THE 26TH annual Multicultural Dinner celebrates the volunteers that make it all come together.
The theme of the dinner, Enriching the Community One Volunteer at a Time, is a reminder of all that volunteers do, and ensure they are appreciated.
And getting the volunteers who help out together involves more volunteers, who organize it all.
Skeena Diversity’s Lillian Bramley says Jane Dickson of the Terrace Multicultural Association is her rock.
And in turn, Dickson says Nirmal Parmar is her rock.
When it seems like there won’t be enough volunteers to help, she can call him and he will sort it all out.
He will tell her not to worry and that everything that needs to be done, will be, she says.
Dickson says the dinner is an example of how people can continue to make something happen for a number of years.
Overall, volunteerism is starting to decline and an idea is to bring seniors and youths together to learn from, and develop a mutual appreciation of, each other.
The dinner promises to be another fun event, with varied entertainment and food to share and, of course, volunteers are needed.
And you don’t have to look like you’re multicultural to come to the dinner.
People tend to think ‘why would I go to a multicultural dinner or event’ because I’m not multicultural, says Cam Siemens of Skeena Diversity Society.
It surprised her because everyone is multicultural if they look into their background and where their parents, grandparents or even great-grandparents were born, she says.
To that end, the 26th Multicultural Dinner will serve up a smorgasbord of entertainment for everyone, including Latin entertainment and other things for all ages.
Entertainment could include Bhangra, a form of folk music and dance that originates from Punjab, and has taken off as a form of exercise here at the leisure centre.
For more details on the multicultural dinner, see the listing under Community Calendar.