Past Events

The Canadian Club Of Victoria Spring Arts & Culture Event

Members and guests of The Canadian Club of Victoria were treated to a wonderful evening of food provided by the culinary team at the Uplands Golf Course and song by some members of the Gettin' Higher Choir.

About the Gettin’ Higher Choir

The Gettin’ Higher Choir seeks to embrace and celebrate humanity’s highest aspirations through music, welcoming people of all ages and backgrounds. We are not associated with any particular religion or spiritual path.

Our aim is to re-integrate singing into the daily routines of life. We sing for the pure joy and pleasure it gives us, in an atmosphere that is fun, relaxed, and accepting. Our repertoire consists of both traditional and new songs from many cultures. The majority are sung a cappella (unaccompanied voices only) in 4-part harmony.

Wednesday, April 17th. 2024

Uplands Golf Course

Captain Roger Williams - BC Coast Pilots

Speaker: Captain Roger Williams - BC Coast Pilots

If you've ever walked along Dallas Rd. or the Ogden Point break water, you will have seen the Victoria base for the Coast Pilot boats that safely transition all commercial marine traffic plying the waters of southern British Columbia. Join us as Captain Roger Williams explains this fascinating service that has existed from the early 1800's to present day.

"It's 2 AM , you have just safely made the jump from the pilot boat onto the pilot ladder and started the long climb to the ship rail 9 meters above you. The pilot boat backs away and observes as you make the climb just in case something happens. The ship is headed from the Victoria pilot station to Vancouver to load grain headed for Asia. Once on the bridge, with ship head steadying up on an easterly course you greet the captain and officers and begin the process of taking over the watch for the 6-8 hour trip to Vancouver". A day in the life of a pilot.

Tuesday, March 19th. 2024

Hotel Grand Pacific

Charlayne Thornton-Joe, Victoria Chinese Canadian Museum and Lunch

Speaker: Charlayne Thornton-Joe - Victoria Chinese Canadian Museum

The February luncheon event included a tour of the Chinatown Museum in Fan Tan Alley and luncheon at the Fountain Restaurant in Blanshard Square at the corner of Hillside and Blanshard St. Charlayne Thornton-Joe, former Victoria city councillor for many years, will be our guide at the Museum in the oldest Chinatown in Canada. 

Tuesday, February 20th. 2024

Victoria Chinese Canadian Museum - Fan Tan Alley, Chinatown

Michael Warren, Looking at the value in the Canadian Art Market

Speaker: Michael Warren - Madrona Gallery

Michael discussed the many aspects of the Canadian Art market and what is or how to value original artwork.

Tuesday, January 16th. 2024

Hotel Grand Pacific

110th Annual Christmas Tea 

The 110th Annual Traditional, Canadian Club of Victoria Christmas Tea

Monday, December 4th. 2023

The Fairmont Empress Hotel, Crystal Ballroom

Dr. Andrew Weaver:  Advancing climate policy in a polarizing

Image result for andrew weaver

Speaker: Dr. Andrew Weaver:  Advancing climate policy in a polarizing world.

Tuesday, November 21st. 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific

 

Geoff Wilmshurst, How can the Canada-China relationship be repaired?

 

Speaker: Geoff Wilmshurst: How can the Canada-China relationship be repaired?

Tuesday, October 17th. 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific

 
 

Dr. Rene' Weir, Deadly Infectious Diseases

Speaker: Dr. Rene' Weir: Deadly infectious diseases with Historical reference to smallpox, Black plaque, TB and measles

Tuesday, September 19th. 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific

 
 

Christine Lapointe, The Opioid Crisis

Speaker: Christine Lapointe, The Opioid Crisis: What can be Done?

The Chief Coroner of BC will assess this continuing deadly crisis affecting predominantly our younger population.

