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Home to my passions for my inter-cultural adventures, Gung Haggis Fat Choy: Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner event. Historic Joy Kogawa House Society, Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dragon Boat team, Find what you are looking for by 1) scroll the categories links (below), 2) use the search function ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Search
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Thursday, December 31
by
Todd
on Thu 31 Dec 2009 01:42 PM PST
2009 featured photos in exhibits at Royal BC Museum and Scottish Parliament. Other highlights included the inaugural writer in residence program at Historic Joy Kogawa House, and Todd Wong's first visit to Scotland for the finale weekend of Homecoming Year. And there was the 250th anniversary of poet Robert Burns.
more »
Monday, July 20
by
Todd
on Mon 20 Jul 2009 11:59 PM PDT
The Land Conservancy of BC (TLC) is holding an Extraordinary General Meeting on August 8th to elect new board members.
![]() TLC founder Bill Turner gives a positive "thumbs-up" approval with proposed board members from the Save TLC Committee. They all attended a one day workshop and meeting on July 5th in Saanich with other proposed board members, committee members and community leaders. Standing: Todd Wong, Bill Turner, Ken Millard, Magnus Bien Sitting: Cheryl Bryce, Elspeth McVeigh, Briony Penn The Land Conservancy of BC (TLC) is one of the important players in land conservancy in Canada. It is a non-profit organization, based on the The National Trust of England, Ireland and Wales. TLC purchases lands and creates environmental convenants in order to lands, and buildings of environmental, scientific, historical, cultural, scenic and recreational value that would otherwise be loss to destruction, demolition, or development. TLC: What happened? On March 27, TLC executive director and founder Bill Turner was "fired" without warning or rational explanation. This is only three years after the founding visionary was appointed the Order of Canada for "his tremendous energy and selfless dedication to preserve his province's natural environment. A realtor, he founded the Land Conservancy of British Columbia (TLC) to advocate for the protection of the environment through conservation covenants and ecological gifts." According to Save TLC website Q's and A's "At the same time, "another Director gained access to TLC's head offic, once the staff had left for the day, disabled TLC's communications network and changed the locks on the doors. When Turner was notified of his firing, a replacement had already been hired - without any public search. Now to be called Chief Operating Officer (COO) this replacement has no experienc managing land trusts or non-profit organizations, and has never even worked in one. On Monday, March 30, the COO also fired TLC's long-time Deputy Executive Director, Ian Fawcett - again, without warning and without any explanation. TLC members were shocked to learn of the events, and of the allegations by the TLC board about the TLC founder Bill Turner. The Save TLC committee was founded to support the return of Bill Turner and senior management staff to TLC. As well, the TLC committee has diligently worked to challenge the TLC board on its allegations, and to inform TLC members about these events. The Save TLC committee has recruited 11 proposed board members that have worked with TLC in many capacities and/or have related experience and background to helping TLC recover from this current situation. Both the Save TLC committee and TLC Board have agreed on a procedure that would see all members of TLC vote to elect a full 11 member Board at the EGM. All Directors of the current board will resign at the EGM and those eligible may stand for re-election. I am pleased that Bill Turner asked me, Todd Wong, to be on the Save TLC slate. I have worked with TLC and Bill Turner since December 2005, when TLC became partners with the Save Kogawa House Committee, in an effort to save the childhood home of famous Canadian author Joy Kogawa from demolition. I have always been interested in the history of BC, and especially its pioneers. I have always loved the natural history of BC, and am very aware of the need to protect its environments and eco-systems. I was honoured that David Kogawa nominated me for the BC Community Achievement Award, citing my community work with the Save Kogawa House Committee, as well as my multicultural community events for Gung Haggis Fat Choy Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner. Former Founding Director Briony Penn has written a letter and sent it out to friends and members of TLC. Briony writes: I have received a large number of calls and emails from members
asking me who to vote for regarding the upcoming mail-in ballot for
electing 11 new Board members of TLC The Land Conservancy of BC and
what my thoughts are. Members
will be receiving a ballot with 23 names. I would recommend this
wonderful team of grassroot individuals with trusted and proven
experience with land trusts that have put their names forward under the
ballot of Save TLC (savetlc.ca) and consider them for the board. Then
vote through the mail-in ballot which you will be sent.
