Vancouver Writers Fest founder Alma Lee remembered for putting city “on the literary map”
The founding executive director of the Writers' Union of Canada and the Writers Development Trust was also founding president of Music on Main
Alma Lee. Photo by Allan Lee, courtesy Carol Shields Prize for Fiction
CONDOLENCES ARE POURING IN this weekend for Alma Lee, the founder of the Vancouver Writers Fest who has died at the age of 84.
“It is with the deepest sorrow that we announce the passing of the Vancouver Writers Fest’s founding artistic director, Alma Lee,” the fest posted yesterday. “A lifelong advocate for arts and culture who founded multiple pillars of Canada’s literary community, Alma was an esteemed leader and friend, whose vision and dedication put Vancouver on the literary map.”
Lee passed away peacefully on March 28. She had founded the festival in 1988, and retired as artistic director in 2005, remaining an active force in the internationally recognized organization that attracts 30,000 attendees annually. The festival has hosted such prominent names as Margaret Atwood (a longtime friend of Lee’s), Salman Rushdie, Miriam Toews, Carol Shields, and John Irving.
Lee was also founding executive director of the Writers' Union of Canada and the Writers Development Trust. In her later years, her fundraising helped the Carol Shields Prize for Fiction achieve liftoff.
“We hear so much hype about getting rich and famous, but those who serve their communities like Alma Lee give back a treasure whose value is limitless,” Carol Shields Prize for Fiction cofounder Susan Swan posted.
When she received an Order of Canada just over 20 years ago, she was honoured as “a passionate and effective champion of Canadian authors” who had gained the “respect and admiration of her peers and the reading public”.
“Long after she retired from the Vancouver Writers Fest, she continued to act as an ambassador for the Festival and provide guidance and insight—including regular visits to the VWF office when she did her shopping on Granville Island, which our team looked forward to for her unflagging sense of humour, deep wisdom, and the doors she opened,” the fest said in its obituary. “She had a seat reserved at nearly every event, and she always listened with abounding thoughtfulness and enjoyment.”
Edinburgh-born, Lee had famously accompanied her father to the library every Friday, developing a lifelong love of books. She emigrated to Canada in 1967.
Amid her achievements, Lee received a YWCA Women of Distinction Award and an honourary doctorate from Simon Fraser University (which stated at the time that her “advocacy of writers earned her the respect of the entire literary community”).
In addition she supported Music on Main, becoming the group’s founding president in bringing classical and contemporary concerts to neighbourhood venues throughout the city.
“Alma will be deeply missed and lovingly remembered by her family, friends, peers, mentees, and the literary community at large,” the VWF posted. “She has touched the lives of tens of thousands of readers and writers, and her impact will continue to shape many future generations.”
Lee is survived by sons Kenny and Alan. A celebration of life will be held at a later date, to be announced. 