Tuesday, June 13th. 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific

 
 

Shachi Kurl, The Future of the Monarchy

 

Speaker: Shachi Kurl, President, Angus Reid Institute. The Future of the Monarchy

"The Crown" may be a smash hit on Netflix, but can the same be said for the Monarchy in Canada? Will a British royalty figure still head our state by 2067?

Tuesday, May 26th. 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific

 
 

Dinner & Culture Event, Uplands Golf Course

The Canadian Club of Victoria, members and guests will have an opportunity to be treated to a potpourri of vignettes in song and dance by the young Sidney based troop called, Mountain Dream Productions.

Come and enjoy our Annual Spring Arts & Culture evening at the Uplands Golf Club while savoring a delicious dinner and being entertained by Mountain Dream Productions. We guarantee you will be entertained by this heart warming, talented, youthful troop.

Wednesday, April 19th. 2023

Uplands Golf course

 

 
 

 

 
 

 

 

Jim Kingham, Solutions for a Wounded Planet

Guest Speaker: Jim Kingham, Solutions for a Wounded Planet.

Ever wondered what the biggest threat is to the environment?
The answer is more complex than you might imagine, and the solution is closer at hand than it might first appear.

Tuesday, March 21st. 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific

 

 

 

 
 
 
 

Dr. Tyrone Woods, Recent Adventures in Astronomy

Guest Speaker: Dr. Tyrone Woods, Recent Adventures in Astronomy

The early Universe, the search for life, and how Canada's contributions to the James Webb Space Telescope will help answer fundamental questions about both.

Tuesday February 21st. 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific

 

 

 

 

 
 

 
 
 
 
 

Dr. Kevin Hall, UVic and the Community: Partnering for Positive Change

Speaker, Dr. Kevin Hall, President UVic, Partnering for Positive Change.

Rapid social, economic, environmental and technological change require imaginative thinking and productive partnerships.

Tuesday, January 17th, 2023

Hotel Grand Pacific
 

 
 
109th Traditional Christmas Tea at the Fairmont Empress Hotel

The 109th year of this Canadian Club's tradition celebrates the occasion to launch your festive holiday season with family and friends in the historic Crystal Ballroom.

 
 Monday December 5, 2022 11:45 am 

Empress Hotel, Victoria.

 
 
Dr. Ed Nissen

Earthquakes and Tsunamis - "Know Your Faults: Earthquake and Tsunami Hazards of coastal BC"

 
Tuesday February 15, 2022 11:45 am 

Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria.

 
 
Retired Colonel Jamie Hammond

Afghanistan 20 years on: What does it mean for Canadians?

 
Tuesday February 22, 11:45 am 

Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria.

 
 

The presentation will bring the audience up to date on the developments since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in August 2021 and reflect on the nature of Canadian involvement in conflict zones around the world.  Was the sacrifice in Afghanistan worthwhile? What do we do now? And more importantly, what lessons should engaged Canadians take from the experience in Afghanistan?

Club member and retired Colonel Jamie Hammond will provide a thoughtful and engaging presentation based on his 28-year military career including multiple tours in Afghanistan at the start and end of Canada's combat operations as well as academic study through his current PhD work at the University of Victoria.
 

 

 

 

Guest Speaker:  Lisa Helps
Join Club members and friends for lunch at the Hotel Grand Pacific and a talk by City of Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps on Wednesday, June 22.  Mayor Helps was elected as a Councillor in 2011 and has served as Mayor since 2014.  In her talk, ‘Looking Back and Looking Ahead – Eight Years in Review’, she will reflect on this period and her role in helping to shape it.

In her blog post about her 2014 election platform, she says “enhancing our community’s individual and collective health and well-being is at the heart of what we need to do together over the next four years. And we also need to get ready for the future, future-proofing the city in terms of affordability, climate change readiness and the ability to work together across difference to rise to all the challenges that face us.

We also need to take a more global perspective and draw on solutions from cities around the world. To this end, part of the inspiration for the next four years comes from the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and in particular, Goal #11 Sustainable Cities and Communities. A key principle of the United Nations’ SDGs is that they’re inclusive of everyone – no one is left behind.”

