The love of music has been the beginning of many great things; it is with great appreciation that we thank Colleen Nielsen and Awna de Haan for their desire to start a Ukulele group in Kamloops.

2012

Colleen Nielsen and Awna DeHaan approached Long & McQuade asking them to please pass their phone number along to other ukulele players. The first ukulele group meeting was held in their living room, March 19th, with Ray Perreault and Barb Bourdon in attendance. A visit to the Vernon ukulele group proved an inspiration.

Colleen and Awna attended the Langley Ukulele Workshop and were greatly encouraged by the instructors and people they met including members of the Bellingham Ukulele Group (BUG – Catch the Bug) The group also introduced them to the “Daily Ukulele Songbook”, as well as their own song book. While at the workshop, James Hill introduced them to Julia Maika, also from Kamloops.

Julia set up a Facebook Page and the group became the Kamloops Ukulele Circle, with the first meeting held on November 7th.

2013

Nicolette Eadie located the group on Facebook in December of 2012 joined the next meeting on March 13th, 2013. She pushed for a weekly commitment to meeting and before long the group began to grow. Meeting were regular and continued to be held in the homes of those who were participating.

The Ukulele Orchestra of Kamloops (UOK) adopted it’s name in October, 2013 and has developed into a vibrant and busy group that meets regularly, (living rooms no longer contain the group). They host ukulele workshops, lessons, circles and perform frequently at various venues.