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You are here: Home > Past Events

Audrey Hozack (1920—2016)

April 6, 2016 By Paul Lindala

Memories of Audrey Hozack (née Johnson, Dickie) 1920—2016

Audrey Hozack was one of the most unforgettable people I have ever met. During her term as Canadian Friends of Finland president from 1984 to 1987, she spearheaded the team that staged the 1986 Canadian première of Jean Sibelius’s Kullervo Symphony to an all-but-sold-out house at Roy Thomson Hall. She always claimed that riding on the TTC that evening to the performance was the only time she ever heard Finnish spoken on the subway.

FullSizeRenderShe was one of the founding members of CFF. I can still picture her along with a group of other anxious looking people sitting in Bengt and Carita Gestrin’s spacious living room in 1981 as he, the honourary consul-general of Finland in Toronto at the time, outlined the Finnish government’s hopeful plans to emulate the success of the Finnish Society in the United Kingdom.

Audrey helped make that a reality thanks to the experience she gained over her 39-year career at Hart House on the University of Toronto campus. She started out as a secretary and when she retired in 1985 she held the title of Assistant Warden – Administration.

Her links to Finland were long and strong. They began in 1951 with the first Hart House Finnish Exchange. As a result of those connections, she recruited several former exchange members to serve as executives and board members during CFF’s formative years.

Looking back, Audrey’s life and career echoed many of the themes of Varpu Lindström’s academic work in women’s studies. When Vincent Massey set up Hart House in 1919, it was a male-only bastion like its forebears at Oxford University in England. In its early years, although many of the Hart House clerical staff were women, they were not permitted to eat in the dining hall. After Massey was made aware of the issue, he agreed to change the rules to make their lives more convenient.  However, University of Toronto female students did not become full-fledged members of Hart House until the early 1970s after Massey had died.

Since Audrey’s retirement in 1985, two women have been appointed Wardens of Hart House. It is not hard to imagine that given Audrey’s administrative, financial management, people and other skills, had she arrived on the scene a couple of generations later, she too could have served as Warden.

To recognize her contributions to Finland, the Finnish government named her a Knight of the Order of the White Rose of Finland in 1986.

~ Ken Mark

Filed Under: In Memoriam, Past Events

William Leo Holt (1942-2016)

February 18, 2016 By Paul Lindala

William Leo Holt (Bill) passed away peacefully at Toronto Western Hospital on February 15, 2016 after a brief illness. He was surrounded by family and many dear friends in his final days.
Bill was born in Toronto in 1942 to Finnish immigrants, William and Annie Holt (nee Pylvainen). As a child he spent summers at his family’s cottage on Georgian Bay where he developed an enduring appreciation of the outdoors. He attended the University of Toronto where he earned a Bachelor of Commerce and an MBA and was a member of the fraternity Phi Kappa Sigma, through which he met a number of lifelong friends. After graduation he started his career as an accountant with Clarkson Gordon (now Ernst & Young), married and began his own family.
In 1976 he embarked on a life of entrepreneurial initiatives when he began working with Canadian businessman and diplomat Maurice Strong. He also served as vice chairman of one of Canada’s largest textile companies and was chairman of a publicly-listed Internet company.
Bill was active in a number of international organizations such as the Carnegie Institute for Science, the World Economic Forum, the Canadian Council for the Americas and the Earth Council, a Costa Rica based environmental NGO. Over the years, he became an avid traveller, raising his family in Toronto, Phoenix, Arizona and London, England and frequently visited cities across Canada and around the world. He often brought his children on these travels, instilling in them a similar appreciation for exploration and adventure. At various times, Bill was also a marathon runner, downhill skier and squash player and loved walking in his beloved Toronto.
He embraced his Finnish heritage during his later years, becoming a member of the Finnish Expatriate Parliament and a much-loved President of the Canadian Friends of Finland. He had deep affection for his family in Finland, who embraced him lovingly on his numerous trips there. Bill had a thirst for learning, serving as a board member of the University Club of Toronto and as a member of the Academy for Lifelong Learning (University of Toronto campus) where he attended, and taught, lectures on history, economics and geopolitics.
Bill was predeceased by his parents. He is survived by his dear companion of the past twenty years, Miriam Grassby of Montreal; his children, Christopher (Audrey) and their children Emma, Benjamin and Sophie of Georgetown, Ontario; Carrie (Rob) and their children Finn and Anne of Nanaimo, B.C.; Charles (Adrienn) and their son Matthew of Toronto; and his former spouse Patricia Hornsby of Picton, Ontario.
A Celebration of Life will be held at York Cemetery Chapel, 160 Beecroft Road, Toronto, on Saturday February 20, 2016 at 2 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family suggests that donations may be made to the Canadian Friends of Finland Education Foundation by clicking the DONATE button in the top right corner of any page on this website.
Finnish flag_colour
click for family video

