The 18th annual Council of Ewe Associations of North America (CEANA) convention took place in Toronto, Ontario, Canada from September 2nd through September 5th 2011 at Toronto Airport Marriott, 901 Dixon Rd, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The theme for this year’s culturally filled Convention was “Empowering Women through Education”.
The convention kicked off with the arrival of delegates from the Diaspora on from Thursday, September 1, 2011. Friday September 2nd, 2011 morning started with a meeting of the Council of Representatives (COR) presided by the outgoing president of CEANA Mr. KuesiAmegah-Wovoe and the Executive Director Mr. William Adzimahe. The afternoon went on with a tour and site seeing to the Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada and the evening crowned with a cultural show by the youth group.
Saturday, September 3, 2011, started with the general convention with presentations from the guest speakers followed by a health seminar by the Canadian Cancer Society. The evening banquet and dance opened with cultural performance and welcoming of an entourage of the Paramount Chief TogbuigahNoagbey of Avate, Senu III, Mama Sebeso IV from Agotime, Mama Kwada from Avate and her chief linguist and local chiefs of North of America, The Volta Regional Minister Hon Joseph Amenorwode, Hon Mrs. Juliana Azuma Mensah, Minister of Women and Children. Among the guest was Mrs. Margaret Korto, COR members and their families. This was followed by dining and dancing at intervals along with presentations from guest speakers. The evening ended with handing over the CEANA stool and torch to the Ewe Assoc of Houston, Texas who would be the CEANA 2012 convention host.
Sunday, September 4, 2011 activities started with a well attendednon denominational church service and continued with a picnic at the Mississauga Park. After dancing, socializing and celebrating the Ewe Speaking Communities in the North America it was time to unwind from the day’s busy activities which made time for MiseGli loo.
Convention attendants returned to their various destinations on Monday September 5, 2011.
Other activities that came on during the Saturday night included fund raising for the STAR fund program to raise funds for scholarship that would extend to secondary school students in Ghana, Togo, or Benin.
In sum, the convention can be termed a success, judging from the hospitality shown us and response we’ve been getting from people across the globe. With the exception of the technical and logistical difficulties encountered during the dinner dance, all other scheduled events were a huge success. The CEANA Secretariat, COR and the Ewe Canadian Cultural Organization of Ontario (ECCOO) would like to thank the Canadian Cancer Society, all well wishers and sympathizers for their support, advice and most importantly, their confidence in our efforts to provide a better future for the Eweland.
The next CEANA Convention will be held in Houston Texas in September 2012. “Mia do go le afimafesigborna.”
