A man of many Talents Dave Ottenbrite prepares for a busy summer with the organization of Cambridge’s 50th anniversary event and his hit Galt Jazz series.
Dave Ottenbrite brings his Galt Jazz event back for its second year with help from his wife Ruth and sound technician Blair Francey.
“That will be five shows that we will be putting on, people have asked me to do more I say, you know. I’m retired. This is a hobby; I don’t want to be married to this,” said Ottenbrite.
“My whole idea is crawl, walk, run so, let’s crawl and get it started and if some volunteers come out of the woodwork and want to expand that, then that’s good on them.”
Cambridge’s 50th anniversary celebrations provided the opportunity for Ottenbrite to partner with long-time friend and local realtor Jeff Vetere to organize Dinner on the Grand, a 500-person sit-down dinner event held in Mill Race Park on June 25.
Celebrity ChefD is providing a three-course meal along with eight-piece band Fresh Water Funk providing live music.
Ottenbrite said that the mayor and city council are expected to attend the event.
Dinner on the Grand will run from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. with tickets costing $100 per person and all proceeds will go towards supporting the Cambridge Food Bank.
“It’s my intention to make this a one off. It’s not easy to secure the funding from the city on a regular,” Ottenbrite said.
As a member of the Ancient Mariners Canoe Club, Ottenbrite said that he expects the group to volunteer their services for Dinner on the Grand. Ottenbrite has also contacted local high schools to offer students an opportunity to work on their required volunteer hours.
This will mark the first time Dinner on the Grand that has been held at Mill Race Park.
Along with planning Dinner on the Grand, Ottenbrite will continue to host Galt Jazz on the first Sunday of every month from June 4 to Oct. 1.
The music event will run from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. outdoors on pedestrian Main Street and indoors at 13 Food & Beverage during the colder months.
“I think doing something once a month makes it special, if you overdo do things, people forgot about you,” said Ottenbrite. “We want people to think first Sunday because that’s easy to remember. I’ll send a reminder to everyone on our mailing list for our shows.”
After moving to Cambridge with his wife in 2018, the retired couple decided to give something back to the community which led to the organization of the jazz series, which they made happen with funding from the Cambridge BIA.
Attendance for Galt Jazz shows is free.
“I go and deliver flyers to mailboxes in West Galt and I’m the guy that goes to all the merchants and puts the signs on the windows,” Ottenbrite said. “It’s a lot of work bit it’s fun and when it’s fun it doesn’t feel like work.”
Galt Jazz content is available on their Facebook and Instagram pages. To purchase tickets for Dinner on the Grand visit www.dinneronthegrand.ca.
