Ian McMillan, executive director of Tourism Sault Ste. Marie, has been inducted into the Festivals and Events Ontario (FEO) Hall of Fame.
McMillan received the honour on March 3 during the FEO’s annual conference — Celebrating the Past, Igniting the Future — held in Sault Ste. Marie.
“Each individual named to the FEO Hall of Fame is someone who has dedicated their career to the festival and event industry and who has made a lasting contribution to their community, festival, event or organization,” the FEO said in a release.
McMillan has been involved in the tourism sector for more than three decades in Sault Ste. Marie and across the province. He took on his current role in 2001.
Other Northern Ontario outfits were recognized during the conference.
The Sault Ste. Marie Science Festival was named Best New Festival or Event ($100,000 or less), while Thunder Bay Credit Unions was named as Sponsor of the Year( $100,000-$500,000) for its sponsorship of Live on the Waterfront.
Named among the top 100 festivals and events in Ontario for 2017 were:
- Sioux Lookout Blueberry Festival (Sioux Lookout)
- Smooth Truck Fest (Smooth Rock Falls)
- The Great Canadian Kayak Challenge & Festival (Timmins)
- Jazz Sudbury (Sudbury)
- Bushplane Days (Sault Ste. Marie)
- Bon Soo Winter Carnival (Sault Ste. Marie)
- Kirkland Lake Winter Carnival (Kirkland Lake)
- Voyageur Winter Carnival (Thunder Bay)
- SnowDay (Thunder Bay)
Festivals and Events Ontario is devoted to the growth and stability of the festival and event industry in Ontario.
According to FEO, the festivals and events industry in Ontario is estimated to generate in excess of $2.3 billion annually in contribution to regional GDP, create/sustain approximately 50,000 full-year-equivalent jobs, and foster approximately $1 billion in taxes at all levels of government.
