22/02/2024
WARNING! Long Post but please read...It's important to me...
The flame of a candle flickers and dances in my office as I sit here in front of my keyboard wondering how to write what I have to say next to you…
But as I sit here listening to music, a word slowly forms in my mind, and as only my Heavenly Father can orchestrate, the song with this very word in the title begins and Brandon Lake begins to sing “Gratitude.” And I know in that moment that this very word is at the heart of what I’m feeling right here, right now… Gratitude…for…???-
The lives I have touched.
The families I have met.
The celebrations.
The friendships forged.
The trust, in many cases by total strangers in me to perform my craft in such a way that they would refer other friends and relations to me. A privilege and gift I don’t take lightly or for granted.
The kind words, the smiles, the laughter and the fond memories. The many customs and traditions of so many different cultural backgrounds that my job allowed me to discover.
The pageantry, colors and textures.
The decorations that were uniquely “theirs…”
AND…because of my encounters with all these different people from so many different cultures and walks of life, my love for even more types of music was blown wide open and sky high… Literally, my gratitude knows no boundaries as I sit here with my music and my candle.
THIS is what a lifetime of love and commitment is supposed to look like. And THIS is how to live my one life well…
30 years….this could mean a lot of things to a lot of different people.Maybe it’s a mortgage on a new home. Or an old mortgage, finally coming to an end, and your home is yours. Maybe it’s a milestone in your marriage. A precious moment in time shared between a couple whose commitment to each other has far surpassed any trials and struggles they’ve endured during that 30 years.
For myself, it’s my career as a dj that I have embraced since the summer of 1993. Growing up in a home that was always filled with music, it wasn’t much of a stretch for me to take on a part time/weekend job that was supposed to provide us with milk, bread and gas money.
Who knew that this part time career would take me all over the far reaches of central and southern Saskatchewan, and even into Manitoba on a few occasions?
Who knew, that I would become such an integral part of so many families who were celebrating marriages, anniversaries, graduations, and even on a few occasions, the funerals of those families?
Who knew, that I would get to enjoy birthdays, New Year’s Eve, sports days, cabarets, block parties, Halloween and even Christmas parties?
Who knew, that I would get to fill in between sets for some of the most talented singers and band members this province has to offer?
Who knew, that I would have so many opportunities to sing not only with beered up boys and girls at many of my karaoke functions, but also with some of the best vocal talent Saskatchewan has to offer.
Who knew, that I would have opportunities to play for Cystic Fibrosis fundraisers, Extendicares, the Terry Fox run, the Alzheimer’s Society of Saskatchewan, cancer fundraising for a terminally ill person, as well as help raise funds for the Z-99 radiothon for the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in Regina?
And…who knew that Evolution Sound DJ Services would garner consistent top ratings with such things as “Regina Votes” and a Philanthropy Award for my volunteer efforts. All opportunities that I would have never had or afforded, had it not been for the decision of 2 men in a basement interview to hire me for Garry Robertson DJ’s here in Regina having never dj’ed in my life professionally prior to that. To this end, I say thank you to Dennis and Doug for taking a chance on me. I am eternally grateful…
I am wishing to announce my retirement from dj’ing at the end of my 30th season as a professional dj the end of this year, 2023. But I wouldn’t have been able to do this job, for this long without thanking so many people along the way.
First and foremost, I want to thank my Heavenly Father for giving me the gift of music and the talent to bring celebration to so many events over these years. A conservative guess, puts me somewhere in the neighbourhood of 1,500 parties, or perhaps even more.
To my wife, Vicki, as well as my son and daughter, thank you for the understanding of letting me walk out the door so many Saturdays each year to go do something that fuelled me to continue for so long. I know I missed out on far too many family get togethers and ball games, and curling games, and school activities each time I headed out the door to my next gig. Words of gratitude to all three of you, somehow, just seem to fall short of just how grateful I truly am for those opportunities to represent the wedding industry in my capacity as a dj and to represent it well.
The friends I have met in the dj community along this path have been nothing short of amazing. Dennis Friesen, Doug McNichol, Doug Dimmen, Darcy Reinhardt, Rachel Lynch, Kelly Leibel, David Pockaj, Jason Hubbs, Dustin Grant, Grant Edworthy, Caylin Vandenberghe, Barry Agecoutay, Rob Howard, and Brent Stewart. You have all been so kind in including me, giving me advice when I needed some, ideas when I fell short of the mark, and friendship beyond anything I could have hoped for or imagined.I simply can’t quantify what your support and friendship over these years has meant to me.
I began Evolution Sound DJ Services in 2006 and for the last 17 years have endeavoured to give my clients a “customed to their needs” experience. For me, it never was about the paycheck. I would come across countless people in these past 30 years that had horror stories of dealing with “fly by night” companies, who would take deposits and then ghost their clients, or double book and tell the client they had to find someone else, oftentimes within mere weeks or days before their services were required. I’m grateful I had even those opportunities to help people when others in the industry disappointed and failed you.
Moving forward from here, I still plan on making myself and my services available for the special events such as Christmas or Halloween parties, anniversaries, sports days, cabarets etc.
Unfortunately, I have decided to leave the wedding industry to the younger up and coming talent that’s available. From the bottom of my heart, I thank all of my past clients who entrusted me with the music and lighting portion of their special day/event. I hope I measured up to and even exceeded your expectations. My life is full and enriched with a wife of almost 34 years, 2 amazing kids, (who aren’t kids anymore by any stretch), along with their spouses and 5 fantastic grandchildren.
My cup truly runneth over. To all of my dj friends still slugging it out in the trenches, I wish you nothing short of health, happiness and success beyond your wildest dreams in the future. Remember to represent us well…and play requests!
Love You All,
Peace out!
DJ Evolution
