East and West Learning Connections (EAWLC) is run by volunteers. Without their talents, commitment, and hard work, all the programs we have offered to the public just cannot possibly come into reality. Every year at our Annual General Meeting, our Board chooses a number of winners to receive the EAWLC Outstanding Service Awards based on time commitment, task impact, and organization involvement in the previous year. The award does not apply to board directors, advisors, or guest speakers, even though they are also volunteers to whom we are deeply grateful for their help. Each year there will be friends generously donating some cool items so we can give the winners as a gift. The winners are the representatives of all EAWLC volunteers who all come to help us with a giving heart for the community. Thank you so much, members, volunteers, and donors, for your great support and contributions!
Jian Cheng
Jian embraces the whole idea of East and West Learning Connections as she
herself is a curious learner and community builder. She is an enthusiastic
participant in our daily morning reading program for members, as well as a
frequent participant in EAWLC events for the general public. She devotes to
volunteer work with passion; not only she Is always reliable, but also she
constantly and proactively thinks of ways to deliver better results. Video editing
the Zoom recordings of our lectures and dialogue events is a time-consuming
task. Jian has been doing it single-handedly for us for the past year, in the midst of her full-time senior software engineer job and her youth-lead volunteer commitment in Ottawa where she lives. She educates herself, and has been trying ways to improve video effects. Because of her, For the first time we have organization intro clips and music for each video on our YouTube channel. At the end of 2024, she created a nice year-end retrospective video, a precious, and surprising gift and marketing blurb for EAWLC! Other than video editing, Jian came to Member Salon as a guest speaker to share how to use AI tools; when we need a hand and seek her help, Jian always tries her best to assist, like providing online meeting technical support, generating online forms, managing the dispatch of Mulan International Film Festival tickets for members, and so on and so forth.
Peng Zhang
Peng had been actively participating in our cultural events before joining as a
volunteer and member. He loves to share and communicate with people, and is a frequent contributor to our Social Reading Club, giving presentations of chapters and comments in group discussions. He became our IT Support last August, and has ever since worked hard to neatly manage our website, email system, online platforms and all other IT related functions, always quick in responding to requests and inquiries. He never hesitates to give a hand to our organization, including offering rides for other in-person program participants, and devoting his resource to help push forward special events.
Julian Fisher
Mr. Fisher, that’s what we call him every time we have an in-person Dialogue or
Book Talks event in his classroom near Yonge & St. Clair of Toronto, a centre
location with convenient access to people living across the city. He is a music
educator, and runs The Toronto School for Strings and Piano. His generosity of
lending his beautiful facility to us for free, for two years now, has greatly helped
this small, not-for-profit organization do its work in promoting cross-cultural
learning and communication for the community. Julian is not our registered
volunteer or member, yet he is the first one to arrive, and the last one to leave in
almost every in-person event on Saturday evenings. He always greets us with
smiles, leads the way, and helps with setting tables and chairs when needed.
When an event goes beyond the scheduled time, as often than not, he never
complains; on the contrary, he is the one to comfort us with patience. We are
really touched by his kindness, hospitality, and devotion to supporting a good
cause for the community! You can see more about Julian and his school here:
https://www.torontoschoolforstrings.com/
Aiying He (Erin)
Erin joined our volunteer team since 2023. She made posters, and posted our
events on Eventbrite which she has been doing till today, even when she is busy
now with a full time job and her post-graduate study. Erin is a capable and
reliable volunteer. She delivers what she promises, and delivers it neat and
timely. She is always quick in responding to requests, and uses her bi-lingual
talent and artistic taste to make the content and look of our events as attractive
as possible on social media.
Prizes for 2025 winners
A signed copy of Oracle Bones: A Journey Between China’s Past and Present by Peter Hessler donated by Yang Wang
A decoration gift set donated by Annie & Michael Raines, Founders of Raines Design (https://michaelrainesinteriors.com/)
Two glass bottles of 200ml first-grade maple syrup donated by Ron Kilius.
A free guided tour of Toronto Zoo donated by retired zoo scientist Andrew Lentini.
Click to see Past Year Winners.