HIP (Honouring Indigenous People) News for Sept 2017

The Aboriginal and International Services Committee of the Rotary Club of Etobicoke donated $3,300 to Soul of the Mother, a not-for-profit dedicated to cultural and spiritual education for First Nations and sharing the historical past with Canadians. They will purchase new computer equipment. HIP Director, Kahontakwas Diane Longboat is Speaker of the Governing Council.

The Rotary Club of Peterborough Kawartha and its partners, Curve Lake First Nation, Camp Kawartha and the Canadian Canoe Museum would like to invite you to attend the opening event of "Adventure in Understanding" 2017.  Paddlers, support staff, family, friends, and Rotarians gathered at Beavermead Park, Ashburnham Dr, Peterborough from approximately 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 27th for a time of fellowship, introduction an, explanation following the official opening at approximately 1:00 p.m. The paddlers departed Beavermead at approximately 3:00 p.m. and then proceeded through Lock 20 over the Liftlock on their way to the first overnight stop at Camp Kawartha Environment Centre, Trent University. 

HIP Director, Fred Lawlor, while on vacation in the east coast established contact with a number of Rotary clubs and discussed HIP. He also met with several chiefs who were delighted the contacts had been made as they did not know how to go about making a connection. There is a great lesson here!

Some Rotary Club of Newmarket members recently visited Georgina Island. They are discussing possible projects.

We have heard that a number of clubs are considering matching grants proposals. Great news! We will keep you posted.

The 20th Annual Native Child and Family Services of Toronto Pow Wow is taking place on Sept. 30th at Dufferin Grove Park. It has been proposed that the Rotary Club of Toronto and other clubs become involved. This could be a wonderful opportunity for Rotary to work closely with the organization. See news and events. We will keep you posted.

It has recently been proposed that Rotary clubs acknowledge the land where the meetings are held. The brief acknowledgement could read as follows :  "We would like to take the time to honour the First Nations of this region who have occupied this land for millennia. The land on which we are located has been a site of human activity for thousands of years. I would like to take this opportunity to honour the Indigenous lands as this is the traditional territory of the Huron Wendat Confederacy, the Seneca of the Haudenosaunee Confederacy, and most recently the Mississaugas of the New Credit as present day guardians of this land. We honour our Ancestors who are buried here in this place. We honour the plant life, insects, fish, bird life and great diversity of animals who share this special place with us. And we honour the Indigenous peoples who dwell in the Greater Toronto Area as this place is part of their home today and a part of Mother Earth. Chi-Miigwetch-Niawen- Thank You! "   (adapt for the region you find yourself in at the time and acknowledge the First Nations of that region)

As previously mentioned, Nicole Patterson of the East York Club and John Currie, our Director of In-Kind-Gifts and Projects have recently been certified as facilitators for the Kairos Blanket Program. Nicole will be doing a blanket exercise in Belleville in the fall along with one at the 7070 Rotary District Conference. Great work! For further details go to the link (Homepage - The Blanket Exercise). Please contact either Nicole at nic.patterson@gmail.com or John at john.wayne.currie@outlook.com to book a program.

What is your club doing? Please email Julie Dunaiskis (julie@eccgroup.ca) with a brief summary so we can post on the HIP website and provide an update in upcoming newsletters. This will help other clubs and provide a sense of how we are involved. We do not know the precise number of clubs across Canada who are involved in educational

and awareness activities, however, our guess is at least 100. Some were involved well before HIP, many on their own and some because of our encouragement and leadership. Let's all go forward together.

Podcasts - we have downloaded a new podcast with Bob Rae. Mr. Rae was guest speaker at the Rotary Club of Toronto lunch meeting on March 29, 2017. We now have podcasts with John Andras, Tim Thompson, Chris Snyder, the Honourable Paul Martin, the Honourable Bob Rae and Kenn Richard. These are short and will provide terrific insight into indigenous issues. We also have a video with Paul Martin. More are to come. Please advise if you have someone you think would be good to have on a podcast. These interviews were conducted by Emre Yurga, the incoming chair of the Rotary Club of Toronto's Indigenous Services Committee. Thank you, Emre.

Photo Album - We have added some photos from the Truth & Reconciliation Canoe Trip in Algonquin Park. You will see the wonderful smiles from the north and south youth involved in this new adventure.

