Seniors' building tenants celebrate together

BY FANNIE SUNSHINE
February 28, 2008 05:25 PM 
 
It was a cultural smorgasbord at one of Toronto Community Housing seniors' building in Flemingdon Park Feb. 27 as some 100 residents celebrated Culturefest.

With a special cultural passport in hand, the residents visited displays and sampled food from Jamaica, African nations and China, and took in South Asian dance and Chinese singing performances.

"Little stations were set up and each culture was showcased," said Laura Notton, health promotion manager for the Flemingdon Park area for Toronto Community Housing. "We had art work and bead work from Jamaica, cultural storytelling and the seniors performed a rendition of Lean on Me. And as the Chinese women were doing their dance, the Bangladeshi women were singing along. It was a great exchange of culture right there."

Aimed to break down the problem of senior isolation and celebrate the diverse cultures in the community, Culturefest was held in partnership between Toronto Community Housing and Toronto Intergenerational Partnerships (TIGP).

TIGP is a non-profit charitable organization bringing generations and communities together to address isolation by implementing projects encouraging socialization.

The initiative was funded by a $44,000 grant from Toronto Community Housing's Social Investment Fund (SIF) which allocates $1 million each year to support community initiatives that foster collaboration between tenants and community organizations to improve the quality of life in Toronto Community Housing communities.

Bano Marfatia, the tenant representative for the building near Don Mills Road and Eglinton Avenue, said laughter, joking and cultural enjoyment made the day successful.

"In this building we live like a family," she said of the 200 residents. "(Culturefest) is a lesson in diversity and we are trying to show our multicultural roots in Canada."