More than 90,000 people soaked in the sun, the festivities, music, entertainment, and fireworks at Surrey's Canada Day festival on the Cloverdale Fairgrounds July 1.
The City of Surrey said the event had the highest attendance over its 20-year history as 2024 broke the previous high-water mark of 80,000—set in 2022.
"I am thrilled to see that Surrey Canada Day has broken its attendance record, with 90,000 people joining us at the Bill Reid Millennium Amphitheatre,” Mayor Brenda Locke said in a City of Surrey press release issued July 3. “It's a testament to the incredible spirit and community pride that makes Surrey such a special place to live.”
There were a ton of free entertainment events stretched out over the course of the day. There was a midway and amusement rides, live performances on four different stages, vendor booths, a sensory-friendly space, dance battles and performances by local DJs. Musical headliners The Sheepdogs, Sass Jordan, and Danielle Ryan took the main stage later in the evening. And a cup-winning hockey team attended too.
Canada Day-goers also had a chance to learn about Indigenous culture with members of the Semiahmoo and Kwantlen First Nations.
“The Indigenous Village provided attendees with an opportunity to learn about the rich heritage and traditions of Indigenous Peoples through cultural sharing, education, contemporary performances,” noted the release. “Attendees also supported Indigenous artisans and small businesses by shopping their handmade, authentic products from the Indigenous marketplace.”
The Surrey Eagles were also on hand with their recently won Fred Page Cup. The Eagles captured the Cup, the BCHL’s league championship trophy, in six games over the Penticton Vees at the end of May.
Eagles junior hockey players marched in with the Cup during the opening ceremony celebration in the early afternoon. Later the team took pictures with fans and played street hockey in the Community Hub area.
Ron Brar, who owns the team with his brother TJ, joined the Eagles for the parade in and joined the team and staff on stage for the opening ceremony. He said it was “quite amazing” to see what the city had put on.
“We received probably the loudest cheers out of anybody,” said Brar. "When the mayor announced the Surrey Eagles, the place went wild. I was like, “Wow! This is pretty cool.” It made the boys all smile. We were pretty proud to be there."
After leaving the stage, Brar and the Eagles took the Fred Page Cup to the Community Hub where fans could take pictures with the Cup and the Eagles and also play some street hockey with the boys. Players also signed autographs for the kids.
"We had about four or five Surrey Eagles taking on about eight or nine 9 kids at a time and everybody was having a blast. It was awesome."
Brar said they had a large contingent of players and staff at the Surrey Canada festival, including new head coach Scott Gomez. The two-time Stanley Cup champ also signed autographs and took pictures with fans. (Gomez is now a two-time Fred Page Cup champ as well, winning it as a player in 1997, and this year as an assistant coach with the Eagles.)
Brar added the players and front office were “ecstatic” to be there. He said the Eagles have always been about the community and it meant a lot for the players and the team overall to be able to interact with their fans in that way.
"It was really nice to see the community rallying around the boys outside of the rink,” noted Brar. "It really resonated with the boys. You could tell they knew it was a special moment. Winning the Fred Page Cup was really special, but to have your community, and your community leaders, all recognize your efforts and shake your hand … I was really impressed."
Brar said it was unique because the Fred Page Cup is so difficult to win in the first place.
“The players really appreciated it. They were rock stars for a moment and it meant the world to them."
The day-long July 1 celebration kicked off at 10 a.m. and ended after fireworks at about 10:30 p.m.
