Kamloops United Church preschool recognized for 70 years of service

KAMLOOPS – Kamloops United Church celebrated a special milestone over the weekend as the preschool and out-of-school care was recognized for being open for 70 years.

The day was filled with activities for families, friends, alumni and supporters of the preschool. Like any birthday party, there was cake and refreshments to go around.

The event was held at the KUC Aberdeen location as the downtown church continues to recover from the fire that impacted it back in August. The preschool also received recognition for its longtime service as MP Frank Caputo stopped by to present a certificate from the government of Canada, recognizing the achievement.

“Seventy years. Today we were awarded this beautiful certificate from the federal government,” said Patti Pernitsky, who has been at the preschool for 40 of those 70 years. “To celebrate, we had a cake with 70 candles on it. Well, we didn’t have 70. We had a 7-0. And we sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to the preschool and the out-of-school care to celebrate being open for 70 years. We are the oldest preschool in B.C. and I am very dedicated to making sure that we retain that honour.”