The Goan Overseas Association Vancouver organises a cultural event on July 30.
VANCOUVER
The Goan community in Vancouver-Canada has been celebrating Goan culture and identity for nearly five decades, ever since The Goan Overseas Association Vancouver (G.O.A. Vancouver) was set up in 1976.
Goans have arrived from not only Goa but from various other parts of the world like East Africa, UK, Middle East, India, Pakistan, etc. Together, they have brought Goan culture and traditions and efforts are made to keep them alive in the community.
The Goan community organises many cultural, sports and religious events to promote Goan culture, while values are passed on to the next generation.
It is through this community involvement that Goans keep their identity alive and they continue to develop new initiatives and programmes to better serve the community in Vancouver.
The G.O.A. Vancouver President John Braganza and his team have been working tirelessly to organise events for the Goan community in Vancouver and some of these events lined up this year include a Pub Night, Seniors Luncheon and St Francis Xavier’s Mass.
Over the years, the Goan community has organised a number of events and has also planned various initiatives.
‘Team with a Heart’ initiative
As part of the G.O.A. Vancouver’s social governance policies to give back to the community, the ‘Team with a Heart’ initiative was spearheaded in 2005. This initiative was set up in collaboration with the First United Church Mission, an organisation that serves meals every day to impoverished residents of the Downtown Eastside, the poorest neighbourhood in Canada.
The event focused on a team effort of a busy kitchen while the bulk of volunteers welcomed and offered a seated lunch service to close to 200 homeless men and women. The project was successfully conducted for five years.
Since then, food and clothing have been provided to impoverished residents at different venues with the support of various members and friends of the G.O.A. Vancouver.
40th Anniversary Legacy Project
In 2017, a documentary was created on the immigration experience of Goans, Mangaloreans, East Indians, and Anglo Indians who migrated to the lower mainland.
Videographing families and various groups that hold these communities together began as part of the G.O.A. Vancouver’s 40th Anniversary legacy project. A short video and a special Keepsake Brochure were produced and featured at the 40th Anniversary Gala Celebration.
A longer video was produced and most of the filming took place at the G.O.A’s Canada 150 picnic in August 2017. The legacy video and other written and recorded material have been made available to libraries and educational institutions to record the story of the Goan diaspora for future generations.
Care for Seniors
One of the goals of the G.O.A. Vancouver is to promote the well-being of its senior members by providing programmes to keep both body and mind active, enabling seniors to lead a healthy lifestyle and continue to make valuable contributions to the Goan community with their experience and knowledge.
Among the many programmes to be included as part of the overall seniors programme includes theatre shows such as plays and concerts, day trips to local or US casinos, summer picnics, educational talks on various topics, providing rides for those who have no transportation, keeping in touch on a regular basis by phone with those who make such a request, visits to those hospitalised or housebound and assistance to those in need.
Y-GOA Youth Committee
The Youth Goan Overseas Association is a subcommittee established by the G.O.A Vancouver. Its mission is to connect, support, and inspire Goan youth in Vancouver. They organise events around the year, such as visits to Downtown east side, camping trips, picnics, sporting events and various other youth get-togethers.
