Not even COVID-19 could take away from the celebration of Cochrane's vibrant and diverse cultural community.

The Amazing Cochrane Culture Hunt took place last Sunday in lieu of CULTUREfest for 2020.

The interactive scavenger hunt which was planned by The Cochrane Immigrant Services Committee showcased the many cultures across Cochrane in a creative and COVID-19 compliant way.

Sandra Scott, President of the Cochrane Immigrant Services Committee says that the safety of participants and volunteers was their top priority.

"What was impressive with the community is that we did have a couple of families that didn't come because they ended up having cold symptoms, " says Scott. "I had a couple of volunteers that called in last minute to says that they had cold symptoms too. So, I'm really confident that the measures that we put in place really worked well."

Last year's CULTUREfest event saw over 700 participants. Scott says that although this year's event was on a much smaller scale, the event was sold-out and saw a wide range of participants.

"We had over 100 people, little kids to seniors," says Scott. "It was just a really, really, enjoyable day."

An enjoyable day that also brought on tears of joy. Scott says "It was actually quite emotional even at times. We were really blessed to have an elder comer out from Morley and do a prayer before we started." 

Scott says that  36 cars in total participated in the scavenger hunt. Participants received clues that took them across Cochrane and introduced them to a new culture.

"We had nine different cultures and nine different stops," says Scott. "Then we had the Scottish bagpipes and the Native prayer at the beginning. So really, if you think about it that's 11 different cultures represented."

Scott says that by taking the time to learn about our vibrant community and the many rich cultures around us, we're creating something beautiful and meaningful. She says that's how we as a community move from diversity to inclusion.