🌸 The Sakura Project (2026 Highlights)
Honouring Loved Ones Beneath the Cherry Blossoms — and the Beauty of Passing Moments
A Spring Gathering to Honour Loved Ones who have Passed & Ancestors
Spencer Smith Park, Burlington
🗓 Saturday, May 2, 2026
⏰ 10:30 – 11:15 AM
📍 Spencer Smith Park (by the cherry trees along the lake)
A Moment Beneath the Blossoms
Each spring, the cherry blossoms bloom along the lake at Spencer Smith Park in downtown Burlington. For a brief moment the trees stand in fullness — luminous, delicate, unmistakably alive.
In Japanese aesthetics, the phrase mono no aware describes the gentle awareness of impermanence — the beauty of passing moments and things. The blossoms are admired at their peak, yet their falling petals are equally meaningful. The moment does not lose its beauty as it passes; it simply changes form.
Inspired by this awareness, the Sakura Project invited our community to gather for a quiet moment of reflection, remembrance, and connection.
The Story Behind the Sakura Project
The Sakura Project grew from personal experiences of loss and transition in Robert and Beverley’s families, experiences that many people share as life unfolds through different seasons.
In past and recent years, Robert and Beverley said goodbye to loved ones who shaped their lives in profound ways. Robert’s mother, Judy Mun-Pin Tang, passed away after her battle with breast cancer. More recently, Robert’s father, Aaron Tang, experienced a series of health challenges following a heart attack and spent time in long-term care before passing away on October 28, 2025.
During that time, Robert and his sister, Selina, often hoped to take their father to Spencer Smith Park to sit together by the lake and spend time outdoors. Although that visit never happened during the final “sunset” years of their father’s life, gathering here now offers a quiet way to honour that intention.
Life transitions often leave traces in unexpected places. Even something as ordinary as Beverley’s father’s longtime Honda Odyssey van quietly became part of many family moments — helping move loved ones from longtime homes to senior residences and supporting several important transitions over the years.
Earlier this year, as the van began to show its age, it felt like another gentle reminder that some chapters eventually come to completion. Letting it go was less about the vehicle itself and more about recognizing the many memories it carried.
In its own way, that moment reflected the same awareness expressed in mono no aware: that beauty and meaning are often found precisely in things that do not last forever.
The Gathering
The Sakura Project was intentionally simple.
There was no formal program.
No speeches.
No expectations.
Only presence.
There were enough participants for a gentle danceFLOW Qigong / TaiChi–inspired movement and Rhythm Walking experience — slow, grounding, and accessible to all ages and abilities.
There was no expectation.
Only the possibility of a first step.
Participation was entirely optional.
This was not a ceremony or religious event.
It was simply a shared pause — a moment to remember, reflect, and acknowledge that the people who shape our lives continue through the stories we carry.
Sharing Stories That Continue
As part of the Sakura Project, Robert and Beverley also invited members of the community — if they felt comfortable — to share a short story about someone who meant a great deal to them.
It might be a parent.
A grandparent.
A partner.
A mentor.
A teacher.
A friend.
Some participants were open to Robert and Beverley recording future short video reflections as part of a Sakura Project story series initiative.
The hope was simple: that these shared memories may help keep stories alive, and perhaps offer comfort or connection for others navigating grief, loss, or life transitions.
Because in many ways, the people we love continue to live through the stories we carry.
Legacy and Community
The Sakura Project reflected the deeper values behind the danceScape Endowment Fund.
Established in 2009, the danceScape Endowment Fund expands access to arts, cultural expression, and movement-based learning across our community. Inspired by Robert’s family journey — his mother’s courageous battle with breast cancer and his father’s lifelong passion for photography and the arts — the Fund reflects a belief that creativity, courage, and human connection help communities thrive across generations.
Following the passing of Robert’s father in 2025, the initiative entered a new phase — transitioning from a modest memorial fund into a long-term endowment designed to sustain community programs, cultural storytelling, and movement-based learning for decades to come.
Gathering beneath the cherry blossoms offers a quiet moment to remember those who came before us — while also reflecting on how their influence lives on through the lives we lead and the communities we nurture.
In this way, the Sakura Project honours the past while the danceScape Endowment Fund helps support the generations that follow.