 
 
 

 

 

 

Guest Speaker: Dr. Val Napoleon

Possibilities and Hopes for Indigenous Law

Tuesday March 15, 11:45 am at the

Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria.

 

What are the possibilities in the future for Indigenous law in the world – as law? Dr. Val Napoleon, Acting Dean and Professor, and Law Foundation Chair in Indigenous Justice and Governance, will speak on how the new field of Indigenous law in Canada and elsewhere in the world has been one of constant change and growth, of innovation and challenge. Through the futuristic looking glass, various catalysts and forces have contributed to the building of a strong foundation for a multijuridical Canada.  While we can look back to the contributing factors for Indigenous law in Canada today, can we turn to the future to imagine Indigenous law in the world – as law?
 

 
 
 

What are the possibilities in the future for Indigenous law in the world – as law? Dr. Val Napoleon, Acting Dean and Professor, and Law Foundation Chair in Indigenous Justice and Governance, will speak on how the new field of Indigenous law in Canada and elsewhere in the world has been one of constant change and growth, of innovation and challenge. Through the futuristic looking glass, various catalysts and forces have contributed to the building of a strong foundation for a multijuridical Canada.  While we can look back to the contributing factors for Indigenous law in Canada today, can we turn to the future to imagine Indigenous law in the world – as law?
 
 

 

 

 

 

Guest Speaker:  Cathleen Converse
Tuesday May 24, 11:45 am at the 

Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria.
The presentation by Cathleen Converse a #1 best-selling and award-winning author, will describe the fascinating and remarkable life of the renowned Agnes Deans Cameron—a trailblazer in the early days of educational standards in British Columbia, a bold and undaunted traveller, and one of the most well-known writers of her time. Now, over a hundred years later, her life and accomplishments have been brought to light in this comprehensive biography of an outstanding woman presented by guest speaker Cathleen Converse.

 

 

 

Bob McDonald, 

 “A Green Guide to the Future” 

Grand Pacific Hotel 

 Tuesday September 21 at 11:45 am.

 

 

The Canadian Club of Victoria is launching its luncheon speaker series of 2021-22 featuring guest speaker Bob McDonald, celebrated Canadian science correspondent and host of Quirks & Quarks, the award-winning science program that is heard by 500,000 people each week. He has written and hosted numerous television documentaries and more than 100 educational videos in Canada and the United States, authored five bestselling science books, and contributed to numerous textbooks magazines, and newspapers including the Globe and Mail. His latest book, a Canadian Bestseller, is An Earthling’s Guide to Space: Everything you wanted to know about black holes, dwarf stars, aliens and much more.   Recipient of multiple awards and recognition including the Order of Canada and the Queen’s Jubilee Medal among others.

Xmas Tea

 

 

Christmas Tea at the Empress

A Yuletide Celebration
Monday, December 6, at 2:00 pm
The Ball Room of the Fairmont Empress Hotel
Our 108th ‘Christmas Tea at the Empress’ takes place on Monday, December 6, at 2:00 pm in the Ball Room of the Fairmont Empress Hotel. We can proudly boast this event as most probably the longest continuously running social event in the history of the City of Victoria!

Join us and bring your friends to Deck the Halls and launch the season’s spirit. Let’s celebrate this century old tradition by savouring all the delicate tastes of the food, the choristers singing, the prizes to be won, and an opportunity to contribute to our Irene McDonald Memorial Bursary Fund at Camosun College. Good cheer will be guaranteed in abundance.

All Covid protocols will be in place for your health concerns.
Transforming the lives of women and girls
Tuesday October 19, 11:45 am at the Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria.
  Join us at our next Canadian Club of Victoria luncheon with Nurjehan Mawani, our guest speaker and champion of justice, gender equity, and diversity.  She will share her deep insights on how the lives of women and girls can be transformed through inclusive and equitable development.

