The Living Church of God held its annual Feast of Tabernacles in Kimberley from September 26 to October 5.

With 250 delegates, the economic impact of the event to the community is conservatively estimated to be $370,000, Kimberley Conference Centre Manager Grant Sharam reported.

The Feast of Tabernacles Festival is held on the same dates in locations all over the world. There are four locations in Canada with Kimberley being the only destination west of Ontario.

Event organizer Stuart Wachowicz was very complimentary. “Overwhelmingly people gave very strong reviews of the Conference Centre and the services offered at the centre. The catered meals were excellent and were well appreciated by the attendees,” he said.

This group brings an enormous economic benefit to Kimberley according to Sharam. Over the 10 days of their stay they consumed 7,500 meals (only 300 of which were provided by the Conference Centre). They also require 2,500 bed nights and they choose accommodations all over town. They also purchased gas, souvenirs, groceries and they took part in local entertainment activities.

Delegates travel from all over the Northwest United States as well as Western Canada. The group has chosen Kimberley as their base for the festival in three out of the last four years.

There is some pressure to split the event into two locations to reduce travelling distance for some of the delegates; however, we are hopeful that they will return to Kimberley in 2016, Sharam said.

Are you part of a provincial organization that could meet in Kimberley? Get in touch with the Kimberley Conference Centre (pictured above) to organize your event.

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