WHAT'S ON
Seniors Tours: Walk with Me: Intergenerational Heritage Walks and Talks for Seniors and Youth
Thank you for your participations on the tours. We have concluded this series of tours and will take a pause before announcing future tours. Check back later in April for more information.
CLOSED DATE/TIME: Various, between September 2022 to March 2023
CLOSED FREE: Please Register with CMEF via email at admin@cmef.ca
The Canadian Multicultural Education Foundation is delighted to invite you, your family and friends to our free tours to learn more about Edmonton Metropolitan Region's interesting and diverse history of early settlements, multicultural communities and natural sites. The 20 walking or bus tours are organized by an intergenerational and multicultural team of older and younger adults and youth. Most of the outings include knowledgeable tour guides; a few are self-guided. Tours are held rain or shine. Dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes for walking.
We have completed Tours 1 to 11. We are accepting registrations for Tours 12 to 16. Details for Tours 17 to 20 will be announced soon.
COMPLETED Tour #1. Fort Edmonton Park Self-Guided Walking Tour. Date/Time: September 17, 2022, 11:00am - 1:00pm. Space is limited max 20 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet in front of the entrance to Fort Edmonton Park by 10:45am.
Descriptiion: Learn about Treaty 6 Indigenous people's history and culture and Edmonton's settler history, self guided tour - living history museum
COMPLETED Tour #2. Dive into the Secrets of Mill Creek Ravine History Walking Tour. Date/Time: October 8, 2022, 1:00pm - 2:30pm. Space is limited max 20 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet at Mill Creek Ravine parking lot at 96A street just north of Whyte (82nd) Avenue, park at the Ravine parking lot.
Description: Mill Creek's name is derived from a flour mill that was established by William Bird in 1878 near where the creek flows into the North Saskatchewan River. In the early 1900's, the Mill Creek Ravine was home to several mills, meat packing plants, a railway line, and homes of the ravine's workers. Tour led by Dr. Jan Olson.
COMPLETED Tour #3. St Alberta River Lots historic Walking Tour. Date/Time: October 13, 2:00pm - 3:00/3:30pm. Space is limited max 15 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet at St. Albert Grain Elevator Park Train Station and Visitor Centre at 4 Meadowview Drive, St. Albert, AB (free parking). Please arrive 10-15 minutes before 2:00pm.
Description: Let's head out to St Albert to enjoy a guided tour of St. Albert’s Historic River Lots and learn about the early history and homes on the lots.The River Lot system pre-dates the sale of Rupert’s Land to the Dominion of Canada and the adoption of the standard rectangular township plan of Alberta. River Lot 23 was originally used as the site of the Hudson’s Bay outpost in St. Albert from 1866-1875, while River Lot 24 is unique for its continued occupation by subequent generations of the same Métis Family that settled in St. Albert after the mission was created by Father Lacombe.River Lot 23 & 24 tell the story of the French-Canadian and Métis settlements in St. Albert with some of the oldest surviving historic houses and agricultural buildings.
COMPLETED Tour #4. Highlands Historic Bus Tour. Date/Time: October 15, 1:00pm - 3:00pm, Space is limited: max 20 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet in front of Highlands School (6015-118 Avenue) and board the bus for the tour. Park your car at the school or on nearby streets. Bus will depart at 12:45pm from the School to where the tour guides are waiting to start the tour. Arrive at the Highlands School by 12:35pm.
Description: The Highlands neighbourhood is a living museum of Edmonton Architectural History. There are public and private buildings, both grand and humble from every decade in the last 110 years. On this tour we will cover 3 main areas:1. The architecture and streetscapes; 2. Historical and current characters who have lived in the neighbourhood; 3. The sweeping events of the city, province, country, and the world that drove what we now see in the Highlands neighbourhood. Some "Highlands Highlights": 1. We'll see several Historical Mansions including Holgate and Magrath; 2. Edmonton's history is full of boom and bust. You can see it in the houses!; 3. We'll learn about some early inhabitants starting from before contact with Europeans; 4. We'll meet the first weather lady in the commonwealth, Eda Owens.
