Holy Trinity Catholic School Division (HTCSD) held two assemblies June 21 with performances, storytelling, knowledge-sharing, and prayers by representatives from local Indigenous communities.
“National Indigenous Peoples’ Day is an opportunity for us to learn, so we can listen more.” said Vivian Gauvin, the event’s organizer. Gauvin is vice-principal of St. Agnes School and a sessional instructor at the University of Regina. “When we know better, we do better … (and) we have a moral obligation to do better.”
Each assembly featured:
- Lyndon Linklater, a traditional knowledge keeper and storyteller and a citizen of the Plains Cree Thunderchild First Nation
- Brad Bellegarde, a musician from Regina and a Nakota/Cree member of the Little Black Bear First Nation.
- Harold St. Pierre, a Métis from Yorkton who has been jigging — a Métis tradition — for over 50 years
- Calvin Kaye and the Cree Spirit Drum Group, a family music group established in 1989
- The T-Bear Band, consisting of Terri-Bear Linklater, Malik Linklater, and Malik’s fiancé Faith Dupuis
- Darrel Hawman, president of the New Southern Plains Métis Local 160 and an expert in Métis history
- Brittnee Prettyshield, a grade 12 student from Peacock Collegiate and an Indigenous singer
“I feel great that there is an entire month just for people to learn our Indigenous history,” said Lee Prosper, a member of the Cree Spirit Drum Group.
“Complicated, a little frustrating, conflicting, but at the same time, acknowledging it the way it’s being acknowledged today is something beautiful. … Being able to perform and practice our culture in front of hundreds of students is amazing and I can’t wait to get back home and tell my son about it.”
Both of Prosper’s parents were residential school survivors. He said that they lost their language and were traumatized by the experience to the point they couldn’t raise their children. Prosper was adopted into a family that taught him his culture.
"I was fortunate to be given traditional knowledge — not many people are fortunate enough to have that," he said.
Hawman has been heavily involved recently in signing memorandums of understanding with various educational institutions, including HTCSD. He is always happy to talk about Métis history.
“The Métis were called ‘The People That Own Themselves,’” said Hawman. “The Métis are of mixed blood. That’s what our flag means, with the infinity on it. It was many kinds of European fathers and many kinds of First Nations mothers, generally speaking. So it’s a big, diverse group. … We’re proud to be an Indigenous people, and we’re the transition people between First Nations and European nations. We’re that group in the middle.”
The assemblies took place at Vanier Collegiate and were attended by hundreds of student from local Catholic schools. The students learned about Indigenous history and culture, and about the colonial history of Canada and the genocidal efforts to erase Indigenous peoples.
“What our school division is really focusing on right now is understanding the truth and having our students understand the truth,” said Strueby. “The Catholic Church and Canada as a whole have seen some dark days. … Working with people like Brad (Bellegrade) and people like Lyndon (Linklater), they help our students understand where we’ve been at as a country.”
Linklater has been the Indigenous knowledge keeper for HTCSD for a year now. He shares stories and consults to help staff understand Indigenous issues.
“In terms of educating the public, we’re always more than happy and honoured to do that,” he said. “I know that the school division here has made a commitment, and they’re really moving forward in terms of Truth and Reconciliation. … That is all part of celebrating National Indigenous Peoples’ Day.”
Bellegarde said that he always enjoys coming to Moose Jaw. He has been involved in quite a few National Indigenous Peoples’ Day celebrations and sees involving the youth as vital to making progress. He believes that sharing music and culture can help to build bridges.
“We’re in a generation where we can’t make reconciliation happen,” Bellegarde said. “But the kids can, you know? And their kids can. So we have to look to the future, we can’t just think about us. We’re just old guys pretending to be young.
“But I think that if a city like Moose Jaw can grab hold of that idea of reconciliation through events like this … and if teachers are enthusiastic about learning and teaching reconciliation, then the kids will see that.”
