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The Little Engine That Could

October 17, 2009
An organization in its infancy, AFCA-BC (Association of Filipino Canadian Accountants BC Chapter) put on a very impressive show on Oct 17, 2009 for its Second Annual Professional Development Workshop with a turn out of over 50 accountants and student accountants, seven of them from FAACPA (Filipino American Association of Certified Public Accountants - Seattle Chapter) who drove 3.5 hours from Seattle to North Vancouver in support of the sister chapter.

In an interview with Shirley Shannon, current VP of AFCA-BC and Chairperson of the PD committee, “Last year, the Seattle Chapter sent 22 delegates to help us launch our first PD workshop.  This year, we are very pleased that we can finally stand on our own.”

One of the objectives of the organization is to help Filipino Canadian  immigrant accountants integrate into Canadian workplace and society by providing mentorship, continuing education, networking and professional development.  Yet, the organization attracts membership from accountants of all races, including native born Canadians,  Chinese, East Indians.  In cooperation with ISS of BC (Immigration services Society of BC), AFCA-BC now has a structured format with which they can use for mentoring.

Speakers for the workshop reflects the diversity of the group.  Cecil Sanchez, the organization president is a controller at West Fraser Timber and was able to recruit powerful speakers such as Meryl Tellis, Taxation Manager who spoke on IFRS  IAS 12, and Ed Nickel, CGA and Manager at West Fraser spoke on Bill 198 Corporate Governance.   Dennis Cojuco, a chartered accountant spoke on overview of  IFRS (International Financial Reporting Standard).    Edward Teodoro from RBC Dominion spoke on Retirement Planning and Laurie Sing/Veronica Heringer did a joint presentation from ISS of BC (Immigrant Services Society) on the How, Why and Benefits of Mentoring.

The response from the attendees was very good.  “Ed Nickel has a way of making a boring subject (Bill 198) sounds interesting” Coulson Askew noted.   “I don’t think there was a single participant who fell asleep during the seminars.”

Veronica Heringer, with a BA in journalism and formerly a TV Broadcaster in Brazil talked about first-hand experience and frustrations that she as an immigrant faced due to difference in culture, and how a mentor can help.

It was a day of professional development, and of fun, food and networking.   According to Laurie Sing, “This is a fun and friendly accountant’s group.”  Some people might think that the term “accountant” do not equate with fun, but this group is different.

House for All Nations

The House for All Nations is a Christian organization of churches located all across Canada.   Its mission is to provide new Canadian immigrants and visiting foreign students a place to worship.  Cultural diversity is welcomed as there are services available in English, Korean, Mandarin and Indonesian.  A recent addition to the organization is the Potter's Hand Community Church in North Vancouver.  Although there is a big proportion of members who are Filipinos, the North Vancouver branch aims to include more members from different backgrounds.  A celebration is scheduled for October 3 Saturday in the gym of St. Andrew's United Church in North Vancouver.  There will be an inauguration service and dinner.  For more information, call Andres at 604-781-3672.  visit http://www.houseforallnations.org

The 'Other' Canada: One Immigrant's Perspective 

 Posted March 16, 2009
‘Ottawa International Connection’ is having an event focused on ‘Adjusting to Canadian Culture’ from a very intriguing immigrant. The speaker will soon be announced and the evening will consist of a potluck dinner, learning, and discussion with an underlying purpose to welcome the newcomer to our host nation, Canada. The only gift you bring is your presence and your willingness to reach out to all newcomers.

The event will be at the very charming home known as the Hummingbird House, just across the street from the Governor General’s residence. We will enjoy getting to know new friends as we have a great fireside talk that is designed to challenge and inspire all of us. Please take time to think if there is anyone you know that may be new to the country and would appreciate our endeavor.

People are welcome to join at either an earlier or later time of the event if their schedule does not cater to the entire event.

This will be a nonalcoholic event and no pork items will be served out of respect to all. It will be a potluck and people may bring a main dish, salad or volunteer an hour of time cleaning up or helping setup. Please respond to the Face book Invitation or email us at east_west_connection@hotmail.com as soon as possible. There are limited number of volunteer positions and so anyone wishing to help out will not be required to bring a dish, but should rsvp as a volunteer before Friday 20 March at 6pm. Please do not hesitate to call us at 613-739-8099 if we may be of any assistance.