Community Organizations:

Folclore Alegre de Victoria * Portuguese Cultural and Athletic Association

Related articles:

*History of the Portuguese Community in Victoria

*Engaged and Proud – The Face of the Younger Generation of Luso-Canadians in Victoria

POPULATION OF VICTORIA: 397,327

STATISTICS FOR THE PORTUGUESE IN VICTORIA:

AS MOTHER TONGUE	AS MOST SPOKEN	KNOWLEDGE OF THE LANGUAGE	BORN IN PORTUGAL	ETHNIC ORIGIN
1,395 0.3% of population	450 0.1% of population	1,720 0.4% of population	690 0.2% of population	3,365 0.8% of population

History of the Portuguese Community in Victoria

Article written with references from an historical overview published on https://www.ourladyoffatimavictoria.com/our-history, the website of Our Lady of Fatima Roman Catholic Parish in Victoria

Audio Version:

Official Portuguese immigration to the City of Victoria occurred in 1955 after Manuel Potinho, José Cabrita, José de Souza and António Chorão arrived here from the mainland. A year later, a group of 19 men, all from the archipelago of the Azores but mostly from the island of São Miguel, added to the count. They were António Moniz, João Galvão, Eduardo Oliveira, Carlos Almeida, José de Melo, João Chaves, Manuel Lima, Altino Andrade, Tomáz Medeiros, José Moniz, Alfredo Curvelo, Eduardo Esaias, Carlos da Silva, José Barbosa, João Martinho, Adriano Pacheco, Domingos Carreiro, Gilberto Ferreira and Isaias Achadinha. For the next few decades, the community continued to grow and, with it, so did the cultural and social influence that marks our presence in the region.

Although they arrived in the city proper, many of these men had to relocate to the northern part of the Vancouver Island to find work, mostly in the railroad or as farmhands. António Moniz, however, remained in Victoria where he found work at the famous Butchart Gardens. Here, he learned the language and became a major point of reference for other Portuguese who arrived in the city afterwards. As these men began to settle and to become more financially stable, they started to call for their families, leading to a boom of Portuguese presence here for the three decades that followed the arrival of the pioneers. They also began to purchase homes and to proudly display their colourful front yards with opulent trees, finely trimmed bushes, and blossoming flowers. A Portuguese home is always well looked after, no matter where it stands.

It took some time for the community to organize socially. In those early years, they mostly visited each other in their homes to reminisce about the homeland and to plan for an uncertain future in a new country. As is the case in many communities, sport, and soccer in particular, served as a starting point for the Portuguese to commune and socialize under the pretense of defending their honour on the pitch. In Victoria, the occurrence first took place in 1967 when the community formed the first team. The founders were José Lima, Walter Craveiro, John Craveiro, António Lima, Manuel Pereira, Américo de Frias, and Francisco Cabecinha as the first president. Carlos Almeida was elected manager of the team. The team drew large crowds of soccer enthusiasts who filled the sidelines with cries of incentive for the men in red and green, the men who represented the homeland and who brought pride to the newly formed community.

As the soccer team gained notoriety and community cohesion strengthened, the formation of the Portuguese Cultural and Athletic Association, in 1978, became part of a natural evolution. Under the banner of the new organization, soccer took on many names, depending on the sponsor in each particular season. Some of the names it adopted include Mayfair Barber Shop, Coffee House, Suburban Motors, Lusitania, Metro Toyota, and Mestons Auto. However, the executive put an end to the constant changes in name and permanently called it “Sagres”. The team participated in the Vancouver Island League, but also entered various other tournaments such as the Taça de Portugal (in British Columbia). It also hosted various tournaments that included teams from different parts of Canada and the United States. In 1987, it celebrated its 20^th anniversary, bringing together many players that had represented the club and honouring those who, at the time, had already passed away. They included Américo de Frias, Manuel Abelenda, Francisco Cabecinha, Charlie Sadler, Gordon Reading, and Sisco Rossini.

