When Chuck and Cora Wong begin their much-deserved and overdue retirement in Saskatoon in May, I know that my wife, Val, and I will quickly begin missing two very special friends, but we will not be alone.
Many residents from Canora and area are proud to call the Wongs their friends and I believe the sheer number is far greater than Chuck and Cora would imagine. After being valued members of the community for more than 35 years and gaining the love and respect of so many, their friends were not about to allow the Wongs to simply slip into the night without a proper farewell. Chuck is a little shy about being the centre of attention and he assures us that he will be back in Canora for many visits, but it is only proper that their many friends be given the opportunity to bid them farewell and personally extend well wishes for a happy retirement.
A group of friends have organized an open come-and-go social at Wong’s Café on April 25 from 1:30 p.m. to 5 p.m., giving everyone the opportunity to extend well wishes for a happy retirement. The official sale date for the business is May 1.
Chuck opened Wong’s Café in December of 1980. A few years later, he married his sweetheart from Hong Kong and they raised their family in Canora. Their daughter, Christina, graduated from Canora Composite School in 2000 and a year later, their son, Gabriel, graduated. Both continued their post-secondary education at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, the city where they now live.
Though Chuck and Cora worked 15 hours-plus every day, they still found the time to support their family, friends and the community. When they opened the Canora Community Bingo Centre in the former Saan Store building on November 19, 1990, an avenue was created to allow fundraising for a countless number of non-profit groups from Canora and the surrounding area. Working the very first bingo was SS. Peter and Paul Ukrainian Catholic Church and many other charity groups quickly took the cue to sign up. Soon there was a waiting list for non-profit organizations wanting to share in the fundraising potential while providing a local outing for avid bingo players. Del Palagian was the first bingo hall manager, a position she held for about seven years.
Thousands and thousands and thousands of dollars were directed back into the community, supporting everything from minor sports to curling and church organizations. It was a non-profit management committee that ran the bingos. The bingo hall operated for almost a quarter century and the Wong’s only source of revenue bingos was the rent and concession. In the latter years of the bingo hall’s existence, when the number of avid bingo players began to sharply decline, Chuck adjusted the rent to enable the charity groups to continue making a profit. For Chuck and Cora, it wasn’t about making money – it was about supporting the community.
Of course, it was Wong’s Café for which Chuck and Cora were best known. You can bet that many regulars at the café will miss their light-hearted banter with Chuck and Cora on a daily basis. Who can forget the late Walter (Chiki Chiki) Mysak teaching Chuck some basic Ukrainian phrases?
It will always be a warm memory for me, watching Chuck leave the kitchen during a lull between orders, topping off his coffee cup, and joining the customers to discuss the latest gossip on coffee row. Depending upon who he joins, Chuck is just as comfortable discussing the stock market and world politics as he is to talk about farming and the state of business in Canora.
It’s been decades since Chuck and Cora became proud Canadian citizens, but on occasion, they still talk about their love for China and Hong Kong and the sacrifices made living so far away from many family members. They are proud to be Canadians because their adopted country guarantees a much higher quality of life for succeeding generations. Emigrating to another country to improve the quality of life is an objective common to most naturalized citizens.
However, when proud new citizens state their reason for emigrating being to establish a better way of life, it is always qualified by adding “for the children and grandchildren.”
This reminds me of an interview I had with Dr. Hamed Afshari, a native of Iran who joined the Canora medical team last fall. He explained it so eloquently when he described the decision made with his wife, Sara, who is also a medical doctor. Leaving the security of occupying a high station in society, as well as putting behind them close ties to family and friends, required certain sacrifices, but that is something common to all cultures, he said.
Grasping at the potential benefits of emigration is a selfless act, always carried out for the benefit of succeeding generations, Dr. Afshari explained.
As I think about the long, long hours of labour invested by Chuck and Cora, on a never-ending schedule that approached seven days a week, their generation has indeed created the base for a vibrant contrast in the quality of life enjoyed by their children and grandchildren. Mission accomplished!
Chuck and Cora, you will be missed. Enjoy your retirement and especially this special time watching your grandchildren grow up. Also, remember that Canora is not that far away. For far more than half your lives, your hearts have been in this community.
