Summer is dwindling, but a pair of young people are urging their peers to take advantage of what's left of the season.
Sixteen year old youth leaders Fei Gei and Yalda Safaei have put together an outdoor concert to give the summer holiday its swan song.
The Sound of Summer kicks off at 6:30 p.m. at Fort George Park Saturday, Aug. 31 with free activities and musical performances starting at 7 p.m.
"We're both very involved in the musical community," said Ge, who sings as well as plays piano and guitar. Safaei also plays violin. "We meshed our ideas together and thought about what would appeal to teens our age."
There are seven performances lined up for the evening, spanning a variety of styles and genres, said Ge.
The event is the product of Get Outside BC, a youth-led project aiming to create a network of young natural leaders across the province.
"This summer has been a memorable one. I think it deserves a proper closing, supporting everything we've learned," Safaei said.
In July, about 30 young people from across B.C. attended the Get Outside BC Leadership Summit in Squamish where they planned their events and projects and learned leadership and outdoor skills while camping, hiking and bonding. The initiative is organized by the Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society - BC chapter, B.C. Parks, Mountain Equipment Co-operative and the Child and Nature Alliance of Canada and is supposed to strengthen youth attachment to the province's natural heritage.
This was Ge's second year involved with Get Outside. In 2012, she attended the summit as a participant, but this year she worked as one of two interns and was able to have a hand in all aspects of planning the summit and the subsequent youth projects and follow up.
"Mainly you get this really strong sense of connection with other teenagers all over B.C. that have similar passions as you," she said, noting that teenagers can be busy with school and extracurricular activities and not always get the chance to reach out. "And sometimes you forget there's other people that you can connect with that feel that same passion with the outdoors as you do."
Ge is no stranger to busy days - her bevy of accomplishments and had the Prince George Secondary school student named the 2013 Youth of the Year.
"While this event aims to get youth outside and support local artists, we are also looking to host a fun, relaxed evening that everyone can enjoy," said Ge.
