The 2020 Canadian Francophone Games, being hosted in Victoria for the first time, are months away but the work of organizing volunteers is set to begin.
Spokeswoman Louise Alepin said volunteers are an important part of the July 14-18 gathering, and an ability to speak French is not required.
“We need 600 volunteers, so it’s not like you have to be proficient in French in all the volunteer positions,” she said. “Some of them will be [for] set up and take down, stuff like that.
“We want people from the community involved.”
Organizational efforts have been going on for nine months.
The Francophone Games will bring together more than 1,200 14- to 18-year-olds to promote Franco-Canadian culture. The main site will be Oak Bay Secondary, with activities focused on arts, sports and leadership.
The sailing portion of the Games will take place at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club.
Sleeping quarters for those involved in the Games will be set up at Oak Bay High School, Willows Elementary School and Ecole Victor Brodeur.
Victoria’s event will be the eighth edition of the Francophone Games, which began in 1999 and take place every three years, Alepin said.
A pizza party and volunteer-information event is being held tonight from 6 to 8 at Ecole Victor Brodeur, 637 Head St. Prospective volunteers can also go to jeuxfc.ca or jeuxfc.ca/english.
Parents and teachers wanting to find out about having youth participate in the Games can visit the website or call 604-736-6970.
