BCFGA Convention


JUDIE STEEVES


Jamie Kidston Jr.,(above) latest life member of the B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association, and media award winner Richard Rolke (right) of the Vernon Morning Star.


Industry contributions recognized H


By Judie Steeves


e’s the second generation of his family to be made a


life member of the B.C. Fruit Growers’ Association, following in his father’s footsteps. Jamie Kidston Sr. was


named a life member in 1985, and Jamie Kidston Jr. became one this year during the annual awards reception held in the historic Laurel Packinghouse by the association. He is still growing apples on the family farm in the Coldstream area. Vernon Morning Star reporter Richard Rolke was honoured with the press award. The awards were presented by outgoing president of the BCFGA Joe Sardinha, who was somewhat taken aback when he was presented with an award himself by association general manager Glen Lucas, thanking him and his wife for 11 years of service on the executive, seven as president.


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Awards of Merit were presented to four members of the cherry breeding program at the Pacific Agri- food Research Centre in Summerland: researchers David Lane and Frank Kappel and technicians Richard MacDonald and Hans Schmidt. The program was recognized nationally in 2009 and has also received international recognition, since 80 percent of new cherry varieties have been developed at PARC. All four are now retired,


JUDIE STEEVES


Award of Merit recipients (from left) David Lane, Richard MacDonald and Frank Kappel, with BCFGA’s outgoing president, Joe Sardinha, who was recognized for his 11 years of service on the association executive.


and the cherry breeding program has been combined with the apple breeding program. That’s something that concerns the valley’s cherry growers, and all delegates to this year’s BCFGA


convention approved a resolution calling on governments and horticulture organizations to get together and deal with the decline in research capacity and the withdrawal of extension services that are needed to sustain family farming in Canada.


British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Spring 2012


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