VCCFA Dinner, Semi-annual General Meeting, and presentation - Oct 26, 2025, at the Tropical Island restaurant
- charlebois721
- Oct 5
- 2 min read
Date: Sunday, October 26, 2025
Restaurant: Tropical Island Restaurant
Location: 3690 Shelbourne Street
Time: 6:00 PM – Dinner | 7:00 PM – Presentation
Presenter: Larry Hannant
Presentation Topic: Jean Ewen and her influence on Dr Norman Bethune in China
Larry Hannant’s long-standing study of the revolutionary Canadian doctor Norman
Bethune who died in 1939 while serving China’s war to defeat Japanese occupation, has
expanded to include an assessment of the women who influenced him. Among these is
Jean Ewen, a Canadian nurse who in 1938 travelled with him to aid China’s anti-
imperialist struggle. Historians describe Ewen as uninterested in politics and assert that
she accompanied Bethune to China only under pressure. A reexamination of Ewen’s
own memoir and of other historical accounts contradicts this view. In fact, Ewen was
deeply committed to the Chinese people’s struggle against capitalism and imperialism
and, even after having been inadvertently separated from Bethune, continued her work
with the Chinese Communist Party’s Eighth and New Fourth Route Armies in 1938 and
Biography
Larry Hannant is an adjunct associate professor in the Department of History at the
University of Victoria. He has written or edited four books, two website contributions,
and numerous articles. His edited collection, The Politics of Passion: Norman Bethune’s
Writing and Art, won the Robert S. Kenny Prize in Left/Labour Studies and has been
translated into French and Chinese. His most recent book, Bucking Conservatism:
Alternative Stories of Alberta in the 1960s and 70s, which he co-edited and wrote
sections of, won the 2022 Alberta Book Publishing Award for Regional Book of the Year.
Hannant is the author of more than 100 articles and has presented more than 50 papers
at conferences and events in Canada, Britain, Germany, China, and the United States.
Dinner Menu
Spring roll
Lemongrass chicken
Sweet and sour fish
Green bean in garlic sauce
Red curry tofu
Malaysian fried rice
Mixed vegetables on Crispy egg noodle
Kam Heung Beef
Steamed Rice
Mango Pudding
Dinner Price
$30 for members and students
$40 for non-members.
Annual memberships were due September 1, 2025.
To receive the $30 dinner price, please include your membership fee in your payment; otherwise the $40 non-member price applies.
Annual Membership Fees
Single: $20
Family: $40 (applies only to those residing in the same home)
RSVP Contact
Please reserve and pay for your seat for the October dinner. Payment without
reservation or reservation without payment does not guarantee a seat.
Reserve by contacting Carol Charlebois at:
charlebois721@gmail.com or phone 250-882-5820.
Please do not e-transfer your payment to Carol. E-transfer info. is below.
Please reserve your seat early, as there is often a waitlist.
RSVP by Wednesday, October 22, 2025.
Payment Methods:
Cash, cheque, or e-transfer.
E-transfer to victoriacanadachinafriendship@gmail.com.
Make cheque out to Victoria Canada-China Friendship Association. Please do not use
abbreviations on cheques.
Contact Barry Ming at 250-888-9963 or barry.ming@gmail.com for pick up of cash or
cheque.
We look forward to seeing you there!
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