On May 8, 2010, a well-attended Bronze Plaque Dedication Ceremony was held in Cumberland to honor 31 Japanese immigrant mining families uprooted from the village in 1942 by a government-enacted War Measures Act.

Attendees of the ceremony included the following dignitaries:

Mr. Fred Bates, Mayor of Cumberland
Mr. John Duncan, Member of Parliament for North Vancouver Island
Mr. Don McRae, Member of Legislative Assembly for Comox Valley
Mr. Hideki Ito, Consul-General, Consulate General of Japan, Vancouver
Dr. Michiko (Midge) Ayukawa - Tribute to the Cherry Tree Project
Mr. Tokugi Suyama, Representative of Former Residents Ad-Hoc
Committee- Plaque unveiling
Mr. Takeo Yamashiro, Shakuhachi player

Mr. Greg Phelps, Comox Valley Regional District Chair and Mayor of Courtenay
Mr. Paul Ives, Mayor of Comox
Village of Cumberland Councillors: Mr. William (Bronco) Moncrief, Ms. Leslie Baird, Ms. Gwyn Sproule, Ms. Kate Greening
Lieutenant Colonel Mario Leblanc, CFB Comox
RCMP representative
Mr. Manabu Doi, Chair, No.1 Japanese Town Former Residents Ad-Hoc Committee
Coal Creek Historic Park Advisory Committee

Coal Creek Historic Park Committee

The ceremony followed months of preparation by volunteer members of the Coal Creek Historic Park Committee chaired by Grace Doherty. Members of the committee include Tats Aoki, Ray Iwaasa, Carol Snaden, May Gee, Marie Lowe, Lil Tosoff, John Leung, Florence Bell, Bernice Takahashi, Susan Grandfield, Josephine Peyton, Imogene Lim, Meaghan Cursons, Donna Lemay, Bernice Takahashi and others.

The CCHPC has a section here on The Cumberlander that archives all its minutes and agendas, as well as related photos, documents, videos, links, etc. Click here to view that section.

Meetings are held on the first Tuesday of every month and are open to the public. New volunteers are always welcome.

PHOTOS

See more photos from the ceremony, here.

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