COMPLETED Tour #5: 96 Street Church Street Historic Bus Tour. Date/Time: October 29, 1:00pm - 2:30pm. Space is limited: max 20 people, register early.
Starting Location: Board the bus for the tour at McCauley Community League 10750 - 96 Street . Park your car at the Community League or on nearby streets. Please arrive 10 to 15 minutes before the bus leaves at 1:00pm.
Description: Join us for a bus tour of 96 St. (Kinistino Ave). Known as Church St. for the number of churches built in a 20 year span in the early 20th century; many original structures remain. You will learn about waves of immigration and the communities that have renewed the street. This tour may include the interiors of Sacred Heart Church of the First Peoples, Ansgar Lutheran, and St. Josaphat Ukrainian Catholic Cathedral.
COMPLETED Tour #6: In Time for Halloween: Old Strathcona Ghost Tour. Date/Time: October 23, 7:00pm - 8:00pm. Space is limited: max 10 people, This is a ticketed event paid for by CMEF. MUST register by emailing admin@cmef.ca to reserve your free ticket by Sunday 3pm October 23; non-registered people will be turned away.
Starting Location: Meet in front of the Rescue Statue, next to the Walterdale Playhouse in Old Strathcona at 10322 - 83rd Avenue. Arrive by 6:45pm. Residential parking is free in the surrounding areas. Close by parking lot is located just off Gateway Boulevard between 83rd and 85th Avenue for $3/hr.
Description: A ghostly walk through Old Strathcona, where we stop in front of the Strathcona Hotel, the Princess Theatre, the Strathcona High School and many other buildings, houses, and shops that have reported ghosts, hauntings, murders, and mysteries. They are all true stories that come from area residents and business owners. The tours are hosted by a veteran storyteller with 12 years of experience. The tours are a great outing for the whole family.
COMPLETED Tour #7. Royal Alberta Museum Self Guided Tour. Date/Time: November 13, 1:00pm - 3:00pm (or stay as long as you like after 3pm). Space is limited max 20 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet inside the Royal Alberta Museum by the admission area 9810-103a Avenue. Arrive 10 to 15 minutes before 1:00pm. MUST arrive by 1:00pm for free admission covered by the organizer. Arriving after the tour group has entered the museum, the admission fee is $14/person, to be bear by you.
Description: The Royal Alberta Museum is the crown of Alberta arts institutions and the largest museum in Western Canada. It is a multidisciplinary place where art, design, community, nature, and language come together to tell the story of Alberta—the experience of its people over time—and to inspire Albertans to explore and understand the world around them. You will be free to visit any of the galleries, including the new special exhibit, "Drive". Walk with the group or on your own to enjoy the largest museum in western Canada.
COMPLETED Tour #8. Teas and Treats: 97 Street Chinatown Health and History Talk & Tour. An event in partnership with the Chinatown Transformation Collaborative Society (CTC). Date/Time: November 19, 1:00pm - 3:00pm. Space is limited max 30 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet in the old Hull Block 10601 – 97 Street, CTC's future Chinatown Storytelling, Museum & Tourist Information Hub. Arrive 10 to 15 minutes before 1:00pm. Free 2 hr parking along 97 Street or no limit along 106 avenue east of 97 Street (take note of parking rules on city signs).
Description: Enjoy a pleasant fall afternoon in Chinatown with fragrant Chinese tea and assorted pastries from local Chinatown bakeries. Listen to a talk on health and self-care entitled, Traditional Chinese Medicine First Aid Kit. followed by a Chinatown history talk and walking tour. In Chinese culture, people stayed well through self-care practices that were passed down from generation to generation. There is a wealth of information when it comes to home remedies, self-massage and common herbs. Learn how to naturally relieve headaches, nausea, colds/flus, period cramps and more. Each participant will get to take home a TCM “first aid” kit! The second half of the afternoon is a talk on the history of Edmonton Chinatown from 1890 to today, followed by a short stroll around the area. The talk will cover the formation of three Chinatowns, their demise or deterioration and current strategies to revitalize it. Both events are set in the historic 1914 Hull Block. That’s another story in itself.