Barry Glickman, professor of biology at UVic Cheryl Bryce, lands manager for Songhees and spokesperson on First Nations issues of land conservation Magnus Bein, an ecologist working on the Okanagan Collaborative Conservation Program in the interior Alastair Craighead, former Victoria City councillor and cycling activist Elspeth McVeigh, a Vancouver business woman and historic building specialist David Merner, a dynamic conflict resolution lawyer and community volunteer Ken Millard, a veteran lands trust director and Galiano Islander Carol Pickup a retired Saanich coucillor interested in heritage conservation Frances Pugh, a farmer and chair of the Saanich Inlet Protection Society Todd Wong who was active in Vancouver on the Joy Kogawa House and an award winning multiculturalist community organizer and myself, a Founding Director of TLC and consultant environmental communication/education We have already met as a group and identified our respective skills and roles that we would bring to restore the organization. All of us are hard workers in our communities and understand that the financial security of the organization relies on the relationships we form with members/donors as this is our biggest asset for the long term financial and social stability of the organization. We have all spent time going over financial statements and addressing the financial allegations levelled at the senior management by the existing Board with an independent chartered accountant and a trust lawyer expert that we hired. The allegations were incorrect and a misinterpretation of the Charitable Purposes Preservation Act. No law has ever been broken, the lawyers that resigned were going on verbal advice based on an informal conversation (one lawyer's) about blending trust fund accounts, which is common practice for charities. It is only illegal in a lawyer's practice in some instances e.g., where you need to separate different client's accounts that are accruing interest. (for full legal opinion, trust lawyer David John's letter will be on the tlc website tomorrow, savetlc.ca) Ironically, the old board did put forward a motion to sell Keating Farm which would have been illegal under the Act. The Board perceived they needed to do this to alleviate "crippling debt" but this again was an incorrect characterization according to the accountant. The organization was healthy at the point when the staff were fired. At the end of the day, nothing has waivered our belief in the skills, competence and commitment of the staff. We did identify many areas for improvement including the need for Board members to spend more time fund raising and working directly with the Executive Director and staff so the two solitudes of Board and Staff never occurs again. Part of the biggest problem I believe was that the Board became more and more distanced from and distrustful of senior staff because of a difference of interpretation over the financial circumstances, the law and the selling of properties. The latest slate of members are already doing their homework and have started on a full analysis of what went wrong. All of us have worked on projects from the trenches—either as activists, donors, in political and other supporting roles. We all know what it takes to make projects successful, attract members and keep the money rolling in. I believe this slate consists of people capable of working even in the most challenging circumstances. That might be what we face August 8th. Prior to us getting together last week, Bill Turner had picked me up from the Sunday 6:15 am ferry and we went to Elk Lake to set up the Bottle Drive for TLC. We spent the next couple of hours picking up and assembling the stands, bags and tables for the bottle drive. The bottle drive was part of our commitment to raise money for TLC as the membership contingent of Save TLC which has been very successful with over $100, 000 raised in a month. When you are considering which board members to vote for and who should lead the organization, consider asking the different candidates who got up at 6 on a Sunday morning to get a bottle drive organized to raise the funds to save special places? I know where my vote lies. Briony Friday, May 29
by
Todd
on Fri 29 May 2009 03:40 PM PDT
MONTREAL POET WRAPS UP RESIDENCY THIS WEEKEND
Historic Joy Kogawa House celebrates success of its first writer-in-residence
![]() On April 20, inaugural Kogawa House writer-in-residence John Afour welcomed Shelagh Rogers, Jean Baird, George Bowering and George Stanley to Kogawa House for a joint Purdy Party with three BC Book Prize Poetry nominees Daphne Marlatt, George Stanly and Nilofar Shidmehr - photo Todd Wong Kogawa House writer-in-residence John Asfour leaves a trail of inspiration behind as he packs his bags to return to Montreal on Sunday, May 31. Final reading with Gary Geddes and Ann Eriksson on Saturday, May 30th.
Asfour has also welcomed visits from writing classes and he has coached numerous individual writers. Following an evening class at the house, SFU Writers’ Studio lyric poetry instructor Rachel Rose wrote: “John has been so generous with his time, meeting many students for individual consults.” Another writer said: “I had a very good, productive meeting with John and learned more in meeting with him than I had learned in a whole year studying creative writing at university. He taught me how to edit.”
Asfour’s frequent writing consultations did not keep him completing a book of poems entitled Blindfold, which is partly autobiographical—born in Lebanon, Asfour was blinded at age 13 during the Civil War in 1958. His poems explore feelings of loss and displacement and suggest that the disabled often feel like foreigners in their own land, hampered by prejudice (sometimes well-meaning), communications barriers and the sense of “limited personality” that characterizes the immigrant experience.
![]() John Asfour was featured at the Vancouver Public Library on May 19th with Neworld Theatre's Marcus Youssef and Adrienne Wong read his poems in English - photo Todd Wong While in Vancouver Asfour also presented poetry readings to a variety of audiences, including the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, Christianne’s Lyceum of Art and Literature, the BC Muslim School and in collaboration with Neworld Theatre at the Vancouver Public Library. On Thursday, 58 students from Killarney Secondary School will practice their creative writing while scattered over the lawns, patio, and deck at Kogawa house.
Asfour is the author of four books of poetry in English and two in Arabic. He translated the poetry of Muhammad al-Maghut into English under the title Joy Is Not My Profession (Véhicule Press), and he selected, edited and introduced the landmark anthology When the Words Burn: An Anthology of Modern Arabic Poetry, 1945–1987 (Cormorant Books).
Further information can be found on the website of the Historic Joy Kogawa House Society at www.kogawahouse.com or by calling (604) 263-6586.
ends/more
Contacts: Kogawa House Society: Ann-Marie Metten (604) 263-6586
Notes to Editors: 1. Information on Historic Joy Kogawa House
Historic Joy Kogawa House is the former home of the Canadian author Joy Kogawa (born 1935). It stands as a cultural and historical reminder of the expropriation of property that all Canadians of Japanese descent experienced after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Between 2003 and 2006, a grassroots committee fund raised in a well-publicized national campaign, and with the help of The Land Conservancy of BC, a non-profit land trust, managed to purchase the house in 2006.
Together with Joy Kogawa, the various groups decided that the wisest and best use of the property would be to establish it as a place where writers could live and work. Following the models of the writer-in-residence programs in place at the Berton House Writers’ Retreat in Dawson City , Yukon , and Roderick Haig-Brown House in Campbell River , BC , the Historic Joy Kogawa House writer-in-residence program brings well-regarded professional writers in touch with a local community of writers, readers, editors, and librarians. While in residence, the writer works to enrich the literary community around him or her and to foster an appreciation for Canadian writing through programs that involve students, other writers and members of the general public. Beginning in March 2009, as a partner with TLC, the Historic Joy Kogawa Society will begin hosting writers to live and work in the house on a paid basis. Funding is provided through the Michael Audain Foundation for the Arts, the BC Arts Council, the Canada Council and through donations from the general public. Thursday, May 14
by
Todd
on Thu 14 May 2009 05:24 PM PDT
![]() Two more events with John Asfour
will round out his third and final month in residence.
