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Everyone attending this year's BC Elders Gathering is sure to enjoy the four full days of entertainment and education planned, and they'll get in a healthy dose of sharing with friends old and new.

The 24th annual gathering will be held in Campbell River in the Strathcona Gardens Arena from July 10 to 13 and is being hosted by the Campbell River and District Golden Age Elders Society and the Campbell River, Cape Mudge, Comox, and Homalco First Nations.

Candy-Lea Chickite is fundraising co-ordinator for BC Elders Gathering 2000. She said activities will include workshops on traditional Native healing, genealogy and family history, cross-cultural awareness, personal banking, wills and estate planning, breast cancer awareness, keys to developing a successful Native organization, diabetes and the role Native youth can play as government employees.

A number of information booths will also be set up during the gathering, including an eyeglass clinic, a hearing aid clinic, a booth on dental hygiene, and one on medical equipment and supplies. A local beauty parlor will also have a presence, offering mini-makeovers to those in attendance.

On the entertainment front, Chickite said youth dance groups are scheduled to perform, and a number of cultural displays will be held at the bighouse. One night of the gathering will be set aside for playing the game Lahal, while another will feature a fashion show with clothing designed and sewn by local crafts people.

Special guest speakers will include Judge Alfred Scow, the first Native person called to the bar in British Columbia, and Native artist Roy Henry Vickers, founder of Vision Quest, a non-profit organization dedicated to the development of a national recovery centre. Comedian Don Burnstick will attend as a performer and workshop presenter. Representatives from the Canadian Diabetes Association will also be on hand.

Day trips to museums in Campbell River and at Cape Mudge village are planned, and also possibly to Rebecca Spit, a campsite owned by Cape Mudge village. A fishing derby may also be held.

"On July 12. . . we're transforming a local field on the reserve into . . . I think that they're calling it family day, and it's open to everybody in the community of Campbell River, and anybody driving by, for that matter, and all the people from the gathering," Chickite said. "There will be craft booths, a stage for anybody to get up and entertain. There'll be Native face painting - instead of just having like clown faces, there will be Native scenes. There will be bannock and different concessions. It's just going to be a really neat day that everybody can mingle together."

Right now, Chickite said organizers are busily planning the food that will be served to gathering participants.

"Our food service co-ordinator is hard at work making up a menu to try to please everybody's diets. We know that we're faced with a lot of Native people with diabetes. Especially in our area, it's quite prevalent, so she's got a little bit of a challenge in front of her. But if it's anything like the last presentation she did - we had a huge fundraiser here on May 12, and it was an art auction gala event, and it was excellent - she did the meal for that and it was out of this world."

Chickite said organizers are expecting a good turn-out for this year's gathering.

"The registration is coming in every single day. We are still saying that we'll be having 3,000 people. That's what we're estimating, and at this point we're sticking with it," she said.

There is no registration fee for the event, with all activities and meals free of charge for registered participants. Organizers had hoped most participants would have registered by June 7, but registrations will still be accepted after that date. The biggest challenge for anyone wanting to attend the gathering will likely be finding accommodation.

"Rooms are basically all sold out in Campbell River, and that's why we know that a lot of people are comig that haven't registered. We've got people already booking in Courtenay, which is 30 miles away, and any place in between basically. So it's getting a little more challenging to try and put people in places, especially larger groups," Chickite said. "We've asked for billeting, and we haven't had a great response . . . and the Native community isn't actually responding because they've already committed themselves to taking in their own relatives. So we're kind of at a bit of an impasse there, but we're sure that if it got really out of hand. . . I'm sure that we'll be able to get some help from outside."

As the gathering draws nearer, the excitement and enthusiasm among organizers is growing.

"I can hardly wait," Chickite said. "I've seen some of the registrations come in. There's a fellow from Fort St. James coming, I believe. I think he's 92 years old. I mean somebody, to me, if they want to make the journey this far, and they're 92 years old, they better have something good to come to, and that's what they're going to come to. . . It's all for the Elders, and we are so excited."

For more information about BC Elders Gathering 2000, call 250-287-9726.