Breaking Bread, Building Bonds 2026
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For the third year, one of BC's premier interfaith and intercultural galas returns—and you're invited!
Our Society of Our Grandmother Earth (SOGE) is co-sponsoring this event once again, welcoming folks from all walks of life, seeking to embrace diversity and unity through interdisciplinary engagements among community leaders, mobilizers, educators, artists, social justice activists, journalists, policymakers, and entrepreneurs, etc.
Video: SOGE founder and president, Norm Leech’s keynote address from last year’s BBBB
Breaking Bread, Building Bonds has become one of the province's most anticipated gatherings where faith leaders, community builders, frontline workers, policymakers, and changemakers come together to break bread, share stories, and build the connections that heal our communities.
This year's focus: Mental Health & Self-Care
When: Monday, March 9, 2026, 5:00–9:00 PM
Where: Fraserview Banquet Hall - 8240 Fraser St, Vancouver, BC V5X 3X6
>>Registration Link (RSVP)
Why This Year Matters More Than Ever?
Right now, 1 in 5 Canadians experiences a mental illness in any given year. Stress, anxiety, and grief are showing up everywhere—at kitchen tables, in classrooms, and on night shifts. Too many of us wait too long for care, and young people carry more worry than ever. All of these stresses, fears, worries and griefs contribute to complex trauma. But here's what we know: connection heals faster than isolation.
Year 3 aims to bring together 1,000 leaders, helpers, and hope-makers from every corner of our province—across faiths, cultures, and sectors—for one powerful night of learning, healing, and action.
What Makes This Event Unique?
Interfaith & Intercultural by Design – Where else do Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jews, Indigenous leaders, and civic changemakers share a meal and build real partnerships.
Voices That Matter – Invited speakers include dignitaries, experts like Norm Leech (Indigenous wellness), potentially Dr. Gabor Maté (trauma & healing), and those with lived experience.
A Communal Iftar Dinner – Breaking fast together isn't just symbolic—it's transformational.
Tools You'll Actually Use – Walk away with practical mental health strategies, direct connections to service organizations, and a network you can lean on. As well as land-based tools and teachings to change the way we relate to the many traumas we face every day.
Real Conversations – Guided table discussions on Indigenous approaches to wellness, harm reduction, digital resilience, navigating polarization, and beating burnout.
We extend this invitation out to anyone who may be interested in attending!
Learn more: 2025 - Breaking Bread, Building Bond- Truth and Reconciliation