October 2017 Newsletter

IMANTA has a new logo! Many thanks to Raina Mithrush for designing this along with our new banner, which was used for the first time in September at the Winspear Centre.

This year’s Latvian Independence Day celebration is being organized using suggestions from our enthusiastic newer members, with the intent of making our event accessible to more families. We will be celebrating with a potluck style event,with Latvian foods and recipes. Your relatives, friends, or Google can help you decide which delicious Latvian food to make. Please let us know what dish you’ll be bringing to help us plan the menu.

The event will take place on Saturday, November 18th, in the new Laurier Room at Laurier Heights Community League, 14405 – 85 Avenue NW.
Doors open at 4:30pm
Dinner at 5:30pm
Programme and music to follow, with activities for both children and adults.

Tickets: $10/adult if purchased in advance, $15 at the door. Children: $5 up to age 12, free for 6 and under.
Please email us to sign up for your food contribution and to purchase your tickets either by mail or e-transfer –  imantaedmonton@gmail.com.  Below is the link to access the ticket and membership form.  If you have any questions or comments, please email us!

Membership and November ticket form

Please RSVP by November 14th, 2017

IMANTA sponsored a performance of the Edmonton Symphony at the Winspear Centre on Saturday, September 30th, featuring guest artist Nora Bumanis on the harp. There was a Latvian display in the foyer and our guests also had access to the Founders’ Room, which was the perfect venue to meet and visit before the concert and during intermission. It was great to have so many members attend. Some people hadn’t seen each other in decades.
As part of our sponsorship agreement, a promo code is available to our members for all ESO concerts in the 2017-2018 season for tickets purchased either in person, by phone, or online. The code is ANNIVERSARY and offers a 20% discount per ticket.

Following the successful June premiere of The Way Children Sleep, a choral work commissioned by ProCoro Canada and supported by IMANTA, ProCoro announced that the composer, Uģis Prauliņš, will be their composer-in-residence for 2017-2018. In this capacity, he will be participating in a choral workshop at the Banff Centre in February 2018 and will also be in Edmonton for a ProCoro concert on February 25,2018. He is a versatile and talented musician and composer from Riga. We are glad to have connection created between Canadian and Latvian artists.

A consular agent from the Latvian Embassy in Ottawa was in Edmonton in mid-October to issue and renew Latvian passports. It’s possible this service will not be offered in Edmonton next year, but it will be available in Calgary and Vancouver. Further information will be shared when confirmed.

The children’s group is back for another year, meeting monthly at the Laurier Heights Community Hall with crafts and games for children and their parents. The volunteer leaders work hard to come up with ideas and activities. We encourage all parents of young children to be involved to help make this group more successful. It’s a great way to build community and create friendships. Dates and times are listed in the Latvian Children’s Group Program on our website.

Our Lithuanian friends have invited us to the opening of an art show on Saturday, November 4th, from 3-6 pm at the Lithuanian Hall, 11629 – 83 Street NW. The introduction to the exhibit will be at 4pm. The show is curated by a gallery owner from Vilnius, who will be bringing the art work from Lithuania.

Congratulation to LAIMA, the new Latvian society in Calgary. No details are known, but we wish them well and look forward to learning more about their activities.

Sincere congratulations to artist Ilda Lubane, who celebrated her 100th birthday in July!

For more information on any of the above, email imantaedmonton@gmail.com. Sometimes details and other information are not available when the newsletter is prepared, but everything is updated frequently on our website.

Please support us. We are a registered, non-profit society and count on memberships to remain viable. Any and all feedback is appreciated.