THUNDER BAY – A provincial investment will help the Friends of the Finnish Labour Temple continue their work to digitize past and future projects.
The Digital Creation and Training Project received an investment of $150,000 through the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF) Resilient Communities Fund.
Kelly Saxberg, president of the Friends group, said the money will assist with equipment and help cover short-term contracts for interns.
“We're trying to keep [the work that we do] sustainable. After the pandemic, everyone was really struggling to [make a living], especially if you're an artist,” Saxberg added. “The young people that we have [working] here are musicians, composers, visual artists [and] graphic artists.”
The funding, according to Saxberg, will also help train the newest interns that come on board.
The Friends of the Finnish Labour Temple has a number of goals, including providing scholarships and bursaries to university students, producing high quality educational media and performing arts such as reports, books, articles, plays, films, and music, and conducting research projects regarding the historical and cultural legacy of immigration to Canada.
“I'm very happy that [Trillium] supported this project,” said Thunder Bay-Superior North MPP Lise Vaugeois. “To walk in here and see all these young people and Indigenous people being supported to gain these skills, to tell their own stories. How often do you get to walk into a room with all [these] young people who are working on film [and] skills editing? Animation doesn't happen very often, so that in itself is exciting.”
Saxberg said her team will begin a project in the New Year which involves a 3D virtual model of the former Finnish Labour Temple.
“I have filmed every corner of that building, and every event that took place in the decade before it was went bankrupt,” Saxberg noted. “So, with [the] technology [available] and a bunch of young people who are really keen on learning, we're going to rebuild it.”
The century-old building in the Bay and Algoma district was destroyed by a massive fire on the night of Dec. 22, 2021.
