SALT/IVEP Blogs Home
March 16, 2007

Centre for Newcomers, Welcoming people from around the world

Permalink 10:11:11 am, by Supa-arpha, 209 words  
Categories: General

Centre for Newcomers, Welcoming people from around the world

Here in Canada, I work in a very interesting and funful place, Centre for Newcomers. I love this place and i love my job here. People are so friendly. We got a lot of peple coming in the centre everyday. Students, clients, volunteer, teachers and staff help keep this place busy all the time. I'm so happy that I get to work here and help people in some ways I can. It's very multi-cultural here because we have people from many countries, every continents working here. Thats why I really like this place. We work, help, share and care for each other.

"The Centre for Newcomers is a place where newcomers to Canada find connections in Calgary.

The Centre’s mission is to work in partnership with newcomer communities to provide opportunities for individuals to adjust, succeed and contribute as citizens in Canada, and to work in partnership with Calgary communities to affirm and value diversity.

The Centre’s vision is to become a community in which people find and create opportunities to fulfill their dreams and participate fully as citizens."

To learn more about the centre please go to; 

Remembrance Day: November 11

Permalink 10:06:23 am, by Supa-arpha, 668 words  
Categories: General

Remembrance Day..O Canada..Our home and native land

Remembrance Day: November 11

I feel so touched with the feeling around me when I see people regardless ages or genders wear red poppy. We so appreciate and admire those fallen soldiers, marines and airmen who sacrifice their lives to save our land, our country. Even I am not Canadian but I feel so graceful of this land that I am residing. I feel so proud being here in this country and experience the remembrance day. At church we have special service and moment of silence to honour those heroes who saved this land.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Remembrance Day

 (Australia, Canada, United Kingdom), also known as Poppy Day (South Africa and Malta), and Armistice Day (United Kingdom, New Zealand and many other Commonwealth countries; and the original name of the holiday internationally) is a day to commemorate the sacrifice of veterans and civilians in World War I, World War II, and other wars. It is observed on November 11 to recall the end of World War I on that date in 1918. The observance is specifically dedicated to members of the armed forces who were killed during war, and was created by King George V of the United Kingdom on November 7, 1919 (possibly upon the suggestion of Edward George Honey though Wellesley Tudor Pole, who established two ceremonial periods of remembrance based on events in 1917

The Poppy

The poppy's significance to Remembrance Day is a result of Canadian military physician John McCrae's poem In Flanders Fields. The poppy emblem was chosen because of the poppies that bloomed across some of the worst battlefields of Flanders in World War I, their red colour an appropriate symbol for the bloodshed of trench warfare. A Frenchwoman by the name of Madame E. Guérin introduced the widely used artificial poppies given out today. Some people choose to wear white poppies, which emphasises a desire for peaceful alternatives to military action. Until 1996, poppies were made by disabled veterans in Canada, but they have since been made by a private contractor.

In England, Wales,and Northern Ireland the poppies are the flat Earl Haig variety with a leaf. Wearers require a separate pin to attach the poppy to their clothing. Because the poppy honours British soldiers, in Northern Ireland it is worn primarily by members of the Unionist community.

In Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Scotland the poppies are curled at the petals with no leaf. The Canadian poppies consist of two pieces and a pin to attach them to clothing.

 Remembrance Ceremonies

The Service of Remembrance in many Commonwealth of Nations countries generally includes the playing of the Last Post, followed by two minutes of silence, followed by the playing of Reveille (or, more commonly, The Rouse) and a recitation of the Ode of Remembrance. In Canada, the Scottish Bagpiper's Lament is often played following Reveille. Services also include wreaths laid to honour the fallen, a blessing, and National Anthems.[3]

The Royal Canadian Legion recommends that Canadians observe 2 minutes of silence at 11:00am on November 11.

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved, and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.

With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!

From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

My 6th month in Calgary

Permalink 09:45:23 am, by Supa-arpha, 601 words  
Categories: General

My 6th month in Calgary

This is my sixth month in Calgary. I am still doing good and very enjoy winter and snow here. I love snow :) It allows me to do a lot of fun winter activities. I go hiking and skiing in the mounntains which is so lovely. Unfortunately, Spring is coming (many people are happy but I'm bit sad :( ). Winter is going. The weather is nicer and warmer. Though, I will miss skiing so bad.
Talking about work makes me feel excited. I like what I am doing because I get to do so many things here. I think my multi-tasks skill has improved...hahaha... This year, still, Filipino is the biggest number of immigrants, followed by Indian and CHinese. We just celebrated our success for the last fiscal year. We reached our clients target. I am in Community Development department and under volunteer program. Everyday we have new volunteers from immigrant and Canadian families. I really like it here because people really have sense of volunteering themselves to community. Now we are planning our volunteer appreciation day in April. This year we plan to have people wearing traditional costumes. That will be marvellous. About my teaching, It's going so well. My students love me so much. Most of them can be my parents or grandparents. I really enjoy doing this but sometimes it's boring. hahaha... I am teaching on one day a week now cus I got more volunteers to help cover classes on Monday and Tuesday. Other days, I have to do support work to other programs. I enter data of volunteers to our agency's database. SOmetimes I am asked to help at the reception which I really enjoy because I meet a lot of people. I listen to and help clients. SOmetimes I even have to encourage ( I feel like I am a counselor :p ) them to fight and live the life here in Canada :p And other days, I do support work for ISP (Immigrant and Settlement program). I help them enter data of clients to our agency's database and Canadian government data base. I've learned lil bit about immigration types and stuff. There were couple of times that we had Thai clients and I helped the counsellor as an interpretation which was fun.
 
Canada is such a lovely place but so different from the US. People are more friendly (from the heart) than people in the US and they care and want to learn about another cultures. I think it is also because of our mixture of population and new immigrants. I like the quality of life here. There is one of many things that I really like it here is public library. You pay 12 dollars for one year membership and you can borrow a lot of materials up to 99 items in a time. I am a heavy user, though. They got a lot of good books, movies and CDs. You can borrow and return at any branch. I can see that parents here always take children to the library. and the library has good friendly staff and professional service. They have ready-to-pick-up bags for parents who got young children which the bags contains good matterials for children in certain age. That is such a good idea because even the parents are busy to spend time in library but the children can still got good books to read. I just wish that Thailand could do something like this. So Thai kids will be aware of the importance of reading.

November 2008
Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun
 << <   > >>
          1 2
3 4 5 6 7 8 9
10 11 12 13 14 15 16
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
24 25 26 27 28 29 30

Archives

XML Feeds