16th Annual Aboriginal Gathering and 8th Annual Powwow: June 11-12, 2011

It's Powwow time in the Peace Country, and in a new location this year--the Agricultural Grounds in Northern Sunrise County, East of Peace River. This is where the opening and closing ceremonies were held last year for the Alberta Summer Games and it should be a great venue for this important event. 

As much as I love the Twelve Foot Davis Ball Park, where the event was held for the past two years, it poses many challenges, such as not enough space for camping, no kitchen, and traffic control over the Heart River bridge.  At the Ag Grounds there is lots of room for camping, plus space for the drumming, dancing, jigging, and fiddling events, food booths, displays, and merchants. But I'll miss hearing the sounds of the drums and singing coming up from the ball park!

It's a great family event and a wonderful opportunity to see highly-talented individuals celebrating their culture. Plan to attend!

Poster

Aboriginal Gathering & Pow Wow: June 13-14

It looks like there will be great weather this weekend for the Aboriginal Gathering & Pow Wow, being held in its new location--the Twelve Foot Davis Ball Park--on Saturday and Sunday.

Peace River and area residents will want to take advantage of the scenic location to come and watch the wonderful dancers, singers, drummers, and Metis fiddlers and jiggers. There are also children's activities, food booths, and displays.

This is one of only a few off-reserve events on the Pow Wow Trail and a great opportunity to learn about Aboriginal culture.

Aboriginal Gathering & Pow Wow: Honoring Our Elders

Once again the Peace Region Aboriginal Interagency Committee is hosting the Aboriginal Gathering and Pow Wow. It's being held on June 13 and 14 in Peace River at a new location--the Twelve Foot Davis Ball Park.

With the move to this new location, we expect a few growing pains but are hopeful that this beautiful natural amphitheatre will be a great location for this year's event and those in the future.

I encourage everyone to come and see the wonderful dancing, singing, drumming, Metis fiddling and jigging, displays, food and more. It's a full two days of celebration of Aboriginal culture.

This is an alcohol and drug free event that is very family-oriented and includes children's activities coordinated by the Town's Community Services Department.

One of the aspects that I especially enjoy is the presentation of blankets and feathers to people of Aboriginal heritage who have graduated from high school in the past year. And this year, graduates from college and universities are also being honoured. As well, Northlands School Division is celebrating its 25th anniversary and this milestone is being celebrated.

The AIC is seeking volunteers to help with a variety of tasks to make the event go smoothly. If you can contribute a few hours, contact Dianne Lavoie at 780-618-9268 (diannelavoie@telusplanet.net) or Tracy Zweifel at 780-624-2443 (tracy-sagitawa@telus.net) to find out where your help is most needed.

For more information about the Gathering and Pow Wow, contact Christina Hogaboam at 780-624-6316 (christina.hogaboam@gov.ab.ca) or Dennis Whitford at 780-624-6367 (dennis.whitford@gov.ab.ca)

Sisters in Spirit Walk

The very successful Sisters in Spirit Walk, an activity of the Aboriginal Interagency Committee, was held again this year in Peace River on May 19. This walk, with others across the country, honours Aboriginal women who are missing or murdered.

A large number of people--Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal, men, women and children--gathered at the mall and then walked, with RCMP in red serge in the lead, down Main Street and towards Riverfront Park. Since the weather was cold and unsettled, organizers decided to move the event from the park to the basement of Athabasca Hall.

People were smudged as they entered and handed a tobacco pouch and then formed a circle. Elder Helen Piper offered an opening prayer and then the names of missing and murdered women were read aloud. The good news was that there were no names added to the list for this year's event, but there were still 40 names to read. An honour dance was performed by two male and three female dancers in traditional regalia.

Greetings by Mayor Callioux on behalf of the Town, Brandy Mitchell of Region 6 Metis Nation of Alberta, and Kitty Brown from the Sagitawa Friendship Centre were followed by keynote speaker Linda Roy from Awo Taan Healing Lodge in Calgary. Linda spoke of her personal and professional experience with violence against women.

After a beautiful flute interlude by Danya Auger, we heard testimonials and remembrances from family members of four missing or murdered women: Arlene Thunder, Jessica Noskey, Rene Lynn Gunning, and Rhonda Whitehead. Others were invited to speak and a number of people from the audience chose to do so.

Elder Helen Piper offered a closing prayer and then the group did an innovative round dance in a very small space (so much easier to do outside!). I really enjoy these dances and appreciate how they join people together with the singing and drumming. After the dance we had a social time with coffee and bannock in the Anglican Church basement.

The evening was emotional and a reminder of the terrible legacy that has resulted from colonization. The Sisters in Spirit Walk offers all of us an opportunity to bring attention to the continuing problem of violence against women--Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal--and to remember and honour the memory of the murdered and missing women as well as to stand in solidarity with their families and the Aboriginal community. It's a privilege to take part.

Councillor Activities October-November

For my own records as well as anyone wondering what Town Council members do, here's a summary of some of my activities over the past two months:

Committees:

Aboriginal Interagency Committee: Regular monthly meetings.

