a wider deck to make them easier to operate.

The scooters also have a system that will not allow them to operate if the rider is not wearing a helmet.

The scooters are equipped with a GPS so they can be located no matter where they end up. A zone system also ensures the scooters are not being operated in areas they are not allowed.

“We can geo-fence areas off as a no-riding zone,” he said, adding the speed of the scooters can also be controlled remotely.

Riders will have the option to purchase passes for up to a month.

Photo: Kirk Penton

A Kelowna company played a key role in a recent deal between two Canadian-based businesses.

RWT Growth was there every step of the way as Rhyno Equity Group completed its purchase of Edmonton-based PermaCorp Group of Companies.

“When we made the decision as a team to sell our company, we brought RWT on board because they were the right people to represent the values that PermaCorp stands for. We were not disappointed,” PermaCorp president Manfred Schmidt said in a press release.

“The RWT team worked tirelessly through the complex deal structure to ensure that no matter what obstacles we encountered, everything was handled professionally and with the utmost integrity.”

Rhyno Equity Group is a Canadian investment corporation that owns North American manufacturing companies. Other businesses it owns are Irpinia Kitchens, Euroline Windows and Marbel Industries.

Photo: Contributed

It’s Christmas Eve for whisky lovers in the Okanagan.

The Laird of Fintry lottery is underway once again from Okanagan Spirits Craft Distillery. The Vernon-based company is offering its eighth lot of the exclusive, single-malt whisky through the lottery, which will give winners the opportunity to buy bottles for $75.

The Laird of Fintry is distilled from locally grown malted barley and then aged in custom, white-oak casks before being double-wood finished in Quails’ Gate’s fortified old-vines foch French Oak barrels.

And, in case you’re wondering just how valuable a bottle is, one sold for $4,500 at an Okanagan charity auction in 2019.

OSCD is expecting the lottery to be its most popular yet after it won gold for the third time at the 2020 World Spirits Awards Europe and being named distillery of the year at the same time.

The deadline to enter the lottery is Friday, Sept. 24, and the first batch of winners will be notified three days later.

Photo: Contributed

The BC Economic Development Association is reminding provincial businesses and communities that it has the resources to help during and after B.C. wildfire season.

The organization created the Economic Disaster Recovery & Resiliency Program in 2012, offering a wide variety of initiatives designed to help businesses, communities and economic regions get back on track.

BCEDA has created programs specific to the B.C. wildfire situation, including a business impact survey, live resources document, 10 steps to prepare your business for evacuation, and a local economic recovery and restart toolkit.

Photo: Instagram

It should come as no surprise, but some of Canada’s best fruit has produced some of Canada’s best cider.

Kelowna-based BC Tree Fruits Cider Co. was a big winner at the recent All Canadian Wine Championships, as its Broken Ladder Apples beverage captured double gold in the modern cider category.

Meanwhile, its Broken Ladder Rosé was awarded bronze in the fruit cider division.

“We are elated to once again be a recipient of an All Canadian Wine Championships awards, and even more delighted to earn double gold in the modern cider category and bronze for the rosé, our true blend of B.C. apples and cherries,” cidermaker Nadine Harrison said in a press release.

“Craft cider continues to be one of the fastest growing categories in the beverage sector. BC Tree Fruit Cider Co. is an authentic, homegrown producer with our handpicked fruits being crushed in our mill, the juice then fermented and packaged all on site in the cidery with no added water or processed sugar.”

There are eight cider categories in the All Canadian Wine Championships.

BC Tree Fruits launched its cider division in 2015.

Photo: Contributed

Okanagan Edge and the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce are partnering to showcase some of the region’s most exciting entrepreneurs through the “Top 40 Over 40” program.

Sponsored by BDO, the “Top 40 Over 40” recognizes high-achieving professionals in our community and showcases their accomplishments. This marks the seventh year the chamber has conducted a “Top 40” showcase. Honourees will be featured throughout the year on Okanagan Edge.

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After 25 years of entrepreneurial endeavours, Ashbury Bridal is the dream come to fruition.

Shilo Verhaegen has worked in the wedding industry for more than 15 years in Kelowna, opening Ashbury Bridal in 2012. Filled with treasures that she’s collected over the years, Ashbury Bridal caters to anyone who is eco-friendly, cost savvy and committed to supporting the local economy. Verhaegen and her team strive to provide a full-service, unique experience that will leave customers laughing with tears of joy. while saying “yes” to the dress.

Verhaegen is a leader in communicating the environmental impact of the wedding industry. She feels good knowing they are helping exquisite items find beautiful brides, all based on a quality-over-quantity mentality. She is the first to encourage women to make a responsible choice when choosing their wedding attire while enjoying the savings by purchasing a consigned dress.

