B.C. wine industry recognizes Okanagan man for community outreach

VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) – An Okanagan man has earned a distinction for his efforts to improve local and international engagement in the local industry.

Glenn Fawcett is the chief wine evangelist at Black Hills Estate Winery.

The award, given by Wine Growers British Columbia (WGBC), recognizes Fawcett for his outstanding leadership, commitment, and passion for the advancement of local wineries.

“It means so much for me to get the recognition by my peers,” Fawcett said.

In 2008, Fawcett decided to create a Winemaker Cup Ski Weekend event, which has now garnered more than 520 participants over the years and is the only annual ski and snowboard challenge in the wine industry in existence.

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The event helped spread publicity about the Okanagan Wine Tourism to the world.

“B.C. doesn’t export a lot of its wine out of its country,” Fawcett said. “Tourists realize by coming to B.C., they are able to discover these hidden gems and wonderful bottle of wines that they’ll never see in their own countries.”

Fawcett says community initiative events such as The Osoyoos Celebrity Wine Festival festival and The Vinos Wine Film Festival, were outstanding in creating broader awareness of what British Columbia’s wine scene has to offer.

In the first three years of the Osoyoos Celebrity Wine Festival, it raised more than $128,000 for charities in the Okanagan Valley.

Black Hills Estate Winery has also raised more than $1,000,000 for 85 charitable causes and has established two scholarships. The $65,000 Nick Bevanda Architectural Scholarship and the $16,000 Winemaking Excellence Scholarship at Okanagan College in Penticton.

“I got involved in the Okanogan and B.C. wine industry 20 years ago. The serious nature by which people approach the wine has evolved by so much, it’s incredible.”

– With files from Tamara Slobogean

Editor’s note: This article has been updated to clarify Glenn Fawcett is the award recipient.