Date Range

1950-2008

Description Level

Fonds

Creator

Lethbridge Honpa Buddhist Church

Physical Description

44 cm of textual records; 10 collage photo prints

History Biographical

"The Lethbridge Honpa Buddhist Temple was formed in January, 1966 and the first service was held in a school in February, 1966. Rev. Leslie Kawamura was the first minister. Construction of the actual temple began in fall 1970 and the first service was held while the building was under construction on January 1, 1971. The dedication was held August 1, 1971, conducted by Rev. Yutestsu Kawamura from Kauai Temple in Hawaii, with special guest minister Rev. G. Kubose of Chicago. The church membership started with thirteen families in 1966 and grew to over one hundred members by 1997..." Over the years the congregation came together in several fund raising projects. Rose packing for a local wholesaler was among the first. In the first year the members raised about $850 in two weeks. In subsequent years, the 'rose project' came to involve packing roses and mixing the soil and peat moss the plants were packed in. Seniors worked on the project during the day, and people with paid jobs and their families came out in the evenings and weekends. Thinning sugar beets was another fund raising effort of the members of the Lethbridge Honpa Buddhist Church. Proceeds from that work went to the church's building fund. Other fund raising projects included topping baby carrots, and providing stand-in actors for a movie titled "Pure Escape". The annual chow mein supper, started in 1967, was another successful money raiser. "By the 1990's it was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain membership in the temple ... In 2003 the President's report to the AGM [annual general meeting] included the following: 'The combination of declining membership in southern Alberta requires that the southern Alberta Sangha must grow to continue to support the existing membership. It is my view that this can only happen if there is a vibrant Sangha that will accept anyone adhering to the purpose and affiliation of the Society'. Thus will only happen if the Sangha has a solid base in a single building and a congregation that welcomes all new members according to the Eightfold Path and encourages them to learn about Buddhism. Accomplishing this will require profound changes, including the merger of the Lethbridge and Honpa Buddhist Temples.' In May 2004, with the support of the membership, David Major wrote a letter to the Lethbridge Buddhist Association president Dr. Akira Ichikawa, proposing that the two temples strike a steering committee to discuss the challenges and solutions of amalgamating our memberships. This proposal was carried forward to the Buddhist Association of Alberta which struck a Temple Steering Committee with the idea of including Raymond, Taber and Coaldale in the discussion of amalgamation. The BFA moved slowly toward resolving this issue culminating in a 'town hall' meeting on November 26.2005 at which a recommendation to send a secret ballot to every member of every temple asking if he / she felt that amalgamation should take place. This referendum took place in early 2006 and support at each temple was in excess of 80%. Eventually, the inaugural meeting of the Buddhist Temple of Southern Alberta (BTSA) took place in December 2006. Thus the Lethbridge Honpa Buddhist Temple came to an end at the beginning of 2007." {Source: "Lethbridge Honpa Buddhist Church Closing Service September 21, 2008", by David Major]

Acquisition Source

Buddhist Temple of Southern Alberta

Scope and Content

01 Minute Book, Bylaws, 1950-1969 02 Minute Book, Financial Statements Part 1/2, 1987-1996 03 Miunte Book, Financial Statements Part 2/2, 1987-1996 04 Financial Statements, 1966-1994 05 Correspondence, Financial Records, 1967-1983 06 Articles of Dissolution, 2000 07 Correspondence, 1965-1971 08 Newspaper articles, Newsletters, Photographs (2), 2004-2008 09 Constitutions, Bylaws, 1955-1979 10 Alberta Buddhist Conference Notes Part 1/3, 1980-1985 11 Alberta Buddhist Conference Notes Part 2/3, 1980-1985 12 Alberta Buddhist Conference Notes Part 3/3, 1980-1985 13 Correspondence, Newsletters Part 1/2, 1986-1990 14 Correspondence, Newsletters Part 1/2, 1986-1990 15 Closing Saervice Overview, Photographs (12), 2008 16 Meeting Minute Book, 1966-1974 17 Meeting Minute Book, Schedules, 1974-1980 18 Meeting Minute Book. Budget Notes, 1980-1987 19 Meeting Minutes, Agendas, Newsletters Part 1/3, 1997-2002 20 Meeting Minutes, Agendas, Newsletters Part 2/3, 1997-2002 21 Meeting Minutes, Agendas, Newsletters Part 3/3. 1997-2002 22 Taber Buddhist Church Budget Book, Calendar, 2003-2006 23 Legal Documents, 2004-2008 24 Directors Handbook, 2008 25 Agendas, Meeting Minutes, Financial Statements, Correspondence, Part 1/2, 1996-1998 26 Agendas, Meeting Minutes, Financial Statements, Correspondence, Part 1/2, 1996-1998 27-35 Agendas, minute books, correspondence, dedication booklet, newsletters 1965-2008

Accession No.

20081073

Collection

Archive

Less detail