January 5, 2011
Media contact: Patty Wellborn
Office: 604-795-2819
patty.wellborn@ufv.ca
UFV joins community groups to celebrate Sikh temple’s centenary
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Submitted photo
The gurdwara was built by settlers from India in 1911. UFV is working with Abbotsford’s Khalsa Diwan Society and the Reach Gallery Museum to plan events to celebrate the temple's centenary.
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It’s a celebration that has been in the making for 100 years. Abbotsford’s historic Gur Sikh Temple opened 100 years ago and the coming year will be filled with special events to mark the temple’s centenary.
The University of the Fraser Valley has teamed up with Abbotsford’s Khalsa Diwan Society and the Reach Gallery Museum to organize events that will continue throughout the year to celebrate the temple’s special anniversary.
Satwinder Bains, director of the Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies at UFV, is excited about helping to raise awareness about the history of Sikh pioneers in British Columbia.
“A century ago, determined pioneers from Punjab, India came together to build one of the first Sikh gurdwaras in North America,” Bains says. “The lumber for the gurdwara was donated by the owners of a sawmill where many of the Sikh pioneer immigrants worked. They carried the lumber on their backs to the hilltop where they built the gurdwara, which was officially opened in 1911.Today, the gurdwara reminds us all of the hard work, dedication, and devotion of these pioneers.”
The gurdwara, located on South Fraser Way in Abbotsford, took on a simple form to suit the pioneers of the day; it’s a wood-frame building with a false front and a gabled roof and is similar to many buildings constructed in Canadian frontier towns. The gurdwara was the first Sikh temple to be constructed in North America and the temple was designated as a National Historic Site by the Canadian Government in 2007. It remains the only gurdwara in the Americas to be bestowed with this honour.
While events have been planned for each month of 2011, the first activity will be an official proclamation on January 10, by Abbotsford Mayor George Peary and city council to mark 2011 as the Year of the Centenary of the National Historic Site Gur Sikh Temple. This event takes place in the civic auditorium at Abbotsford’s city hall at 3 p.m. Bains invites everyone to attend and express their support for the proclamation.
Abbotsford city hall lobby is also the venue for an exhibition of photos from the city’s pioneering days, including photos of the gurdwara. People are welcome to drop by and visit the exhibit — it is open 8:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. daily until January 14.
“The City of Abbotsford plays a vital civic role in acknowledging its only historic site and the only Sikh gurdwara in the world outside of India with the historic site designation,” says Bains. “It is a memorable centenary that marks a significant contribution of immigrants to our community.”
Events are planned monthly throughout the 2011, including Eat Ethnic in February and the UFV-sponsored South Asian Reader’s and Writer’s Festival that takes place Tuesday, March 29. The headliner for the evening will be Anosh Irani, who will discuss and read from his latest book Dahanu Road. Other writers at the festival include Tariq Malik and Gurjinder Basran. Prior to the festival, the CICS will launch its One Book, One UFV campaign in January, where university faculty, staff, students, and community members are encouraged to read Dahanu Road in anticipation of the event itself.
April will mark the opening of a heritage exhibit at the Reach Gallery and in May, UFV’s Centre for Indo-Canadian Studies will host the Transnational Punjabis in the 21st Century Conference. The conference will conclude with the Virasat pioneer gala hosted by the Fraser Valley Indo-Canadian Business Association.
Significant events are also planned for August and right through until December. Bains says all the events are open to the entire community and it is a great opportunity to learn about the history of the gurdwara and explore the Sikh traditions and celebrations. The full event program can be viewed at www.ufv.ca/cics/centennial .
“2011 will be an exciting and vibrant year that promises to suitably honour the contributions of our pioneers,” she says. “We invite all members of the community to participate in the many events hosted by the centenary committee and to join us in commemorating a historic centennial that we have the good fortune to celebrate in our lifetime.”
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