I look forward to seeing you at one or both
events,Tuesday, May 19 at 7:30 p.m., John presents an evening of Arabic poetry in translation. John performs on the oud, or Arabic lute, as actors Adrienne Wong and Marcus Youssef of Neworld Theatre read his poems and those of Syrian poet Muhammad al-Maghut and Mahmoud Darwish, Palestine’s national poet. This event will take place in the Alma VanDusen and Peter Kaye rooms on the Lower Level of the central branch of the Vancouver Public Library, 350 West Georgia Street. Admission is free. Back at Kogawa house on Saturday, May 30, at 7:30 p.m.—the final evening of John's residency with us—he welcomes Gary Geddes and Ann Eriksson for readings in celebration of John's residency. Gary Geddes has written and edited more than 35 books and won a dozen national and international literary awards, including the Gabriela Mistral Prize and, most recently, the Lieutenant-Governor’s Award for Literary Excellence in BC. He will read from Falsework about the collapse of the Second Narrows Bridge in Vancouver. Ann Eriksson’s new novel, In the Hands of Anubis, has been described by the critics as wise, wicked, touching and funny. It ranges from Cairo to Calgary to Ucluelet and has a cast of coyotes, tractors and dog-headed gods. Her novel, Decomposing Maggie, appeared on bestseller lists in 2003. This event takes place at Kogawa house and seating is limited. To reserve a seat, please respond to this message. Ann-Marie Metten Executive Director Contact Information Telephone: 604-263-6586 Email: kogawahouse@yahoo.ca Historic Joy Kogawa House | 1450 West 64th Avenue | Vancouver | BC | V6P 2N4 | Canada Friday, April 17
by
Todd
on Fri 17 Apr 2009 11:58 PM PDT
JOY KOGAWA HOUSE TO HOST AL PURDY PARTY![]() This is going to be an exciting event, created for BC Book and Magazine Week. 4 poets in an intimate setting with special host Shelagh Rogers. Innaugural Kogawa House writerinresidence John Asfour has invited 3 nominated poets for the BC Book Prizes Dorothy Livesay Poetry Award: George Stanley, Nilofar Shimehr and Daphne Marlatt. Shelagh Rogers did the last public interview Purdy at the Eden Mills Writers' Festival. Shelagh says "He was awesome," and will share her Al Purdy memories with the audience. www.cbc.ca/wordsatlarge/blog/2008/05/al_purdy_an_uncommon_poet_ This will be also be a fundraiser for Save the Al Purdy A Frame… in the Joy Kogawa childhood home, a house that was saved from demolition to be turned into a writer in residence program and a historical/literary landmark for all of Canada ![]() April 21 is National Al Purdy Day. http://www.poetrymap.ca/news_item.php?NewsID=35 from www.kogawahouse.com Shelagh Rogers, host of "The Next Chapter" on CBC Radio, to emcee with John Asfour - inaugural writer in residence at Joy Kogawa House, George Stanley, Nilofar Shidmehr and Daphne Marlatt George Stanley (Vancouver: A Poem), Nilofar Shidmehr (Shirin and Salt Man) and Daphne Marlatt When: 7:30 p.m., Monday, April 20 Where: Historic Joy Kogawa House, 1450 West 64th Avenue, Vancouver Admission by donation. Space is limited. To secure a seat, please RSVP kogawahouse@yahoo.ca Three BC Book Prize-nominated poets—George Stanley, Nilofar Shidmehr and Daphne Marlatt—have accepted an invitation from writer-in-residence John Asfour to read at Historic Joy Kogawa House on Monday, April 20, as part of BC Book and Magazine Week. Asfour, a Montreal poet, is the first writer-in-residence at Kogawa House and will present poetry readings to a variety of audiences, in collaboration with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, Simon Fraser University’s Writers Studio, Christianne’s Lyceum of Literature and Art and the Vancouver Public Library. Asfour is the author of four books of poetry in English and two in Arabic. He translated the poetry of Muhammad al-Maghut into English under the title Joy Is Not My Profession (Véhicule Press), and he selected, edited and introduced the landmark anthology When the Words Burn: An Anthology of Modern Arabic Poetry, 1945–1987 (Cormorant Books). CBC Radio host Shelagh Rogers will emcee the event, which is a co-presentation of Historic Joy Kogawa House and the West Coast Book Prize Society. George Stanley (Vancouver: A Poem), Nilofar Shidmehr (Shirin and Salt Man) and Daphne Marlatt (The Given) are finalists for the Dorothy Livesay Poetry Prize. The event takes place the evening before National Al Purdy Day, and the League of Canadian Poets has invited all Canadian poets and lovers of Canadian poetry to host a Purdy party to raise funds for the Al Purdy A-Frame Project—Purdy’s former home on Roblin Lake, Ontario—and to create a poet-in-residence program there that is similar to the writer-in-residence program now under way in the childhood home of the author Joy Kogawa. This poetry reading will be held at 7:30 pm at Historic Joy Kogawa House, located at 1450 West 64th Avenue, Vancouver. Entrance by donation. Space is limited. To secure a seat, please RSVP kogawahouse@yahoo.ca Thursday, April 16
by
Todd
on Thu 16 Apr 2009 08:16 PM PDT
Meet Judy RebickSpecial guest at Historic Joy Kogawa Housewith writer-in-residence John Asfour ![]() from www.kogawahouse.com When: 5 p.m., Friday, April 17 Where: 1450 West 64th Avenue, Vancouver Admission by donation. Space is limited. To reserve a seat, please RSVP kogawahouse@yahoo.ca Writer-in-residence John Asfour welcomes Judy Rebick to Historic Joy Kogawa House on Friday, April 17. Rebick is a veteran activist, former host of CBC Newsworld, chair of Social Justice and Democracy at Ryerson University and former publisher of www.rabble.ca. Come join us on Friday, April 17, as Judy Rebick speaks about her new book Transforming Power.One reader commented that Transforming Power "[is] a powerful, inspiring treatise on a paradigm shift in social action that is taking place from around the world. It offers new pathways to change making that are critically needed in this time of crisis, and is an exciting window into stories of hope and possibility around the world." To attend this event, please RSVP kogawahouse@yahoo.ca. Friday, April 3
by
Todd
on Fri 03 Apr 2009 11:55 AM PDT
Writer-in-residence John Asfour welcomes novelist, playwright, and essayist Ann Diamond to read excerpts from My Cold War, stories from 1950s Montreal ![]() Montreal writer John Asfour met the Historic Joy Kogawa House Society at a board meeting March 23. John (with dark glasses) stands beside life-size photo of Joy Kogawa used in the Royal BC Museum exhibit "Free Spirit." - photo Deb Martin.
