Book of Rainbows

Book of Rainbows Book of Rainbows Stories of Cultural Diversity Making a Difference Edited by Danielle Dalton Book of Rainbows: Stories of Cultural Diversity Making a Difference © 2013 Hecate Strait Employment Development Society All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without written permission from the publisher. Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication Book of rainbows : stories of cultural diversity making a difference / edited by Danielle Dalton. ISBN 978-0-9921295-0-7 (pbk.) 1. Prince Rupert (B.C.)--Biography. 2. Prince Rupert (B.C.)--History. 3. Cultural pluralism--British Columbia--Prince Rupert. I. Dalton, Danielle, 1953-, editor of compilation II. Hecate Strait Employment Development Society, issuing body FC3849.P72Z48 2013 971.1’1050922 C2013-907120-2 125 Market Place Prince Rupert, BC V8J 1B9 1-800-808-3988 [email protected] We thank the Government of British Columbia and the Government of Canada for their financial support of this publication through the Employment Program of British Columbia: Partnership and Innovation Fund. ISBN 978-0-9921295-0-7 Book design by Aaron Dalton. Cover design by Barbara Burton. Cover photos by Lucia McCaan and Barbara Burton. Printed in Prince Rupert, BC, Canada, by Stuck On Design. Sparkling, tinkling, glistening Droplets of water Rushing, flowing, flooding Through the sky Capturing, releasing, dispersing The sun into a multiple of colours —Marc Andrew Fromm, Idylwyld: A Life in Poetry Contents Acknowledgements ix Lucia McCann 123 Preface xi Colleen McLaren 125 The Pillsbury House 127 Paula Amorim 1 Donna McNeil-Clark 139 Ike & Kathleen Bennett 5 Frank Morven 141 Gladys Blyth 7 Jack Mussallem 143 Kathy Booth 11 Margaret Oldfield 145 Michel & Barbara (Wood) Bourgeois 13 Alan & Sharon Oskey 147 Phyllis Bowman 19 Hannes Piek 153 Betty Ciccone 21 Anne Rachuk 155 Mimmo Ciccone 25 Judith Rajendram 159 Les & Alice Clayton 27 Egle Repole 163 Chantal Cornwall 29 Leslie Roberts 165 Iain & Laurie Cullen 33 Bernice Rothwell 169 Robert & Christine Currie 37 Charlotte Rowse 171 Walter & Mercedes Deutschlander 39 Robert Rudderham 173 Clyde & Joanne Dudoward 43 Louisa Sanchez 175 Joan Dudoward 47 Sharon-Jo Scott 177 Odd Eidsvik 49 Maru Senties 179 Jean Eiers-Page 51 Sanjiv & Madhu Sharma 181 Adella Eliuk 55 Barbara Sheppard 185 Anne Falvo 59 Avi Sternberg 187 David & Maria Fernandes 63 Belle Stewart 189 Gunther & Nancy Golinia 65 David & Candace Stirling 191 Laura Grandison 71 John & Maggie Viviers 195 Chris Green 73 David Walker 203 Sandra Greer 77 Veronica Williams 209 Vena Hackevich 81 Clarence Wing 213 Brian & Carol Hadland 89 Amy Wong 215 Peter Haugan 93 Erfan & Ladan Zahra’i 219 Yvonne Hill 95 Barbara Hood 97 Epilogue 225 Larry & Sandy (Jones) Hope 101 Appendix 1: Correspondence 227 Ken Humpherville 105 Appendix 2: Vital Documents 239 Ethan Jones 107 About the Authors 243 Amor & Jennifer Kloppers 109 Brandon & Hannah Korhonen 113 Keith & Susan Lambourne 119 vii Acknowledgements he Book of Rainbows is a project that we wanted to do in order to dem- onstrate the contributions of First Nations, immigrants, and community Tnewcomers to the economic development of the region. The title reflects, in our minds, the many cultures that make the region so diverse and rich from a variety of perspectives. As in the rainbow, where the colours blend and produce a vibrant display of Mother Nature, so do the many ethnicities combine to make the region rich in perspective and thought. When an organization such as the Hecate Strait Employment Development Society (HSEDS) takes on a project such as the Book of Rainbows, it does so because it truly believes in the project and knows there is a story to tell. When I wrote the funding proposal, I wanted to produce a book that wouldn’t be a historical document. Rather, the Book of Rainbows talks about neighbours and how they brought their passions, commitment, and dedication to the region and how their commitment benefited the community. A book of this type takes an amazing amount of effort on the part of staff and the community volunteers who commit their time to be interviewed and consulted. Of course, the book itself couldn’t have been done without the funding support of the Ministry of Employment, Labour Market and Skills Development, which allowed the creation of three employment opportun- ities. The funding is provided through a labour market agreement between Canada and the Province of British Columbia. Other partners have assisted us in the book launch celebration and deserve our appreciation and respect. Thank you, Patrick Witwicki of the Association of Francophones and Francophiles of the Northwest, and Ladan Shakibai of the North Coast Immigrant and Multicultural Services Society. I am proud to say that HSEDS also contributed