East of Main

Vote for your favorite non-profit/charity for EVL 8!

Ajay Puri — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 08:41:17 +0000

Where are the EVL8 ticket proceeds going?

We want YOU to decide where your money is going! Between March 19th and April 2nd, choose five charities/non-profits that will make it to the EVL8 donation short-list (the charities were all past EVL speakers). On April 2nd, we’ll announce the finalists, and you can tweet your final choice. The charity/non-profit with the most votes gets the whole donation bucket!

Which five charities/non-profit organizations should make the final list for our ticket donation proceeds?

The charities/non-profit organizations are:

Pads4Girls
Free Geek Vancouver
Vancouver International Storytelling Festival
Fresh Roots Farm
Beauty Night
Multicultural Family Centre
Urban Ink Theatre
DTES Women’s Centre
Potluck Catering Society
Carnival Band + Open Air Orchestra Society
BC Mobile Sauna Society
Project Limelight Society
Evergreen BC
Kindness Foundation

Click Here to Choose our Charity/Non-Profit Organization Finalists!

Thank you for your help! EVERY VOTE COUNTS and YOUR choice can make a difference!

Don’t Have a Ticket?

It’s still not too late! Go to www.eastvanlove8.eventbrite.com.
For the month of March, pay only $5 per ticket, but in April the price goes up to $10 so get them quick!

Namaste!

Check out www.eastofmain.com for updates and more information.
Follow us on Twitter or like us on Facebook.
From your community friends,
Ajay, Kimie, Mike, Ariella, Anita, Nicole and Evi
(East of Main + This Is Vancity)

#EastVanLove vol. 8: Journey to Now

Ajay Puri — Tue, 05 Mar 2013 16:00:35 +0000

EastVanLove Vol. 8: Journey to Now
Thursday, April 11, 2013 | 6-8pm
Djavad Mowafaghian Cinema (SFU Woodwards 149 W Hastings St)
+ 8 - 10pm Networking Afterparty @ Charles Bar (136 W Cordova St)

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW!

On a daily basis, we walk among monuments, memorials and mementos, easily passing by historic landmarks and forgotten memories of a culturally diverse community. This #EastVanLove, we’re inviting you to come together and dig up the past with us while paying homage to the micronarratives that make up East Vancouver’s historic legacy.

Experience a collage of both adverse and uplifting stories that expose the honest authenticity of our young city. Join us in paying tribute to the deep ancestral memories of previous generations while also looking forward to what the future holds for East Vancouver.

DONATIONS
For the month of March, EastVanLove 8 tickets will be sold at $5 a piece in support of a local charity organization. With 300 tickets available think of the impact we can make in our community! Grab your ticket now because in April, tickets jump to $10. Additional donations are welcome online or at the door. If you have any questions about donations please email ajpuri@gmail.com. Thanks!

What is a tweetup?

A tweetup is an event where people who tweet come together to hangout in person.

Who should attend?

Anyone who loves the vibrant East Vancouver community. Is your homestead outside of East Vancouver? Non-residents are welcome to attend too!

A little bit about #EastVanLove

This little #hashtag captured the collective spirit of the culture,community, and all things celebratory of East Vancouver. From the V6A to the V5S and beyond, #EastVanLove is a grassroots, cooperative organization of eager, like-minded citizens from all modes of expression and all blends of nationality.

Our mission is to grow both an online and offline permaculture of ideas, expression, and action around all things East Vancouver.

PRESENTERS:

EastVanLove’s co-host of the night, from Heritage Vancouver, Michael Kluckner

SPEAKERS:

Vancouver is Awesome: Jason Vanderhill (@VIAwesome) or (@jmv)

SFU Vancity Office of Community Engagement: Am Johal (@amjohal)

Walking Tours of Vancouver: John Atkin

Vancouver’s Bhangra’s Story: Naveen Girn

Canadian Cooperative Association: Jill Kelly

Sponsors

Coming Soon!

Volume 8 is presented by:

EastVanLove Team:

Ariella Fong / @ariellafong
Ajay Masala Puri / @masalapuri
Anita Oh / @petitefoodie
Kimie Ong / @kimieong

Nicolb Tai / @nicolb

Evi Vassious / @cosmopoliqueen

This is Vancity Team:

Michael Despotovic / @mikedespot
Ketan Jogia / @KetanJogia

Save The Date for #EVL8 on April 11th!!!