Monday, April 6, at 7:30pm, by donation
Historic Joy Kogawa House, 1450 West 64th Avenue, Vancouver
Ann Diamond's best-known work is a long poem, A Nun's Diary (1989), which was adapted for theatre by Robert Lepage and became the subject of a National Film Board documentary, "Breaking a Leg" directed by Donald Winkler. Her first novel, Mona's Dance, was chosen by CBC as the best small press novel of 1988. In 1994, a story collection, Evil Eye, won the Hugh MacLennan Award for fiction. As an experiment, she self-published her novel Static Control after it had been accepted by DC Books and Les Editeurs XYZ.
Since 2002 when Diamond began work on her memoir, My Cold War, she has reincarnated as a researcher and haunter of libraries, fine-tooth-comber of documents and files, and explorer of a forbidden chapter in recent Canadian history. This ongoing project has been, in many ways, about reclaiming her own history as the daughter of a Canadian Air Force intelligence officer, who came to Quebec from Sea Island, BC, in 1943 to "hunt for Nazi spies." Learning of her father's secret activities led her inevitably into a wide-ranging study of the history of that period, some of which remains classified to this day.
It has also changed Diamond's relationship to the community she came from--Anglo Montreal. It was a mixed blessing to live in a city with a rich cultural tradition and a multi-layered history. By the mid-1980s, when I began publishing fiction and poetry, Montreal had wandered off the literary map of Canada. Diamond waged a personal campaign to change that, writing for the Gazette, Books in Canada, Canadian Forum, CBC, Montreal Mirror, Room of One's Own, Geist, and so on.
Today Diamond continues to study the history of Cold War experiments on children, a secret program that spanned the country. Her birthplace, Montreal, was the epicentre of a project that has altered our future in countless ways which need to be faced. After five years of research and writing, Diamond is pleased to shared those stories with a Vancouver audience at Kogawa house. Join us on Monday, April 6, at 7:30pm at Historic Joy Kogawa House, 1450 West 64th Avenue in Vancouver. Admission by donation. Tuesday, March 24
by
Todd
on Tue 24 Mar 2009 09:31 AM PDT
MONTREAL POET ARRIVES IN VANCOUVER FOR FIRST WRITER RESIDENCY![]() Inaugural writer-in-residence John Asfour poses with life-size picture of Joy Kogwa, and the board members of the Historic Joy Kogawa House Society. - photo Deb Martin Historic Joy Kogawa House chooses first writer-in-residence Historic Joy Kogawa House is pleased to announce our first writer-in-residence, Montreal poet John Asfour. Upon arriving in Vancouver, Asfour said: “I am pleased to be chosen as the first writer-in-residence at Kogawa house. I’m here to learn how a community like the Japanese Canadian would turn a part of their historical suffering into something positive by establishing a place where writers can live and work. Japanese Canadians were very supportive of the community of Arab Canadians and what it had to endure after September 11.” Asfour is the author of four books of poetry in English and two in Arabic. He translated the poetry of Muhammad al-Maghut into English under the title Joy Is Not My Profession (Véhicule Press), and he selected, edited and introduced the landmark anthology When the Words Burn: An Anthology of Modern Arabic Poetry, 1945–1987 (Cormorant Books). The majority of the writer’s time in residence will be devoted to work on a book of poems entitled Blindfold, which exposes the “rich and strange” possibilities of a life that has undergone some frightening transformation and is displaced from its element. The book is partly autobiographical—born in Lebanon, Asfour was blinded in 1958 at age 13 during the Civil War there. The poems also explore feelings of loss, displacement and disorientation experienced by the disabled and relates them to immigrant themes that Asfour has previously addressed. Asfour suggests that the disabled often feel like foreigners in their own land, hampered by prejudice (sometimes well-meaning), communications barriers and the sense of “limited personality” that characterizes the second-language learner. While in Vancouver between now until the end of May, Asfour will present poetry workshops to a variety of audiences, in collaboration with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, Simon Fraser University’s Writers Studio and the Vancouver Public Library. Opportunities for consultation on work in development are also available. Further information can be found on the website of the Historic Joy Kogawa House Society at www.kogawahouse.com and TLC, The Land Conservancy of BC, at www.conservancy.bc.ca or by calling (604) 263-6586. Contacts: Kogawa House Society: Ann-Marie Metten (604) 263-6586 TLC, The Land Conservancy of BC: Tamsin Baker (604) 733-2313 Information on Historic Joy Kogawa House Historic Joy Kogawa House is the former home of the Canadian author Joy Kogawa (born 1935). It stands as a cultural and historical reminder of the expropriation of property that all Canadians of Japanese descent experienced after the bombing of Pearl Harbor in 1941. Between 2003 and 2006, a grassroots committee fundraised in a well-publicized national campaign, and with the help of The Land Conservancy of BC, a non-profit land trust, managed to purchase the house in 2006. Together with Joy Kogawa, the various groups decided that the wisest and best use of the property would be to establish it as a place where writers could live and work. Following the models of the writer-in-residence programs in place at the Berton House Writers’ Retreat in Dawson City, Yukon, and Roderick Haig-Brown House in Campbell River, BC, the Historic Joy Kogawa House writer-in-residence program brings well-regarded professional writers in touch with a local community of writers, readers, editors, publishers, booksellers and librarians. While in residence, the writer works to enrich the literary community around him or her and to foster an appreciation for Canadian writing through programs that involve students, other established and emerging writers and members of the general public. Beginning
in March 2009, as a partner with TLC, the Historic Joy Kogawa Society
will begin hosting writers to live and work in the house on a paid
basis. Funding is provided through the Michael Audain Foundation for
the Arts, the Canada Council and through donations from the general
public. Sunday, February 8
by
Todd
on Sun 08 Feb 2009 04:09 PM PST
Opera has led to many cross-cultural musical fusions... name an opera set in Asia...