financial and in-kind resources to the project. Of course the work must be done by people, and we were very pleased to have Danielle Dalton as the project coordinator. She worked with Bradley Cecil and Marina Ritson to interview, prepare the outlines and stories, take the pictures, and make the document print ready. However, that being said, we had extraordinary assistance from Barbara Burton of Stuck On Design (print- ing and cover design) and Aaron Dalton (copy editing and book design), who ix Acknowledgements brought the whole thing together in one beautiful book. Thank you all for your efforts! Most of all, I want to recognize all the individuals and families that took the time to provide their family histories, pictures, and even in some cases family recipes. We are forever grateful for your contributions to the Book of Rainbows, but more importantly to our community! —Kathy Bedard, Chief Administrative Officer, Hecate Strait Employment Development Society Les Grandes Dames de L’Histoire TheBook of Rainbows would like to recognize the outstanding achievements of the following pioneer women of Prince Rupert’s archives: ǂ Barbara Sheppard ǂ Gladys Blyth ǂ Phyllis Bowman ǂ Jean Eiers-Page It is thanks to these women that Prince Rupert and the surrounding villages’ histories have been preserved. These archivists have been carefully tending to and collecting the historical documents of the past so that the future genera- tions can see how far we have come. Without these women, much of our history could have been lost. So this is a thank you to them for all they have ac- complished. Hopefully we have done as good a job caring for their stories as they have done for ours. x Preface ome may wonder why some people have pictures and others do not, or why some include recipes and others do not. You might also wonder about Show people were chosen and why this person is in the book and another is not. Simple, one of the first people we interviewed was Ms. Barbara Sheppard (North Pacific Cannery historical archivist), and while we talked, she asked if we would be interested in some of the people she thought were Rupert pion- eers. It was a great idea! Ms. Sheppard sent us a list and we called everyone. Then we followed with our own list, and often we would have referrals from those we interviewed. In any event, many were called but not all answered. The Book of Rainbows is adapted to the comfort level of each individual we interviewed, and this is why the chapters are heterogeneous and not cookie cutter duplicates of each other. A book like this would typically take over a year to make and would in- volve many iterations of fact checking. This project had to go from inception to production in roughly three months. Errors are therefore impossible to avoid, though every effort was made to eradicate them, and those that remain should be minor. To all of those who threw themselves on the proverbial grenade and trusted their story to three unknowns with little writing experience, I say your bravery is only exceeded by your kindness. To all of you a humble thank you. —Danielle Dalton, Editor, Project Manager at Hecate Strait Employment Development Society xi Paula Amorim • aula Costa Amorim was born in Prince Rupert. Her parents Manuel Dearaujo Amorim and Maria Ester Costa Amorim were both born in Minho,P Portugal. Ester’s maiden name was Costa; the mother’s maiden name is always used as the child’s middle name. Paula has a sister named Georgette Costa Amorim who lives in Vancouver. Manuel Amorim came to Canada in 1963; he was sponsored by his sister Maria Fernandes. Manuel’s future wife, Maria Ester, came to Canada in 1973. Manuel and Maria married in Portugal in 1974. His grandmother set them up. They courted through letters and chaperoned visits. Manuel flew between Canada and Portugal for the visits. In 1963, Manuel came to Prince Rupert where he was hired as a general labourer. One of the highlights of Manuel’s life was when he was a carpenter at the Prince Rupert Hospital, where he met Queen Elizabeth. Manuel built Solly’s Pub, the Anchor Inn, and many other 1 Paula Amorim buildings in the area throughout the years. He was also a construction foreman for Prince Rupert Grain in 1983. In 1972 he started a business called Amorim Construction that he operated himself and which he later changed to Miroma Construction in 1985. Maria started work at BC Packers as a salmon filleter in 1977. Since many Portuguese people have similar names, the name of the street they lived on was added to their name to lessen the confusion. Manuel’s sister Maria was referred to as Maria Ambrose before she moved back to Portugal from Prince Rupert. Maria Ambrose’s children, Irene and Elizabeth Fernandes, still live in Prince Rupert.

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