Collecting the stories of our legacy
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Il Nostro Lascito | Our Legacy Project was begun by the LNFI Heritage Committee of the Kelowna Canadian Italian Club to capture the stories of Italian contribution to Kelowna and the surrounding communities. This rich legacy of contribution goes back almost 140 years, to the arrival in 1883 of Giovanni Casorso at the Oblate Immaculate Conception Mission - now known as the Father Pandosy Mission. Our goal was to hear the story of the contribution first hand from the immigrants and descendants of immigrants who lived these stories.
If you would like to stay up to date with Il Nostro Lascito | Our Legacy Project, please email us at [email protected] and we will add your name to our private mailing list. |
Meet our first families
For the past 5 years, Don Rampone has been collecting stories of the first Italian Families to come to Kelowna. See them all here.
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LEGACY VIDEOS NOW AVAILABLE
FULL LENGTH FEATURES
Our full-length documentary about the Casorso Family is now available to buy or rent online.
SHORT FEATURETTES (AVAILABLE ON YOUTUBE)
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A 13:20 Introductory Video to the Project, available to watch in up to 4K resolution
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A 9:57 video where we find two beautiful rock ovens by Belgo dam
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A 12:53 video on the Italian craft of Terrazzo and tracking down the last local examples.
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Il Nostro Lascito | Our Legacy Project is an ongoing one. We will continue to record the stories of our Italian Community and will package these in multiple ways so they can be shared with the public, both through our own channels and the partnerships we have formed with our Community Partners. We will share current stories in progress and provide a platform for interaction with the community so that we can collaboratively shape the stories we will tell in the future.
Supported in part by a City of Kelowna Cultural Grant
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This project was funded in part by Heritage BC
through the Heritage Legacy Fund |
OUR STORIES
THE MANY FACES OF OUR LEGACY
The first goal of our project is to gather stories of all kinds through first hand interviews, experiences and mementoes that together create a mosaic of the Italian contribution to Kelowna and the Central Okanagan. Then, this material will be edited into a number of video short features and vignettes which will be shared with the community both through our own channels and those of our community partners.
PERSONAL STORIESThe foundation of this project is to capture the experiences and history of those who have lived these stories. Whether our interviewees immigrated themselves or are descended from immigrants, they all have contributed to the Legacy.
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historic STORIESAs we gather this material, it will also naturally follow certain historically relevant themes. We will also produce features exploring these themes.
Future topics we are exploring include contributions to the Wine Industry, the Italian Experience during WWII and the role of Italians in the early development of agriculture. |
CULTURAL STORIESWe also want to chronicle the experience of those that bridged two very different cultures in two very different worlds: the one they left behind and the one they found here. What did they lose by immigrating to Canada and, more importantly, what did we as a community gain from what they brought with them?
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OUR production plans
how our project is funded
The Our Legacy project has been funded by community partners such as Heritage BC, The City of Kelowna, The Kelowna Museums Society, The Okanagan Historical Society and the Kelowna and District Genealogical Society. These partners allowed us to produce our first full length documentary: The Casorsos: La Prima Famiglia. With the release of that video (now available to buy or rent online) we will use all proceeds to continue the project.
All work done on the videos is done by volunteers, but we do have production costs for things like equipment rentals, subscriptions to music and stock video libraries, editing software, the purchase of archival images and other expenses. All proceeds from any screenings, rentals or purchases goes towards these costs so we can continue to produce future videos highlighting the Italian stories of the Okanagan.
All work done on the videos is done by volunteers, but we do have production costs for things like equipment rentals, subscriptions to music and stock video libraries, editing software, the purchase of archival images and other expenses. All proceeds from any screenings, rentals or purchases goes towards these costs so we can continue to produce future videos highlighting the Italian stories of the Okanagan.
Our 2024 Production scheduleIn 2024, we'll be working on two new videos:
la storia di due club : The Tale of Two Clubs Our current Club is not the first to be formed in Kelowna. Back in the 1930's, the Italians in the Okanagan Mission formed their own club. This video will tell the story of that Club and why it was forced to shut down with the outbreak of World War II. Then we tell the story of the current club: why it was formed in 1966, why it was important, how it has played a major role for the Italian community of Kelowna and what the future might hold. I forni di roccia dell'Okanagan : The Rock Ovens of the Okanagan They still stand as a silent testament to the men who built the foundations of the Okanagan Valley, those rock ovens sprinkled along the route of the Kettle Valley Railway and by irrigation dam work camps. Who were these men that built and used them? We take a personal journey with Don Rampone and Simone Blais, who both had ancestors who worked in these camps. Featuring interviews with Barrie Sanford, Wayne Wilson, Maurice Williams, Ian Pooley and others. |
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PROJECT PARTNERS
COMMUNITY HELPING COMMUNITY
Il Nostro Lascito Project is made possible through the support of our Community partners. Production costs are kept to a minimum through the contribution of our volunteer production team but funding is required to allow the project to continue to collect these vitally important stories and experiences.
If you would like more information on how you can help support Il Nostro Lascito Project, either as an individual or corporation, please contact us at [email protected].
If you would like more information on how you can help support Il Nostro Lascito Project, either as an individual or corporation, please contact us at [email protected].
THE KELOWNA CANADIAN ITALIAN CLUB WOULD LIKE TO THANK THESE COMMUNITY PARTNERS FOR THEIR SUPPORT
The City of Kelowna is supporting Il Nostro Lascito Project in part through a Cultural Grant.
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Il Nostro Lascito is funded in part by Heritage BC
through the Heritage Legacy Fund |
The Kelowna and District Genealogical Society is a financial supporter of Il Nostro Lascito
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The Kelowna Museums Society is a vital partner in helping us tell our stories and is also a financial supporter of Il Nostro Lascito.
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The Okanagan Historical Society is supporting Il Nostro Lascito through a Grant
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Il Nostro Lascito and the Kelowna Canadian Italian Club are proud to be members of ICAP
THE ITALIAN-CANADIAN ARCHIVES PROJECT
A national network and registered charity. Securing the Italian-Canadian contribution to Canada's narrative, past and present.
A national network and registered charity. Securing the Italian-Canadian contribution to Canada's narrative, past and present.