Renfrew-Collingwood Community News

News stories from the Renfrew-Collingwood community in East Vancouver

Category Archives: Intercultural Stories


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Art Institute of Vancouver Multicultural Carnival

Many people enjoyed the Multicultural Carnival at the Art Institute of Vancouver. Photos by Luxi Lin

Many people enjoyed Multicultural Carnival at the Art Institute of Vancouver held late Nov. 2016. Photos by Luxi Lin

BY JERRY CHEN

The Art Institute of Vancouver, a post-secondary institution located in close proximity to the Renfrew SkyTrain station, hosted a Multicultural Carnival on the evening of November 22, 2016. In recognition of the diverse cultures represented at the Art Institute of Vancouver, the event recognized this diversity by sharing what different cultures have to offer.

Each of the venues set up represented a different country and its respective culture. Countries that were represented include Mexico, Philippine, Ukraine, Vietnam, Taiwan, China, Japan, Brazil, Afghanistan and Indonesia.

Art Institute of Vancouver staff and the Student Association get ready for the Multicultural Carnival.

Art Institute of Vancouver staff and the Student Association get ready for the Multicultural Carnival.

In order for attendees to gain a sense of these different cultures, each venue had a variety of games, food, activities and memorabilia derived directly from their country and culture. As such, attendees gained a first-hand experience of what each country and culture was like.

A show by the band The Noumenon and DJ performance by DJ 909 & Kennix provided live music, increasing the vibe of the event.

Making a special appearance was singer and songwriter Wanting Qu, who also happens to be an alumni of the Art Institute of Vancouver.

Attendees were enthusiastic about taking in what other cultures had to offer. They all enjoyed the abundance of activities that were available. It was a night filled with laughter and enjoyment, regardless of whether it is the people sharing the culture or those experiencing it.

Copyright (c) 2017 Renfrew-Collingwood Community News

 


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Remembering David Hanuse – A beloved elder

David Hanuse gives a traditional First Nations welcome

David Hanuse gives a traditional First Nations welcome at a gathering in 2008. Photo by Julie Cheng

Dave Hanuse, a former board member of Collingwood Neighbourhood House (CNH), elder to CNH’s Aboriginal youth, volunteer with Families Branching Out and just a very sweet man, passed away October 17, 2016. He was 73.

Dave was somebody who always looked on the bright side of life, loved to joke and laugh in his gentle way and spoke warmly about finding a home among the staff and volunteers at Collingwood Neighbourhood House.

He was generous in sharing his cultural knowledge and practices and often gave a blessing – singing and accompanying himself on the drum – before Families Branching Out dinners. He loved to join the youth in the Canoe Club and felt such peace and contentment canoeing with them. He last participated in the Canoe Club’s Pulling Together Journey about two or three years ago.

Dave’s health was failing over the last few years but he still made the effort to come to Families Branching Out, more recently accompanied by an aide. It obviously made a huge difference to him to be a part of Families Branching Out and of CNH.

Julie Cheng, editor of the Renfrew-Collingwood Community News, recalled the days when she and David sat on the CNH board. “We had a special bond because we were both ‘newbies’ on the board, as he called us,” said Julie. “He always gave me a warm hug whenever he saw me.”

“I will always remember Dave’s twinkly, sparkling eyes,” recalled Jennifer Gray-Grant, CNH executive director. “He was the kind of person who absolutely focused on you when he spoke to you. He always gave you the sense that the time you spent speaking to him mattered to him. I will miss his kindness, his caring and his gentle manner.”

Copyright (c) 2016 Renfrew-Collingwood Community News


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Still Moon Arts takes youth on a caravan along the Fraser

Carmen_team_Mount_Robson

The Still Moon Arts team started off at Mount Robson, the headwaters of the Fraser River. Photo courtesy of Still Moon Arts

 

BY LUCAS CHAN

Youth from the Still Moon Arts Society spent a week in June travelling along the Fraser River watershed in the 2nd annual Wild Salmon Caravan!

The Wild Salmon Caravan, taking place from June 6 to 11, was a journey from Mount Robson to Vancouver celebrating the spirit of the wild salmon through indigenous communities in Chase, Adams Lake, Kamloops, Lillooet, Lytton, Chilliwack and Abbotsford.

“The journey was really about celebrating, recognizing and honouring the spirit of the wild salmon, and how it is interconnected with First Nations culture as well as the rest of the environment,” said Henry Lau, one of the youth from the Still Moon Arts Youth Team.

The spirit of the salmon is something that influences across cultures and communities, representing more than just the ecological health of the land or water but also the relationships communities have with nature and each other.

Chitha_Lytton_Ceremony

It was an honour to take part in the Lytton ceremony. Photo by Chitha Manoranjan

Groups from across British Columbia joined the Wild Salmon Caravan in this travelling collective of culture, art, drumming, music and storytelling. It sought to connect with people and express the significance of salmon to the well-being of our cultures, communities, food systems and nature from an indigenous perspective.

“What I witnessed reminds me about how food is important to me in my neighborhood of Renfrew-Collingwood and how that is connected to the ways that First Nations groups access culturally relevant food in their own indigenous landscape,” said Crecien Bencio, who also participated in the journey.

The Wild Salmon Caravan also stressed the importance of building strong relationships with indigenous communities and conducting meaningful reconciliation processes. Threats of development and climate change endanger the well-being of the wild salmon that are so intricately linked with the land and its people. The Wild Salmon Caravan carried the wishes and hopes for what relationships with wild salmon was in the past, what it is in the present, and what will be in the future.

Still Moon’s previous youth engagement coordinator Chitha Manoranjan expressed, “I’m proud that we were able to take a small team of youth from this community up on this journey to share stories of our community’s successful efforts at bringing chum salmon back to Still Creek and bring some of Still Moon Arts’ creative energy. More importantly, it was an honour to be so warmly welcomed to different indigenous communities and be witness to the rich cultures and experiences that these communities have.“

The journey was part of Still Moon Arts’ Youth Engagement Project funded by the BC Arts Council. The youth team was made up of two Grade 9 students from the Leadership 9 Ecology class who have been working in the Renfrew Ravine this past year, and two long-time youth volunteers (and dedicated board members).

The team returns to the community with deeper knowledge, experiences and stories that are necessary to continue to act as stewards of the salmon and inspire the community to create their own intercultural experiences around food.

To find out more about Still Moon Arts Society’s journey on the Wild Salmon Caravan, visit www.stillmoon.org or find out more about the Wild Salmon Caravan at www.wildsalmoncaravan.wordpress.com.

Lucas Chan is a summer student with Still Moon Arts Society.

Copyright (c) 2016 Renfrew-Collingwood Community News