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International Mother Language Day Celebration
Surrey, Vancouver, Feb 17, 2010
Balwant Sanghera
President, Punjabi Language Education Association
The Punjabi Language Education Association (PLEA Canada) has been promoting Punjabi in BC and Canada for more than fifteen years. In addition to promoting Punjabi in public schools and post secondary institutions of British Columbia, PLEA has also been instrumental in its promotion in other parts of Canada.
Also, this non-profit community organization is urging the Indo-Canadian business community to promote this language at their own level through Punjabi signage, printing business cards in both Punjabi and English and other means at their disposal.
Furthermore, PLEA has been promoting Punjabi signage at various public places such as hospitals, city halls, banks, credit unions and airports etc.
For the past several years, PLEA has been holding two major community functions. These are the International Mother Language Day in February and the Punjabi Students Speech Contest in November. This year, due to the 2010 Winter Olympics being staged in Metro Vancouver, PLEA has decided to hold its eighth annual International Mother Language Day on Sunday, March7. This function will take place at Havelli Restaurant/Banquet Hall, 8220 120 Street in Surrey from 1:30 to 4:30 PM
This years celebration will focus on the youth. PLEA has lined up seven prominent young professionals to act as a panel in this regard.
These panelists include two prominent media personalities, one doctor, one banker, one lawyer, a teacher and a police officer. These panel members will describe their own experiences relating to Punjabi in their lives.
This will include the impact of Punjabi language in their personal, social and professional lives. They will be encouraged to offer suggestions as to how PLEA and the community can connect our youth with the Punjabi language.
The second part of the program will include recitation of selected poems composed by some of the most prominent Punjabi writers/poets. Students between the ages of 11 and 25 will be encouraged to pick a poem of their own choice, practice the same and recite it at the function. In order to do so ,they should contact their Punjabi teacher at school . This is a non-competitive exercise. The main purpose is to encourage students to get interested in Punjabi literature and savor the works of some of the icons of Punjabi language.
Admission is free. No prior registration is required. On behalf of PLEA, I would like to issue an open invitation to all of the well-wishers of Punjabi language to attend this eighth annual celebration of our mother tongue Punjabi.
Balwant Sanghera
President, Punjabi Language Education Association
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