The king of rock and roll brought his timeless classics and crazy dance moves to entertain seniors throughout Prince George this week.
Steve Elliott, an Elvis Presley tribute artist from Chilliwack, spent the past three days touring seniors homes around the city to bring a little joy into the lives of older citizens.
“This time we thought we would come up and entertain all of the seniors in the resorts that don’t get a chance to get out and come to shows and this has been a real blessing for me in the last three days,” says Elliott who has been travelling to Prince George to perform for the past 12 years.
“It’s been very spiritual in a way just to see folks with dementia or memory loss to respond to the music of their time,” says Elliott. “It’s quite enlightening for me to witness people that don’t seem to react much until there’s music – they are tapping their feet, they are actually singing the songs with me and it’s an absolute joy to witness.”
Elliott says a lot of the fans he’s seen over the years are now in retirement homes, and he’s glad to be able to take his signature show to them.
“They are so overjoyed saying ‘Elvis is coming to see us!’ I think that is just a real treat for them and of course for me,” says Elliott. “It’s a real privilege to be able to do this for a career and to be able to come here and do this for them.”
Elliott has performed at the Simon Fraser Lodge, Gateway Lodge and the Rainbow Adult Day Centre and his tour was made possible by the Treasure Cove Casino.
He will also be performing at the Grand Trunk Tavern tomorrow (Oct. 23) where a portion of the proceeds from the event will be donated to the Treasure Cove Relief Fund.
“We are always giving back any way we can at every show,” says Elliott, adding that he hopes to do another seniors home tour when he comes back to Prince George in January for his annual gospel concert.
“I just want to say a big thank you to Prince George for supporting my shows over the years and I look forward to many years coming back here and hopefully will be able to come back and do this again for the seniors because I know it’s been a real treat for me.”
