Cowichan Valley’s community of Paldi was home to hundreds of Sikhs who had come to Canada about a century ago to work in local sawmills.
While the community is now virtually a ghost town, the Paldi Sikh Temple is still thriving and is ready to share its 100-year story.
The temple and its members are participating in the Punjabi Canadian Legacy Project which aims to preserve, explore and share the contributions that Canadians of Punjabi descent have made to the history of B.C. and Canada.
The Royal BC Museum, in partnership with the South Asian Studies Institute at the University of the Fraser Valley, and in consultation with the Punjabi Canadian Legacy Project Advisory Committee, is engaging with British Columbia’s Punjabi communities, organizations and individuals to gather information for the project.
The Paldi Sikh Temple invited the public and participating organizations to the temple on Oct. 16 for a lunch and the sharing of the community’s many stories as part of the initiative.
