Good Times, Past and Gone
On May 8, 2012, we lost another bluegrasser from Coombs, Ed Hodgeson, who played mandolin for the original Coombs Bluegrass band, the BackRoom Boys. RIP, Eddy
Coombs Bluegrass Festival has connected to some wonderful characters over the years....
Gordie McConnell will not be with us this year, having passed on June 1
2019. He was a strong supporter of both Coombs Bluegrass Fetival and Coombs Country Opera. He was well-known for his own song, Here on Vancouver Island, a great one that we hope someone will continue playing.
November 22nd, 2013, we lost Ethel Whibley, Terry's mom, the best supporter of bluegrass ever. I don't think she ever missed a bluegrass event. We'll miss you, Ethel.
Worris Key
The original soundman at the Coombs Bluegrass Festival when it all started, but he was a lot more than that. Back in those days, he had thousands of tapes of festivals and Coombs Country Opera tapes of just about everyone who could play an instrument on that stage. He spent countless hours setting up and taking down the equipment, and monitoring the music. Worris could be found at every Coombs event and was always willing to give a hand. His spirit lives on at the festival he helped start at Coombs.
Gerry Patch memories
Photos by C. Anne Goulding, of England, taken while in New Zealand.
"The pictures posted about Gerry Patch are very special, but Gerry was a very special kind of a guy. He gave me a bluegrass education, bigtime. He was not only a friend but an incredible musician, who played every bluegrass instrument well. He would instruct us on the correct way to play the tune, just like Bill would have played it, he would say.
Gerry was one of the people who started the bluegrass festival here in Coombs. He had the connections to help make it happen and it did.
Gerry's dream was to play at the Grand Ol' Opry in Nashville and in the early eighties he fulfilled that dream with his band Border Ride.
He left our world at the age of 40, far too young, but left a legacy of bluegrass memories at Coombs."
- Linda Thorburn
James , Gerry Patch Howard
l-r Jim Mitchell Gerry Patch
Ed Hodgeson Clyde McCoy
1978 Turner Meadows, site of the first Coombs Bluegrass Festival
Gerry Patch, Joe Bochek, Riel Aubichon
John Jansen
Johnny Jansen was a carpenter and helped build the Rodeo Grounds structures. When he wasn't doing that he could be heard talking with that Dutch accent and laughing. John loved bluegrass and loved to dance to it. It was never an uncommon sight to see John and Bev dancing up a storm close up to the stage.