Nurjehan has spent the last 15 years in Central Asia and Afghanistan where she served as the AKDN Diplomatic Representative to the Kyrgyz Republic and subsequently to the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. She worked tirelessly with stakeholders to ensure that women and girls' experiences and voices from both urban and rural areas were included in policy development and programme implementation.

Prior to her diplomatic role, Nurjehan has had a long and distinguished career with the Canadian Public Service. She served as Chairperson of the Immigration and Refugee Board where in 1994 she issued the ground breaking report Guidelines on Gender-Related Persecution.  This took into account the unique ways in which women experience violence and conflict. She also served as Commissioner of the Public Service Commission and Senior Advisor on Diversity to the Canada School of Public Service and the Clerk of the Privy Council.

Nurjehan has received numerous awards for her contribution to public service and advancing gender equity including the YWCA Vancouver Woman of Distinction award, the UNIFEM Canada award for innovative leadership in refugee determination, and the Outstanding Achievement Award of the Public Service of Canada. She is a member of the Order of Canada and has received honorary doctorates from the University of Ottawa and the American University of Afghanistan. Simon Fraser University will award her an honorary doctorate at its convocation in October.
Science, Hope and Clinical Reality:  How close are we to a cure for diabetes?
Tuesday November 16, 11:45 am at the Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria.
 

We are excited to announce our November speaker, Lisa Hepner.  Lisa is an award-winning documentary filmmaker who will speak to us about the search for a cure for diabetes.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin by Canadian doctor Frederick Banting.  Her presentation, “Science, Hope and Clinical Reality:  How close are we to a cure for diabetes?” will describe what it takes to push medical innovation forward.

Each year, more than 4 million people die from diabetes, waiting for that cure.  Lisa spent a decade making a film about this quest to end this invisible yet life-threatening disease.  This work gave her a window into the passion and sacrifice poured into breakthrough research, she says

Lisa and her cinematographer husband, Guy Mossman, started following a small biotech company in San Diego in 2014.   They were given real-time access to the bio-tech firm’s ground-breaking stem cell trial – only the sixth ever in the world.   The resulting documentary, ‘THE HUMAN TRIAL’, is an intimate journey with the scientists and patients who are putting their lives on the line to be first.  Lisa – whose own Type 1 diabetes fuels the search for a cure – becomes the bridge between these two worlds, painting an emotional portrait of the power of science to transform patient hope into reality.

Lisa and Guy run LA-based Vox Pop Films, a production company specializing in non-fiction content and commercials.  Over the last 25 years, Lisa has produced a variety of films and programs for Sony Pictures Classics, HBO, A&E, PBS, CBC and others.  In 2003, she co-directed the feature documentary, ‘WOMEN ON THE FRONTLINES’.  Shot in Afghanistan, Argentina, Burundi, Bosnia-Herzegovina and the US, the documentary profiles the unheralded work of women peacebuilders.  The film premiered at the UN in 2003 and aired on PBS in 2004.  Lisa has lived with type 1 diabetes for 30 years and vividly remembers her esteemed professor at the University of Toronto, Michael Bliss, explaining the complicated story behind the discovery of insulin

2020

Pearson College
United World College

Luncheon Tyrone (Ty) Pile, Interim President & Head of College
Tuesday February 18 

 

Tyrone Pyle and Susan Haddon

 

Lester B. Pearson

 

 

 

Thomas Williams and Tyrone Pyle

For a rare international “good news” story to brighten your February, we learnt how a small college in Metchosin is making a huge difference to the world.  Founded in 1974, Pearson is a United World College, where some 200 students from 90 countries live, study and grow together in a transformational environment.   

Eighteen United World Colleges around the world share a mission to “make education a force to unite people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future.”  For nearly five decades, thousands of Pearson graduates have carried this message from Metchosin to every corner of the globe, inspiring change in their communities.