![]() Here I am playing accordion, with soprano Jessica Cheung. We are performing the "Farewell Song" used in the Naomi's Road opera, accompanied by Mats on guitar and Harry Aoki on bass. Jessica is one of my favorite sopranos! This photo is from the first open house event at Historic Joy Kogawa House. - photo Deb Martin Some of my favorite opera arias are set in Asian. The famous tenor aria Nessun Dorma, is from Puccini's "Turandot", set in ancient Peking. Puccini's beautiful "Un Bel Dei" is from Madame Butterfly, set in Japan. I like playing both of them on my accordion. And the "Flower Duet" from Lakme, composed by Delibes, is set in India. You will recognize this from many television commercials. It is always so exciting to hear it performed live. Here's a beautiful version on youtube with Sumi Jo & Ah-Kyung Lee. And then there is also Bizet's "The Pearl Fishers" set in Ceylon. It's a wonder that in a Pan-Asian city such as Vancouver, there isn't a real push to feature more Asian performers. Music has always been a prime mover in breaking down racial barriers. The Vancouver Opera is featuring their 2nd annual "Voices of the Pacific Rim" recital. Sunday, Feb 8th, 7:30pm. This show features young Asian-Canadian artists. I got to know Jessica Cheung, Gina Oh and Sam Chung, when they did the Vancouver Opera Touring production of "Naomi's Road," which debuted in September 2005. I saw the show many times in many venues. The opera was based on the children's novel "Naomi's Road" which was based on the adult novel "Obasan" by Joy Kogawa. The presence of the opera, really helped to build awareness for the "Save Kogawa House" campaign, as well as 2005's One Book One Vancouver, by the Vancouver Public Library, which featured the novel "Obasan."
Voices of the Pacific Rim
Vancouver Playhouse, Hamilton & Dunsmuir
Brian Lee, Michael Mori, Stephanie Nakagawa, Gina Oh, Asako Tamura, Szu-Wen Wang
Artistic Curator: Gina Oh Artwork: Marco Tulio, courtesy of Artspace Community Partners: Powell Street Festival Society Canadian Society for Asian Arts Sunday, December 14
by
Todd
on Sun 14 Dec 2008 11:24 PM PST
The first Annual General Meeting was held for the Historic Joy Kogawa House Society on Dec 11th, 2009. It was a special meeting because writers Hiromi Goto and Caroline Addison were there to give their insight and share their experiences as the Writers in Residence for the Vancouver Public Library for 2007 and 2009. It was more special because author Joy Kogawa was present, having just flown in from Toronto to spend time with family. Executive director Ann-Marie Metten had brilliantly organized the evening, and it had a strong exciting buzz as wine and gourmet snacks were served. Books by Kogawa, Goto and Addison were for sale. Board members and guests mingled with authors and the representatives from The Land Conservancy of BC, the owners of the house. The evening unfolded with a good in depth descriptions of what it was like to be a writer in residence for the Vancouver Public Library. Hiromi Goto and Caroline Addison freely shared their experiences and their expectations as the Historic Joy Kogawa House now prepares for their first writer in residence program to be created with author Madeleine Thien, author of Simple Recipes and Certainty. It is somehow fitting that it is Madeleine who is the first WIR author, as she returns to the city where she not only lived before and wrote about, but also the city where the Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop first granted her the ACWW Emerging Writer's Award that was shopped to publishers and became the award winning "Simple Recipes" short story collection. Currently I am president of Joy Kogawa House, and co-president of Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop. During the AGM part of the evening, Ann-Marie Metten gave an update of the grants applied for and recieved and how the WIR program will unfold with Madeleine. The Land Conservancy of BC was proud to report that Historic Joy Kogawa House has recieved a Heritage B category from the City of Vancouver, and we can now proceed with the next steps for re-zoning and re-conditioning the house. We hope to restore the house to what it was like when the 6 year old Joy Kogawa, her 10 year old brother Timothy and their parents were living in the house before they were sent to the BC interior to spend the next 10 year living in delapidated buildings and beet farms. I gave a President's report that recapped events in 2008 that involved Joy Kogawa in BC, and events at Joy Kogawa House. Here is my report: On Feb 3rd, Sharon Butala attended the Vancouver opera production "Voices of the Pacific Rim" with members of the Joy Kogawa House Society, and was introduced to some of the singers who had performed the Naomi's Road opera, based on the children's novel by Joy Kogawa Sunday Feb 24 Author Sharon Butala mesmerized the packed audience at historic Joy Kogawa House on Friday night. The Order of Canada author talked how she helped established a writer in residence program at Wallace Stegner's childhood home in Eastend, Saskatchewan. March 2008 - Royal BC Museum Joy Kogawa is guest of “THE PARTY”: 150 of BC’s most interesting people "The Party" exhibit with some of BC's "fascinating" citizens including: (front row) founding governor James Douglas, Betty Krawcyk, Joy Kogawa, Karen Magnusson, Herb