A former organizer for the Penticton Elvis Presley festival is being accused of defaming the non-profit behind the event.

According to the non-profit, Stephanie Mackenzie took to social media several times over the past year, posting disparaging comments about the organizers on social media and withholding the non-profit’s social media and email passwords.

In a Facebook post made just this month, she accused one non-profit executive of cheating on his wife, asking her for naked photos, and accused others of both bullying and paying festival fees late or not at all, according to a recently filed notice of claim filed in Kelowna.

The tribute festival bills itself as Canada’s largest and longest-running Elvis festival and just hosted its 2025 event at the end of June. Celebrating “The King of Rock and Roll” over three days, Elvis impersonators compete annually for a chance to perform at a massive Memphis event.

Upon ending her five-year stint last year as a director for the non-profit behind the event, the lawsuit claims an ongoing “breakdown” in her relationship with the organization began in July 2024.

According to the notice of claim, the sequence of events started at the end of June 2024 when organizers say they discovered Mackenzie changed passwords to festival email and social media accounts. It sought to get access from her, but she refused or ignored their repeated requests. She did, however, post her correspondence with non-profit executives to social media over the following months, along with her own commentary.

“I have a lot of info on all of them. Shame they didn’t take the high road, time for them to be held accountable,” she said in one post, which included allegations of mismanaged funds and an executive’s sexual impropriety.

According to the Penticton Elvis Society, Mackenzie’s statements falsely make the non-profit out to be corrupt and incompetent. It’s seeking unspecified damages for defamation and libel, as well as with deliberate interference with its email and social media pages.

Mackenzie did not respond to a request for comment and has not responded in court. The claims have not been proven in court.