PENETANGUISHENE, ON, July 5, 2012 /CNW/ - An investment in the Francophone community in Simcoe County will ensure that its history, culture, and identity will be passed on to future generations. Funding for La Clé d'la Baie en Huronie - Association culturelle francophone was announced today by Bruce Stanton, Member of Parliament (Simcoe North), on behalf of the Honourable James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages.
La Clé d'la Baie en Huronie is a not-for-profit organization that works to promote, develop and serve the needs of Francophones in Simcoe County. Funding will support a variety of arts and socio-cultural activities to foster the development of the local French-speaking community. In addition, the organization will create a series of documentaries which will tell the story of Francophones in Simcoe County over the past 100 years. The audio and video productions will be shared in the local media and through social media. The project's goal is to make cultural heritage accessible for future generations and to build a sense of common identity among Francophones in the area.
"Our Government received a strong mandate from Canadians to invest in organizations like La Clé d'la Baie en Huronie," said Minister Moore. "By supporting Simcoe County's Francophone community, our Government is delivering on its commitment to strengthen our economy and support our arts, culture, heritage, and official languages."
"La Clé d'la Baie en Huronie is a very active Francophone organization in the Simcoe region," said Mr. Stanton. "Ongoing support from the Government of Canada enables the organization to make Francophone heritage accessible to future generations in an attractive and interactive format and allows its members to live their language, culture, identity, and heritage to the fullest."
"This funding is important for our community. This support from the Government of Canada will allow us, with our Francophone partners, to create a local archive in various formats that will recount the history of Huronia over the past century," said Pierre Cassault, Executive Director of La Clé d'la Baie en Huronie. "We are also very proud to work in collaboration with the Government of Canada to provide programs and services that promote the vitality of Simcoe County's Francophone community."
The Government of Canada has provided total funding of $286,000 ($60,000 for the project Si La Huronie me racontait and $226,000 over two years for programming) through the Community Life component of the Development of Official-Language Communities Program. This program of the Department of Canadian Heritage aims to foster the development of Canada's minority Anglophone and Francophone communities and enable them to participate fully in all aspects of Canadian life.
For more information (media only), please contact:
Sébastien Gariépy
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of
Canadian Heritage and
Official Languages
819-997-7788
Jillian Lum
Manager, Communications
Ontario Region
Canadian Heritage
416-973-2050
[email protected]
Media Relations
Canadian Heritage
819-994-9101
1-866-569-6155
[email protected]
(This news release is available on the Internet at www.canadianheritage.gc.ca under Newsroom.)
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