Doman; (second row): Vikram Vij, Cindy Lee, Gordon Campbell, Gordon Shrum. - photo Todd Wong April 10 Vancouver Kids Books reading and Naomi’s Tree book launch It was a good event for the launch of Naomi's Tree. So good that all the books that had been delivered in advance to Kidsbooks sold out. When Joy performed her reading, she told the audience of children and adults that she had fallen in love with a tree. It was a special "Friendship Tree" - a cherry blossom tree. April 25th Kogawa House cherry tree planting + recognition of Sen. Nancy Ruth 3pm press conference, introduction of formerly anomnynous $500,000 donor (Sen. Nancy Ruth) + baby cherry tree planting 8pm Music and Poetry with Joy Kogawa and Friends, Following the music, Joy was presented with the George Woodcock Lifetime Achievement Award from BC Bookworld Publisher Alan Twigg, Vancouver Public Library Community Programs Director Janice Douglas, and historian Jean Barman. Alan Twigg speaks of Joy's accomplishments Joy Kogawa accepts the George Woodcock lifetime achievement award This morning Joy Kogawa sent this email out to our Historic Joy Kogawa House Society Dear Friends, For a day of unalloyed happiness -- I have had many many wonderful days in my life -- but this one! It was the happiest. If ever I've felt at home.... Or felt the love that underlies all... My friend Heather Pawsey, soprano wrote: Last night was one of the most beautiful and profound evenings of my musical life. Heartfelt thanks to everyone behind Kogawa House. May it continue to rise and spread its wings. Where is Joy Kogawa in this picture? This is the interactive photo display in front of the Royal BC Museum, in Victoria BC, for the "Free Spirit" exhibition celebrating the 150th Anniversary of British Columbia. Sep 22 Kogawa House cherry tree at Vancouver city hall is given a plaque on the 20th anniversary of the Japanese-Canadian redress. "Friendship Tree" plaque at Vancouver City Hall for the "Kogawa House cherry tree" graft - photo Ann-Marie Metten. Monday, September 22
by
Todd
on Mon 22 Sep 2008 04:27 PM PDT
Kogawa House cherry tree at Vancouver city hall is given a plaque on the 20th anniversary of the Japanese-Canadian redress.
Sixty-six years ago, in 1942, Japanese-Canadians were "evacuated" from Canada's Pacific coast and sent to internment camps for the duration of WW2. in 1981, Joy Kogawa wrote her first novel Obasan, the first novel to address the issue of the Japanese-Canadian internment. Joy Kogawa would receive the Order of Canada in 1986 for her literary acheivement, what Roy Miki called "a novel that I believe is the most important literary work of the past 30 years for understanding Canadian history." 2005 was a busy year for Joy Kogawa. Obasan was the "One Book One Vancouver" selection for the Vancouver Public Library. "Naomi's Road", a mini-opera based on her children's novel debuted by the Vancouver Opera Touring Ensemble. And the childhood home of Joy Kogawa, which she had always hoped her family could return to after the war, was threatened with demolition. And on November 1st,at Vancouver City Hall, there was the Joy Kogawa Cherry Tree Planting". Then city councilor Jim Green accompanied Joy Kogawa in turning the sod. Jim had helped Joy take the original grafts from the tree a year before. They were accompanied by Vancouver chief librarian Paul Whitney, and Vancouver Opera managing director James Wright. On November 3rd, a presentation was made to Vancouver City Council to do whatever they could to stop or delay the proposed demolition of Joy Kogawa's childhood home. An unprecedented motion was passed to delay the processing of the demolition permit by 3 months. read Kogawa House: Vancouver Council votes unaminously to create 120 day delay to demolition application Now there is a plaque to officially recognize and commemorate the significance of this young cherry tree. It is grafted from the original cherry tree from Joy Kogawa's childhood home. Joy Kogawa with City Librarian Paul Whitney, Opera Managing Director James Wright, and City Councillor Jim Green - photo Deb Martin On November 3rd, a presentation was made to Vancouver City Council to do whatever they could to stop or delay the proposed demolition of Joy Kogawa's childhood home. An unprecedented motion was passed to delay the processing of the demolition permit by 3 months. read Kogawa House: Vancouver Council votes unaminously to create 120 day delay to demolition application. In May of 2006, The Land Conservancy of BC purchased the house at 1450 West 64th Ave, to help preserve the childhood home of author Joy Kogawa. In April 2008, Joy released a children's picture book titled Naomi's Tree. It encompasses the stories of the WW2 internment, and also the saving of her childhood home, while reflecting on the friendship of a young child and cherry try as they both age and meet again. This book tells the story of the "Friendship Tree," Joy Kogawa reads "Naomi's Tree" at Vancouver Kidsbooks for the Vancouver book launch.It seems very fitting that a plaque at Vancouver City Hall be placed at the baby cherry tree on the 20th anniversary of the Japanese-Canadian redress settlement. Saturday, September 20
by
Todd
on Sat 20 Sep 2008 11:09 AM PDT
Redress for the WW2 internment of Japanese Canadians is one of Canada's most significant actions to address Canada's past racist history.