Ajay Puri — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 19:55:37 +0000

EastVanLove Vol. 8: Journey to Now
Thursday, April 11, 2013 | 6-8pm
Djavad Mowafaghian Cinema (SFU Woodwards 149 W Hastings St)
+ 8 - 10pm Networking Afterparty @ Charles Bar (136 W Cordova St)

SAVE THE DATE AND GET YOUR TICKETS ON MARCH 5TH BEFORE THEY SELL OUT!

Ola, Shalom, As-salam Alaykum EastVanLovers!

On a daily basis, we walk among monuments, memorials and mementos, easily passing by historic landmarks and forgotten memories of a culturally diverse community. This #EastVanLove, we’re inviting you to come together and dig up the past with us. Let’s come together as a community and pay homage to the stories that make up East Vancouver’s historic legacy.

Experience a collage of both adverse and uplifting stories that expose the honest authenticity of our young city. Join us in experiencing the deep ancestral memories of our previous generations while also looking forward to what the future holds for East Vancouver.

(excited? let us know: #EVL8)

Check out www.eastofmain.com for updates and more information.

Much love,
Ajay, Kimie, Mike, Ariella, Anita, Nicole and Evi
East of Main + This Is Vancity

#EastVanLove invites you to The Love Umbrella Project!

Ajay Puri — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 09:51:50 +0000

Valentine’s Day is a day where people come together to celebrate love. It’s also a day to show appreciation to those who have touched our lives and communities in so many ways.

A great way to celebrate this day is at the Love Umbrella Project Celebration Party. There will be drinks, great people, and an exhibition of all the wonderful photos (including one we created on your behalf).

DETAILS:

February 14th

6:00pm-9:30pm

848 West Hastings

If you can make it, RSVP to loveumbrellaproject@gmail.com

The proceeds go to Leave Out Violence – a non-profit anti-violence organization that empowers young people to tell their stories through multimedia arts projects.

#EASTVANLOVE: Where do you see the love in Vancouver?

On a cold, wet Sunday evening, EastVanLove organizers Ajay Puri, Kimie Ong, Evi Vassious and many bold and courageous people participated in the Love Umbrella Project photoshoot at Spanish Banks. The photoshoot was simply magical. It was an amazing evening on the beaches of Spanish Banks. We wanted to keep to our core values of being fun, positive and inclusive. What better way than to go to the beach at night and enjoy it in its natural beauty! The photoshoot was filled with unconditional love and connection. We experimented with the umbrellas and various light sources including glow sticks, flashlights and sparklers. The main thing we wanted to do is show our love and gratitude to Mother Nature, our city and to one another. We were blessed to be partnered with photographer Tracey Ayton. She was able to easily show how the people and natural beauty of Vancouver bring life to the city

Sufis say the moon is like a mirror to our soul and a reflection of who we are — that night she overpowered the clouds and showed her unbelievable radiance and beauty. It seems she was simply reflecting the wonderful energy that was shown on the beach — I’m ever so grateful to all of you who came and participated in the social experiment that night. You are all amazing souls that have illuminated my life and the city around us. And special thanks goes to Tracey and Madeline for capturing the essence of our message and the moment!

Click here to read Ajay’s story:
Vancouver is like a good masala – a blend of spices that comes together perfectly to tantalize the senses from all directions.

#EASTVANLOVE + #LOVEUP Campaign

What need does your community fulfill?

We are made up of networks that are interconnected (networks here refer to established non-profit organizations and grassroots movements). Through these diverse networks we support our work and the communities we serve. The following is a sample of some networks and the need they fulfill:

#EastVanLove (www.eastofmain.com) – is a network and our mission is to pride our neighbourhood and the people who live, study or work within it. With the gentrification that is happening in the area, it’s important we honor the past but embrace a future that includes all members of the communities. Thus our mandate is to promote non-profit organizations and businesses that have their values embedded in social justice and environmental sustainability. We live our mission through our online means (hosting a website and leveraging social tools such as Twitter, Facebook, Flickr and YouTube) and hosting Tweetups (in-person events bringing together those who tweet and do not tweet) that celebrates our local champions.

