THE IRISH BENEVOLENT SOCIETY OF BC: A helping hand for Irish in Vancouver since 1994

By Maura De Freitas

The Irish Benevolent Society of BC (IBSBC) is a volunteer-led non-profit society formed in Vancouver in 1994. It was set up in response to a need for short-term crisis financial support for the Irish diaspora in Metro Vancouver.

It should be mentioned that the society is a registered non-profit with the Province of British Columbia, which is different to registered charitable status under the Canada Revenue Agency. This means that the IBSBC cannot issue tax receipts for donations.

Long before the days of GoFundMe and other online fundraising initiatives, the main way to respond to a need for crucial emergency funding was through an article in The Celtic Connection newspaper. This would inform readers about the circumstances and encourage donations through the Irish Benevolent Society of BC.

These calls were generously supported as the local Irish community was small and often many were familiar with the people facing hardship. In this way, the IBSBC spearheaded numerous fundraising campaigns to meet specific emergency situations while working in close collaboration with various Irish community organizations.

Over the years, the face of the Irish in British Columbia has changed dramatically. In the mid-twentieth century it was a tight-knit community that established such cultural groups as the Sons of Erin, which eventually became the Vancouver Irish Sporting and

Social Club (ISSC), Stage Eireann, Club Ireland, a local branch of Comhaltas Ceoltóirí Éireann.

As the local demographic evolved, many previously active members retired and a number of those organizations disappeared. Then, in 1998, following the Irish economic downturn at home, a new wave of younger migrants began to arrive in Vancouver and the numbers of Irish in Metro Vancouver began to skyrocket.

This led to a resurgence in some areas such as the sporting community, which grew from a very small group with the ISSC to new heights with a wide range of GAA clubs now established across Metro Vancouver featuring both men and women’s Gaelic football teams, hurling, camogie, soccer and even a running crew.

In 2008 the IBSBC committee launched the first Irish seniors’ luncheon program in Vancouver with grant funding through the Government of Ireland’s Emigrant Support Program (ESP). They coordinated those events for seven years (2008-2014).

Those gatherings were thoroughly enjoyed and brought together an aging population who left Ireland in the Sixties and Seventies. Many described them as big house parties with familiar friends. There was singing and dancing, while other guests recited poetry or told stories and wonderful memories were revived.

The Irish senior luncheons have continued with the Irish Heritage Society initially taking over the responsibility, followed most recently by the Irish Women’s Network of BC with the Irish seniors Christmas luncheon.

In 2020 another need for the IBSBC arose with the COVID-19 pandemic. The society worked in collaboration with a new group called Irish in BC to provide an emergency food voucher program with the support of the newly established Irish Consulate in Vancouver.

Earlier that year, the IBSBC also hosted the first Brigid Festival Vancouver, again the support of the ESP grant program and local sponsorship.

Now in its fourth year, the Brigid Festival is a celebration of the creativity of Irish women, and it continues to grow from strength-to-strength, becoming the most widely recognized and largest of its kind in North America.

The IBSBC continues to fundraise throughout the year and respond to the needs of the Irish diaspora in Metro Vancouver. Learn more about the Irish Benevolent Society of BC at: irishbenevolentsocietybc.com.

by Keith Nicol