GCAO holds fundraiser for Ghanaian Canadian Heritage Center in Toronto

A mammoth fundraiser in aid of the proposed Ghanaian Canadian Heritage Center in Toronto was organized by the Ghanaian Canadian Association of Ontario (GCAO) on Saturday, November 9, 2019, at the Ghana Methodist Banquet Hall at Milvan.

The function which was characterized with fundraising activities such as silent auction and sales of artworks was a huge success. There were fewer speeches and more Ghanaian dishes for participants and, cultural dancing backed by traditional drumming by the Echo Ewe Group of Toronto.

There was a video presentation on last year’s fundraiser and promotional materials to enhance the spirit of giving among community members. Most of the Ghanaian local churches and cultural associations in the community donated substantial sums of money towards the project at the fundraiser. Over $20,000 was bagged during the night.

The keynote speaker for the function was Toronto City Councillor Anthony Peruzza. He used the opportunity to praise the Ghanaian community in Ontario for their efforts to acquire a Heritage Center of their own. Councillor Peruzza advised Ghanaians in Canada to stick together always for the Canadian government to recognize them as a strong ‘cultural’ force in the multicultural mosaic of Canada. Citing his own community experience in Canada, he said, “we Italians when we first migrated to Canada, united our efforts as an identifiable cultural community to pave our way to the top in Canadian politics and business!”

Ghanaians in Canada stand to benefit the same if they unite their efforts as a strong cultural group in Canada. “I am prepared to help the Ghanaian community to achieve their objective of building a Heritage Center in Toronto in whichever ways possible,” he concluded.

Councillor Peruzza then handed over special awards from the City of Toronto to some hardworking individuals in the Toronto Ghanaian community.

Some participants at the fundraiser later came out with the following suggestions as fundraising strategies for the Heritage Center:

1- CHURCHES / RELIGIOUS INSTITUTIONS

Place donation boxes at every church. For folks to throw their change etc into it. This has to be done in a competitive way among the churches. And the church with the highest amount in the donation box at the end of the year/ till the centre is built gets recognized with a plaque at the centre.

The box has to be locked and theft-proof (this can be purchased online or custom ordered from China)

** This will be updated monthly to reflect the amount raised to date and the target etc.

2- YOUTH / YOUNG PROFESSIONALS

Individual fundraising goals. Youth with the highest amount raised gets recognized in the centre. Children ( Selling of chocolates etc in their schools/malls etc with parental supervision )

3- CULTURAL DAYS : the biggest thing we have working for us is our culture. Quarterly events that are culturally immersive. The target will not be Ghanaians as attendees but outsiders to experience the Ghanaians Culture. From food to fashion to traditions etc. ATTENDEES will get to experience Ghana in Canada. Will take. Lots of work but if executed properly will raise a lot of money. Ghana is hot right now we have to leverage that.. ( eg of guests, politicians, entrepreneurs, business owners, city officials etc. )

ONLINE- An online payment/donation system has to be set up. With the target and how far we are from the target. Allows for transparency. I am sure we have a website so this can go there. Leverage the power of social media to have friends of Ghana join in the raise.

Online Presence: We must have an online presence. Social media pages etc must be updated regularly.

VISUALS: Most folks are visual and need to see something for it to be real. We need an architectural design of the centre and what it will look like. What the rooms will look like to give people a feel of it. A 3D or augmented reality of some sorts on the website. We will raise more money this way when people can see what they are donating to.

A full breakdown of the number of meeting rooms, concert halls etc.

THE CENTRE - Sell Rooms etc for folks to have the rooms named after them. But broken down in smaller amounts.

The policies surrounding the renewal and terms can be discussed in detail later.

Interestingly, some of the above suggestions are already put in place by the Executive body of the Ghanaian Canadian Association of Ontario (GCAO).