In Focus | Ian Atkinson – KelownaNow

In Focus is our gift to the community. A way for us to help show our recognition for the people, businesses, and organizations that help make our city great. The team at KelownaNow.com is passionate about this community and the people that make it amazing. We want to show our friends, neighbours, family and colleagues that we notice them and the fabulous things that they do.

What is your name? Ian Atkinson.

Where are you from and how long have you lived in Kelowna? I am originally from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. I moved to Kelowna 11 years ago, planned on only staying for a summer and never ended up leaving.

Who is your favourite person to spend time with and why? That is definitely my wife, Lisa. Weve had a lot of fun together over the last 10 years.

If you could go anywhere in the world right at this moment where would you go and why? Ive done quite a bit of travelling and Im always looking for somewhere new. Its cold and rainy here right now, so maybe somewhere hot and dry. Dubai is on my list to get to in the next couple of years, so I would go there.

What is your favourite local store in Kelowna and why? Underground Music on Ellis. Im a fan of vinyl and every time I go in there I find something I didnt know I needed, but suddenly cant live without.

What is your favourite activity? I love to travel and try to do it as much as possible. I have been to Europe a couple of times, Australia, New Zealand, Alaska, a bunch of different islands. My favourite part of travelling is when I can spend some time really living in a destination.

If you had to choose: pizza, tacos, or burgers? Pizza. Easy choice.

What is the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you? I crashed my car into my in-laws garage door a few years ago and everyone has been making fun of me ever since.

What is the most inspiring thing that has happened to you? I went to Fiji when I was 16 and through meeting some locals and seeing their lives, learned that concepts like friends, family and good jokes were universal, while material things, no matter how nice, won't make you happy.

Tell us your favourite childhood memory. My family had a little cabin in Northern Saskatchewan where we spent our summers. I have a lot great memories trekking through the woods with my friends, boating and sitting around the fire at night.

Where do you volunteer or give back to in the community? My wife is great at finding local organizations and causes that need help. I try to donate the skills I have, whether its print and web design, photography or just simple manual labour to whatever is important to her at the time.

If you could change one thing in the world what would it be? Just one thing? Thats a hard one. Id be interested to see if a resource based economy would work in the real world. I think that might have the potential to fix more than one problem.

What is your favourite activity in Kelowna? Im easy. Give me a nice waterfront patio on a sunny day and a cold drink with friends and Im happy.

Where would you sneak away to in Kelowna to spend some time alone? I like to go up to Postill Lake at least once a year. There is no internet or cell reception which is such a nice break to have these days.

Where would you like to see positive change in Kelowna and why? There is a huge challenge in Kelowna right now for young people and low income families to find affordable housing options. I dont know how someone with a minimum wage job or a single person supporting a family can possibly afford to live here.

What do you think makes Kelowna great? Kelowna has a great mix of people who have moved here from other places, and most of them seem pretty happy to be here.

What are 3 things on your bucket list? 1) Live in another country for a year 2) Vacation on a private yacht 3) Go into space (once the kinks are worked out and its like booking a cruise)

Tell us something that not everyone may know about you. Im terrible at basketball. Im 67 so everyone assumes Im great at it. Im not at all.

What is the name of your business/organization? Kelowna Photo Editing.

Why did you get into/start this business? Both of my parents are excellent photographers, so I got my start with photo editing a long time ago. For the last 11 years, I have been doing a lot of editing work with real estate and property photos. Personal photo touch-ups were the next step.

What is the goal of your business? Photos dont always turn out the way we expect. Luckily we live in the digital age where we have the technology to fix almost anything. My goal is to work on any photos that are important to people; weddings, portraits, vintage photos, real estate.

What has been your biggest struggle either in work or life? Finding the time to do all the things I want is always my biggest challenge. No matter how full my schedule is, there are always a few more projects I want to take on, but I still have to find time to sleep and get away from the computer screen a bit.

If you could start all over again would you do things the same or would things be different? I am happy with how things have turned out for me, so I think I would keep it the same.

What do you always find yourself saying? 'I can fix that', it doesnt always turn out to be true, but I usually give it a try.

If you could spend one whole day with anyone in the world who is currently alive, who would you select? Neil deGrasse Tyson. Im kind of a science geek and I think I could learn a few things in a day.

Why do you think it is important to shop locally? Coming from a smaller town, Ive seen how supporting local businesses benefits your own community. Shopping online or at the big box stores may save you a few dollars, but when you can put money into a local business, it ends up coming back your way.

What has been your proudest accomplishment? Tricking my wife into marrying me. Im still not sure how I pulled that off.

Give someone you think that deserves it a shout out and explain why! I want to give a shout out to my wife Lisa Taylor and her business partner Jewels Ferris. They have just moved into a new office space downtown on St. Paul and both continue to be very active members in Kelownas business community.

My choice for the KelownaNow In Focus spotlight is: I would like nominate Jennifer ' Jenner' Simpatico, who owns Petal and Vow, which specializes in Wedding and Event Floral Design. Jenner was one of the first people I met when I moved to Kelowna, we worked together for years and I think she does excellent work.

We encourage you to leave your comments and words of support below and submit your own nomination by clicking HERE. You are also welcome to submit a form of your own by clicking HERE. Thank you, Kelowna.

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In Focus | Ian Atkinson - KelownaNow