Even though soccer became an important element of community life, the church quickly turned into the focal meeting point. The religious movement began when Father Daniel Johnson of the St. Andrew’s Cathedral learned the mass in Portuguese and started celebrating for the community. This led to the desire to organize other religious events. In 1969, a group of men met to discuss the celebration of Portugal’s matriarch, Our Lady of Fatima. A statue was ordered from the city of Braga but it took two years for it to arrive here. Manuel de Frias, José Moniz, António Moniz, José Ambrósio, Jaime Brigida, Carlos de Silva, and José Melo formed the commission that began planning the festivities. However, it wasn’t until 1971 that they occurred, at Sacred Heart Church, with a replica of Our Lady of Fatima borrowed from Vancouver. The community attended in droves, leading to other relevant events that followed and, eventually, turning the church into the main meeting point, to this day, for the Luso-Canadians who reside here.

The community acquired its own replica of Our Lady of Fatima in October of that same year. It was blessed by Bishop Remi De Roo with assistance from Father Daniel Johnson and Altino Andrade. The celebrations continue to take place twice a year, in May and October. The religious celebration includes a procession and a mass. Afterwards, the community gathers for a social and cultural feast with plenty of food, music and dances.

In 1972, the community gathered to discuss the formation of its own parish. Again, Father Daniel Johnson was instrumental in the development of the project, as were other influential members of the community such as Altino Andrade, Manuel Frias, Jaime de Medeiros, António Moniz, Manuel Craveiro, and Vivaldo do Couto. The parish – under the name Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Parish – was officially registered in the Victoria Diocese a decade later, in 1982, then under the leadership of Father Arduino Antonello who came from Brazil to serve the community. In 1983, the first Feast of the Holy Spirit was organized, an event that marked the enlarging of the scope of religious celebrations and social gatherings in the community.

This led to the formation of a Parish Council. The first elected members were Altino Andrade, Manuel Frias, João Moniz, Joana Moniz, António Ramos, Marias Simas Pereira, Lourdes Frias, Jorge Frias, and João Craveiro. The council’s first point of order was to appeal to the Diocese for the purchase of a property and the construction of a community church. The proposal was approved and a property was purchased on Elk Lake Drive in 1983. In May of 1984, ground was broken. The community raised funds and made offers to the project, helping to turn a dream into reality. In October of the same year, the church of Our Lady of Fatima was inaugurated. The building included the sacred space and a hall to accommodate the various groups being formed in the community at the time. As a result of this milestone, the community added the celebration of Senhor Bom Jesus da Pedra to the list of annual events.

As the community grew and evolved, so did its needs. The church became too small to accommodate the large crowds that visited weekly, and the cultural and social spaces too sparce to serve the community groups. As a result, now under the tutelage of the first Portuguese priest in the community, Father Manuel Cardoso, a new and ambitious project began to take shape: the construction of a new church. Jorge Melo designed the building and, in 1994, it was inaugurated. To this day, it remains as the most significant Portuguese landmark in the community, serving as the sole location for the local Luso-Canadians to gather for religious, cultural and social events.

Shortly after the influx of women and children, sponsored by the men who had arrived here first, the need to create a Portuguese school arose. Manuel de Frias (who is connected to most of the early milestones in the community) and João Valadas encouraged Maria Simas Pereira to form the first school. The group approached the Diocese of Victoria without success but, later, a space at Sacred Heart Church became available. The first class had eight students enrolled but it quickly grew to 23. This rapid growth prompted those responsible for the school to join the Portuguese Association. Dora Craveiro, Lourdes Frias, Dina Abelenda, Helena Sousa, and Norberta Pereira joined Maria Pereira as enrollment continued to grow. As soon as the Portuguese church was inaugurated, in 1984, a Parents Association was formed to support the school. Beyond its responsibility to teach the language, the school also organized various cultural and social events for parents, students and other members of the community.

On April 2, 1979, the school took on the name of Escola da Associação Portuguesa Cultural de Victoria. It was also recognized by the Government of Portugal, which granted it official status and support from the motherland.

After the founding of the Portuguese Association, in 1978, a folk-dance group was almost simultaneously formed, under the leadership of the late António Carvalho Ferreira, who tragically passed away in 1987. The group graced many of the Portuguese festivities in the City of Victoria, but it also participated in various other events organized by the municipality such as Folk Fest, Victoria Day, and Music Festival, and in locations such as senior homes and the University of Victoria. After the passing of António Carvalho Ferreira, Maria Helena Lima took the lead. The group, Folclore Alegre de Victoria, is still in operation to this day.

