The Whistler Welcome Centre aims to be a safe place where immigrants and newcomers can

• find a sense of belonging and value through sharing skills and cultural knowledge
• get information and support, and
• make new friends and connections within the immigrant and wider Canadian community

Our Mission is to empower immigrants living and working in our communities (Whistler and Pemberton) so they are able to navigate life in Canada independently, competently and confidently; we do this by providing support and information and by connecting them to each other and the wider community.

The Whistler Multicultural Society (WMS) mission is to build participation and representation of immigrants and newcomers in our local and wider social, work and civic societies. We aim to build a greater understanding and recognition of the skills and values immigrants bring to Whistler and to promote diversity through volunteer-led cultural sharing, training, and education. The Whistler Multicultural Society was incorporated in January 2020 out of a grassroots community group that had met since April 2012 as part of the Welcome Sea to Sky project, funded by the SMART Fund, Vancouver Coastal Health. 

The Whistler Multicultural Society is a key partner in the Whistler Welcome Centre, and collaborates with the Whistler Public Library, Capilano University and Sea to Sky Community Services to deliver federally- and provincially-funded immigrant settlement services, language and literacy programming. The WMS provides input to and guidance on the services, programs and activities delivered through the Welcome Centre. They are the voice of immigrants in our community and increasingly provide funding for Welcome Centre programing.  The annual Whistler Multicultural Festival, now a virtual event in its eighth year in 2020, is the WMS’s signature project. The Welcome Centre and WMS outreach programs are staffed collaboratively by Capilano University, Community Development & Outreach, and Sea to Sky Community Services (SSCS).

The Pemberton Multicultural Network was formed in April 2012 by the Pemberton group of the Welcome Sea to Sky project, funded by the SMART Fund, Vancouver Coastal Health.

A focus for the Pemberton Multicultural Network is on second generation immigrants, ensuring that our community gains from the great diversity of cultures our newcomers bring. By supporting the successful integration of new community members, and by celebrating the diversity of our community we seek to instill pride in our cultural mosaic for this generation and generations to come.

Our small team are all immigrants themselves. They understand the challenges of moving to a new country, learning a new language and building a new life.

Program Manager: Carole Stretch

Settlement Worker: Izumi Inoue

Multicultural Outreach Worker: Barbora Vaneckova

Multicultural Outreach Worker: Phoebe Wu

Multicultural Outreach Worker: Belinda Geisler

The Welcome Centre is a collaboration of key local partners:

Capilano University – coordinates and delivers funding, administration, literacy, language and other programming

Whistler Public Library – provides our central, accessible location in Whistler

Sea to Sky Community Services – provides staff, resources and space for programming

Whistler Community Services – provides space for settlement services and appointments

Whistler Multicultural Society – provides funding for Multicultural Community Kitchens, Parenting in Another Culture, the Whistler Multicultural Festival and other cultural sharing activities. The WMS Board provides input and direction to Welcome Centre programs, services and activities planning.

Funding for our programs and activities come from a range of federal, provincial and local government, and other agencies.

Our funding sources and sponsors in the past year:

British Columbia Ministry of Advanced Education (MAVED)

British Columbia Settlement and Integration Services (BCSIS)

BC Multiculturalism

Canadian Heritage

Community Foundation of Whistler

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)

Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW)

Vancouver Coastal Health