Finnair lentää kesäkaudella 2022 saksalaisen Lufthansa -ryhmän palveluksessa suomalaisin miehistöin. Kuulin henkilökunnalta lennolla, että Kanadassa Finnair nähdään nyt kesällä jatkuvasti ainakin reitillä München-Montreal.

Montreal oli aikanaan Finnairin päätukikohta Kanadassa. Aluksi New Yorkin koneet tekivät välilaskun Montrealiin, Mirabelin kentälle.  Sittemmin Finnairin lennot Kanadan ja Suomen välillä siirtyivät Torontoon, kunnes loppuivat kokonaan viime vuosikymmenellä. Oman…

December 2019 saw the last issue of the Finnish Organization of Canada newsletter Kaiku-Echo. Since the closing of the newspaper Vapaus (called for a time Viikkosanomat since 1975) in 1990, the newsletter maintained contact between FOC members far apart throughout Canada and continued the tradition of substantive editorials.

Launched in Sudbury in…

"We did it and tell everyone we were here, and others should do it as well". This was the message from the FinnFest USA CEO K Marianne Wargelin (left) at the memorial of the red 1918 victims in Tampere, on June 25.2018. The wreath had been laid moments before by…

Canadian, American and Finnish anthems were heard in the main hall of University of Tampere on June 25, 2018, at the start of the first ever FinnFest arranged in Finland. Themes included the Finnish civil war. FinnFest CEO K Marianne Wargelin said this…

Kanadan  vuoden  2017  USP-edustajat  kuvassa  Helsingin kaupungintalolla  16.6.17.  Istunnossa Niilo Saari  luki osana  Kanadan katsausta  tervehdyksen  Ontarion provinssin pääministeriltä Kathleen Wynneltä,  Suomen ja Kanadan juhlavuonna.  Wynne  tähdensi  maahan muuttaneiden suomalaisten panosta  Ontarion …

Suomessa CETA -sopimus sai lopulta sekä teollisuuden että ammattiliittojen tuen. Investointisuojan järjestämistä muutettiin, mikä teki mahdolliseksi SAK:n tuen Suomessa. Oheisessa aasialaisen uutistoimiston englanninkielisessä uutisessa SAK:n pääekonomisti kuitenkin ottaa esille huolen työlainsäädännöstä. CETA:ssa ei ole säädetty sanktioita työntekijäin oikeuksien rikkomuksista. Ongelma on kuitenkin Suomen kannalta käytännössä etäinen, koska Suomesta Kanadaan nykyoloissa menisi (sopimuksen…

Kanadan Sanomat featured of late an interview with the new Finnish Studies professor at U of T. But looks like there was nothing about the status of the Chair - in terms of financing and continuity.

Fundraisings for the Finnish Studies have been a huge theme on the Finnish Canadian scene - at least Toronto and Sudbury - for over a decade. The aims were high.. And in the archives of the KS (Vapaa Sana) you will find pictures of cheques being handed over - in not insignificant…

I found this picture - probably taken during the 2000 Finn Fest. Primarily a creation augmented By Hans Myrskog, the event brought together Finnish Canadians of various backgrounds and lines of thought. From the left, Harold Huuhtanen, Elsie Jokinen and Hans Myrskog. The 2000 event was a proud start of the joint North American events, a tradition shelved for the time being.…

Jules Päiviö - architect, Canadian veteran of the Spanish Civil War and a social catalyst on the Finnish Canadian scene died in early September. Two Vapaa Sana interns produced excellent features about him in 2006 and 2007, not all of them are on the internet but I found links to two pieces by Juha Mäkinen and Virpi Oinonen. Jules was also perhaps the last eyewitness around recollecting the "big bang" of the Finnish Canadian scene - with FOC and the rest going separate ways, and Vapaa Sana…

Finnish-Canadians associated with the Finnish language Lutheran churches (ELCIC)would find this study interesting. While the religion-associated war rhetoric is long buried in Finland, my experience is that it is (at times) alive and well in Finnish language ELCIC affiliates - though depending on the composition of the congregation and on the values shared by the incumbent pastor. - The main reason for the situation is, I think, the fact that much of the 50s emigration to Canada (from…

This news item has been out for almost 12 hours now, and no posting on this site. So I thought Id have to do it.
http://yle.fi/uutiset/finnair_ranked_as_worlds_safest_airline/6442643