Request a Speaker - Would your club like to have a Speaker at an upcoming meeting? If so, please check the list of available speakers on our website under Resources/Speakers List. Or contact Tom Sears (tsears@sympatico.ca) to propose a date and a subject you would like the person to speak about i.e. a) about HIP;  b) a project ; or c) awareness of the issues. Ideally these talks will inform members and guests and hopefully engage members in becoming involved in an Indigenous program, donating money and developing a relationship with the local Indigenous community. We are happy to help you connect with the community close to you. There have been an estimated ten presentations in the past month. As mentioned, Jay Lomax has agreed to be a part of our speakers bureau.

Other : As mentioned, we have produced a new HIP Brochure. You can find it on our website under Resources (Rotary HIP - HIP Brochure). If you would like to use it, you may print and distribute to your networks. If you need more, contact us and we can send. We have also improved our Facebook page and added a twitter handle. We have over 200 FB followers and 60 twitter subscribers to date. If you would like to be a friend on our Facebook page, click :  https://www.facebook.com/HonouringIndigenousPeoples/ to see our new site. You can like, follow and share. We also encourage you to check our website and contents regularly. Encourage your friends too. Also send Julie (julie@eccgroup.ca) the email address of anyone who you think would like to receive our newsletter.

News & HIP board member, David Newman was recently at Lower Fort Garry for a Treaty 1 flag raising. David's family (wife, Brenda, son, grandson and daughter) joined a group of 23 travelling by bus from Winnipeg. On the bus, the day began with discussions led by Dr. Raymond Currie and Clayton Sandy(leaders of a circle dialogue for reconciliation program) and Elder Florence Paynter (who provided teachings during the trip). Nine flags were raised simultaneously by the Honourable Jim Carr raising the Canadian flag, 4 chiefs and 3 other First Nation reps from the seven Treaty 1 bands raising each band's flag and the new Treaty Commissioner, Loretta Ross raising the Union Jack. Treaty 1 Chiefs Jim Bear(Broken Head), Glen Hudson (Peguis), Dennis Meeches (Long Plains) and the Chief of Sandy Bay were all present along with representatives of Sagkeeng, Rousseau and Swan Lake. The Agreement between the Selkirk Settlers and Chief Peguis on behalf of his People in 1817 was also recognized. Pursuant to that Treaty, it was the settlers who were granted reserves out of the lands occupied by the Indigenous Peoples led by Chief Peguis and 4 other Indian Chiefs who effectively gave some of their land to the settlers. Following was a full day of teachings, ceremonies, dance performances, a tour of the fort and then a sharing circle. You can read the full story on our blog Rotary HIP - Blog.Events  : 

On August 10th, HIP Chair, Chris Snyder and his wife, Pat, travelled to Algonquin Park to see the send off of the Paddling for Truth & Reconciliation canoe journey. This new canoe adventure is in co-operation of the Mushkegowuk Council and camps Pathfinder and Wabun and the Ontario Camping Association. Seven young people from the James Bay area and an elder joined with the young people from these camps on a canoe trip. This was a great exercise in reconciliation, cultural awareness and leadership training. We are excited to being able to play a role! You can read a brief report in the attached link: Rotary HIP - Newsletters.

AFN launches First Nations educational toolkit for teachers - the Assembly of First Nations has launched its free digital education resource for the iPad on iTunes U to the acclaim of many school boards. Titled "It's Our Time First Nations Education Toolkit," the package provides teachers with culturally relevant accessible, hands-on educational tools related to First Nations culture and history. It is seen as a "must-have reference for schools and a valuable comprehensive toolkit". See link for further information AFN Toolkit

Upcoming Fall Pow - Georgian Bay Friendship Centre Pow Wow - Ste. Marie Park, Midland-food and craft vendors, dancers and drumming. http://www.gbnfc.com/powwow  .  Sept. 8th-10th - Six Nations Fair - 1738 4th Line, Ohsweken - enjoy the oldest Native fair with petting zoo, entertainment, smoke dance competition, Native crafts and food booths.  Sept. 16th-17th- Curve Lake First Nation Pow Wow - http://www.curvelakefirstnation.ca/tourism-and-culture/;   Sept. 16th-17th- Annual Native Harvest Festival and Pow Wow - Museum of Archeology, London, ON http://museumpo wwow.ca  ;   Sept. 30th - Native Child and Family Services of Toronto Pow Wow, Dufferin Grove Park   20th Annual Pow Wow | Activities | Culture Days ;  Sept. 23rd-24th- Georgina Island Pow Wow, Sibbald Point Provincial Park   Georgina Island Pow Wow 2017 | Georgina Island ;  October 4th - 8th - Indigenous Roots of Expressive Arts Therapy Conference, Winnipeg, MB - the conference will feature keynote presenters and workshops creating dialogue, celebration and promoting healing. A highlight will be a performance by Thomson Highway. Full details and the registration link can be found on our blog.Wows  :   Sept. 8th-9th

HIP Board Meeting - the HIP board, district representatives and key volunteers will be meeting September 9th at Six Nations. We will be reviewing what has happened over the past few years and where we go from here. We estimate more than 100 clubs are now involved in some form of Indigenous activities well on our way to having every one of our 750 clubs in Canada involved and ensuring every Indigenous person in Canada has the same educational opportunities as every other Canadian. We will report in detail next month.