 

A History of Victoria’s Chinatown Wednesday January 22

Luncheon with guest speaker Charlayne Thornton-Joe

What better way to launch a new decade than delving into the history of Canada’s oldest Chinatown?  Victoria councillor Charlayne Thornton-Joe brought personal insight into a review of the fascinating historical development of Victoria’s Chinatown. A third-generation Victorian who has a “passion for serving people,” Thornton-Joe has earned many awards for her service to community.

 

Hope Matters
"How changing the way we think is critical to solving environmental crisis"

Tuesday November 17

Zoom meeting with Elin Kelsey
View the slides from Elin's presentation here

 

2019

Click the box below to see the photos of our Christmas Tea at the Empress

 

2018

HeroWork: A Shining Example of Community Spirit
Tuesday November 20

We had a luncheon with special guest speaker Peter Smither of HeroWork.
HeroWork harnesses the power of community to transform lives. The organization inspires volunteers from all walks of life to donate their time and resources to charitable agencies that are often operating in dilapidated old buildings.
Peter Smither talked about the intricate planning that lies behind the success of events HeroWork calls Radical Renovations - think of modern-day barn raising – where dozens of companies and hundreds of volunteers come together in synchronized teams. In a matter of hours and days, HeroWork completes projects that would normally take weeks or months. From building trades to the Royal Canadian Navy, from retired professionals to local company teams, people across Victoria are stepping in, picking up hammers and paintbrushes, and making a huge difference to the charities that are helping the most vulnerable citizens in Victoria.

In just a few years, close to $3 million worth of non-profit renovations have transformed spaces for local charities such as the Mustard Seed Food Bank, Anawim House homeless shelter, Threshold housing for youth, and Casa Maria housing for refugees.

HeroWork provides a shining example of how much can be done, when people work together with common vision and good planning.

Remembrance Day Ceremony
Sunday, November 10, 2018

Club Executive member, Tom Williams, and his wife Eva Swenson laid a wreath on behalf of the Club

Inspiring Canadians
Tue, 16 October 2018

“Counting What Counts: The Genuine Progress Indicator”

Our luncheon  special guest speaker was Mike Pennock
For decades, economists have used GDP (or Gross Domestic Product) as a general indicator of national development. Today, many believe GDP alone fails to tell the whole story of a nation’s well-being
Mike Pennock  described a number of new approaches to holistic measures of national progress, with a focus on the GPI (or Genuine Progress Indicator).
Mike Pennock retired in October 2016 from his position as the Provincial Epidemiologist in the BC Ministry of Health. During his forty-year career, Mike worked as the Population Health Epidemiologist at VIHA, was Research Director of the Population Health Research Unit at Dalhousie University and was Executive Director of the Social Planning and Research Council of Hamilton-Wentworth.
He became involved in the issue of the measurement of progress in 2006 when he and his wife, Martha, were recruited to spend three months in the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan to lead the development of a survey measure for the Bhutanese concept of Gross National Happiness. They remained involved in the topic through their participation in a number of international conferences over the years.

Inspiring Canadians
 Thursday September 20

Daniel Lapp

The Canadian Club of Victoria’s 2018/2019 luncheon series  got off to an uplifting start with special guest speaker Daniel Lapp. A world-renowned musician, Daniel Lapp is beloved in Victoria for his trademark energy and warmth. As a fiddler, jazz trumpeter and singer/songwriter, he has played on over 100 albums and has performed across Canada and around the world.

A legendary force in Canada’s fiddle scene, in 2014 he was appointed as the inaugural Artistic Director of the Victoria Conservatory of Music’s new Chwyl Family School of Contemporary Music.

