With Joy The Giving Heart Community Feast & Holiday Season Celebration 2019 Completed

The Giving Heart Community Feast & Holiday Season Celebration 2019, organized by Sophia Zhang and more

An exceptional warm and sunny afternoon on November 20, the free public event The Giving Heart Community Feast & Holiday Season Celebration 2019 was hosted at Richmond Caring Place. Cross-cultural learning and understanding groups, elders and youth, men and women, families and kids, rich and poor, working class, military, veterans, immigrants, refugees, people with disabilities, homeless, and those who would otherwise be alone on this holiday season came to the tables in fellowship, food, music, poetry reading, stories sharing, lucky draw and more.

This free public event was planned, organized, and hosted by Sophia Zhang, with the great support from many organizations and individuals with the hearts of gold.

We have roasted turkeys, pig, geese, ducks, salmon, ham, vegetables, fruits, desserts, drinks and many more.

Food plan

We also prepared cakes for those who had birthdays in October, November and December. We invited them to the stage, and all sang the Happy Birthday song together to wish them a very happy birthday.

When the 100 seats were taken, we offered whoever showed up by the door to take the food to go. When almost everyone had their food on their plates, we still had more than a half food left on the tables – many people took the food home – thanks to each and every of our sponsors, volunteers and supporters, we prepared more than 300 pounds food and we sent posters and invitations to various places especially most needed.

It was more than just hot food, we actually dine together, enjoy the meal, music, poetry reading and stories sharing. It was truly a feast.

This event achieved the following goals:

Connected people with a wide range of interests, backgrounds and experiences;
Increased sense of belonging and responsibility to our communities;
Better understanding for groups of people and individuals with variation in race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, exceptionalities, language, religion, geographical area, etc.;
Shared knowledge and develop grassroots creativity and leadership skills;
Celebrated diversity and Canadian cultures, traditions, and customs of the world;
Appreciated the professionals and volunteers that are delegated in community capacity building.

Sincere Thanks to:

City of Richmond

Richmond Cares Richmond Gives

Vancouver Foundation

Small Neighbourhood Grant

Richmond Caring Place

Special thanks to:

Chateau Helena

JPC Group

Organizers:

Sophia Zhang, together with many sponsors, volunteers and supporters

WS Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society

Sophia Xinyuan Zhang, worked for the City and contributed to draft and conduct the certain new city bylaws; has been working for various community/senior centres, founding chair of the WS Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society, has been a board director for 10+ non-profit organizations, has been a dedicated community volunteer for decades (was board member for Richmond Sister City Advisor Committee and many more) and has been conducting thousands of free immigrant and multicultural charity events at City Halls, Cultural Centres, public libraries and community/senior centres included but not limited to: organizing Women in Leadership Fireside Chat Lunch and being the interpreter and translator; organizing the annual Canada Multicultural Creative Works Festival, Asian Heritage Festival, Chinese Cultural Heritage Festival, Community Feast and more; A few books published with congrats from the Honourable Prime Minister Trudeau, Premier Horgan, Mayor Brodie, Senators, MPs, MLAs, City Councillors and more.

Co-Organizers:

Chateau Helena

JPC Group

Red Leaf Multicultural Troupe (Member Organization of WS Multicultural Services Society)

Poet Engineering Group (Member Organization of WS Multicultural Services Society)

Vancouver Ballroom Dancing Enthusiasts (Member Organization of WS Multicultural Services Society)

WS Media

WS Choir

WS Recitation

WS Multicultural Writers Group

...

For more info please check:

WS Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society official website: http://www.wsisc.com/media;
Richmond News on November 20, 2019: https://www.richmond-news.com/community/free-community-dinner-will-help-bring-richmondites-together-1.24013818;
Vancouver Foundation, NSG: event http://neighbourhoodsmallgrants.ca/;
Vancouver Foundation, NSG: stories http://neighbourhoodsmallgrants.ca/;
Sophia Zhang Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UChFFqSG4qNgOkZV9zumRq4Q?view_as=subscriber

Sincere thanks to Artists JiLiang Yao, Bi-Gong, Joanne Wing, Liang-deng to donating their paintings, calligraphies and book to this free public event.

Sincere thanks to all the guest speakers, artists and performers for providing us a beautiful and joyful afternoon.

Sincere thanks for all the photographers and videographers for this event: Tong Shaopu, Ailvyou, Nan Xu, Chris, Anna Sysoyeva, Kayla Baxter and more.

Volunteers sent the event posters/invitations to most needed places

Sincere thanks to volunteers Sophia Zhang, Daniel Lee, Bruce Liang, Hanna Feng, Chris, Anna Sysoyeva, Kayla Baxter, Liu-Xiao, Ying Li, Ling Luo, Sarah Li, Cory Zhang, Irene Hsu, Gary Hsu, Kundi Fang，Wenxiu Yu, Pinming Yan, Weigang Zhou, Tianmimi and more to take the time from their busy schedule to organizing this event.

Volunteers gathered at Sophia's home, started to prepare the feast as early as 10:30am

Sincere thanks to all the supporting Media friends.

Helena ShuE Liu, Honorary Chair of the WS Immigration and Multicultural Services Society, a pioneer female Chinese entrepreneur who participated in the construction of the Bird's Nest as the main venue of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, which became one of the national historic sites.

After retired, she came to Canada and she created the world's top wine: Chateau Helena. In 2015-2019, she won the Bronze and Silver Awards in the World Wine Tasting Competition in London and other places for five consecutive years. She is super kind and helpful with a heart of gold, she always prepares food for seniors, she has been strongly supporting various community events, and she just won the "Capital Contracting for Excellence in Quality Workmanship and Dedication to All City Projects" in October 2019.

Jeff Hao Jiang, Honorary Chair of the WS Immigration and Multicultural Services Society, the founding president of the Chinese Construction and Renovation Association of Canada (CCRAC)，a non-profit organization President of JPC Services Inc. (JPC), as an extraordinary entrepreneur and philanthropist, he is leading in architectural design, building materials, construction, indoor and outdoor decoration, garden construction, various maintenance and cleaning, etc. he has been building an even more beautiful Vancouver.

For the Chinese Cultural Heritage Festival, "Le Yi Le" Father's Day Summer BBQ, the "Cold Winter Clothes Warmth", "Cold Wind Warm Flow" and more, Jiang has made great contributions that cannot be expected. Grateful to have him walk along the way, and have fun together with us.

Sincere thanks to AimForce Development Group for donating hundreds of bottles of water.

Sincere thanks to Roast Goose King for donating the delicious Roast Turkeys, Geese and ducks to this charity event.

WS Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society (WSIMS) is a non-profit organization and a volunteer-based group. Over the past 10 years it has been providing immigrant and refugee settlement services including language and computer training, and intercultural services including planning, organizing and hosting hundreds and thousands cross-cultural events, workshops, seminars, conferences, book launches, Discover World Culture series and more to create awareness, understanding and appreciation of multiculturalism, to build happier families, healthier communities and to foster intercultural harmony.