Residents commemorated Orange Shirt Day and National Truth and Reconciliation Day, with a walk, activities, traditional food and a Rebecca Strong concert, in La Ronge.
Rebecca Strong talking with children and youth at the Kikinahk Friendship Centre, following her performance on Orange Shirt Day.
A large group gathered at kiskinwuhumatowin Urban Reserve. The reserve was the grounds where two Residential Schools were built over a between 1909 and 1947.
The decision was made to change the traditional walk and, rather than begin at the Lac La Ronge Indian Band (LLRIB) office and walk to the Urban Reserve, the walk began at the Urban Reserve, and ended at the kitsaki Hall, where students were put on buses to travel the many hours to school in Prince Albert.
“It was like walking home. Instead of leaving from kitsaki Hall, they walked to it,” said Oliveen Sanderson, who works with LLRIB Cultural unit.
Community celebrations for Orange Shirt Day in Ile-a-la-Crosse included performances by Northern Prairie Dancers.
The Cultural Unit staff organized the activities for the day. Because of inclement weather, the activities were held indoors in the hall rather than outside at the old ball diamond as planned.
Following lunch, there were speakers who shared their experience of Residential school.
Arriving and being showered and scrubbed with a floor brush, having their clothes taken away, and not being allowed to speak their language, were some of the experiences of these people, as children.
One speaker talked about the legacy of his family as descendants of the residential school survivors. He said many have turned to addictions, alcohol and drugs, violence, as another legacy is losing parenting skills and not being able to show love to their children.
He shared his story of recovery and moving onto a healthier life as an inspiration for others struggling with addictions.
Chief Tammy Cook-Searson, herself a Residential School Survivor, said another legacy, for many, is not feeling you’re good enough.
“We are good enough,” she said to those gathered at the beginning of the walk.
She encouraged Survivors and their families, to be “proud of who you are … Be proud you’re Cree.”
The day ended with a performance by Dene singer, Rebecca Strong, from Stony rapids and Prince Albert, who won the Canada’s Got Talent this past spring.
She sang several songs to a capacity audience at the Kikinahk Friendship Centre, and spent much time greeting members of the audience, particularly children and youth.
In Hall Lake, the community came together for feasting, visiting and horse-driven wagon rides.
There was an abundance of fish, both to be eaten and sent home with families, Cook-Searson said. They also had horses and wagon rides throughout the day.
Students and community members in the Northern Village of La Loche gathered to learn about Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Girls and Two Spirited People (MMIWG).
The session was followed by a sharing circle and questions.
The Family Resource Centre in Ile-a-la-Crosse celebrated National Truth and Reconciliation Day with story time and activities. The activities included a performance by the Northern Prairie Dancers.
Throughout September the community events were held including sharing circles on Wednesdays and , community sweatlodge ceremonies on Sundays and a community feast on Sept. 30.
The ceremonies were held to support Residential School Survivors, Intergenerational Survivors and “the children who did not come home,” reads the Ile-a-la-Crosse Friendship Centre Inc. Facebook post.