Bee Vancity (http://www.vancouverobserver.com/blogs/beevancity) – is a network and our mission is to Build, Engage and Empower Vancouver, through promoting honey sweet events. Vancouverites according to a recent Vancouver Foundation report are feeling more isolated these days and many refer to the city as a NoFunCouver. Our aim is to disprove these feelings and foster a more vibrant and stronger community. In the hive we have many bees where we curate a weekly event listing guide but do so with a twist – instead of being a complete listing, each bee individually selects there top event of the week along with honorable mentions. In this way we share each of our lens on the events that follow our mission (e.g., we have bees who focus more on fun events, and others that are social justice, DIY, or arts & culture focused).

RangiChangi Roots (www.rangichangi.ca) – is a registered non-profit and our aim is to bring colour to the green movement. Rang in hindi, Punjabi, Nepalese and Farsi refers to colour, Rangichangi is a play on words which means diversity of colours. When coupled with Roots, our hope is to allow for the spread of diverse views to help us all of us reconnect to one another and the planet around us. We have hosted dialogues which include compelling stories shared by speakers or films which deal with the environment from diverse cultural perspectives and addressing provocative questions that have been posed to us including “Why is the green movement so White?”

CoopCulture (www.coopculture.com) – is a social experiment to bring a nuanced dialogue to address the two questions “what does multiculturalism in our communities really mean and how do we envision a more inclusive, stronger society?” We have hosted dialogues and use our website to facilitate dialogue on this topic. We do not have answers but pose provocative questions for the community to answer in order to empower everyone to transform.

BC Patient Safety & Quality Council (www.bcpsqc.ca) - is where Ajay currently works full-time. They are an arms length entity from the Ministry of Health and their mandate is to improve the quality of care British Columbians receive in the health care system. Our hope is to support the system in this journey of improvement and ensure everyone receives the best care, no matter where.

Huge gratitude to our supporters and partners – there are many organizations and individuals we are indebted to for their generous support. For the purposes of the #LoveUP project, we had partner representation from individuals who are involved in various movement-based groups that are involved in one or more the following: tackling systemic issues, having social events, strengthening our hearts, and heighten our spiritual awareness.

What’s important about your community?

What is important is staying true to our core values. Our work is rooted in caring for the planet and each other. We believe that the work we do must be fun, positive, and inclusive. And our process is to be organic.

We try to have fun while planning our initiatives and ensure everyone that participates has fun as well. In our meetings we try to have them around food either as potlucks at someone’s house or at restaurants that take pride in the food they make. At our events even though they touch on serious issues in our society we try to frame them in a way to ensure they are engaging, two-way and in light-hearted ways so all can participate and no one feels left out. Added to this we know there are problems in our world and its always easy to criticize and point out what’s wrong. However, we feel that keeping things positive provides hope to people and that there are possibilities outside the current system that we must go to. We attempt members to dream what our society could like and help support them to plan to get there. We also seek to be inclusive. Equity, diversity and ensuring everyone has a fair chance to participate and grow is paramount to the work we do. We try to our best to ensure our work goes to the inter – that is, intercultural, intergenerational, and interdisciplinary. This is because we feel that that is where the answer of true love can be found. Incorporating multiple views from various perspectives makes this work very challenging, but when done right the outcomes are truly rewarding.

As an example when we (Coop Culture) organized a dialogue to showcase how online tools are helping ethno-culturally diverse communities connect within and between communities we were thrilled to have a sold out event and a great discussion. However, what truly impressed us was something we didn’t plan for or expect. A twelve year old female attendee who attended the event approached one of the speakers after the event and told him that she was inspired with the work he was doing to educate non-Filipinos to learn Tagalog that she herself would like to do this when she grows up as to not lose connection to her heritage. The speaker asked the young girl how she came to the event and to his surprise she answered by herself as it was posted on Facebook and it sounded more interesting than what she would normally be doing on a weekday evening.

