A New Day – Same Great Spirit
We are planning to host a Multicultural Day at Totem Hall on February 01 2020. It will be a time for sharing and for learning.
Come celebrate with us at this grassroots event that brings people together in a family oriented joyous celebration of diversity and culture.
Cultural dances, cultural demonstrations, singing, choirs,
art, music, hands on learning ……..
Our Annual General Meeting will take place on Tuesday January 07 at 7p.m.
Location – Elders Lounge Totem Hall
Our mission is to build bridges of understanding, respect, and support among diverse people of faith through education, dialogue, service and implementation of the Golden Rule.
Our vision is a community of harmony, goodwill and peace among persons of all faiths and beliefs.
New Members welcome!
Please contact us if you plan on attending and we will be happy to send you an agenda and minutes from last year’s AGM
This annual event in Squamish is coordinated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints in collaboration with Squamish Multifaith Association and the Squamish Foodbank. It enjoys a very broad range of community involvement in distributing flyers, and in collecting and sorting food donations. The Leadership Class at How Sound Secondary School, students of Quest University, the Rotary Club, members of participating Faith Groups along with their friends and neighbours all join hands in this community effort. In addition to volunteers distributing flyers and collecting food, Dominos Pizza fed the volunteers and Shell Gas brought in hot drinks.
A total of 6541lbs of food was collected. Just in time as the food bank shelves had become severely depleted.
As we celebrate World Interfaith Harmony Week, members of Squamish Multifaith Association got together for a very “hands on” – service project. Our group decided to gather supplies and put together hygiene gift bags for women and children staying at Pearl’s Place.
The idea was generated at our January 24thannual general meeting as we learned through United Religion Initiative that this week was happening throughout the world. Friends from LDS shared that their community planned on doing something in support of women in need during the first week in February. Other members of the association agreed to join with them and support an effort for our local transition house. The word was spread that donations and supplies were needed and those wishing to help could join us on Monday February 05th.
Friends from different faith groups got together and shared supper at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints and set to work assembling the gift bags. With the help of individuals and Faith Group contributions we were able to put together 40 care packages containing supplies such as soap, toothpaste, shampoo, washcloths, feminine hygiene products and underwear.
Pearl’s Place Transition House, located in Squamish, is a safe environment for women and children who are leaving abusive relationships or at risk of experiencing violence and otherwise unsafe living conditions. Women often arrive in emergency situations with little in the way of supplies. By putting some basic care products together in gift bags we hope to send the message that we care and support them in this time of uncertainty.
Squamish Multifaith Association will be holding its Annual General Meeting on Thursday January 24th at 7p.m. at Squamish United Church, 38014 – 4th Ave. We hope you can join us. New members are welcome. The meeting portion will be short as our board is elected for two years and 2019 is not an election year. After our reports for 2018 activities are completed, we will be joined by Sari Heidenreich of United Religions Initiative (URI). Squamish Multifaith Association has recently become a collaborating circle with URI. The purpose of URI is to promote enduring, daily interfaith cooperation, to end religiously motivated violence and to create cultures of peace, justice and healing for the Earth and all living beings. We are delighted to be extending our network of collaboration and learning. Sari will be providing us (via a video conference call ) with an orientation to the work of URI and how we can maximize our efforts together.
This was our 7th annual dinner with approx. 40 people in attendance. The evening began with a shared meal prepared by participating faith groups, followed by a slide presentation on our 2018 activities. Keynote speaker, Connie Waterman, Vice President Multifaith Action Society presented on the 2018 World Parliament of Religions and its role in pursuing Global Understanding, Reconciliation, and Change. An historical and current overview provided a context for this periodic gathering of the world’s religions and its ever widening embrace.
In an ideal world there would be no need for food banks, everyone’s means would be sufficient to support themselves and their families. We do know that currently 400-500 men, women and children use the Squamish Food Bank each month. While this situation remains there will be a need for community support for our local food bank, which is why the annual BC Thanksgiving Food Drive is so important. This event is a collaboration between the Squamish Multifaith association, the local branch of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints and the Squamish Food Bank. We have a plan and a system but the success of the event is due in great part to a host of wonderful volunteers and the generosity of Squamish residents.
