‘Needed to be some recognition’: Fundraiser to create plaque at Miriam Toews’ former Steinbach home
A Steinbach writer has launched an online fundraiser to install a plaque at the Steinbach, Man. home where Miriam Toews spent her teen years.
Andrew Unger launched a GoFundMe last week, calling for donations towards a $1,500 goal to pay for the plaque.
As of Wednesday, it had already raised $1,200.
“I thought that there needed to be some recognition of Miriam Toews in Steinbach and up until now, there has not been anything,” Unger told CTV News Winnipeg in a phone interview.
Unger says he got involved with the fundraising effort after he heard through word of mouth that the home had been sold, and the new owners were keen on the idea.
The home itself has been immortalized in the opening lines of Toews’ Governor General’s Award-winning book “A Complicated Kindness,” described as a “low brick bungalow out on highway number twelve.”
Unger commissioned a design, priced out the project and talked with the city to see where it can be placed.
Unger, a writer himself, counts Toews as an inspiration.
Author Miriam Toews is shown in an undated handout photo. Toews is among the finalists for the lucrative Scotiabank Giller Prize. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO - Random House of Canada, Carol Loewen)
“She's bold. She's honest. She's funny. She writes about people in places that are familiar to her and familiar to a lot of people, but I think she writes about corners and pockets of Canadian culture that maybe hadn't been written about all that much before her.”
The plaque will be similar to other bronze designs in the city with text summraizing Toews' literary contributions and her connection to the home.
Unger says he received Toews’ blessing before going ahead with the plaque.
It’s a small way to recognize the impact her writing has had in southern Manitoba and around the world.
“Certainly not every town our size has a writer of this level of prominence, so I think it's time that we acknowledge that publicly in some way.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Ontario patients visiting emergency rooms out of fear being booted by family doctor
Ontario patients are now visiting emergency departments out of fear of being de-rostered from their doctor’s office – a loophole that results in hospitals dealing with non-urgent cases, and disrupts continuity of care paramount to family medicine, according to health-care experts.
Putin wants Ukraine ceasefire on current frontlines, Reuters sources say
Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to halt the war in Ukraine with a negotiated ceasefire that recognizes the current battlefield lines, four Russian sources told Reuters, saying he is prepared to fight on if Kyiv and the West do not respond.
Outdated rules and mounting losses: Can anything be done to fix Canada Post?
Canada Post needs drastic measures to staunch the fiscal bleeding and revamp its operations after a tough decade, experts say.
American Airlines retreats after blaming a 9-year-old for not seeing a hidden camera in a lavatory
American Airlines has distanced itself from a court filing in which the carrier said a nine-year-old girl should have noticed there was a camera taped to the seat of an airplane lavatory.
What is 'slapped cheek disease' and should parents be concerned?
Despite its rough name, experts say most cases of 'slapped cheek disease' are mild and not a cause for concern.
Trillions of cicadas are emerging in the U.S. Here's what they sound like
Two broods of periodical cicadas are emerging in the United States simultaneously for the first time since 1803. Here is what their deafening buzz sounds like.
Ontario mother denied boarding flight with her family after ticket mistake
A dream vacation for an Ontario family quickly turned to frustration when a mother’s name on a ticket didn’t match the name on her passport, meaning she was left behind while her husband and two children flew to France.
Competition Bureau probes alleged anticompetitive conduct by Loblaws, Sobeys owners
Canada's Competition Bureau has launched investigations into the parent companies of grocery chains Loblaws and Sobeys for alleged anticompetitive conduct, court documents reveal, with Sobeys' owner calling the inquiry 'unlawful.'
A deep-dive into a failed 'Star Wars' hotel is going viral
In 2023, Disney closed a highly-publicized luxury hotel on the Walt Disney World property called 'Star Wars: Galactic Starcruiser.' Now, a year later, a four-hour-long YouTube deep-dive has resurfaced details about the concept and spread the niche piece of Disney lore to millions of viewers.