Other examples – At Eastvanlove and RangiChangi Roots we do not ask for a set entrance charge but ask for donations, either financially or in volunteering, and ensure our events are open to all. We partner with organizations that have the same value set. And at Bee Vancity we tend to find events that are low barrier and promote those.

To have initiatives that are challenging problems of our time and thought-provoking we try to keep our process is organic. We constantly evolve our work and processes by learning what went well and what didn’t go well. As Mother Nature teaches us we need to be agile and adaptable otherwise we won’t thrive and reach our fullest potential. As an example for each Tweetup we host at EastVanLove, we have evolved the format based on each of the themes we have wanted to have. Sometimes we have more champions speaking, and sometimes less. Sometimes we have panel discussions afterwards and sometimes we have music. But keeping true to our values we ensure our events are engaging and participatory. At our last Tweetup that we held in December 2012 at the East of Main Café we had three speakers share stories of why they were passionate about their work (including Maureen who spoke to Project Limelight). After the speakers told their inspiring stories we asked attendees that if they were inspired instead of just giving money to these organizations they could give the their hearts – literally. That is, those that were interested we asked them to write what skills they wanted to offer on a heart-shaped paper. The response was overwhelming as most of the attendees shared their heart.

Closing

Our core values of being fun, positive and inclusive can be summed in what the South Asian cultures use in their cooking of curries, masala. Creating fresh masala is most definitely an art. One needs to bring together various spices (from very subtle flavours to very strong) to produce something that tantalizes the senses in multiple ways more so than just having a single spice in a dish. In the same way through these interconnected networks and communities we seek to liven and spice up Vancouver in hopes to spread love and happiness. As masalas are a combination of various spices there are an indefinite number of variations one can create. What masala do you think Vancouver needs? Experiment. Evolve. Share. Let’s spice up our city!

EastVanLove Year in Review & EVL 7.0 Recap - Giving Back

Ajay Puri — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 21:10:19 +0000

2012 was a spectacular year for spreading #EastVanLove. We had 4 great events which focused on a variety of topics important to us. It was held at 4 amazing locations, with wonderful hosts, and amazing and passionate speakers.

Check it out:

EastVanLove 5.0 - Food - March 2012 at Hai Phong [VIDEO]
EastVanLove 6.0 - Social Innovation - May 2012 at Calabash [VIDEO]
EastVanLove 6.5 - Music (& meet the EVL team) - September 2012 at Toby’s [VIDEO]
EastVanLove 7.0 - Giving Back - December 2012 at East of Main Cafe [link]

Recap of #EASTVANLOVE Volume 7.0 - Giving Back

On a wonderful December evening, EastVanLove 7.0 was held at East of Main Café. Attendees were invited to share a small part of their holiday season and give a part of their heart to a non-profit organization. Featured non-profits include Project Limelight Society, The Kindness Foundation, and more!

The cozy gathering featured delicious food and drink specials from East of Main Café. The attendees were asked, “Why do you give?” Many responded/tweeted back their reasons.

“Why give? I give because I care. #EastVanLove” - @irvlau

“The earth and community need us. That’s why I give. #EastVanLove” - @masalapuri

“Why give? Because we have all received. It is our responsibility to give back to one another and the earth. #eastvanlove” - @sandragarcia_pr

“@eastofMAINcafe givers gain. #EastVanLove” - @dennispang

“I like giving when it gets passed on and becomes a renewable resource #eastvanlove #EVL7″ - @ethicalhustle

“Why I want to give: the more we pass on, the more we grow and help others grow. #interdependence #EVL7 #EastVanLove” - @sengsuriya

“Why give? share. And a Better understanding about the ppl around us. #eastvanlove” - @danixlim

“Giving is the mark of real humanity. #eastvanlove” - @englishcanuck

“I give to connect with people. We often take this simple, selfless act for granted. Sometimes, it OK to think with your heart. #EastVanLove” - @brendenchu

Brock Tully, from The Kindness Foundation, shared how kindness offers a sense of community. He mentioned that volunteering is giving from the heart. He was inspired to start the Kindness Concert after seeing the disconnected communities.

The second speaker, Helen Beyon, from Evergreen BC, showed us how Evergreen is great green initiative. Their initiative is to bring communities and nature together for the benefit of both and to create environmentally sustainable cities.

