The Municipality of Mississippi Mills is honoured to be among those collaborating on NATIONAL INDIGENOUS PEOPLES DAY celebrations held in many local communities Saturday.
Ginawaydaganuc Project Chairperson John Henri Commanda was among those hosting a Pancake Breakfast, and sharing an update on his group’s conceptualized model to develop an Elders’ Lodge, Education and Resource Centre, restaurant and small guest hotel in the Almonte Ward.
He says local collaborations among community groups are helping to place Mississippi Mills in the forefront of municipalities serious about embracing Truth and Reconciliation.
The widespread support to which Commanda refers includes Mississippi Mills All My Relations, the Municipality, the Canadian Race Relations Foundation, and the Local Immigration Partnership Lanark & Renfrew for which Gabriella Salera is acting spokesperson.
Settler commitment to Reconciliation isn’t just lip-service; it’s expressed with a smile from Christa McCool.
Renown Elder Douglas Cardinal, Ginawaydaganuc architect, graced the gathering by sharing his vision and its significance.
From Phase One of Indigenous Peoples’ Day, the scene shifted to the banks of the Mississippi at Appleton, where the Ginawadagauc elders joined settler allies to canoe to Almonte’s Riverfront Park, where the day concluded with jingle dancing, songs and story-telling- as would have been customary in the pre-contact days on these unceded lands.
By Rick Stow