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Living history at the Blueberry Festival

The Re-enactors to perform throughout the afternoon on Aug. 10
Surrey Heritage Services photo
Reeve T.J. Sullivan (Vince Metcalfe) talks to a passenger on the Fraser Valley Heritage Society’s restored interurban car.

The Cloverdale Blueberry Festival isn’t just about fancy hot rod cars or slurping down a slice of blueberry pie.

It’s also a chance to meet larger-than-live personalities such as Surrey’s first mayor or a Swedish pioneer who built a homestead at Latimer Road after sailing across the Pacific.

Surrey’s Re-enactors are back, breathing life into the stories and characters from our city’s rollicking pioneer years, with live, fun and interactive performances this summer, including the 2013 Cloverdale Blueberry Festival.

Launched last year, the Surrey Heritage Services project involves using professional actors to portray real settlers and citizens from 1872 to 1945 – Surrey’s pioneer years.

A new character this year is Zennosuke Inouye (played by Kevin Takahide Lee), a prominent Surrey businessman, chauffeur and World War I veteran. According to Surrey Heritage Services, after the war, he purchased 80 acres of land in the Strawberry Hills region of Surrey and built a pioneer homestead. He and his family were interned during World War II and had his land, business and home taken away. Through a persistent letter writing campaign to various government officials, Inouye fought to get his land back. He is the only Japanese Canadian war veteran to have his land returned.

Other recreated lives include those of Reeve T.J. Sullivan, carpenter Eric Anderson, physician Dr. Fredrick Sinclair, and teacher Mary Jane Shannon.

Look for the Re-enactors mingling with visitors the morning of Aug. 10 at the blueberry pie eating contest and pancake breakfast.

Or, catch the Re-enactors perform in the afternoon:

• 12:15 p.m. at the Surrey Museum Plaza (15 min.)

• 2:40 p.m. at the Surrey Museum Plaza (30 min.)

• Every 15 minutes from 12 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. in the Surrey Museum theatre