This weekend there is a conference to acknowledge the 20th Anniversary of the Japanese Canadian Redress. http://redressanniversary.najc.ca/redress Highlights include panel discussions on related topics, plus music and performances by dancer Jay Hirabayashi, and poets/authors Roy Miki and Hiromi Goto. Conference ScheduleDay 1: Friday, September 19Host Venue: Vancouver Japanese Language School and Japanese Hall, Vancouver, B.C. Theme: Reflecting the past in the present Day 2: Saturday, September 20Venue: Nikkei Place and Alan Emmott Centre, Burnaby Theme: In the present, imagining the future Day 2: Sunday, September 21Venue: Nikkei Place and Alan Emmott Centre, Burnaby It was the 6 year old Canadian-born Generation Joy Kogawa that was put on a train in 1942 and sent with her 10 year old brother, Anglican priest father and mother, to the internment camps in the Kootenays. This was done in the wake of Japan's bombing of the US naval base Pearl Harbour in Hawaii, and fears of a Japanese invasion of Canada's Pacific coast. But no similar action was done against German ancestry descendants. All Japanese-Canadians on the coast were sent to internment camps, and while there they suffered the indignity of having their houses and properties confiscated and auctioned off, supposedly to help pay for their internment. The anti-Japanese racism extended years beyond WW2, as Canadian parliament enacted a dispersal policy, to restrict Japanese-Canadians from returning to the West Coast, sending them instead to work on beet farms across Canada, or to be "re-patriated" to Japan - even if they were born in Canada! In 1988, Prime Minister Mulroney signed a redress settlement with Art Miki, and made an apology in Parliament. This redress process also set in motion a redress movement for the Chinese Head Tax, when NDP MP Margaret Mitchell brought the issue to Parliament in 1984. In 2006, Prime Minister Harper officially apologized for the Chinese Head Tax (initiated in 1885) and Chinese Exclusion Act (1923-1945), but failed to give a redress payment for all head tax certificates, whereas all Japanese-Canadians born up to 1947 were eligible for redress settlement. I have been privileged to be involved in the struggle to save the childhood home of Joy Kogawa from demolition. Kogawa's novel Obasan brought the Japanese-Canadian internment and struggle for redress to Canadians through literature. NDP leader Ed Broadbent read a passage from Obasan in the House of Commons during the 1988 Parliamentary redress. The internment of
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE On September 22, 1988, the Japanese Canadian Redress Agreement was signed by the President of the National Association of Japanese Canadians (NAJC) and the Prime Minister of Canada. This document acknowledged the injustice committed by the Canadian government against Japanese Canadians during and after World War II, and pledged that such events will not happen again. This was a major historic event not only for Japanese Canadians, but to all minority groups as well, in that it set precedence for other redress settlements in Canada. September 22, 2008 marks the 20th anniversary of the Japanese Canadian Redress Settlement. To celebrate, the NAJC and its membership organization, the Greater Vancouver Japanese Canadian Citizen Association (GVJCCA), will be hosting a national event in Vancouver, British Columbia. The conference will focus on both the celebration of the Redress Settlement and reflection on the future of our global community. Some notable participants scheduled to attend are inter-cultural group members, various government representatives, and those individuals who took a major role in the Redress Movement. You are cordially invited to join us in participating in plenary, workshops, and performances during this special three-day event. A student rate is available. Please visit http://redressanniversary.najc.ca/redress for more information about the conference and details on registration. Friday, September 12
by
Todd
on Fri 12 Sep 2008 12:34 PM PDT
![]() Where is Joy Kogawa in this picture? Where is Chief Dan George? Where is Yip Sang? Where is Emily Carr? This
is the interactive photo display in front of the Royal BC Museum, in Victoria BC, for
the "Free Spirit" exhibition celebrating the 150th Anniversary of
British Columbia. These pictures are from "The Party" display which
features 150 of BC's most fascinating people. This picture was taken when Deb and I went to Victoria on August 8th to attend the "150 Years in Golden Mountain" awards gala. The
display also features Japanese-Canadian David Suzuki and other famous
authors such as Jane Rule, Douglas Coupland, PK Page and Dorothy
Livesay. Check out the website and find Joy and David Suzuki in: hint:
you can stand behind Joy, as Kogawa House committee member Deb Martin
is doing. This picture of Joy was taken by Kogawa House committee
members Deb and Todd Wong- who is is also featured in "The Party"
exhibit.
The exhibition opened in March, and Deb and I went to visit "Joy" in April: read our story: Traveling to "The Party" at BC Royal Museum ![]() "The Party" exhibit with some of BC's "fascinating" citizens including: (front row) founding governor James Douglas, Betty Krawcyk, Joy Kogawa, Karen Magnusson, Herb Doman; (second row): Vikram Vij, Cindy Lee, Gordon Campbell, Gordon Shrum. - photo Todd Wong Our second visit to the RBCM this year was to see the picture of Todd Wong in the museum when I was "voted in" along with Trevor Linden. "Toddish McWong" installed at the "Free Spirit" exhibition at Royal BC Museum Many friends have been taking trips to Victoria and returning to Vancouver, saying they have seen me in the Museum. ![]() Todd Wong stands in front of former Prime Minister Kim Campbell, but behind King Freezy, Chee-al-thluc, Chief of the Songhees people. Also in this picture are "The Beach Combers", "The Raging Grannies," Sir Matthew Bailiee Begbie aka "The Hanging Judge Begbie", Premier W.A.C. Bennet, Rosemary Brown, Sen. Mobina Jaffer, Roderick Haig-Brown - photo D. Martin. Thursday, July 17
by
Todd
on Thu 17 Jul 2008 01:31 PM PDT
Joy Kogawa House cited as example as campaign to save Al Purdy cabin in Eastern Ontario starts up.
How important was it to save Joy Kogawa's childhood home? Joy Kogawa House was recently cited in a Globe & Mail article about then endangered home of Al Purdy in an article by Patrick White titled: The house where Al Purdy lived is on the block There may still be time to save it. But any effort would take a great
deal of cash and organization, says Don Oravec, executive director of
the Writers' Trust of Canada, which runs Pierre Berton's childhood home
in Dawson City, Yukon, as a retreat, and raised funds to purchase the
Vancouver house where novelist Joy Kogawa grew up. "The trick is not
just buying the house." Oravec says. "It's also creating an endowment
to maintain the place. Canadian literature is an important part to our Canadian identity. Sustaining and supporting our writers has long been a struggle and an issue. White writes that the house played an important role in Purdy's development as a poet. The move soon paid off creatively, inspiring what is perhaps the most
famous metamorphosis in Canadian literary history. Once a struggling
writer of tortured romantic verse, Purdy and his work changed forever
along the shores of Roblin Lake.
"It was really when they left Montreal and built that house that Al went into a kind of hibernation and came of age as a poet," says Purdy friend, poet and House of Anansi co-founder Dennis Lee, who first visited Ameliasburgh in the sixties to ink a book deal with Purdy. Al Purdy, his wife Eurithe and their house also played a role in the development of author Michael Ondaatje and other writers by offering them refuge and support.Michael Ondaatje, Tom Marshall and David Helwig hadn't published a
single book between them when "Al and Eurithe simply invited us in,"
writes Ondaatje in the foreword to Purdy's collected works. "And why?
