Since 1927
The Kiwanis Festival for the Performing Arts (Stratford) began in 1927. The Festival now runs 3 weeks every April and is managed by a small part-time staff and over 100 volunteers. We are a registered charity (887047199 RR0001) supported by donations, sponsorships, and participant registration fees and governed by Kiwanians appointed as Trustees by the Kiwanis Club of Stratford.
Kiwanis Club Board
Terry Marklevitz - President
Heather Herman - Past President
David MacLennan- President Elect
Barb Schoch - Vice-President
Gerald Cook - Treasurer
Barrie Beech
Ken DeLaat
Barbara Muir
Blair Neely
Pat Stanley
Ivan Buchan
Kiwanis Trustees
Ivan Buchan, Chair
Barb Schoch, Treasurer
Tom Edge
Bernard Goward
Cynthia Hastings
Heather Herman
Organizing Committee 2026
Barb Schoch - Chair
Ivan Buchan
Jane Killer - Venue Manager
Terry Marklevitz, Fundraising Committee
Larry Schoch
Wilf Smyth - Door Ambassador Organizer
Jane Westmorland - Awards
Executive Director - Pat McKinna (she/her)
Sessions Coordinator - Deb Mountain
Graphic Design - Kaleigh Willock
Website/Registration - Andrew Rivett, Ciniki.com
Milestones
1927 - Music teachers, led by WB Rothwell, organized the Stratford Music Festival featuring competitions in voice, piano, strings and school choirs.
1941 - The festival, now grown in size and popularity, was one of the few in Canada to remain in operation through the war years.
1952 - Volunteers from the Kiwanis Club of Stratford assumed responsibility for Festival administration.
1967 - The "Kiwanis Music Festival of Stratford" was granted Charitable Status.
1980 - The music festival expanded its syllabus to include competitions in dance, guitar, jazz, and rock and roll bands.
2008 - The festival was renamed "Kiwanis Festival of the Performing Arts".
2020 - The festival was cancelled for the first time since 1927 due to COVID pandemic.
2021 - This venerable event showed its resilience by going online!
2023 -- The festival returned to offering live classes along with the virtual option
Today, our festival operates as an independent charity, administered by Executive Director Pat McKinna, managed by a volunteer Organizing Committee headed by Kiwanis Trustees, and generously supported by the local business community and individual donors. Won't you join that family??