The 2018 BCTFD took place on Saturday September 15 and resulted in 8469 lbs of food collected and sorted, replenishing the Squamish Food Bank’s store of non-perishable food items. This large injection of non-perishable food is expected to last until Christmas. The wonderful thing about this event is that everyone can help regardless of age, whether stapling flyers to some 5000 bags, delivering them to specified routes or collecting the donation on the big day. Squamish is a fairly mobile community so while many volunteers return to help year after year, there is always a need for new volunteers. This year saw several routes adopted as a family activity. Students of the Leadership Class at Howe Sound Secondary took on nine routes and ten students from Quest spent the day at the food bank sorting the collected donations. RBC also sent a team to help. The Sikh Temple does a special collection each year to coincide with the event, which is a very welcome additional contribution.
Each year the network of volunteers and donors broadens making this effort one that continues to engage the community in an act of service and love. For that we give thanks.
BC Thanksgiving Food Drive 2018 – Coming to your neighbourhood Saturday September 15
The BCTFD Project is a province-wide initiative that helps feed thousands across BC who rely on food banks for their basic nutritional needs.
In Squamish, the BCTFD event involves some 100 volunteers providing service to the community. In 2017 we were able to visit some 4000 homes, and collected more than 9000 pounds of non-perishable food for the Squamish Food Bank.
The local BCTFD event in Squamish is coordinated by the Squamish Multifaith Association in partnership with the Squamish branch of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and Squamish Food Bank.
Bodhi McKinney of Squamish Food Bank had this to say about the annual drive:
“With the support of the BC Thanksgiving Food Drive, our Food bank can support those of our community that are in need. Many people in Squamish experience food shortages, causing them and their children to go without meals and proper nutrition. Between 400 and 500 people rely on our Food Bank every month, including seniors, those on disability or assistance, employed people on low incomes, families, and children!
Your contributions during this food drive, with food or cash donations, are an important part of supporting those facing food insecurity in Squamish. Please give generously.”
Saturday September 15 is collection day.
Donation bags and boxes will be picked up on the morning of September 15 and brought directly to Squamish Food Bank where they will be sorted and stocked by our wonderful volunteers.
We look forward to another successful food drive this year.
For more information or to volunteer, please contact Geraldine Guilfoyle 604-848-4807 gerguilfoyle@me.com
Come join us for this family friendly event that celebrates our diversity and brings us together in harmony. The event opens at 1 p.m. with greetings, blessings and the sharing of a community feast together. Program includes a children’s activity table, dancing, singing and fellowship.
All God’s Creation is Very Good!
Dear friends – every year the World Council of Churches organizes a World Day of Prayer with a particular theme in mind. This year the theme is care of the environment.It is a multi denominational Christian service developed each year by different countries. The invitation is open to all and is a good opportunity to meet others and learn.The theme for the Suriname worship service urges us to evaluate how our actions affect our planet – one of our Lord’s greatest creations.The environmental crisis is also a crisis of global justice. God’s justice always meant loving and sacrificial self-giving. We, as Christians cannot be silent. We live with the hope and belief that people have the means, and increasingly, the will to focus on justice, peace, and the integrity of creation.
To recycle is to give a new use to objects, thus reducing the consumption of resources that may degrade the planet. We may use the way we do WDP activities to educate and campaign for climate justice.REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE! All are invited to celebrate World Day of Prayer 2018.Saturday, March 3 at 2:00pm at:St. John the Divine Anglican Church – 1930 Diamond Road, SquamishMeg Toom of WildSafeBC speaks on the theme: All God’s Creation is Very Good!For more information, please contact: Pam Tattersfield 604-996-1161Or visit www.squamishanglicanchurch.caThis service is organized by:The River Church St. Joseph’s Catholic ChurchSquamish United Church St. John the Divine Anglican Church
Squamish Multifaith Association 