Welcome Back!
Hey friends! Chris here with this month’s edition of the Asper Scoop. As the weather warms and the May flowers bloom, spring is officially here and I am living for it! One of my personal faves is walking literally anywhere on campus besides the tunnels, though the return of our favourite geese has thrown a wrench in my plans so far – they are scary and I’ve been preaching this for years!
May also marks Asian Heritage Month; a time to celebrate Asian Canadians, Pacific Islanders, and people of Asian origin all around the world. I had the privilege of sitting down with three trailblazers within the Winnipeg and Asper Community who shared their stories and perspectives on business, leadership, and representation.
With that, let’s get right into this month’s scoop: Celebrating Asian Representation!
Asian Heritage Month
May is Asian Heritage Month in Canada, a time to celebrate, acknowledge, and reflect on the contributions of people of Asian origin. After being officially declared by the Canadian Government in 2002, Asian Heritage Month gives us a formal opportunity to shed light on stories and accomplishments of those in the Asian community that have historically been marginalized. To celebrate Asian Heritage Month, we’ve featured three Asian-Canadian leaders who are showcasing the importance of representation in our city.
Building Community: The Tito Boy Story
Owning a restaurant wasn’t always in the cards for Jackie Wild. After obtaining her Creative Communications Diploma at Red River College, she spent a decade in the non-profit sector, working with grassroots organizations to help build and grow communities. However, after a five year stint with Telus, Jackie came to a stark realization: her work was building the legacy of a white man who already had a lot of privilege. As a racialized woman, she decided that it was time to start building her own legacy, both for herself and her community.
Jackie’s father, lovingly known as Tito Boy, had experience in the culinary industry and always talked about the possibility of opening up a restaurant. With a new career outlook, Jackie decided that it was time to pursue her dream and work towards building something greater than just herself. Determined to showcase her culture in a historically underrepresented part of the city, plans were made to open Tito Boy, a Filipino restaurant built by community, for community.
With help from the Women’s Enterprise Centre of Manitoba, as well as mentors and supporters who were willing to share their wisdom, the plans for her new restaurant began to take shape. Finally, after months of hard work, Tito Boy officially opened its doors in South St. Vital in October of 2022 to tremendous reviews.
As an Asian-owned business, Jackie reflected on the importance of uplifting other businesses akin to her own. Allyship has been a top priority since day one: both internally and externally, she makes sure that the Tito Boy team is celebrating all of the other businesses that make up the Asian and Filipino communities. Jackie also cites the Manitoba Filipino Business Council as helping to showcase and connect leaders in the community, saying “it was really inspiring to see leaders in our community betting on themselves and investing in growing their own businesses”.
Representing Filipino culture in an approachable and barrier-free environment is another of Jackie’s goals for the restaurant. Since Tito Boy is one of the first examples of Filipino representation in South Winnipeg, being able to share lived experiences with those who haven’t been exposed to these stories before is a huge source of pride for Jackie. Whether you step into Tito Boy for the first, tenth, or hundredth time, your questions will be answered without judgement or criticism.
As Tito Boy grows, Jackie continues on her personal journey to connect with her culture. Growing up in the inner city as a second-generation Canadian, she recognized that she took for granted the fact that she was surrounded by her community growing up, which isn’t always the case in Winnipeg. Now, as she spearheads the representation of her culture in the South End, an opportunity for mutual learning exists both within and outside of Tito Boy’s doors.
A Taste of Taiwan in Winnipeg: The Alley
University of Manitoba graduate Tiffany Duong is a familiar face to many of us Asper students. As the former Co-Op Education Administrator this past Winter, you may have seen Tiffany roaming the halls of Drake, meeting with students, or enjoying a Royal No. 9 (blueberry infused tea) from none other than The Alley – a bubble tea shop that she just happens to be the owner of. After officially opening in May of last year, Tiffany’s entrepreneurial journey is a distinct mix of passion and determination, centered around a goal of bringing authentic Taiwanese bubble tea to Winnipeg.
Tiffany’s story begins after travelling to Malaysia, where she was first exposed to Taiwanese bubble tea chain The Alley. After tasting their milk tea, she quickly realized that it was different than anything she had tried in Winnipeg; from the distinct branding to the authentic taste, she knew The Alley was serving up something special. Even after returning home, she just couldn’t stop thinking about that milk tea she tried on her trip. Surely one day she’d get to try The Alley again, right?