Victoria World Partnership Walk 2018
Sunday May 27

Victoria World Partnership Walk 2018, led by President Susan Haddon

The upcoming Columbia River Treaty negotiations: What do they mean for Canada and the U.S.
Tuesday May 15

Hon. Katrine Conroy, Minister of Children and Family Development and Minister responsible for the Columbia Basin Trust, Columbia Power Corporation and Columbia River Treaty

The Art and Heart of Documentary Film making
Wednesday April 18

Suzanne Chisholm and Michael Parfit

“Living in the Anthropocene – How do we get to a One Planet Region?”

Tuesday, March 20 2018

Dr. Trevor Hancock, professor and senior scholar at the University of Victoria’s school of public health and social policy

The Canadian Museum for Human Rights:
“A STORY AND A BUILDING"
Tuesday,February 20  2018

Speaker Brian Head, volunteer at the Canadian Museum for Human Rights

Murray Rankin, Victoria MP and member of the CCV, thanking speaker Brian Head

Housing First
Mayor Lisa Helps and Our Place Director Don Evans
Tuesday, January, 16, 2018

CCV President Susan Haddon and Don Evans

Lisa Helps and CCV President Susan Haddon

2017

Christmas Tea at the Empress
Monday, December 5, 2017

Canadian Club Bursary winner Amanda Zutz  with Russ Lazaruk, Chair of the Camosun Foundation Board.

Canadian Club Bursary winner Jackie Sadler with Russ Lazaruk, Chair of the Camosun Foundation Board

"A Garden of Mariposie" Stories by and about Stephen Leacock
Leslie Robbins-Conway and Paul Conway of Voyageur Storytelling
Tuesday, November 21, 2017

Public Policy Issues facing the West: Then and Now
Martha Hall Findlay, President and CEO, Canada West Foundation
Tuesday October 17, 2017

Bravo!
Maestro Timothy Vernon, OC
Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Brexit, Trump and Populism:
Where will it all end? ~ David Stocks
Tuesday, June 20, 2017

View a video of the presentation

World Partnership Walk Against Poverty

Sunday, May 28, 2017

The Victoria Hand Project: Making a World of Difference ~Nick Dechev, Ph.D.
Tuesday, 16 May, 2017

Uplands Golf Club Dinner and Cultural Evening with the “Oliphant” Quintet
Wednesday, 19 April, 2017

OLIPHANT

The Trump Era: Barking Up the Wrong Tree ~ A Lecture by Gwynne Dyer
Tuesday, March 21,2017
Dr Gwynne Dyer, celebrated journalist and author

Canada and the United Nations
Tuesday, February 21, 2017
Nigel Fisher, O.C, O.Ont, M.S.C., M.A., LL.D.
Adjunct Assistant Professor,
University of Victoria

Earthquake Preparedness:
Learning from Christchurch, NZ
Tuesday, January 17, 2017
Rajpreet Sall and Tanya Patterson
Emergency Management, City of Victoria

2016

Christmas Tea
Fairmont Empress Hotel
Monday, December 5, 2016
Special Guest: Her Honour Lieutenant Governor Judith Guichon, OBC
Seasonal Entertainment - Oak Bay High School Choir

Electoral Reform
Tuesday, November 8, 2016
Murray Rankin, MP Victoria

Wellness Matters: a Dialogue on Connection, Belonging and the Power of Well-Being
Victoria Conference Centre
Wednesday, October 12, 2016
Victoria Mayor Lisa Helps, Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi, and Khalil Shariff, CEO, Aga Khan Foundation, Canada

Understanding the US Election: Making Sense of the Electoral College and Process
Tuesday, September 20, 2016
Dr. Janni Aragon - Adjunct Assistant Professor Political Science and Technology and Society Program, University of Victoria

Making a Difference: A Canadian in Malawi
Tuesday, June 21, 2016
Christie Johnson, Lester Pearson College / Activist
Annual General Meeting

Ocean Networks Canada
Tuesday, May 17, 2016
Bob Crosby
University of Victoria

Uplands Golf Club Dinner and Cultural Evening
Wednesday, April 20, 2016
Author Anny Scoones and Artist Robert Amos, collaborators on
Hometown: Out and About in Victoria's Neighbourhoods