Peace River Municipal Library Board: Regular monthly meetings. As well, board members canvassed for the Rotary Radio Auction, which is a major library fundraiser, and worked the phones during the auction. I'd never done that before and it was quite an experience! Many thanks to everyone who helped to make the event a success.

Town of Peace River Health & Safety Committee: Regular monthly meeting.

Municipal Planning Commission: Regular twice-monthly meetings. We also have a half day of training in the coming week, provided by a planner from the Mackenzie Municipal Planning Agency (MMSA).

East Peace Regional Landfill Authority: I'm an alternate and attended my first meeting in November.

Other activities:

Town of Peace River/Northern Sunrise County: Councils and CAOs attended a two-day session with facilitator Gord McIntosh where we identified issues and areas for potential collaboration. We have a list of items that we're exploring and moving ahead on, which is a very exciting follow-up to the signing of the protocol agreement in the summer.

Using Rural Connections to Support Alberta's Rural Development Strategy Virtual Conference: I worked with Communities Without Boundaries and Peace Country Community Futures to bring this conference to Peace River. It was a very successful day with over 20 sites around the province and over 200 participants. Peace River had the best-attended venue north of Edmonton. (There are a couple of other blog entries about this event, with links to the sessions.)

Metis Nation of Alberta Zone 6 Dinner: Deputy Mayor Berry Heinen brought greetings to the AGM in the morning and then he and I attended the evening dinner, with our spouses, on behalf of the Town of Peace River.

Lower West Peace Public Session: Engineer Paul Machibroda presented the results of his research to the residents, media, and Town staff and councillors at this session. BC Hydro and Alberta government staff were also present and there was a good discussion about the proposed next steps to study how to alleviate the seepage problems. Four de-watering wells will be installed by January 2009, with more likely installed later in the year once there is a better understanding of water dynamics, the optimal placement of the wells, etc. With a full complement of wells in place, it will be easier to see whether further measures need to be implemented. BC Hydro is also continuing to work with affected residents to ensure they have proper sump pumps in place before winter freeze-up and to find other ways to assist. We are all hoping that there will be no secondary ice consolidation near the Town this winter, because that appears to be the biggest determinant of whether there will be the seepage that causes so much disruption for some families and worry for many other Lower West Peace residents.

CMHC Affordable Housing Web Forum: These events are a great opportunity to hear from experts on a variety of issues without leaving home. This one, with Affordable Housing Consultant and former Whistler Municipal Councillor, Tim Wake, was particularly pertinent to Peace River's situation so I was glad I could attend. Information about upcoming events.

Town of Peace River Staff Luncheon: Peace River has a great group of enthusiastic and committed staff and it was a pleasure to join them to hear CAO Norma MacQuarrie describe the variety of activities in which the Town is currently engaged (there's a lot going on!).

Community Citizenship Potluck: I was honoured to bring greetings from Mayor & Council. This is an event coordinated by the Peace Literacy Association and the Peace Association for Lifelong Learning (PAL). There were new Peace River residents from at least 10 different countries (I can remember speaking with people from Poland, Brazil, Korea, China, Japan, Germany, Mexico, Colombia, Finland, and Belize). Peace Literacy provides tutors, among other types of assistance, for English as a Second Language (ESL) and literacy education. A number of these tutors attended the dinner as well other community members who are interested in meeting newcomers. The food was sensational and we had fun with a ice-breaker activity that helped us to get to know each other a little more.

Alternative Energy Trade Fair: This event was very successful, especially for a first time effort. There were a variety of vendors at the Trade Fair who patiently explained geothermal, solar, wind, insulation and other energy-efficient technologies, and there were also excellent education sessions provided. I went on a tour of a household that uses solar tubes to generate hot water for heating. In conjunction with the event, there was a sold-out 100-Mile Dinner where I was pleased to bring greetings from Mayor & Council. Both the fair and the dinner served to highlight the importance of paying attention to the issues of peak oil and climate change and how these may impact our communities. The more we work to establish or maintain local food and energy security, the better able we'll be able to cope with whatever the future brings.

Peace River Regional Women's Shelter Festival of Trees: Mayor Callioux regularly attends the Gala for the Festival but was out of town this year, so I was pleased to attend in her place. It was a fun evening with a dinner, entertainment by a local group called Windsong, and live and silent auctions of fabulous trees and other items. What a creative community we have and it is wonderful to see the community support for this annual event.

Providing Homes for Aboriginal Children: Recruitment of Aboriginal Caregivers Gathering & Feast

The Aboriginal Inter-agency Committee is presenting this event in an effort to find short-term and long-term Aboriginal caregivers for Aboriginal children who are temporarily unable to live with their parents.

Guest Speaker for the event, to be held on Tuesday, May 27 at 5:30 at the Sagitawa Friendship Centre (basement entrance), is Loretta English Parenteau. Ms. Parenteau has experience growing up away from her parents and is also able to share her positive experiences as an Aboriginal Caregiver.

As Town Council's representative on the Aboriginal Inter-agency Committee, I plan to attend after the Library Committee meeting, so maybe I'll see you there.

For further information, contact Dennis Whitford at 624-6367 or dennis.whitford@gov.ab.ca