Verhaegen is also an advocate for the importance of mental health and self care. She is educating every bride about their part in lessening their environmental impact. With every dress that is brought in on consignment and sold, it is one fewer dress made overseas. By keeping these dresses out of your closet, out of storage areas, out of landfills and oceans, Mother Earth thanks you.

Verhaegen has post-secondary education focusing on the creative design and small business industry.

The recognition that Verhaegen is most proud of is the thousands of referrals, thank-you cards and emails received from brides. She calls the many five-star reviews that their clients have taken the time to share as the highest compliment they could ever want.

Photo: Contributed

Kelowna Chamber of Commerce is “raising the red flag” over how the provincial government handled the announcement of a localized indoor mask mandate for the Central Okanagan.

“We can appreciate that with rising cases of infection in the area that reinstating a mask mandate is warranted but the surprise announcement with absolutely no advance consultation with our organization or the business community is simply not acceptable,” executive director Dan Rogers said in a news release Wednesday.

Rogers said Kelowna businesses are “frustrated and tired” of trying to keep track of public health requirements “when changes are frequent and occasionally appear arbitrary.”

“As an example, we had pushed for regional decision making a long time ago, but when the interior numbers were low, we continually heard from government that all rules would apply equally across all regions of the province,” Rogers said. “Now when things are a concern in one small area in the Interior, the B.C. government doesn’t seem to have a problem with regional-based restrictions.”

Rogers says the chamber agrees that mandatory masks indoors is a “reasonable step” that may also lessen conflicts between businesses and customers.

“The increased case rate is a concern and threatens to dim the light at the end of the tunnel,” Rogers continued. “It is a good reminder that the pandemic virus is still out there and we still need to be diligent in how we operate and the government needs to do more to encourage those who haven’t been vaccinated to pick up the pace. The evidence is clear that those who are not vaccinated or who are under-vaccinated are not only putting themselves at risk but they’re putting others and the local economy at risk.”

With the provincial government now discouraging against travel to the Central Okanagan, the Kelowna chamber is calling on health authorities to focus their efforts more on “how people behave” rather than where they are from.

“We are a tourism community, and we should welcome visitors and simply ask them, along with all of us, to respect safety protocols as a means to see us through to the end of the pandemic,” the chamber said in a statement.

Photo: Contributed

By Courtney Kafka

I went digging for some other research on the effectiveness of Bowen therapy, or Bowen technique, in the hope I could find something that was more based off some actual research.

A test was performed on 39 individuals who had suffered migraines for 10 years or more, and pretty awesome results were produced with just three sessions over six weeks.

I have worked with one person so far who has had issues with frozen shoulders due to an accident and my own husband, who has struggled with shoulder problems for more than 10 years. This pilot study used 20 participants, and they all experienced positive improvements.

I have become quite fascinated about whether or not Bowen therapy could help people suffering from fibromyalgia or not, and over the last six months I have stumbled across several testimonials as well as several small case studies regarding the effects Bowen therapy has had on people suffering from the disease. You can find the links here and here.

Australia, which is the country Bowen therapy was founded in, has a whole host of research articles on the various issues Bowen can treat, and they can be found here.

Hopefully this helps you see it’s not just my opinion that Bowen therapy works. It has been researched, although not extensively in Canada yet, but hopefully it will in the next decade or so. It is highly beneficial for a lot of issues.

I’ve even started to find it helps clients become more connected with their body, like how things have shifted and changed or even how they respond to every day stresses and the like. Bowen therapy can also benefit emotional release, although that has probably not been researched as much. I have witnessed this myself and experienced the power of emotional release with Bowen therapy, so I know it can and does happen.

Still not sure Bowen therapy is right for you? Send me a message and we can connect and discuss if this body work would be ideal for you.

And really, you don’t have much to lose, as Bowen therapy is safe for everyone and non-invasive.

Courtney Kafka is a certified Bowen therapist at Tidal Elements Healing Arts Studio in Vernon

This column was submitted as part of BWB Wednesdays

Image: Contributed

Olympia Greek Taverna has submitted its rebuilding plans to the City of Kelowna.

The beloved Rutland eatery was destroyed by fire last October, and the remnants were town down in March.

Last week its owners submitted a development permit application for a rebuilt restaurant on the bottom two storeys and residential units on the upper floor. The restaurant is located at 145 on Highway 33.

The plans call for occupancy of 107 people on the first floor, including 89 seats for diners, and a second floor that includes both indoor dining and a rooftop terrace. There would be 26 chairs inside and room for 30 diners on the outdoor terrace, which would be covered, in part, by a glass roof.

The third storey, meanwhile, would consist of three, two-bedroom units.