COMPLETED Tour #9. St Albert Borealis Lights Christmas DriveThru Light Display Bus Tour. Date/Time: December 28, 2022, 5:00pm - 6:00pm. Space is limited max 30 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet at Edmonton Chinese Elders Mansion 9550 - 102 Avenue at 3:45pm to board school bus. Arrive 10 to 15 minutes before 4:15pm (departure time).
Description: Borealis Lights will be held at Kinsmen RV Park in St Albert. The spectacular Christmas drive-thru light display features more than 800,000 LED lights in assorted commercial Christmas decorations. This enchanting visual feast brings together a combination of static and animated displays. They range from a boatload of Disney characters such as Aladdin, Captain Hook and Peter Pan to 30-foot-tall candles, life-size winter animals, candy canes, as well as animated deer and trees. But the big attraction is a 100-foot tunnel built from 26,000 dazzling, dancing lights.
COMPLETED Tour #10. Telus World of Science Self-Guided Walking Tour. Date/Time: January 20, 2023, 12:00pm - 2:30pm. Space is limited max 20 people, register early.
Starting Location: Meet inside near the ticket booth by 11:45pm, Telus World of Science, 11211 - 142 Street NW, Edmonton, T5M 4A1. Parking is free.
Description: TELUS World of Science - Edmonton is a wonderful place to engage your hearts and minds in science. TWS's mission is to "Ignite curiosity. Inspire discovery. Celebrate science. Change lives" by creating and delivering high quality science inspiration to audiences across Northern Alberta and beyond. Admission ticket includes a general Science Centre Admission (including the feature OUT OF THE DEPTHS: The Blue Whale Story), Science Experiments, and shows in the Zeidler Dome (space permitting), as well as 1 IMAX movie (showtime 1:15pm), walk around the centre to explore it).
COMPLETED Tour #11. Art Gallery of Alberta Self-Guided Walking Tour. Date/Time: January 25, 2023, 1:00pm - 2:30pm. Space is limited max 20 people.
Starting Location: Meet inside near the ticket booth by 12:45pm, Art Gallery of Alberta, 2 Sir Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton, T5J 2C1. Paid street parking around the Art Gallery or underground inside City Hall.
Description: Experience art. Explore new perspectives. Create new connections. There is no wrong way to experience art at the AGA. Bring your own interpretation and explore new ways of looking at the world. With so much to offer, you'll discover something that connects with you. Take a leisurely tour through the current exhibitions.
COMPLETED Tour #12. Ancestors: Indigenous Peoples of Western Canada in Historic Photographs Guided Exhibition Tour and Talk. Date/Time: February 13, 2023,1:00pm - 2:00pm. Space is limited max 20 people.
Starting Location: Meet at the Bruce Peel Special Collections, Rutherford Library South Basement Level, University of Alberta at 12:45pm,11200-89 Ave NW, Edmonton, T6G 2J4. Paid parking in the UofA - CMEF will reimburse your parking if you provide the paid parking receipt (a photo of it is acceptable) for 1.5 hours. Please let CMEF know you will be parking at the university when you register for this tour.
Description: This exhibition explores a selection of photographs from a rich and diverse collection with potential for enhancing our understanding of the history, economies, culture, ceremonies, and art of the Indigenous Peoples of the western provinces. By sharing the many insights and perspectives generously provided to them by Elders and keepers of traditional knowledge, the curators hope to show us some of the ways that the photographs in this exhibition represent more than moments frozen in time; they carry stories and legacies into the future. Most of these photographs were created in the nineteenth century by non-Indigenous photographers. Frequently sold as souvenirs or postcards, these images of Indigenous peoples were contrived and disseminated for commercial, ideological, and imperial reasons, and they seemed to satisfy a hunger for exotic, nostalgic, and romanticized depictions of so-called “vanishing” peoples.
