November 8th, 2020
Re: Calling Sponsorship and Donation for the Park and Monument Project in Calgary
Dear Friends, Colleagues, Community and Associations,
It has been more than 45 years after the fall of South Vietnam on April 30th, 1975. Since that time, Vietnamese and Chinese decent living in southern, central and northern Vietnam have fled the country in search of freedom, and refuge around the world. According to the United Nations, an estimate of more than 250,000 Vietnamese boat people lost their lives at sea from 1979 to 1995. In response, the Calgary Vietnamese community decided to build a Vietnamese Boat People Monument to commemorate those who lost their lives during the journey to freedom, and to thank all Canadians who sponsored and helped settle Vietnamese and Chinese-Vietnamese refugees in the land of the free, now our home – Canada.
The Calgary Vietnamese-Canadian Association and other associations in the community have started and continue to work on this project which will be located at the corner of 17 Avenue and 26 Street SE of Calgary. This monumental project with a budgeted cost of more than 1 million Canadian dollars will include both the Journey to Freedom Park and the Vietnamese Boat People Monument. Due to Covid-19, we have been unable to fundraise the traditional way by holding concerts or face-to-face events. Therefore, there is an urgent need for support and donations from our friends in the community to complete the project. This park and monument will be a future landmark in Calgary. We believe this project will be impressionable on future generations of Vietnamese Canadians; through this landmark, they will appreciate their Vietnamese history, heritage and contribution to the city of Calgary.
We are urgently calling for your support. This project is an honour for the committee, the community at large, and specifically for Vietnamese and Vietnamese-Chinese residents living in Calgary, other parts of Canada, and around the world. We thank you in advance for your donation. Your name will be acknowledged in the park according to the donation categories listed in the brochure. All donations of $20 or more will receive a taxable receipt.
With much gratitude and best regards,
Committee of Park and Vietnamese Boat People Monument Project
