Tuesday, September 27, 2005
Burlington gears up for Goudie gala
By MICHAEL RIGLER
BURLINGTON - Family, friends and neighbours of Canadian Idol runner-up Rex Goudie are throwing a town party to show their appreciation for the 19-year-old singer's fame.
If the turnout matches the projected attendance figures, it will be the biggest party the town of less than 400 residents has ever seen.
Not only did Goudie win the praise of fans across the country, the Burlington native is set to record his first album with Sony BMG. Throughout it all, the residents of Burlington have been the young musician's biggest cheerleaders. Now they want to throw a party for their hometown hero. The town has set aside most of Wednesday for the event.
'Rexcited' committee member Audrey Bartlett said the celebration gets underway at 11 a.m. with a parade that will pass through the neighbouring communities of Burlington, Middle Arm and Smith's Harbour. After the parade, the party will shift to the outdoor rink in Burlington. The event will being at 1 p.m.
"A few of the final details are still being worked out even now, and while we have a schedule in place and entertainment booked, in some ways we're going to have to play it by ear," said Bartlett. "But Rex will be there and that's the most important thing."
Goudie will perform a few songs for the celebration, and there will be food booths set up in the area. The event will wrap up at 8:30 p.m. with a fireworks display.
The event is open to the general public and organizers are bracing for a huge crowd. The committee has been told to expect anywhere between 4,000-5,000 people throughout the day.
That would make it the biggest event in the town's history by a huge margin. Bartlett said the town's come home celebrations in 1995 attracted 2,000 people.
However, the Rex Goudie phenomenon is not limited to the Baie Verte Peninsula, and Bartlett said the town will be ready to welcome visitors from across the province.
"We're going to do the best we can to handle that many people but we've never had anything this big here ever," Bartlett said. "There's a lot of work going into it and we think it's going to be a fantastic event.
"Everyone around here is so excited and while this is all a bit rushed, we want to make sure we do something for Rex before he goes off to Toronto to record this album."
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