Celebrating 95 in style

A Kelowna woman celebrated her 95th birthday on Saturday high above Okanagan Lake.

Lee Prunkl first moved to Kelowna way back in 1938 and she says its her favourite place in the world. Two years ago, she celebrated her 93rd birthday by parasailing for the first time, and her nephew Troy Mamchur surprised her Saturday with another trip above Okanagan Lake.

“It's a real thrill, I'm tool old for this. I can't handle it anymore,” Lee said with a laugh, after she was back on solid ground. “It's so exciting that I can barely catch my breath.”

But when Troy surprised her Saturday morning, she didn't hesitate, saying “Let's go for it!”

“I can see why some people are afraid to go up there, because your mind gets carried away, your life is with the elements,” Lee said. “But at my age, what have I got to lose?”

After immigrating to Kelowna as a child, Lee lived in Vancouver for several decades, before returning to Kelowna to live near her daughter in 2013.

“She loves it more than any place in the world,” her daughter Arlene says.

Lee says she knows Kelowna “very well,” having spent many years exploring the area.

“And now I've got a scooter so I'm up and down all the streets and all the alleys and down the KVR and down the Rail Trail,” she says.

But her view of the city Saturday morning, high above Okanagan Lake, was particularly unique.