From the very first days of the Vietnamese Cultural Center, I felt it was important to have a place where we could meet, discuss, share, read and reflect.
Since the 1970s, many of us have closed one chapter of our lives and opened a new one. We’ve put down roots in the cold vastness of Canadian lakes, plains and forests. We have immersed ourselves in languages and cultures other than our own. We’ve united with people from all over the world.
Yet in this multitude, an invisible and complex thread still binds us together wherever we are.
This link is the house where we put our suitcases. Tidied away, they preserve the flavors, fragrances, colors and sounds that have forged our sensory, cultural and spiritual memories;
This is the house where we welcome our relatives, friends, colleagues and neighbors;
This is the house we want to build, a Vietnamese house rather than a house of Vietnam.
Buy a Stone, Build a House
After containment, it became essential for us to work on the realization of this project. It represents a major financial investment, which requires fund-raising campaigns.
A committee was formed. It has studied possibilities, proposed ideas, developed strategies and drafted plans that our Board of Directors recently adopted.
It is my pleasure and privilege to present the first of these campaigns, which will begin this fall, under the theme Buy a Stone, Build a House.
Two other campaigns will follow next winter. The first will be aimed at professional adults, and the second, in the form of socio-financing, at young adults.
I invite many of you to consult this campaign booklet and answer our call.
I would like to express my deep gratitude to the volunteers who have contributed to this operation: the members of our Board of Directors, the members of the Development Committee and the professionals who have helped us.
Nguyen Kim Phuong, Founder and President