About

danceScape Endowment Fund
Supporting Culture, Community, and Movement Across Generations

The danceScape Endowment Fund, established through the Burlington Community Foundation, supports access to arts, cultural expression, and movement-based learning for youth, seniors, cancer survivors, and culturally diverse communities.

Founded by Robert Tang and Beverley Cayton-Tang, the Fund is building long-term sustainability so community programs can be supported across generations.

We grow the Fund through community partnerships, cultural initiatives, and recurring micro-giving — so today’s support becomes a lasting legacy. Donations are stewarded by the Burlington Community Foundation, with official tax receipts issued by BCF.

A Cultural Initiative: Be Bold

As the Endowment Fund enters its next phase of growth, danceScape has launched Be Bold, a cultural initiative celebrating the courage to step forward, share traditions, and connect through music, movement, and community.

Across cultures and across generations, meaningful moments often begin with a simple act of courage — trying something new, sharing a tradition, or reaching out to connect with others.

Through storytelling, partnerships, and community experiences, Be Bold highlights the human moments where culture, memory, and rhythm bring people together.

Community Programs

Together in Dance

Through the Together in Dance program, danceScape partners with community organizations, cultural institutions, and local leaders to create experiences that bring people together through music and movement.

These collaborations explore how dance connects people to:

• cultural traditions and immigration stories
• music, rhythm, and celebration
• food and community gatherings
• land and cultural identity
• intergenerational learning and wellbeing

Beginning within the diverse communities of Burlington, Hamilton, and Toronto, these programs highlight how shared cultural experiences help strengthen community connections.

The Sakura Project

Each spring, community members gather beneath the cherry blossoms at Spencer Smith Park in Burlington for The Sakura Project, a moment of reflection inspired by the Japanese tradition of appreciating the beauty and impermanence of life.

Participants are invited to share stories and memories of loved ones who have passed, honouring the people and experiences that have shaped their lives.

In this way, the blossoms become a symbol of remembrance, gratitude, and connection — reminding us that while life is fleeting, the stories we share continue to bring us together.

Like the rhythms of music and dance, the blossoms remind us that life moves in seasons — each moment precious, each story worth remembering.

Dances to Try Before You Die

At the heart of the initiative is Dances to Try Before You Die, a storytelling journey exploring dances and the cultural traditions behind them.

Through video, photography, and interviews, Robert and Beverley learn dances from diverse communities while discovering the celebrations, music, food traditions, and personal stories connected to those dances.

Launching first as a social media storytelling series, the project will build a growing archive of cultural stories that will ultimately form the foundation for a future book and cultural storytelling platform.

Community Partnerships

These initiatives grow through partnerships with community organizations, cultural institutions, and storytellers who help bring these experiences to life.

Collaborations include organizations such as Museums of Burlington, the Hamilton Chinese Association, and storytelling inspired by projects such as the Niagara Escarpment photography work of Mark Zelinski.

A Partnership Supporting the Fund

Niagara Escarpment: Land Between Waters

The danceScape Endowment Fund is honoured to collaborate with photographer and author Mark Zelinski in connection with his book Niagara Escarpment: Land Between Waters.

The book explores the landscapes, cultures, and ecological significance of the Niagara Escarpment through photography and stories from conservationists, scientists, and Indigenous scholars.

Through this partnership, a portion of book sales connected to danceScape community initiatives will be directed to the danceScape Endowment Fund, helping support arts access, cultural storytelling, and community programs for future generations.

This collaboration reflects the shared values at the heart of the Fund — celebrating the connections between land, culture, and community.

Tribute Giving

Donations may be made to the danceScape Endowment Fund in honour of a person who has made a meaningful impact in your life.

A tribute gift can celebrate a loved one, mentor, teacher, or community leader while helping build a permanent source of support for arts, cultural expression, and movement-based learning within the community.

These gifts help ensure that the cultural stories, traditions, and shared experiences created today continue to inspire future generations.

For tribute donations in 2026/2027 of $2,500 or more, danceScape would be pleased to:

• Record a meaningful interview honouring the individual and their story
• Share the tribute through our community storytelling channels
• Offer one year of complimentary wellness programming for the honouree or their family, with a choice of:

— danceTONE Cardio
— danceFLOW Qigong / Tai Chi

These tribute stories help preserve personal legacies while strengthening the community legacy that the Endowment Fund is building.

If you would like to create a tribute gift, please contact us and we will help arrange the details.

Our Story

The Fund was originally established in 2009 following the breast cancer diagnosis of Robert’s mother, Judy Mun-Pin Tang. After a courageous battle, she passed away on August 5, 2012.

The Endowment Fund was created as a way to honour resilience, joy, and the healing power of movement and community.

In October 2025, following the passing of Robert’s father — a longtime wedding photographer and small business owner in downtown Hamilton — the family entered the next phase of this legacy initiative: building the Fund into a permanent endowment capable of supporting community programs across generations.

Today, the vision is not simply to support individual events, but to build a sustainable cultural legacy that helps strengthen arts participation, cultural storytelling, and community wellbeing for years to come.

Looking Ahead

The long-term goal of the danceScape Endowment Fund is to build a permanent endowment capable of generating ongoing support for arts access, cultural expression, and community programming.

Through initiatives such as Be Bold, Together in Dance, and The Sakura Project, the Fund celebrates the traditions and stories that bring people together while helping grow a lasting legacy for the community.

Every dance begins with the courage to take the first step.

Be Bold.
Take the step.
Share the story.