The Shriners come to town

By Dan Hilborn, Burnaby NOW assistant editor
Published June 26, 2002

The boys in the bright red hats are coming to Burnaby.
Members of the Gizeh Shrine Temple in Burnaby will play host to one of the more entertaining portions of their society's annual convention this week at the Spirit of the Dragon Ceremonial. That's when Shriners from around the world descend on Burnaby to play the bagpipes and practise their drumming as a prelude to their international convention in Vancouver.
Stanley Yee, a former biology teacher at Burnaby North secondary and Potentate 2002 for the BC and Yukon division of the Shrine, said the event will be the biggest function ever put on by the local organization, and it's being boosted by the fact that the Imperial Potentate (CEO) of the worldwide organization is West Vancouver businessman Kenneth W. Smith.
While the Shriners' costumes and strange riding contraptions tend to attract most of the attention, Yee said the organization exists for a more serious purpose - to help sick kids.
Despite having fewer than 3,000 members in BC and the Yukon, members of the local Gizeh Shrine Temple donated $4 million worth of medical services and travel for sick kids in BC last year.
"If we were a bunch of guys in business suits, nobody would pay attention to us," Yee said recently. "But when we do a parade, people remember the crazy outfits. That brings attention to us, to the kids and to our hospitals. That's our bigger purpose."
Currently, the BC Shriners are providing hospital care and treatment for 660 children, mostly through the Shrine Hospital in Portland, Oregon, one of 22 such facilities across the continent. Their specialties include looking after children with spinal cord conditions, neuromuscular diseases, spina bifida, limb deficiencies and plastic surgery for burn victims, cleft palates and facial scarring.
But this week, the group will be gathering to have some fun.
The Gizeh Shrine Temple on Wayburne Drive will play host to the Shrine's Scots competition, pitting pipe and bugle bands against each other. Other competitions will be held around the region.
On Sunday, an estimated 15,000 Shriners from around the world will descend on Vancouver for the 'Imperial Council Session', the group's annual convention running June 23 to 26. They expect to generate up to $30 million for the local economy.
The highlight of the international convention will be two Shriners' parades - 1 p.m., Tuesday, June 25, and 7 p.m., Wed., June 26 - on Pacific Boulevard between Granville Street and BC Place Stadium.
The parades are being billed as the largest ever held in Vancouver, and they should provide a delight for the eyes. Besides the bright red hats (known as fezzes) the Shriners are best known for their colourful and eclectic parade entries.
Among the parade's 3,000 participants are Oriental bands, scooters, antique cars, steel drums, camels, horses, a mule train and more.