the Chinatown Foundation's ini-
tiatives. There's the Chinatown
Cocktail Showdown, a tasting
event that brought together
eight local restaurants and bars
for a high-spirited competition.
There's Light Up Chinatown, a
free summer festival that brings
over 10,000 attendees to the
neighbourhood. There's the
Chinatown Storytelling Cen-
tre, a cultural hub for sharing
Chinese Canadian history and
hosting events like movie nights
and art tutorials. There's the
Chinatown Impact Fund, which
aided over 100 small businesses
last year through support rang-
ing from upgrading storefront
awnings to boosting online mar-
keting. The impact of the work
that Lee has done is impossible
to quantify, but essential to
inspire: when the challenges
the neighbourhood faces feel
overwhelming, Lee says, it is
those past achievements, no
matter how small, that keep her
going. "I think progress in itself
is what motivates me... there's
lots of setbacks, all the time, but
I feel very lucky," she says.
Lee notes how grateful she
is for her team, too—the hard-
working, instrumental staff
at the foundation, of course,
but also all of the business
owners, industry leaders and
activists she has worked with
over the years. It's a team
of ambitious, dedicated indi-
viduals who care about their
neighbours: the kind of team
that welcomes new recruits.
"What we do at the Chinatown
Foundation is rooted in com-
munity," says Lee, "and we're
driven by a deep sense of hope
for the future."–A.H.
55
B C B U S I N E S S . C A
J U N E 2 0 2 5
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There's always something to celebrate!
and we love celebrating!
There's always something to celebrate!
and we love celebrating!
There's always something to celebrate!
and we love celebrating!
There's always something to celebrate!
and we love celebrating!
Truffles_third.indd 1 12/13/22 9:47 AM