The community enriched its cultural canopy in 1989 with the founding of a brass band, formed by Vivaldo do Couto and conducted by Gervásio de Sousa. The band, although popular and successful for many years, is no longer in operation.

In 1994, with the aging of the population that included many of the pioneers, the group Terceira Idade was formed and led by Maria Adelina Ferreira. The group used the community facilities to socialize and to participate in various other activities.

Although the Portuguese community of Victoria was once vibrant and dynamic, the integration into the general community by its members and the decaying of most cultural, social and sporting organizations have become real challenges in the preservation of its homogeneity. The church and the folk-dance group remain as the two surviving elements that continue to unite a scattering community. There have been recent attempts by the new generation of Luso-Canadians to revive the soccer team and the defunct Portuguese Association, but they have, so far, been unfruitful. Perhaps this new desire of our younger generation to maintain our traditions will reinvent a community that has been slowly melting into the general population.

If you find any errors or omissions, please send your concerns to contact@lusocanada.com

Let’s write History together! Please contribute your story, experience, memory, photo or video relating to this organization and/or the community with which it is associated. Send to contact@lusocanada.com

ENGAGED AND PROUD – THE FACE OF THE YOUNGER GENERATION OF LUSO-CANADIANS IN VICTORIA

Audio Version:

After Jason Arruda agreed to have a conversation over zoom to discuss the current situation of the Portuguese community in Victoria, we knew we would be speaking with a proud young Luso-Canadian who is actively involved in the promotion and maintenance of our heritage. However, what we encountered was ‘next level’. As we became connected by the image on the screen, we had to ask if what lay behind him was a computer background or his real wall. He smiled and proudly pointed to the various items representing Portugal displayed behind him. We quickly understood that this was going to be an enticing interaction. 

Arruda, who works in economic development for the Government of British Columbia, was born in Victoria from parents who arrived in Canada in the early years and a lineage of Portuguese that hail from Sao Miguel and Lamego. He lived in various parts of Canada and, as a result, had the opportunity to become part of the Portuguese communities of those localities. “I lived in London for a while, and then Edmonton, and gravitated to the Portuguese communities there. Our culture and our history are very important to me,” he began by telling us.  

Now back in his native Victoria, Jason Arruda is part of a community that is slowly dispersing. “On an individual level, people are still connected to Portugal. For myself, I work with the Federation [of Portuguese Canadian Business and Professionals] and it’s a passion of mine. I’m involved to the extreme. Our festas are getting smaller over the years and this is even before the pandemic. A lot of what we have is based out of the church. It’s the most consistent entity in the city in terms of opportunities for us to engage as a community,” he informed.

Although the Our Lady of Fatima Parish has established itself as the meeting point for the Portuguese who reside in the area, it wasn’t always like that. In the early years after our arrival in Vancouver Island, there were a few organizations that were formed and that served as opportunities for the community to engage and congregate. The soccer team, which was given several names before becoming permanently known as ‘Sagres’, was the first to be formed. It was later followed by the defunct Portuguese Cultural and Athletic Association and the filarmónica. However, neither of these exist anymore.

“Soccer had like two hundred people watching. There was a lot of interest. The problem is that it takes a lot of work to run these things properly. I encouraged people I knew to start the team again when I came back from Edmonton, and they were back for a long time, but I’m not sure what happened later. As far as I know, someone has got the team in name, but maybe the plan is to bring it back,” Arruda commented.

Taça de Portugal, an event promoted by the soccer club for many years, was once an annual event that drew teams from various parts of British Columbia and the United States. That has also been moved into the realms of history.

Beyond the church and the various groups that were formed over the years, other events that brought the community together were implemented in the past. One such was a barbecue held at a local park that took place a few times a year. It provided hundreds of Luso-Canadians with the opportunity to celebrate their heritage, make new friendships and solidify bonds. “Someone tried to bring it back, but, so far, it hasn’t happened,” Arruda informed.

