Canadian Tulip Festival Flying High with RCAF in 2024

OTTAWA, ON / ACCESSWIRE / May 19, 2023 / The Canadian Tulip Festivals' celebration of the Royal Canadian Naval Reserve Centennial is coming to a close at the end of this Victoria Day Weekend, with closing ceremonies on Monday, May 22, at 9:30 pm with a torchlight vigil to extinguish the Canadian Remembrance Torch beginning in front of HMCS Carleton and ending at the Man With Two Hats Statue on Queen Elizabeth Drive, at Dow's Lake in Ottawa.

Festival organizers are delighted to announce next year's celebrations the Canadian Remembrance Torch will be passed from the Royal Canadian Naval Reserves to the Royal Canadian Airforce for their Centennial year in 2024. In honour of this partnership, the Canadian Tulip Festival has launched its tulip bulb fundraiser with a selection of four flying, fringed and feathered tulips dedicated to the RCAF.

"These limited edition bulbs were reserved at the international bulb auction in Amsterdam this past January, and are growing right now in the tulip fields of the Netherlands, cultivated by the Royal supplier of colour, esteemed grower JUB." explains Ms. Jo Riding, Executive Director of the Canadian Tulip Festival. "Our RCAF bulbs are 12 centimeters in diameter, larger than average bulbs found in big box stores, for band stronger blooms", adds Riding.

Each breed of tulip is dedicated to a different aspect of the RCAF. The "Rescue" tulip is a striped creamy yellow and crimson red bloom with a feathered edge to its petal, chosen for its resemblance to Search and Rescue (SAR) aircraft that are red and yellow for enhanced visibility. A brilliant deep red tulip with fringed edges, the "Flyers" tulip is named after the RCAF Flyers men's amateur hockey team that won the Gold medal in the 1948 Moritz Winter Olympics.

Chosen for its bright yellow colour with a fringed edge the "Wings" tulip represents the colour most associated with the RCAF's training aircraft of the Second World War and the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, which was pivotal to bringing Allied victory and led to the internally recognized reputation for Canada being the "Aerodrome of Democracy."

Finally, the "Ad Astra" is a flying, pale ivory tulip with reflexed petals and was chosen because of its connection to the RCAF motto Sic Itur Ad Astra "such is the pathway to the stars."

"The Royal Canadian Air Force Centennial Team is delighted to be partnering with the Canadian Tulip Festival as the RCAF has deep historic ties with Holland, especially through the ultimate sacrifice by hundreds of young Canadians who fought for the liberation of The Netherlands in the Second World War," says Colonel Maggie Jacula, Campaign Manager for RCAF 2024. "In 2024 we hope all Canadians will join us in recognizing 100 years of Your Air Force. These unique tulips are just one of the ways to do that together."

Canadians are encouraged to plant RCAF Centennial bulbs in the fall of 2023, for blooming together in celebration next spring 2024. Pre-sales for these limited edition bulbs are open now on the Festival website and are shipped directly to customers, from The Netherlands in September.

The Canadian Tulip Bulb Fundraiser is vital to keeping the Canadian Tulip Legacy alive and thriving and allows organizers to host the Festival free of charge for all.

For interviews, high-resolution photos, and more information please contact Ms. Jo Riding, jo@tulipfestival.ca, (613) 276 - 1762

The French Version of this Release is available upon request.

SOURCE: Canadian Tulip Festival