COMPLETED Tour #13. A Brief History of the Edmonton Jewish Community at JAHSENA. Date/Time: February 23, 2023, 12:30pm - 1:30pm. Space is limited max 20 people.
Location: Meet inside the Jewish Archives and Historical Society of Edmonton and Northern Alberta by 12:20pm, #100-10220-156 Street Edmonton, AB T5P 2R1. Free street parking.
Description: An overview of the history of the Edmonton Jewish Community from 1893 to the present, starting with the arrival of Abe Cristall, Edmonton’s first Jewish citizen. Including information about the various Jewish institutions in the City, waves of immigration, and important figures in the Edmonton Jewish and general communities. Including lots ofphotographs, and information about resources, organizations, holidays and celebrations, historical events and anti-Semitism. Presented by Debby Shoctor - former JAHSENA archivist
COMPLETED Tour #14. Working Class Edmonton Built Heritage Talk and Tour. In partnership with the Alberta Labour History Institute. Date/Time: March 4, 2023, 1:00pm - 2:30pm. Space is limited max 25 people,
Starting Location: Meet inside the Stanley Milner Public Library (Downtown) by 12:45pm for a presentation (go to the Civic Employees Fund Room 1 on the main floor) , 7 Sir Winston Churchill Square, Edmonton, AB T5J 2V4, followed by a walking tour from the library to Grierson Hill and back. Paid street parking or Library parkade.
Description: Edmonton has been a boom and bust town since the early days of the settlers. This fact has led to the destruction of many of our heritage buildings. A short presentation of historic photos will set the scene for the issues, building projects, and meeting places of the early Twentieth Century. The talk is followed by a short (30-45 minute) walk to visit key sites and imagine scenes from our history. Presented by Cathy Roy - retired museum curator and fourth generation settler in Edmonton.
REGISTRATION OPEN FOR MORE MARCH AND BEYOND 2023 TOURS
COMPLETED FULL CAPACITY Tour #15. Muttart Conservatory Guided Tour. Date/Time: Wednesday, March 22, 2023, 1:00pm - 2:00pm. Space is limited max 20 people.
Location: Meet at the Muttart Conservatory admission desk, 9626 - 96A Street NW by 12:45pm. Free parking.
Description: Take a guided walk inside the Pyramids in March! The Muttart Conservatory features more than 700 species of plants in 3 climate-regulated biomes: Arid, Temperate and Tropical. In the feature pyramid, you can enjoy unique themed displays and fabulous seasonal celebrations. Enjoy a closer look at the variety of flora under glass through the lens of the guide.
COMPLETED Tour #16. Tour of Little Italy in Edmonton. Date/Time: Sunday, March 12, 2023, 1:00pm - 2:30pm. Space is limited max 25 people.
Starting Location: Meet at the Alberta Italian Museum (inside the Ital-Canadian Seniors Association, 9111 - 110 Avenue next to the Clarke Stadium) by 12:50pm. Parking is free on the street and in the Clarke Stadium Parking Lot. After the museum tour, we will drive to Zocalo Edmonton (10826 - 95 Street, Edmonton, AB T5H 2E3) for a talk about the business development of the area including a short history of the re-naming of Giovanni Caboto Park. Free street parking.
Description: The neighbourhood in Edmonton known as McCauley was the traditional home of Treaty 6 First Nations. It would be the post- World War Two wave of immigration that resulted in the development of Edmonton’s Little Italy. There had been Italian residents in the area for many years. Italian men had worked in the coal mines since at least 1905, and masons and other craftsmen had helped to build the Alberta Legislature, the High Level Bridge and other historic structures. Business premises such as the Hotel Roma (first operated by Giovanni Rusconi and later by Luigi Dini) were located there. A number of Italian businesses including the Venetian Barber Shop (established in the 1930s), and several general stores including the Venetian Grocery followed. Edmonton’s Italian population in the period 1950 to 1980 grew from several thousand to nearly 15,000. Many lived in McCauley because homes were affordable and Italian businesses flourished. Today, Little Italy straddles McCauley and Boyle Street, and extends from 107 Avenue in the south to 118 Avenue in the north, and between 97 and 93 Streets. It was the building of the Santa Maria Goretti Church, in 1958 that defined the area as the heart of the Italian community. Take a walk into the past and see the generations of the buildings and landscapes built by Edmontonians as our city developed. Presented by Adriana Davies, historian.
