NEWS RELEASE                   

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  April 28, 2006

TLC TO PURCHASE HISTORIC JOY KOGAWA HOUSE

VANCOUVER, BC – TLC
The Land Conservancy of British Columbia announced today that it is
moving forward with the purchase of the historic Joy Kogawa House and
will prevent its demolition.

“While we still need
to raise more funds to purchase and operate the house, our ‘option to
purchase’ expires this weekend,” explained TLC Executive Director Bill Turner. “We are out of time. So TLC
has decided to step forward, and take out a mortgage if necessary, to
make sure that this important piece of our country’s heritage will not
be lost.”

Turner said that by exercising the option to purchase, it will put the future of Kogawa House under the control of TLC
and the community. This, in effect, will take away the threat of
imminent redevelopment.  The house had been the subject of a
development proposal, and a demolition permit had been requested.  The
City of Vancouver put that request on hold for three months in order to
allow TLC and the Save Kogawa House Committee the time to raise funds to purchase the property.

To date $230,000 has been raised from over 500 donors. TLC
needs $700,000 specifically to purchase the house and is seeking a
total of $1.25 million which includes funds for restoration and for an
endowment to allow the house to be used both as an educational site
addressing the issue of the internment of Canadians of Japanese
heritage during the Second World War and as a site for a
‘Writers-in-Residence’ program.

“We are confident
that, given enough time, we will be able to raise the necessary funds
for this project.  We have requests in to the City of Vancouver and to
the Government of Canada, as well as to many other potential donors,
and we remain optimistic that their support for this important project
will be forthcoming. In the meantime, TLC is prepared to take on the risk and protect the site.”

Noted Canadian
Author Joy Kogawa was overwhelmed when told the news that her childhood
home would not be demolished. “Words can’t express how much this means
to me,” she said. “This is definitely a miracle. What a wonderful new
day!”

Turner said that TLC
would be exercising the option to purchase (i.e. making the legal
commitment) this weekend, and that the purchase will close at the end
of May. During that time, TLC
needs to call on everyone who wants to help protect this important part
of our heritage to make their donation as soon as possible. Donations
can be made to TLC at (604) 733-2313 or online at www.conservancy.bc.ca.

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For further information:

TLC:    Bill Turner (250) 213-1090; bturner@conservancy.bc.ca

Heather Skydt (604) 733-2313; hskydt@conservancy.bc.ca

Save Kogawa House Committee:    Ann-Marie Metten (604) 263-6586; ametten@telus.net  

Todd Wong, (604) 987-7124; gunghaggis@yahoo.ca

KOGAWA
HOUSE is being SAVED!  It's REALLY happening!  The Land
Conservancy will purchase Kogawa House to create a Writing Centre.

It's TRUE!  It really is going to happen!

The Land Conservancy is moving forward to exercise their option to purchase Kogawa House from the owner.

Lots of happy people around the world… now to make it REALLY HAPPENING!

The Metro News called me yesterday for a comment
for a story.

Reporter Tia Able said that Bill Turner had just told her
“We're buying the house – no matter what.  It's going to happen.”

I asked her. “Did he really say that? 
Wow!!!

She
also asked why the purchase of the house was so important to me.

“Because
Obasan was the first Asian-Canadian book that made it okay for us to tell our
stories,” I explained that “as an 5th generation Chinese-Canadian, I know how
hard it was for my parents, my grand parents and my great-grandparents to find
acceptance in this country.  It was the same for the Japanese Canadians –
moreso because of the internment.

“Establishing Kogawa House as a
historical landmark for all Canadians means that we have gained acceptance and
are important.  Saving Joy Kogawa's childhoom home to share with all
Canadians is like Pierre Berton House, in the Yukon, or George Ryga's home in
the Okanagan or Emily Carr's home in Victoria.

“We can have a physical
place that says here was a home where Joy Kogawa lived as a child, until she was
interned.  It is a physical place like the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam,
or Anne of Green Gables Cottage in PEI, where people can say “This is where she
lived and played.” 

“Thousands of people visit Anne of Green Gables
Cottage, but she was fictional.  Joy Kogawa is real, Anne Frank was
real.  We need a place where we can say that racism can never do this
again.”

Bill Turner sent me an e-mail with the following:

So
far $230,000 has been raised in a short fundraising campaign.  A
total of $700,000 is needed to purchase the house outright.  Next
steps will be fundraising for restoration of the house, and to create
an endowment for the continued running of the Joy Kogawa Writing Centre.