Outreach
As the name suggests, the focus of the Alberta Estonian Heritage Society (AEHS) is on people, places and events in the province of Alberta. However, the AEHS is also becoming known and receiving praise in points beyond, including eastern Canada, the U.S. and Estonia. Following is a summary of recent AEHS outreach activities. Undoubtedly, there will be many more to come.
Los Angeles, Seattle and Toronto
When the AEHS was invited to make a presentation about Alberta's Estonian pioneers at the 2007 West Coast Estonian Days in Los Angeles, a decision was made to produce a 30-minute documentary DVD entitled Alberta's Estonians as well as a play called "Thrice Pioneers," written by Lillian Munz and performed by Helgi Leesment, Martha Munz Gue and Dave Kiil. The DVD made its premiere in Los Angeles (with the seemingly inevitable heart-stopping technical problems). Eda McClung and Dave Kiil participated in the showing of the DVD at the 2007 Estdocs Film Festival in Toronto - the only Canadian film on the program.
About a dozen AEHS members attended the two West Coast Estonian Days mentioned above, where they shared information and exchanged ideas with other North Americans of Estonian heritage.
Dave Kiil made a PowerPoint presentation about Alberta Estonian history at the Seattle conference.
Estonia
At the Baltic Heritage Network Conference 2009 in Tartu, Estonia, AEHS Communications Convener Dave Kiil gave a presentation with PowerPoint illustrations. The presentation was entitled "Alberta's Estonian Heritage: Development of a digital archive."
In 2007 newly-appointed AEHS President Bob Kingsep visited Estonia with his family to locate the boyhood farmstead of his grandfather Hendrik Kingsep and his brother Kristjan, the first Estonian settlers to register a homestead in Alberta. During an extraordinary evening involving members and international friends of the AEHS, Bob presided over the first-ever AEHS board meeting outside Alberta.
The World
The digital heritage archive/website, is of course now available to anyone, anywhere in the world.