Victoria Welsh Society & Broader Community Events

Welsh Society Focus

Cornerstone annual
The Society's most significant event is the honouring of its patron saint - Dewi Sant. This takes the form of an annual banquet usually held at the University Club of the University of Victoria as conveniently near to March 1st as can be arranged. It is a celebratory event where friendships are renewed and personal stories reviewed. Traditions are maintained through a program of music, song, explorations of history, and exchanges of goodwill. This evening event always attracts a large number of the Society's members and their friends who enjoy the ambience of the University Club setting, the dining standard, and the pleasures of sharing and reminiscing - all of which are underpinned by laughter and good humour. Belonging to the Victoria Welsh Society is not a pre-requisite for attending the Saint David's Banquet

Seasonal
Other regular Society activities include lunches organized by the Ladies' Auxiliary, a formal Christmas luncheon, a Christmas party characterized by songs and carols, a summer barbeque, and an Annual General Meeting that is usually held in October.

Occasional
Inspired by either individuals or local calendars, occasional activities have included sing-alongs, film evenings, trips to local wineries and cheese factories, and participation in multi-cultural days and various festivals in and around Victoria.

In the past, Welsh lessons have been offered on a group basis. The Society has organized these classes at various times, the key being to have fun in an informal learning setting. Such classes require a minimum of 6 participants and the availability of a local instructor.

International

Over the years, the Society has sponsored performances by well-known, visiting Welsh choirs. These events have become a regular feature of musical life in Victoria. In September 2006, the internationally acclaimed Cwmbach Choir performed to a full house and great applause in the concert hall of the Victoria Conservatory of Music.

For many years the Society took considerable pride in owning a unique Welsh artefact - an ornately carved bardic chair that had been created in anticipation of being awarded to the composer of the winning poem at the 1889 Flintshire Crown and Chair Eisteddfod in Bagillt, Flintshire, North Wales. It is believed that the chair was never conferred because no submission was deemed to be of sufficient merit.

A mystery that has never been solved is how the chair made its way across almost half of the globe to become part of the furniture exhibits of Craigdarroch Castle - one of Victoria's legendary nineteenth century landmarks.
The chair, put up for sale in 1996, was bought eagerly by the Welsh Society and has been in its possession for the last decade.

In the spring of 2006 a formal request was received from the History Club of Bagillt that the chair be repatriated, and assurances were given that it would be displayed permanently in the village of Bagillt. In accordance with the belief that such transference was both pragmatic and fulfilling, the chair was dispatched in July of 2006.

The Victoria Welsh Society and the Bagillt History Club have become firmly and historically inter-connected through this significant transference - the Eisteddfod Chair now resides in St. Mary's Church, Bagillt, in the County of Flintshire, North Wales. "Home coming" celebrations organized by the History Club in the Fall of 2006 allowed the viewing of the chair that had not been seen in the village for 117 years.

Victoria and Region Community Focus

The following calendar of activities has been provided to give a perspective on the many and varied events that occur within the general area where most of the Victoria Welsh Society members live.

January: Elk Lake Polar Bear Swim - New Year's Day.

February: City Flower Count.

March: Pacific NW Wine Festival, Spring Colour Spectacular - Butchart Gardens.

April: International Blossom Walks, Festival of Solo Performances, TerrifVic Jazz Party.

May: Literary Arts Festival, Harbour Festival,Victoria Day Parade, Swiftsure International Yacht Race, Luxton Rodeo, Bastion Square Cycling Grand Prix, Festival of the Performing Arts.

June: Oak Bay Tea Party, Jazzfest International, Flower and Garden Festival, Buccaneer Days, Folkfest, Summer in the Square.

July: Canada Day Celebrations, Victoria Flower & Garden Show, A Bite of Victoria Food Festival, Luminara - in Beacon Hill Park, Rootsfest, Moss Street Paint-In, Shakespeare Festival, Summer Cathedral Fest.

August: Symphony Splash, Dragon Boat Festival, Fringe Festival, Latin Caribbean Music Festival, First People's Festival.

September: Classic Boats, Saanich Fall Festival, V. I. Blues Bash, Luxton fall Fair.

October: Royal Victoria Marathon.

November: Santa Claus Parade, Dickens Fair.

December: Christmas Time at Butchart Gardens, Lighted Sail Past in Sidney-by-the-Sea.