The wheels are already in motion to celebrate the 2023 graduating class from Bow Valley High School. A volunteer parent committee has once again stepped forward to provide the students with a banquet to spotlight the milestone achievement. 

“We’ve got an awesome group of parents that are really motivated to provide an inclusive, affordable event to all grads that are Bow Valley 2023.” explains chair of the committee Sheri Gessner. “We've been meeting actually since the start of school because we knew that we'd have to get a jump on it.”

Spray Lake Sawmills Centre will host the graduation class and their families on June 30,  2023, at 7 p.m.

As with many areas of life, the parent committee quickly released that this year's event could come with a hefty price tag.

“We have found that catering prices are up 25 to 30 per cent. We're wanting to keep this affordable and accessible so that was a bit of a shocker.”

“We can't afford a $60,000 tab and businesses are just not in a position for sponsorship this year. So we are looking outside the box.”

“An idea that came forward was doing a little bit of a Taste Of Cochrane for the grads, and so it's kind of a win-win. Help the businesses with exposure, advertising and highlight their best dish and then see if we can get some people on board that way.”

To help offset the cost, several fundraisers are planned between February and June. An online silent auction hosted on Facebook will launch on Feb 6.

Gessner says another roadblock they are facing is getting the word out to all 2023 grads and their families. 

“It's been a challenge to reach out to the current grads because of privacy issues. We're not allowed to advertise at school. We're not allowed to link to the school. We don't know who's graduating this year, especially new students.”

“We are desperate to get the word out there that there is something planned. We want everybody to know about it. And if finances are a barrier, we don't want your grad to miss out so please don't hesitate to let us know that too.”

All parents/guardians and grads are encouraged to check out all the details HERE.