Junttaus on vanha suomalainen perinne seurakuntien papinvaaleissa, etenkin maaseudulla. Mutta ehkä rajansa kaikella. Itäisen Kanadan piispa Michael Pryse on lähettänyt Agricolalle voimakassanaisen kirjeen.. Agricola julkaisi sen nettisivuillaan. Piispa toivoo srk:lta vastauksia tammikuun puoliväliin mennessä.
www.agricola.ca/images/2012_Bishops_letter_fi.pdf

Bishop Michael Pryse (ELCIC) has expressed his concern, in the wake of the abortive election of a priest at Agricola, Toronto. As published at the website of Agricola the bishop notes that it seems evident that self-appointed leaders have contacted potential candidates, have engaged in campaigning and even sought to influence the bishop and his staff in an attempt to compromise due process. -Even worse,says Pryse, slanderous mistruths concerning the character of potential candidates…

Finnish Independence Day is also the anniversary of the Canadian declaration of war against Finland, Dec 6, 1941. Finnish immigrants in Canada became suddenly enemy nationals. Prof Varpu Lindström (d 2012) published an excellent book about the lifes and times of Finnish Canadians through that period, From Heroes to Enemies. If you have not seen it, it is worth reading. The US never declared war on Finland. The period 1941-1947 has been a difficult issue to tackle particularly to those…

An initiative by the Toronto CFF about the quality and functions of Finnish Honorary Consuls has triggered a resolution by the Expatriate Parliament (USP), in its plenary in Helsinki on Oct 25-27. The resolution underlines knowledge of Finland and Finnish affairs, as qualifications of a would-be Honorary Consul. Drafted originally by Bill Holt, the resolution proves that grass-roots action by expatriate Finns can lead to results, even at the Finnish end. - The Ministry has, of course, found…

Listening to Megan Leslie and reviewing the large audience at the Suomi-Koti Charity Dinner on Friday (Oct 26), I ended up thinking that this was actually a major landmark in the restoration of Finnish Canadian cohesion (lost in 1931), comparable to the arranging the suurjuhlat evening banquet at the Wanup Hall some years ago. - I recall when Megan Leslie was elected in 2008 some Finnish Canadians did not want to combine the concepts of "Finnish Canadian" and "NDP". Through that Suomi-Koti…

The Finnish-Canadians get a mention in this labour issues piece by Walkom. But the Finns (long ago) got a landed immigrant status on arrival, the new Chinese temporary miners probably would not qualify in the Canadan Experience Class.

Anyhow, Walkom could have added that back then the recruitment of Finns "backfired", the Finns organized themselves and created values for the Canadian labor scene - that prevailed for decades.

Some years ago several immigrant organizations…

Että vielä tällä vuosituhannella Kanadan vanhoillisilla on vaikeuksia suhteessaan suomalaissiirtolaisten perinteeseen. Muistolaattahanke (Thunder Bayhin) ansioituneelle kanadansuomalaiselle Sanna Kannistolle kaatui Kanadan perinneministeriön (Heritage Canada) ”haluttomuuteen”.

Sanna Kannistosta (organisaattori ja puhuja) tehtyä elokuvaa on näytetty tänä vuonna kanadansuomalaisille ja nyt elokuussa Suomessa. Elokuvan tuottaja Ronald Harpelle sai teatterin hörähtämään todetessaan…

Kuten monet varmaan tietävät, CBC Radio Onen englanninkielinen tunti on saatavilla Suomessa loppuillasta arkisin. Lähetykset alkoivat jo vuonna 1997 ja nykyisin ne ovat olleet kuultavissa Helsingissä Yleisradion FM-taajuudella 97.6 Mhz ja koko maassa DVB-audiona.

Nyt kuitenkin Ottawan hallituksen budjettisupistusten takia CBC:n ulkomaanjakelua uhkaa lähes totaali tuho, sekä radioaalloilla että satelliiteissa.

Kun olen Suomessa, kuuntelen itse noita lähetyksiä, The World at Six…

As some of you at least know, the CBC is available in English via Yleisradio (FM in Helsinki, DVB audio in the rest of the country) on weekend nights at midgnight, with the World at Six at 00.00 and the first half hour of As it Happens on the half hour. NPR takes over at one am.

Now, with the cutbacks enforced by the powers-that-be in Ottawa the CBC international service is likely to go off the air on satellite.

I take this somewhat seriously also on the grounds that I was the…