Festival du Voyageur

in the background. in the Exchange District from Festival 2014 The idea for a winter festival to celebrate Manitoba's Francophonie was first proposed in 1967 by Georges Forest, who became the first official "Voyageur". The proposal was put forth to the then-City of St. Boniface, but the city's offer was insufficient. In the summer of 1969, mayor of St. Boniface Ed Turner, along with city council, granted their support under the condition that Festival became an incorporated organization. Judge Robert Trudel became the first president of Festival du Voyageur. Festival du Voyageur Inc. was incorporated under the Companies Act of Manitoba on December 18, 1969. It received a city grant of $35,000 but had to give back all profits up to $35,000. At a press conference held on January 13, 1970, mayor Turner announced that the city of Saint-Boniface would present a festival honouring the Voyageur of the fur-trading era, in celebration of Manitoba's centennial. The first Festival du Voyageur took place that year from February 26 to March 1, at Provencher Park, with an estimated attendance of 50,000 people. In 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Festival du Voyageur offered virtual programming and broadcast its concert events over YouTube and Facebook. Attendance ==Current operation==

In 2025, the festival saw volunteers donate 12,946 hours of work. • Official partners: Air Canada, Bell MTS, Assiniboine Credit Union, Canada Life, Fairmont, Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries, Nonsuch Brewing, and Sirius XM. • Premier sponsors: Payworks, Red River Co-op, Prairie Mobile Communications, and Université de Saint-Boniface. • Major sponsors: Alberta Pure, Brio Insurance, Canadian Club, Canadian Parents for French, Franco-Manitoban Cultural Centre, Cerberus Security, CN Rail, Conseil jeunesse provincial (“Provincial Youth Council”), Enns Brothers, Firewood Manitoba, Go RV Winnipeg, Greenwoods Dental, Industrial Metals, International Fur Dressers & Dyers, Johnson Group, Manitoba Film & Music, MB Live, Premier Tyndall, Qualico, Recycle Everywhere, Compassion Network, Francophone Society of Manitoba, and Windy Day Woodworks. • Media sponsors: ALT 94.3, BOUNCE 99.9, CTV, Envol 91 FM, Golden West Broadcasting, La Liberté, NCI FM, QX104, Ici Radio-Canada Première, Winnipeg Free Press, and Virgin Radio. • "Friends of Festival:" 100 Nons, Anvil Tree, Avenir IT, Country John's Portable Toilet Rentals, Dead Horse Cider, Continuing Education (USB), Éducatrices et éducateurs Francophones du Manitoba, Efficiency Manitoba, Falcon Ridge Ski, Fireball, Fort Group, Hub International, Legal Locksmith, Maxim Truck & Trailer, Ocean Trailer, Patent 5, Peg-City Co-op, PepsiCo, plain bicycle, Prism Kombucha, Royal Canadian Mint, Showpass, TDS Law, Tétrault Wealth, WETT Sales, Winnipeg Airports Authority, and Winnipeg Trails Association. • Funders: Governments of Canada, Manitoba, and Winnipeg; FrancoFonds; Musicaction; Winnipeg Arts Council; and The Winnipeg Foundation. ==See also==