Credit where credit’s due

Dear Editor: Re: “Okanagan wine pioneer honoured” (Penticton Western Advertiser, Feb. 24).

The first statement in this article: “Hailed as the Okanagan Valley’s great wine pioneer” is incorrect.

I am gravely disappointed in this statement. When one goes back into the history of Okanagan wine, one has to have the grape first. The first grapes for wine were planted in Mission in 1919 by August Casorso, on the Mission of Father Pandosy.

At that time, the area was named “L’anse Au Sable,” before the area was named “Kelowna.” In 1919, the father of Harry McWaters was not even born. Yes, you’ve given the credit “pioneer-honoured” to Harry McWaters and that offends me and the Caroso family.

The only person who should be honoured is Augusto Casorso because he was the first man to introduce wine grapes in the Okanagan back in 1919.

To the editor of the Western newspaper, if you do not properly know the history of what you are reporting on, in my opinion, you are not qualified to be an editor. Franco DeMichelis

Penticton