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Kelowna  

Musician sings nightly from front step to all front line workers

Spreading cheer from porch

Sarita Patel

Kelowna resident John Vesterinen, better known as Johnny V, is using his talents as a musician to spread love and cheer for all essential workers during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

What started out singing to the birds and the trees from his front porch, has turned into a nightly tradition for the whole neighbourhood to enjoy. 

“It’s a tough time for everybody so I thought how can I make the front liners feel the love and instead of banging pots, I’m banging on my guitar,” laughs Vesterinen. 

He believes music is a great healer and wanted all front line workers from doctors, to truck drivers to grocery store clerks to feel the love. 

“I wanted to pay that homage forward... my neighbour to my left is a truck driver, two neighbours that come every night their daughters are nurses and work in the emergency ward. Even one of the nurses came [Tuesday] and we dedicated that whole song to her and it just warms my heart.”

Neighbour Janine Goodall says she went out a few times to bang her pots and pans, but noticed she was the only one. 

“I think this is [better], everybody likes to sing and join in, so I think it’s great.”

“What else are we going to do we got to do something and this gives me - I’ve cleaned the yard, I’ve raked the grass, I’ve aerated… I rather be doing this kind of stuff, I just feel like it’s more important anyway - it’s kind of a cool thing," says Vesterinen. 

Goodall knows first hand how hard health care employees work and says it’s very important to support any front line worker, especially right now. 

“My mom was a nurse, my dad was a doctor and I got to see first hand just amount of energy that they put into their jobs, being awakened every night doing shift work.”

Johnny V typically plays one song but has noticed people are requesting encores so he’ll do two or three a night. He’s been playing every night since Mar. 24.

He encourages proper social distancing on his property and asks people to bring their pots and pans to make noise, their dancing shoes or their singing voices to 4350 Turner Road every night at 7 p.m. sharp. 



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