The Town will be marking the annual National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on Monday, Sept. 30, with several activities designed to promote building bridges with the Indigenous community and understanding the intergenerational trauma brought about by residential schools.
Mayor Marvin Junkin said he is heartened by the increasing awareness in the community. More and more people are attending events hosted by the town each year, he said.
“I am pleased by the community’s embrace of the pursuit of both truth and reconciliation. “I’m glad we are all moving forward together on this important topic.”
Events and activities include a self-guided StoryWalk at Peace Park featuring, “The Orange Shirt Story,” by Phyllis Webstad, a member of the Northern Secwepemc from the Stswecem'c Xgat'tem First Nation, and residential school survivor. She was just six years old when she was sent to a residential school for the first time. On her first day, she wore a bright orange shirt that her granny had bought for her. However, upon arriving at the school the shirt was taken from her, never to be returned.
The StoryWalk will be available until Oct. 4.
The Town’s official commemoration on Sept. 30 begins with a flag-raising at Town Hall at 9 a.m. The “Every Child Matters” flag that will be raised has been smudged with sweetgrass and sage to honour the missing and the survivors of residential schools.
Other events taking place on Sept. 30 include:
• A KARIOS blanket exercise facilitation with Jodi Vander Heide-Buswa, a Seneca Deer Clan woman traditionally from Alleghany, N.Y. She is an artist, speaker, educator, “mom-preneur,” facilitator, and founder of Niswi B - Buswa, Beadwork, Biiziigahan.
The exercise is an interactive activity that takes participants through the history of colonization in Canada and was created by KARIOS as a response to the 1996 report of the Royal Commission on Aboriginal Peoples in 1997, with consultation from Indigenous Elders and representatives.
The blanket exercise takes place at 10 a.m. in the Accursi Room at the MCC.
• A drum workshop by Josephine Lavalley, an Onondaga from the Six Nations. The workshop will include a water ceremony with moon water, smudging, drumming and singing. The workshop takes place at noon in the courtyard at the Meridian Community Centre (MCC).
• The Town and the Lincoln Pelham Public Library are presenting an opportunity to learn about Indigenous history through the Moccasin Project, created by Carolyn King in partnership with the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation and the Greenbelt Foundation to promote public awareness of significant cultural historic sites and the ancestral presence of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit peoples across Turtle Island. The presentation takes place at 1 p.m. at the MCC.
• “Roots and Relations: Shared Understanding of Indigenous History to Strengthen Relationships,” a seminar led by Nokomis Migizinz Cindilee (Anishinaabe Maliseet Settle British French), a grandmother who has been in elementary, secondary, and post-secondary education as an instructor, educator and academic coach. She is active in work as a college professor, delivering courses in Sociology and Indigenous Ecological Knowledge.
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation was established in 2021 and fulfills Call to Action No. 80, one of 94 such calls that were a part of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) final report issued in 2015. The commission had been established in 2008 and heard directly by individuals and families directly impacted by the residential school system.
Chief Administrative Officer David Cribbs said the Town is proud to offer educational and recreational Indigenous programming.
“Over the past year Pelham has hosted Indigenous markets, red dress campaigns, Indigenous art displays in the MCC, drumming circles and flag raisings,” Cribbs said, adding that more will be held in the future.
“I strongly encourage the community to come out and learn, engage, challenge their understandings,” Cribbs said. “Truth and reconciliation do not occur without education, personal growth and substantive interaction.”
Links to more information at a list of resources to learn more about the Indigenous community, the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, including its Calls to Action, residential schools and more can be found at Pelham.ca.