Next, Maureen Webb from Project Limelight Society and East of Main Café took the stage. The mandate for this restaurant is one of the reasons why customers love this place and recommend it to their friends. Project Limelight provides with healthy meals and snacks to their young participants. It is a free performing arts program for children in Vancouver’s DTES and surrounding areas. Maureen teaches us that bravery, enthusiasm, and confidence is contagious.

Maureen then welcomed the Project Limelight students onto the stage. The students gave an amazing and heartwarming performance to the crowd.

After the performance was done, Brock Tully surprised the girls and told them that they will be performers for this year’s Kindness Concert. Wow! Amazing!

Finally, everyone was encouraged to give back as part of #GiveYourHeart. They were instructed to jot down what they are willing to give on one side of the heart and on the other side, their contact info. After completing the hearts, they were posted on the wall. As the night wore on, more and more hearts filled the wall up.

For anyone that has completed the #GiveYourHeart tasks, they are rewarded wonderfully comfortable and light shoes from Native Shoes.

As 2012 was a wonderful year for spreading #EastVanLove, we look forward to spreading more for 2013!!

EastVanLove 7 - Schedule

Ajay Puri — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 05:50:28 +0000

Please come early, save a seat, and order your food/drinks before the program starts!

6pm - Doors open
645pm-ish - Program starts: Speakers & Performers

Opening remarks - Ajay Puri (Co-Founder, EastofMain.com), Evi Vassious (Emcee)
Welcome by East of Main Cafe
Brock Tully, Kindness Foundation
Helen Beynon, Evergreen
Maureen Webb, Project Limelight
Project Limelight kids perform
Closing remarks, #GiveYourHeart

8pm-ish - till late - mingling, eating, drinking!

Got a ticket but unable to come? Email us so we can give your ticket to a lucky waitlister!

EastVanLove 7: Meet our Speakers!

Ajay Puri — Thu, 22 Nov 2012 05:43:19 +0000

Kindness Foundation: Brock Tully (@KindnessConcert / @BrockTully)

Brock Tully is co-founder of Kindness Foundation of Canada which has on-line programs that show ways we can be kinder at school, at work, and at home. He is the Founder/Creative Director of the World Kindness Concert. He is a co-founder of Kindness Rocks in Schools - this program brings awareness to bullying and abuse and empowers people to help prevent it from happening. He is also Founder/Producer of One of a KIND Stories.

“Kindness” is Brock’s passion and his purpose. He touches lives, instilling joy and planting seeds that will help you to develop your own ability to give. With his contagious energy, he stimulates audiences to act with compassion in your own communities, schools and workplaces. He weaves magic with reflection, bringing love into audiences’ hearts by shifting moods and perspectives.

Evergreen: Helen Beynon (@EvergreenBC / @HBeynon)

Helen Beynon has been the Community Development Coordinator at Evergreen BC since the spring of 2011 – in that time, she has learned more than she ever imagined possible about composting, garlic growing, and English ivy removal. Her job rewards her with new surprises every day, and she especially loves seeing kids expressions when they get to harvest their first zucchinis. Before coming to Evergreen, Helen worked on various sustainability and community development projects in South America and the South Pacific. When not playing in the dirt professionally, Helen can be found climbing rocks in Squamish.

Project Limelight Society: Maureen Webb (@ProjLimelight)

Sisters Maureen Webb and Donalda Weaver founded Project Limelight Society to give back to the East Vancouver community where they were raised. In July 2012, they launched East of Main Cafe which supports Project Limelight, both financially and through a food security program, providing healthy meals and snacks to their young participants. Project Limelight Society is a free performing arts program for children in Vancouver’s DTES and surrounding areas. East of Main Cafe is a social enterprise, and 100% of its profits go towards supporting Project Limelight Society. Project Limelight operates out of their new location, above East of Main, and at Strathcona Community Centre, a few blocks away.

Aaand we’re sold out!

