Congratulations to ACWW President, Todd Wong, for winning the 2023 Asian Heritage Month Pan-Asian Recognition Award. Todd Wong is the founder and festival director of the Robbie Burns Gung Haggis Fat Choy Celebration Dinner since 1998. It began when Todd was a student working as a tour guide at Simon Fraser University where he was studying as an undergraduate. Since then, his moniker has been “Toddish McWong” – a blend of Western and Eastern traditions.
Todd has served in leadership positions for a number of Pan-Asian arts and culture groups in addition to Gung Haggis Fat Choy. Todd is the longest-serving board member of the Asian Canadian Writers' Workshop (ACWW). Todd helped create the ACWW's inaugural Community Builders Dinner in 2002 and currently serves as its President.
Becoming a cancer survivor really changed Todd’s life but he used it to inspire others about living life to the fullest. On June 21, 1989, Todd was admitted to VGH emergency, and the doctors told him that even with chemotherapy he would have about a 60-percent chance to live, and without treatment, he would probably have less than two weeks to live. Todd relied on the power of the social support groups and these experiences provide him with the strength to help others as well. Dragon boat paddling for cancer survivors became one of his many valuable connections between health and sports psychology. Congratulations again to Todd, a well-deserved recognition of his contributions to our community!