Assisted Suicide: Impact On Medical Professionals
Tuesday, March 15, 2016
Dr. Chris Pengally
Retired Family Physician

The Truth and Reconciliation Report: What Now?
Tuesday, February 16, 2016
Ms. Louise Mandell, QC LLD (hon)
Chancellor Vancouver Island University

Canada's Role in Combating Global Corruption
Tuesday, January 19, 2016
The Hon. Roy Cullen, PC CA
Author and Former Federal MP

2015

Christmas Tea
Fairmont Empress Hotel
Monday, December 7, 2015
Special Guest: Her Honour Lieutenant Governor Judith Guichon
Entertainment: Sooke String Quartet

Microcredit: An Agent for Change?
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Jo Jamieson and Vu Ndlovu

Impact Of Middle-Eastern Politics on Canada
Tuesday, October 20, 2015
Dr. Andrew Wender
Professor, University of Victoria History Department

Harperism
Donald Gutstein
Adjunct Professor, Simon Fraser School of Communication
Author of the book Harperism
Tuesday, September 15, 2015

Science, Hope and Clinical Reality:  How close are we to a cure for diabetes?
Tuesday November 16, 11:45 am at the Grand Pacific Hotel, Victoria.
 

We are excited to announce our November speaker, Lisa Hepner.  Lisa is an award-winning documentary filmmaker who will speak to us about the search for a cure for diabetes.

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the discovery of insulin by Canadian doctor Frederick Banting.  Her presentation, “Science, Hope and Clinical Reality:  How close are we to a cure for diabetes?” will describe what it takes to push medical innovation forward.

Each year, more than 4 million people die from diabetes, waiting for that cure.  Lisa spent a decade making a film about this quest to end this invisible yet life-threatening disease.  This work gave her a window into the passion and sacrifice poured into breakthrough research, she says

Lisa and her cinematographer husband, Guy Mossman, started following a small biotech company in San Diego in 2014.   They were given real-time access to the bio-tech firm’s ground-breaking stem cell trial – only the sixth ever in the world.   The resulting documentary, ‘THE HUMAN TRIAL’, is an intimate journey with the scientists and patients who are putting their lives on the line to be first.  Lisa – whose own Type 1 diabetes fuels the search for a cure – becomes the bridge between these two worlds, painting an emotional portrait of the power of science to transform patient hope into reality.

Lisa and Guy run LA-based Vox Pop Films, a production company specializing in non-fiction content and commercials.  Over the last 25 years, Lisa has produced a variety of films and programs for Sony Pictures Classics, HBO, A&E, PBS, CBC and others.  In 2003, she co-directed the feature documentary, ‘WOMEN ON THE FRONTLINES’.  Shot in Afghanistan, Argentina, Burundi, Bosnia-Herzegovina and the US, the documentary profiles the unheralded work of women peacebuilders.  The film premiered at the UN in 2003 and aired on PBS in 2004.  Lisa has lived with type 1 diabetes for 30 years and vividly remembers her esteemed professor at the University of Toronto, Michael Bliss, explaining the complicated story behind the discovery of insulin
Christmas Tea at the Empress

A Yuletide Celebration
Monday, December 6, at 2:00 pm
The Ball Room of the Fairmont Empress Hotel
Our 108th ‘Christmas Tea at the Empress’ takes place on Monday, December 6, at 2:00 pm in the Ball Room of the Fairmont Empress Hotel. We can proudly boast this event as most probably the longest continuously running social event in the history of the City of Victoria!

Join us and bring your friends to Deck the Halls and launch the season’s spirit. Let’s celebrate this century old tradition by savouring all the delicate tastes of the food, the choristers singing, the prizes to be won, and an opportunity to contribute to our Irene McDonald Memorial Bursary Fund at Camosun College. Good cheer will be guaranteed in abundance.