Alas, life had to go on. That is until a couple years later, when Tiffany’s favourite bubble tea chain expanded across Canada. From afar, Tiffany was reminded of that moment in Malaysia where her perspective on bubble tea completely shifted. Then, another thought popped into her head: “why not Winnipeg?”.
That’s when she got down to business: conducting research, emailing The Alley’s head office, calling various Canadian locations, and filling out questionnaires. Finally, she was granted a phone conversation where the company expressed some hesitancy in expanding into Winnipeg, especially due to its smaller size as compared to their other markets. This is where Tiffany used her business acumen to dig deeper, writing a detailed business plan, franchise proposal, and outline of how the franchise could not only survive but thrive in Winnipeg. The opportunity to introduce authentic Taiwanese bubble tea to the city was born in was a dream come true for Tiffany; her passion and persistence led to a successful deal, bringing The Alley to Winnipeg.
As a representation of Asian culture, Tiffany mentioned how meaningful it is to be able to help educate customers on what bubble tea is. The Alley strives to provide a welcoming, inclusive environment where people are encouraged to ask questions and learn more about Taiwanese culture through their drinks. Bubble tea is more than just “a type of drink”: it’s a diverse subset of culture that is being represented well by The Alley.
Kyla Mae Dacanay: Making CSA History
As the Winter 2022 semester came to a close, we mass-celebrated the impending extinction of zoom calls, breakout rooms, and lockdown browser (or at least I did). However, 4th year student Kyla Mae Dacanay has something completely different to look forward to: the start of her term as 2022-23 Commerce Students’ Association President. The beginning of her term made history, as she became the first racialized female President in the CSA’s 77 year history.
Kyla, now in her 5th year, has moved into her self-described “retirement era” after spending four years with the CSA. From her first year onwards, Kyla displayed her passion for leadership, student involvement, EDI initiatives, and mental health advocacy, forging connections with a countless number of students. I had the chance to sit down with Kyla this month, chatting about her inspirations, goals, and thoughts on Asian representation within the CSA.
After moving to Canada from the Philippines at the age of 3, Kyla’s passion for leadership was clear to everyone she interacted with. From organizing events with her friends to ultimately leading her high school class as President, Kyla’s passion for people continued to grow as she took her final steps toward the start of her university career. Seeing the impact that volunteerism has on the community kept her motivated through ups and downs, ultimately pushing her to run in not one but two CSA elections, winning both (VP Internal in 2021-22 and President in 2022-23).
As a young Asian woman who has held various leadership positions, Kyla consistently defied expectations and broke barriers through a 4-year journey with the CSA. Leading an extremely diverse Executive and General Council, Kyla felt honoured and privileged to represent what women and students of colour can accomplish as leaders, especially within the Asper community. Coming into her role, Kyla felt a distinct mix of excitement and pressure that motivated her throughout the term. To have the chance to be an inspiration to students that could relate to her own story was the ultimate accomplishment.
The CSA now finds itself on a run of two racialized female Presidents in a row, with Betty Mae Ferrer elected this past February. When asked what it means to see another woman of colour succeeding her, Kyla mentioned that it means a lot to see someone that she helped empower now hold her former position. After so many years without representation, Kyla celebrates this era as a win for both the female and Asian student population.
As we continue to celebrate Asian Heritage Month, hearing from leaders like Kyla really magnifies the importance of representation. Something Kyla said in her interview that really stood out to me was “leadership is about helping people discover their capabilities and empowering them to do things that they never could have imagined.” As an embodiment of Asian representation, Kyla serves as one of my personal inspirations, and she has undoubtedly left a lasting impact on the Asper School of Business.
Although May is officially designated as Asian Heritage Month, we can continue to celebrate and uplift members of the Asian community by reading stories, visiting Asian-owned businesses like the two mentioned above, and continuing to educate ourselves throughout the year.
Extra Credit: Tutoring Survey
Before we wrap up, the CSA’s Student Development team wants to hear from you, the readers of the Asper Scoop! As we kick off the Summer 2023 semester, the CSA wants to gauge interest in tutoring resources amongst the Asper student body. Whether you’re a student, tutor, or both, we’d love to hear your opinion!
If you have any questions, please reach out to the CSA’s Student Development Coordinators at [email protected].
With that, our May Scoop comes to a close! Thank you to Jackie Wild, Tiffany Duong, and Kyla Mae Dacanay for sharing their stories with us this month, and a HUGE thank you to you for reading. It means a lot to have you along for the ride <3.
Until next time,
Chris