Mon Sheong Foundation Celebrates 50 Years With Gift to University of Toronto

Souvenir book set charts history of multicultural community in Toronto

TORONTO, Jan. 29, 2015 /CNW/ - Toronto has changed a lot over the last 50 years. It's gotten bigger.  It's gotten more sophisticated.  It's become more culturally diverse.  And it's found increasingly creative ways to provide social services to its rapidly growing number of citizens.

You can understand a lot about how the city has grown over the last five decades by tracking the history of one particularly successful not-for-profit organization that started out in the downtown area back in 1964 – Mon Sheong Foundation.

Mon Sheong Foundation is the first Canadian registered Chinese charity in Ontario, dedicated to the promotion of Chinese culture, heritage, language and philosophy.  To mark the occasion of its 50^th anniversary, Mon Sheong has published a souvenir book set that traces its history from its origins as a small organization providing Chinese language and culture classes for youth in downtown Toronto to its current standing as a well-respected, multi-faceted provider of services for youth and seniors across the GTA.

Ms. Doris Chan, First Vice-Chair of Mon Sheong Foundation will officially present the Mon Sheong Foundation 50^th Anniversary book set to The Honourable Dr. Vivienne Poy at the Richard Charles Lee Canada – Hong Kong Library at The University of Toronto Robarts Library on Thursday, January 29^th, 2015.  The ceremony will be followed by a photo exhibition that illustrates Mon Sheong's role in shaping the GTA community.  The photo exhibition will remain at the Robarts Library for two weeks for public viewing.  It will then travel to other locations in the surrounding municipals.

"In 50 years, Mon Sheong has come a long way in caring for our seniors in their golden years," says The Honourable Dr. Vivienne Poy, Chancellor Emerita of University of Toronto.

Mon Sheong was the first Chinese charity in Canada visited by Queen Elizabeth II in 1997.   In 2012, twenty-five people from the Mon Sheong Foundation were awarded Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee medals, a testament to the Foundation's impact on community life in the GTA.

"The gift of these books to the University of Toronto Libraries ensures that this rich record of Chinese philanthropy, volunteerism and community service in Toronto's history will be carefully preserved and made available to students, faculty and local community members for learning, teaching and research - not just for a few years, but for centuries," says Mr. Larry Alford, Chief Librarian of the University of Toronto Libraries.

"On behalf of the Mon Sheong Foundation, I would like to thank The Honourable Dr. Vivienne Poy, Dr. Jack Leong, Director of the Richard Charles Lee Canada-Hong Kong Library, and the supporting team at the University of Toronto for their contributions to this event," says Ms. Doris Chan. "Having these sets of books in the library is a great way to recognize the legacy left by all those who were involved with Mon Sheong over the years."

Mr. Frank Chau, President of Mon Sheong, also comments: "The 50th Anniversary Book set represents a half-century of hard work and dedication to providing quality services. It acts as a testimony for the growth of Toronto and its Chinese community over the past five decades, providing great insight for those who are interested in studying the history and culture of Chinese Canadians."

Mon Sheong plans to make the 50^th Anniversary book set available to the public through libraries, public institutes and cultural centres.

Mon Sheong currently provides a host of services across the GTA:

• Mon Sheong Foundation Chinese School is one of the largest private Chinese schools in Ontario.  It plays a vital role in nurturing the young and broadening their horizons through language study, cultural festivals and summer camps.  The Mon Sheong Foundation's youth group offers opportunities for young people to develop leadership and cooperative skills.
• Early in its existence, the Foundation established the Mon Sheong Home for the Aged in downtown Toronto, the first culturally appropriate care facility for Chinese seniors. Now it also operates two long-term care centres in Scarborough and Richmond Hill.
• Other senior services provided by Mon Sheong include adult day centre, assisted living units and private care services that offers daily care services to each resident including assistance with daily tasks, health status monitoring, vitals checkups and medication administration.

About Mon Sheong Foundation
Mon Sheong Foundation, established in 1964, is the first Canadian registered charity serving Chinese in Ontario, dedicated to the promotion of Chinese culture, heritage, language and philosophy. It is governed by a voluntary board of directors which oversees three Long-Term Care Centres, an Adult Day Care Centre, the Chinese School, two Community & Volunteer Services Centres, Youth Group and Private Care. www.monsheong.org.  

About the University of Toronto Libraries
The University of Toronto Libraries is the largest academic library system in Canada and ranks third among research libraries in North America. The system is decentralized and consists of 44 libraries on 3 campuses, including the acclaimed Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, the largest rare book library in Canada; the Richard Charles Lee Canada-Hong Kong Library; and the Cheng Yu Tung East Asian Library.  The U of T Libraries collections include more than 12 million bound volumes in 341 languages, millions of electronic resources in various formats, almost 30,000 linear metres of archival material and capacity for 1.5 petabytes of data. Additionally, our international network of resource sharing partnerships extends access on our students' and faculty members' behalf to materials held by thousands of other institutions.

SOURCE Focus Communications Inc.

Media Contact: Carmen Chu, Focus Communications Inc., [email protected], 416-709-3528