Aurora Black Community Association hosts official launch at Town Park on Aug. 28

Residents 'should come out if they believe in diversity and inclusion' for all cultures, founder Phiona Durrant says

yorkregion.com
Aug. 24, 2021
Lisa Queen

Diversity. Inclusion. Breaking bread together. Building a community. Having difficult conversations. Making progress.

That is what the Aurora Black Community Association (Diverse and Inclusive) is all about.

On Aug. 28, the group will hold its official launch at the Town Park, featuring a Caribbean food truck, games, treasure hunt, guest speakers, live entertainment and marketplace with vendors.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, attendance is capped at 150 and guests must RSVP at aurorablackcommunity.com.

The event is an occasion for people of all cultures and backgrounds to come together, founder Phiona Durrant said.

“That’s the point of doing it in the park. The park, for me, is telling people that we are community and this is not a selected group invited into a private room or private place to talk. This is a community, everyone is welcome,” she said.

“(Residents) should come out if they believe in diversity and inclusion. At the end of the day, if they believe in community, if they believe in unity, if they believe in love for everybody, this is why a person would want to come out. I don’t want a person to come out because they think it’s a Black thing. We want people to come out because this is another level of what we’re doing to make our community inclusive and build unity and grow and learn about the cultures we have right here in Aurora.”

Keisha Telfer, co-founder of Transitions Realty Inc. and the volunteer event co-ordinator, said the work the association is doing is important.

“At Transitions Realty, we are always seeking opportunities to give back to local communities, small businesses and people in need,” she said.

“The work that Phiona and the Aurora Black Community are doing is inspirational and has the power to transform lives.”

The association is building a “bridge culture,” Durrant said.

“I know this sounds like a cliché, but we want people to know the importance of breaking bread as a phrase, coming together. This is why cooking and eating and sharing is so important because that makes conversation easy and honest and authentic and it’s easier to have harder conversations when those relationships are built,” she said.