Competitions prizes include a $61,600 total payout for drumming and for the Jingle Dress, Grass Dress, Chicken, Fancy Feather and Fancy Shawl Dance. There is also Princess Pageant with crowning on Sunday.

The Kamloopa PowWow follows the First Nations Symposium on Good Governance which will explore the major governance issues affecting Aboriginal communities in British Columbia, and across the country. It is from July 26 to 28th and ends with the Chief Shane & Sun Rivers Open Golf Tournament on Friday. The T’Kumlups Rodeo is on August 31 and September 1st at Sagebrush downs at the Mt. Paul Centre. Phone (250) 314-9645 for more information.

Tickets for the First Nations Symposium on Good Governance are $595. The golf tournament is $135 including a shared power cart, 18 holes of golf, prizes and dinner. On Wednesday, July 27 the Rez Sisters Theatrical Production tickets are $15 and the Thursday night Gala dinner tickets are $65. For more information go to www.kib.ca.

The Powwow is held at the Old Residential School next to the Secwepemc Museum, Heritage Park and Ethnobotanical Gardens, a 12-acre Native heritage park on the banks of the South Thompson River, which gives visitors the opportunity to experience the rich cultural history of the Shuswap People. Artifacts include a birch bark and dugout canoe and displays on hunting, fishing, clothing, games, food gathering and cooking. The address is 355 Yellowhead Highway and is about 10 minutes from downtown Kamloops.

Kamloopa Powwow tickets are $20 for the weekend or $10 per day. Admission is free to Elders, children under six and the handicapped. Camping is free with admission.

Kamloops, with its warm dry climate, is the perfect choice this summer. For information on other activities and accommodations in the area, call1- 800-662-1994 from anywhere within North America, or go to the web at www.tourismkamloops.com.

For more information, please contact, Ms. Lee Morris, CEO, at (250) 374-8000 or by email at lee@tourismkamloops.com.