by Edith Cody-Rice
On Saturday December 7, the Sivarulrasa Gallery held its second annual meet and greet as part of the Inclusion Project. The project, spearheaded by Sanjeev Sivarulrasa, now has an enthusiastic planning committee of volunteers who organize the events and activities.The Inclusion Project was kickstarted a year ago by a similar gathering. Saturday evening, a substantial group gathered to eat delicious food and chat as a community.
Sanjeev gave the following address to those present:
It’s been a year since a group of local residents and business owners came together to start The Inclusion Project – a volunteer-based community organization that is dedicated to fostering a vibrant, multicultural, and inclusive Mississippi Mills. You’ll be hearing shortly from two members of the Inclusion Project Planning Committee about our Mission, Vision and Values, our new website, as well as upcoming events in 2025.
2024 has been a very active first year for the Inclusion Project. We partnered with the Mississippi Mills Bicycle Month and the Town to organize a Multicultural Potluck on Mill Street – it was a very successful community event with tables organized all along the street. The Inclusion Project also partnered with the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum on two fashion shows called “Textiles and the Stories They Tell” – those were two very beautiful events showcasing textiles and fabrics from diverse cultures.
We are very fortunate to be here in Almonte with so many cultural activities going on – last night was Light Up the Night right here on Mill Street, and tomorrow there will be the Santa Claus parade. And here we are tonight having this multicultural gathering of neighbours and friends. It’s all about building community, getting to know each other, and of course enjoying some tasty food!
Mississippi Mills Councillor Vicki Lowe said a few words on behalf of the town council. Councillor Mary Lou Souter was also in attendance. The attendance of councillors reinforced the support the community is giving to this project.
Ilesh Parmar, a member of the Planning Committee and Almonte resident who operates a marketing firm, talked about the project’s mission and values. Renée Kokonya Sullivan, who also lives in Almonte and is a member of the planning committee, spoke about upcoming events for 2025.
Local resident Terri Clarke commented that events like this are important in showing that we wish to be an inclusive and welcoming community and Sue Evans, who moved to Almonte some years ago, said that this event is wonderful. When she moved to Almonte she was surprised that the population seemed very homogeneous but this event includes people from other cultures to give a more complete reflection of our community.