According to Jason Arruda, there are enough Luso-Canadians in Victoria to create a vibrant and engaged community. However, as it happens in most other localities across the country, the same few are involved in most initiatives, which makes it difficult to sustain and grow a significant movement. “There’s a group of 200 people who are involved in everything. I find it mindboggling we don’t have more as a community. I don’t understand why we don’t have a bigger presence,” he lamented.

There is, however, one cultural group that remains active to this day, although it had suffered various interruptions in its activity over the years: Folclore Alegre de Vitoria. The group has stood the test of time and continues to engage young and old in the community.

When one walks the streets of Victoria, save for the odd house that displays some cultural or religious element of Portugal, there are very few indications that over 3,500 people residing here consider Portuguese to be their ethnic origin. There are no bakeries, cafés, or groceries stores, although there is one restaurant, open part of the day, that is called Casanova. “[It serves] breakfast and lunch but there’s no late-night restaurant for dinners, but it’s great for catering, very famous for catering Portuguese food. We have a deli store called Maria’s, and she carries a few Portuguese goods, but it’s mostly a European deli. Walmart has a Portuguese section now. They mostly carry Ferma. Sometimes I dream about opening a coffee shop, a mercearia. I wonder how we don’t have a Portuguese café, unlike other places. If we had enough money to build a church and hall and renovate it later, there has to be some business ambition. We have a lot of companies owned by Portuguese. It may be a numbers’ thing,” Jason Arruda commented.  

For those in the city who have made the connections and developed the habit of getting involved in the activities promoted by Folclore Alegre de Victoria and the groups associated with the church, life as a connected member of the community is fairly natural. However, for those who have not had this opportunity, the reality is much different. “Here, we don’t have a Little Portugal, we don’t have the spaces where people congregate. [It’s] not like in Toronto, Hamilton, Winnipeg or Vancouver where there is more presence. For us, it’s festa to festa. I think if you’re not as strong-willed, it is really hard. I think it takes more work to get it done here because of the numbers. We have to put in a bit more effort. We are a bit detached. Even flying home, it’s three times the price because you first have to get to Toronto. If I lived in Toronto, I would go every year. That’s a barrier as well,” Jason Arruda said.

Although immersion into the general cultural tends to distance some from our heritage and hinder community engagement, it often becomes an unavoidable burden that carries other social and professional benefits. Unlike in other major urban centres across Canada, such as in Toronto where challenges related to education that include a significant number of high school dropouts and low enrollment in post-secondary institutions, the Portuguese community of Victoria enjoys a somewhat different reality. According to Jason Arruda, most of the people he knows, especially those who are part of the younger generation of Luso-Canadians, do enroll in university or pursue the trades: “Without having a look at the numbers, my impression is that everybody finished high school and it’s 50/50 going to university and going into trades, sales, landscaping, and construction. I’ve got a masters degree, I have colleagues who are highly skilled and highly educated. In Victoria, interestingly enough, we have a large number of men who work for the municipality, landscaping, mason work and construction. I know quite a few who work in government. There are lots of hairdressers, social care service [workers] and plenty of accountants, lawyers, etc…”

The Portuguese community of Victoria is currently facing challenges that may eventually threaten its integrity. Factors like isolation from other localities and quicker integration into the general community are ever more salient. Those who lose interest or do not possess the motivation to engage in community life will slowly become unacquainted and disinterested. However, forgotten love and pride are emotions that can easily resurface through lived experiences or influences and, against many odds, they often contribute to unexpected developments.

“I look to highlight Portuguese-Canadian excellence and there’s not a day that goes by I don’t mention something Portuguese. It’s just natural and I don’t even try. It’s very difficult to divorce myself from who I am. I have the Portuguese-Canadian work ethic. When there is a challenge, you get all of me. It’s part of my every day. I wear it as a badge of honour,” Jason Arruda proudly stated.

Jason Arruda’s experience may not reflect that of other Luso-Canadians who reside in Victoria, but he does represent a segment of the population that is concerned with the disintegration of our community here. The good news is that his passion, pride and commitment make him part of a new and exciting movement toward the preservation of our heritage in this part of Canada.

If you find any errors or omissions, please send your concerns to contact@lusocanada.com

Let’s write History together! Please contribute your story, experience, memory, photo or video relating to this organization and/or the community with which it is associated. Send to contact@lusocanada.com