Ajay Puri — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 22:45:07 +0000

Thanks for the #eastvanLOVE everyone! Get on the waitlist - http://eastvanlove7.eventbrite.com/

Need to act quicker next time? Here’s how:
• Subscribe to our mailing list - http://eepurl.com/9Cxo
• Follow us on Twitter @EastVanLove #EastVanLove
• LIKE us on facebook - https://www.facebook.com/EastVanLove

EastVanLove 7: Giving Back

KimOng — Tue, 06 Nov 2012 01:02:29 +0000

EastVanLove Vol. 7, Giving Back
Thursday, December 6, 2012 | 6-9pm
East of Main Café (223 E. Georgia St.)

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW
(They’re free!)

There is a damp chill in the air as we prepare for the upcoming holiday season, and though we should be celebrating the spirit of giving year round, we can’t shake the feeling that this is when people are in need of necessities the most. While we’re busy appreciating those who are already dear to our hearts, let’s show some EastVanLove to the different organizations that enrich our city’s communities.

For EastVanLove Volume 7, we invite you to share a small part of your holiday season and to give a part of your heart to a non-profit organization. Featured non-profits include Project Limelight Society, The Kindness Foundation, and more!

Save the date for what will be a cozy gathering with delicious food and drink specials from East of Main Café and a special performance by the kids of Project Limelight. You will also get the chance to take part in our #GiveYourHeart project. Sound interesting? Find out next week how you can give your love.
Don’t miss out! Only 60 tickets will be released so hurry and get yours before they run out!

Check out www.eastofmain.com for updates and more information. Until next month, get ready to come with an open heart, an empty stomach and celebrate this magical night away with us!

PS: Thank you for the poster design KONG Creative!

EastVanLove 6.5 recap

Ajay Puri — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 20:40:43 +0000

Top-Bottom, Left-Right: Jeremy Lim, Ariella Fong, Jorge Amigo, Juliane Siu, Mike Despotovic, Anita Oh, Derek Weiss, Evi Vassious, Kimie Ong, Ajay Puri (Photo by Sukhraj Battal)
Thank you all for joining us at EastVanLove Vol. 6.5!

We’ve got photos and other goodies to relive that energetic evening or to share with you in case you missed the event.

In this newsletter:

1. A Recap of EastVanLove Vol. 6.5

2. Calling for ideas for EastVanLove Vol. 7, “Giving Back”

MISSED THE EVENT OR WANT TO RELIVE THE ENERGY?

WE’VE GOT YOU COVERED!

We hope you all had a chance to mix and mingle with the new EastVanLove team and other compatriots who live in or just simply love, the neighbourhood of East Vancouver.

SNAPSHOTS!
We had two very talented photographers Sukhraj Battal (@SukhrajB) and Akshay Kanwar (@axepsy) document the entire evening. View the photos on our brand new Facebook page - feel free to tag yourself in the photos and share them with your friends!

INTERVIEW with Kristie Yung

Ariella Fong (@AriellaFong) interviewed the talented local folk singer, Kristie Yung, who performed a few songs from her new album. Check out the interview: Ella Fitzgerald meets Taylor Swift

BEST TWEETS & VIDEO!

STORIFY by Felice Lam (@felicelam)
VIDEO by This is Vancity (@ThisIsVancity)

A BIG THANK YOU to our co-host, speakers and musical guests…

Jorge Amigo / Derek Weiss / Myriam Steinberg / Jeremy Lim / Kristie Yung

… and to our Sponsors!

BeeVancity, Ethical Deal, This is Vancity, Yelp, and Toby’s Pub & Grill (kudos to Ben the bar manager and Terri the manager!). A big thanks to the young Button Brothers (can you believe these brothers are only 6 and 10?) and Mitmunk Design for donating their button making machine. A shout out to our lovely volunteer Evi for helping everyone make their very own EastVanLove keepsake buttons!

CALL FOR IDEAS for EastVanLove Vol. 7 ‘Giving Back’

We want to ‘Give Back’ at our next tweetup happening in early December.The holidays are just around the corner so we thought it would be great to give back to our fellow neighbours and Vancouverites.

Things like doing a soup kitchen, giving out fresh fruits, or doing some other sort of volunteering — we’re open to ideas!

Tweet us @EastVanLove your ideas with the hashtag #EVL7 or email us.

Nominations close October 15.