Approved Projects (Rotary HIP - Approved projects)   Check the HIP website to see full project descriptions and updates. We hope you or your club can support any of the projects mentioned as follows. We need much more financial support. Please join in. Not only will you help the project become reality and assist with the educational needs but you will learn a lot as well. We are also reviewing several new initiatives. When approved, we will be providing a brief outline with a link to the project. All of the projects below have been approved by our project committee and have the full support of the Indigenous community.

Blog (Rotary HIP - Blog)  As always, there have been many news items recently that have been added to our blog. Keep checking back for regular updates.

Resources - Films & Documentaries (Rotary HIP - Films & Documentaries)  We have many available on our website - some you can just click and watch.  If you have recently viewed a good film or documentary or read a book not on our list with an indigenous theme or message, please email Julie Dunaiskis (julie@eccgroup.ca) and Janet McLeod (jmm@nexicom.net) to add to our list.

HIP Membership & We would like you, your club and friends to become members. You do not need to be a Rotarian to join. You can join today by selecting (Rotary HIP - Become a Member) on the HIP website. Complete the online form and send us a cheque for $100 made payable to HIP. By becoming a member, you are saying we like and support what HIP is doing. Here is $100 to help move the cause of education and awareness forward. Please note, membership payment cannot be done online as it is not tax-receiptable. Please send a cheque c/o 100 Simcoe St., Suite 110, Toronto M5H 3G2 and reference the online form or send a note with your name, address, email and club(if applicable) to the above address. We will send you an acknowledgement and ensure you will receive our monthly newsletter.Donations  : 

Charitable donations can now be accepted online through our website (Rotary HIP - Make a Donation) and the donor will receive a tax receipt immediately. You may designate funds to a specific project or to general projects focusing on education. Thank you for your continued support of our projects.

Message from HIP Chair, Chris Snyder  :   Will Rogers, the infamous Cherokee humorist known for his Relationships... 150 plus....home-spun humour and wisdom once said "I met a man last week I did not like.. I must get to know him better". This statement, if translated into action, would go a long way towards reconciliation. Just think if every non-Indigenous Canadian made a point of meeting and getting to know an Indigenous person and if every Indigenous person did the  same thing with a non-Indigenous person, it would go a long way to removing distrust. The reality is few Canadians, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, have ever met and had a good conversation with each other. Everyone has a story!

If you did have a conversation, I am sure you would discover you have much in common, have many of the same values, want the same things for your children, have similar goals and aspirations and all believe in the Golden Rule.

I am also sure many stereotypical views which divide us would disappear and we would find out we can indeed paddle together. There are many ways this can happen.

Here are a few (a caveat, be patient - it takes a long time for people to open up):

1. If you encounter a First Nations person, make an effort to talk to each other.

2. Ask the other person about their background and history.

3. Find out what they like to do - sports, the outdoors, hunt, fish.

4. Do something together.

5. If non-Indigenous, visit their reserve or Friendship Centre, like the Newmarket Rotarians did, or go to a pow

wow. See separate list above for some suggestions. If you are driving by a reserve, pull in, stop in a store and chat with the people there. There are several reserves and Indigenous businesses off of Hwy 401 and 400 as well as other roads.

6. If you are a Rotarian, if appropriate, ask them to come to a Rotary meeting and possibly join.

7. Take time to learn about the Indigenous Peoples from conversations, the media and the HIP website. Do not

believe only the negative things that appear in the media. There are many good things happening too. Get involved yourself.

8. Click on the link 150 Acts of Reconciliation Rotary HIP - Links. There are several good ideas about developing relationships.

9. Try to understand each other's past and how we can work together. If we all did this, the next 150 years plus would indeed be an event to celebrate.

Sincerely

416-364-0181 Ext. 2501 ;   905-990-1735 snyder@eccgroup.ca     Chris Snyder     Chair, HIP