POSTPONED Tour #17. River Valley Walking Tour With Dr. Dwayne Donald. Date/Time: TBA.
COMPLETED Tour #18. A journey through South Asia in Edmonton, - Treaty 6 Territory BusTour. Date/Time: March 31, 2023, 1:00pm - 2:00pm. Space is limited max 30 people.
Starting Location: Meet in front of Sohan Singh Bhullar Park, 8603 - 38 Avenue and board the school bus by 12:45pm for the tour. Free residential street parking along 86 Street and 38 Avenue. The tour will begin and end at Sohan Singh Bhullar Park.
Description: Migrants have been traveling through Alberta since the 1800s and gradually became documented citizens. Join us for a tour of Ward Karhiio to listen to stories about South Asian heritage, migration and how we got here as the community you see today. What role do we play in reconciliation with Indigenous peoples as we explore the history of this area located on Treaty 6.
Soni Dasmohapatra is an arts, culture and heritage consultant. A desi girl born and raised in the south side of Edmonton. She is thrilled to curate this bus tour as part of documenting the stories and place keeping of South Asian peoples past, present and future in Edmonton - Amiskwaciwâskahikan (ᐊᒥᐢᑲᐧᒋᐋᐧᐢᑲᐦᐃᑲᐣ). For more information visit sonidasmohapatra.com.
Shreela Chakrabartty, one of the Garneau Tower babies from the 60s wave of immigrants, has been documenting South Asians since 1993 and has become a movie director and local historian. Punjabi Pioneers of Alberta tells the story of Sohan Singh Bhullar, among Edmonton's first settlers in Edmonton. For more information visit dolceveda.com.
POSTPONED Tour #19. Edmonton's Franco Albertan Community Tour. Date/Time: TBA.
POSTPONED Tour #20. Murals and Other Public Arts Bus Tour around Edmonton.
COMPLETED Tour #21. Guided Tour of Historic Government House . Date/Time: March 19, 2023, 2:00pm - 3:00pm.
Location: Meet inside the Government House by 1:45pm, 12845 102 Ave, Edmonton, AB T5N. Free parking.
Description: Join us for a guided tour of Government House’s historic architectural details, original artifacts and furnishings dating from its time as a vice-regal residence from 1913 to 1938, and an extensive art collection showcasing historic and contemporary Canadian artists. This 1913 three-storey, sandstone clad, Scottish Baronial style mansion was used for other purposes between 1938 and 1964 before it underwent a major renovation and reopened in 1976 as a provincial government conference, meeting and state affairs centre.
COMPLETED Tour #22. A Tour of Masjid Al Fatima and Its Importance for the Muslim Community in Edmonton. Date/Time: March 25, 2023, 1:30pm - 2:30pm.
Location: Meet inside Masjid Al Fatima by 1:20pm, 9275 25 Ave NW, Edmonton, AB T6N 0A5. Free parking.
Description: Come tour this beautiful mosque with a magnificent blue dome. Syed Ahmed, the president, will explain the main tenants of Islam, how Muslims pray and the importance of the Quran. The month of Ramadan will have just begun, so he will explain why Muslims fast during that month. He will also discuss the history of the mosque and its relationship to Edmonton community.
More tours will be added and shared with you when they are ready!
Please share this event with seniors, youth, friends and family members. Poster can be accessed on tne Walk with Me Event page.
Funded by the Government of Canada. Financé par le gouvernement du Canada. A project of New Horizons for Seniors Program, Employment and Social Development Canada.