Filed Under: In Memoriam, Past Events

Hart House Finnish Exchange Program

April 30, 2015 By Paul Lindala

Hart House Finnish Exchange

The Hart House Finnish Exchange Program – that operates between the University of Toronto and a number of Finnish universities – is looking for summer jobs for Finnish university students in the Toronto area for a period of 10 weeks commencing June 8, 2015.

There are no set criteria for the jobs. All opportunities, from full-time jobs in a corporate environment to part-time, evening or weekend positions in customer service are welcome and greatly appreciated. The suggested salary is $12+/hour. Work permits and SINs will be arranged by the Exchange Program.

For more information and for individual CVs of the students, please contact the Program Coordinator (and Finnish Exchange Program alumnus), Tim Stephenson, at 647-774-1719 or timjstephenson@gmail.com.

About the Students:
The students are undergraduate or Masters students from various fields, including business, arts and design, sciences and humanities. All speak excellent English, and many have knowledge of other languages, including Swedish, French, German or Spanish. They have broad work and extra-curricular experiences, and many have international experience through work or student exchange programs.

About Hart House Finnish Exchange:
For more information about Hart House Finnish Exchange, please click to see their website.

Filed Under: Past Events

Finnish Studies Scholarships 2014

November 17, 2014 By Paul Lindala

The following scholarships were given out during President Niinistö’s visit to the University of Toronto:

Jaclyn Buckley
Canada-Finland Chamber of Commerce Scholarship​

Scott Ecksel
Aspasia Books Essay Prize
[Read more…]

Filed Under: Past Events Tagged With: CFFEF

Meet Ingmar Haga of Agnico Eagle; November 11

October 23, 2014 By Paul Lindala

Canadian Friends of Finland (CFF)

and

Canada Finland Chamber of Commerce (CFCC)

present

An Evening with Agnico Eagle

Learning about Mining and Gold in Finland

Mr. Ingmar Haga,Mr. Ingmar Haga, Vice President, Europe for Agnico Eagle Mines Limited, will give a presentation of the Canadian mining company’s activities in Finland and the rest of Europe. Agnico Eagle owns and operates the largest gold mine in Europe, which is located in Kittilä, which is located in Kittilä, in the Lapland region of Finland.

The presentation will discuss successes and challenges of mining in northern Finland. Finland and Canada shares important similarities in climate, ecology, and culture, yet their perhaps most prominent common feature is the Arctic. At the moment, Canada is the chair nation of the Arctic Council; Finland will accept that role in 2017.

Date: Tuesday, November 11, 2014, 7-9:30 pm.

Place: Croft Chapter House, University College, University of Toronto,     

15 King’s College Circle, Toronto, ON, Canada M5S 3H7

[mappress mapid=”16″] The event is organized by the CFF and cosponsored by CFCC.
The event is free and will offer a reception coffee, pulla and nibblings.
Donations are welcome.

Everyone Welcome – Reception follows!

RSVP by November 7: phone 416-730-8350 or email

 Canada Finland Chamber of Commerce – Our sister organization’s programs:

  • November 22, 2014, 6:30pm, CFCC – PIKKUJOULU – Holiday Party @ The Albany Club

Filed Under: Past Events

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