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Tzu Chi Academy, North Toronto held a special “Chinese Writing Competition” themed “Emotions Conveyed by Pen and Ink, Fragrance Emanating from Words” on October 25, 2025, at the Tzu Chi North Toronto Office in Richmond Hill, Canada.
Every Stroke Conveys Emotion, Every Word Carries Culture
This event was sponsored by the Overseas Community Affairs Council of the Republic of China (Taiwan). The main objective of the writing competition was to promote the beauty of writing Traditional Chinese characters. It aimed to allow people of all ages and ethnicities to express power and beauty through pen and paper, experience the cultural heritage of Chinese characters and the joy of writing, foster activities and cross-cultural exchange among various ethnic groups in the community, and thereby deepen Chinese language learning programs.
As the event was held right before Halloween, the venue was specially decorated with a festive atmosphere. The organizers placed pumpkin lanterns, scarecrows, cute Halloween ornaments, and other seasonal decorations at the entrance and photo booth area. This allowed participants and their families to immediately feel a rich and joyful holiday atmosphere upon entering, adding color and laughter to the competition.
After the competition, participants also received beautiful small gifts prepared by the organizers – Halloween-themed erasers and pencils – which surprised and delighted the children!
The competition was divided into six categories: Preschool Group: ages four to six (pencil category), Lower Grades Group: ages seven to nine (pencil category), Middle Grades Group: ages ten to twelve (pencil category), Upper Grades Group: ages thirteen to seventeen (pencil category), Adult Group: eighteen years and older (Chinese ethnicity, ballpoint pen category), and Adult Group: eighteen years and older (non-Chinese ethnicity, ballpoint pen category).
After registration, participants followed the competition rules, writing on a designated topic and completing their work within thirty minutes. Writing paper and stationery were provided by the organizers. Upon completion, participants could submit their work and leave.
Chinese Writing: Passing Down the Torch Through Generations
The organizers also specially set up a “Emotions Conveyed by Pen and Ink, Fragrance Emanating from Words” photo wall, where participants could take pictures with their written works. On that day, many families participated together, with both adults and children experiencing the joy of writing. This not only enhanced parent-child interaction but also allowed parents to personally realize that it is already challenging for children to learn to speak and listen to Chinese overseas, let alone practice writing.
Many parents happily expressed that, with almost everyone communicating via text messages or typing nowadays, it had been a long time since they had put pen to paper. This competition made them sweat from writing, but they also found it very enjoyable. Everyone hoped that the organizers would continue to hold such events in the future, allowing the beauty of Chinese cultural literary heritage to be passed down through generations.
Great appreciation was extended to distinguished guests, including Deputy Mayor Godwin Chan of Richmond Hill, Lan Baiqing, Director of the Culture Center of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Toronto, and Deputy Director Xu Caifeng, who personally attended the competition in the afternoon. They happily posed for photos with the participants who had completed their writing, in front of the “Emotions Conveyed by Pen and Ink, Fragrance Emanating from Words” photo wall. Deputy Mayor Chan also specifically presented a congratulatory plaque to Principal Huang Shuzhen of Tzu Chi Academy, North Toronto, wishing the event a complete success!
To ensure fairness, four judges immediately began evaluating the submissions by category after the competition officially concluded at 3 PM. After two stages of scoring for each category, the top three winners and two or three honorable mentions were selected. A total of 179 entries were submitted for this competition.
The list of winners and their winning works for each category have been published on the Tzu Chi Academy, North Toronto website and social media channels. Congratulations to all the winners! We extend our gratitude to the four judges and volunteers for their assistance, which made this event a smooth and successful one.
Winners Emerge from the Competition, Capturing Memories in Photos
After the announcement of the winners, Wen Zexiang, a student from Tzu Chi Academy, Mississauga (first place in the Middle Grades Group), and his mother Zhuang Dunhui (third place in the Adult Chinese Ethnicity Group) achieved excellent results. They took a commemorative photo with Director Lan Baiqing, Deputy Director Xu Caifeng, Principal Huang Shuzhen, and volunteers.
The Qin sisters from Weide Chinese School distinguished themselves in the competition. Elder sister Qin Xuanqi won third place, and younger sister Qin Gongting received an honorable mention. Their family’s joint participation was not only a writing challenge but also a journey of passing down Chinese culture within the family.
The family of Dr. Wu Shengkai, who lives in Midtown Toronto, registered for the competition after seeing the announcement on social media. Dr. Wu received an honorable mention in the Adult Chinese Ethnicity Group. His wife had also applied to be a Tzu Chi teacher and deeply resonated with Tzu Chi’s educational philosophy. Dr. Wu’s entire family took a commemorative photo with the distinguished guests and volunteers.
Everyone hopes that such events will continue to be held in the future, allowing the legacy of Chinese culture to be passed down from generation to generation.
(Note) “Emotions Conveyed by Pen and Ink, Fragrance Emanating from Words” ~ Link to the list of winners and their works in the Mandarin Chinese Writing Competition: https://pse.is/8b7vge