Because we were poets! Not well-known writers or newspaper celebrities.
... These visits became essential to our lives. We weren't there for
gossip, certainly not to discuss royalties and publishers. We were
there to talk about poetry. Read poems aloud. Argue over them. Complain
about prosody." Read the entire article athttp://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20080712.ALPURDY12/TPStory/TPEntertainment/Ontario/ Monday, June 2
by
Todd
on Mon 02 Jun 2008 07:22 PM PDT
Joy Kogawa's new children's book "Naomi's Tree" is reviewed by Guelph Mercury
I am very happy that our saving of Joy Kogawa's childhood home is having a positive effect not only for Joy Kogawa and the The Land Conservancy of BC, which bought the house - but also for community organizations using the house, and for children's literature. Check out Joy Kogawa's childhood home in Vancouver BC @ 1450 West 64th Ave. or check our blog: www.kogawahouse.com http://news.guelphmercury.com/Life/article/334970
May 31, 2008
Thursday, May 1
by
Todd
on Thu 01 May 2008 06:13 PM PDT
Raymond Louie could be Vancouver's first Chinese-Canadian mayor. He is a multi-generational Vancouverite from the East Side. He is a second term Vancouver city councilor. My statement of endorsement is now featured on Raymond Louie's website: "Raymond Louie actually lives the culturally diverse Gung Haggis Fat Choy lifestyle that is my creative world. His own family straddles many cultures and many generations, and he actively demonstrates that he understands the many facets that can make our city shine like a diamond. I have seen how Raymond makes things happen as a city councilor, bringing together different groups and perspectives such as arts, economics, heritage and cultures. As a mayor that empowers others to be their best, Raymond will be dynamic and our jewel of a city should shine even brighter." more »
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2010 GUNG HAGGIS FAT CHOY Dinner
January 31, 2010 Contact Firehall Arts Centre: phone 604.689.0926 2010 prices SINGLE TICKET $60 + $5 service charge = $65 Student price is $50 + $4.50 = $54.50 (must show student high school or university ID) Children's price is $40 + $4.00 = $44 (ages 13 and under). Reservations for tables of 10 $600 + lower service charge WHAT: GUNG HAGGIS FAT CHOY: Toddish McWong's Robbie Burns Chinese New Year Dinner - 12th Annversary Dinner, celebrating 251st Anniversary of Robert Burns' birth + incoming Chinese New Year of the Tiger. WHEN: 6PM January 31 2010, SUNDAY doors open 5pm, Dinner 6pm WHERE: Floata Chinese Restaurant, #400-180 Keefer St. Media Inquiries Call Gung Haggis Productions / Todd Wong direct: 778-846-7090 email: gunghaggis at yahoo dot ca CULTURE: Our Performers create something special for us every year with traditional and contemporary performances featuring everything in-between and beyond! FOOD: A quirky fusion/mix/buffet of Scottish Canadian and Chinese Canadian culture 10 course Chinese banguet dinner 2004 - The debut of Gung Haggis Won-Ton 2005 - Haggis lettuce wrap! 2007 - Haggis dim sum appetizer buffet 2008 - Scotch tastings! + debut of Gung Haggis parade dragon! 2009 - debut of Gung Haggis Fat Choy Pipes & Drums band + auction of 37 year old special edition Famous Grouse whisky + scotch tastings of Famous Grouse, The Macallan and Highland Park. Watch for more surprises in 2010! Description of 2009 Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dinner co-hosted with CBC News anchor Gloria Macarenko and Media colunist Catherine Barr featuring performers: bagpiper Joe McDonald and Mad Celts, Silk Road Music's Qiu Xia He and Andre Thibault, Opera Soprano Heather Pawsey and DJ Timothy Wisdom, BC Book Prize winner Vancouver poet Rita Wong + poet traslator Tommy Tao, Playwright Adrienne Wong and a scene from "Mixie and The Half-Breeds" Description of 2008 Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dinner co-hosted with Media colunist Catherine Barr featuring performers: , celtic band Blackthorn, bagpiper Joe McDonald and Brave Waves, Ji-Rong Huang on erhu, Film maker Ann-Marie Fleming, Vancouver poet laureate George McWhirter, Playwright Grace Chin and a scene from "The Quickie" Description of 2007 Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dinner co-hosted with CBC Radio's Priya Ramu, featuring performers: Silk Road Music, Heather Pawsey, Brave Waves, Leora Cashe, No Luck Club, Dr. Ian Mason (Burns Club of Vancouver) Lensey Namioka - Author "Half and Half" Margaret Gallagher, "Twisting Fortunes" (sneak preview of play) Description of 2006 Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dinner with co-host with CityTV's Prem Gill featuring performers: Rick Scott & Harry Wong, The Shirleys, Joe McDonald & Brave Waves, Sean Gunn, author Joy Kogawa, ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dragon Boat team for lots of summer fun, fitness and friendship. We are a social team full of cultural vigor, that likes to eat. We have been featured on television, local, national and international. We have a unique and internationally famous fundraiser dinner event. We practice starting March Sunday 1:30 pm -3:30 pm Tuesday 6pm-7:45pm We meet at Dragon Zone clubhouse - just south of Science World in Creekside Park above the Aquabus and dragon boat docks. Our coach Todd Wong has 15+ years of experience including novice, recreational and competitive levels, and both community and corporate teams. Our 2008 season took us to races in Burnaby, Vancouver, Vernon, Vancouver Taiwanese race, UBC, Ft. Langley. It was our strongest team ever and we are proud of our race performances. For more information: Click on Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dragon Boat team information phone: 778-846-7090 e-mail: gunghaggis at yahoo dot ca ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Sponsors
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