Thank You from 13 Fires Organizers

We have so many thanks. If we could say our thanks in a non-hierarchical way, we would!

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Thank you to Gramma Louise Mae for helping us to begin in a good way, and also for sharing her wisdom in her feedback.

Thank you to all the people who showed up, shared, and listened. Thank you also to those who stepped up as facilitators and note-takers. We need everyone in this fight for a better, more inclusive world. Many people visited Thunderbird House for the first time. Some people had only arrived in Canada one month ago! Others shared that they had “never been to something like this before.” We look forward to seeing you again.

Thank you to Manitoba Moon Voices for your guidance, helping connect us with Gramma Louise Mae and contributing to her honourarium, and bringing people to support the event.

Thank you to Circle of Life Thunderbird House for hosting us in your space, the staff and volunteers who helped with the event, and to all the community members who helped create this community space. If you are unaware, there is a fundraising campaign to repair the roof. If you are able, please consider contributing (https://www.gofundme.com/WpgThunderbird) or volunteering your time (https://www.facebook.com/events/489211347924585/).

Thank you to Quanhai Tonthat and Michael Kannon for being our official event photographers. It is so important to document what we do, and you do so beautifully. Thank you to everyone else who stepped up on their own to record the event. We can’t wait to see it through your eyes. ‪#‎13FiresWpg‬ is our hashtag if you’re sharing through social media. We are on Facebook and Twitter too.

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Thank you to Food Not Bombs for preparing our meal. Food is so important to bringing people together, and you are creating peace by using earth’s resources more responsibly and making time for relationships to build. Please consider volunteering with Food Not Bombs as they support community events.

Thank you to the City of Winnipeg’s Citizen Equity Committee for sponsoring the event. We are glad that you share our vision for bringing Winnipeggers together to create a more racially inclusive city, and we appreciate the funding and support that we can then share with the community through venue fees, food purchases, and honouraria.

Thank you to the youth from Spence Neighbourhood Association for assisting in the kitchen and the child minding room. Again, when we run community events, it’s important to be aware of community needs, so programs like the ones SNA offers for youth employment are so great. Please consider supporting SNA through funding or volunteering.

Thank you to all of the organizers — many committed, caring community members who volunteered their time to make this event happen. Many people ask “Who are you?” and our response is always, “Literally, a group of concerned community members.” We look forward to more organizers coming on board to help with individual events, or even with the overall series.

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Thank you to everyone for your patience and feedback — we are learning, we want to acknowledge our mistakes, and we expect to grow as we continue organizing these events. You can email us at 13fireswpg@gmail.com or provide anonymous feedback once we send out a survey link.

Clan Teachings at Thunderbird House (December 21st)

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On Monday* December 21st, from 6-9pm come and join us as we celebrate the Winter Solstice and learn some Clan Teachings at the Circle of Life Thunderbird House! The winter is the time when our people would tell stories and share knowledge. We will be joined by elders who will share some clan teachings. We will then have a feast and round dance. 

We believe that everybody in the community has gifts, roles and responsibilities that are connected to our clans. As a part of understanding our roles and responsibilities in the community we need to understand our clan system and our place in it. We will be having Clan Gatherings with feasts at the Thunderbird house during Winter/Summer Solstices and Spring/Fall Equinoxes to ask our elders and knowledge keepers to share their teachings with us. We also plan on organizing Clan Teachings and events for each clan in between the Clan Gatherings. 

Our teachers for the evening will be:
– Elder Myra Laramee – Bear Clan
– Elder Dan Thomas – Wolf Clan 
– Tasha Spillet – Wolf Clan

In the spirit of giving, we ask that people bring a gift, small or big, that we can give to each other at the round dance! Attendance is free and everyone is welcome to attend!

FB EVENT: https://www.facebook.com/events/713078575459240/

* an earlier version of this article incorrectly listed Dec 21st as Tuesday, we meant Monday

Bell Tower Wins MB Commitment Award for Human Rights

Congratulations to the Bell Tower family on being recognized with the Annual Human Rights Commitment Award of Manitoba that recognizes those who have promoted respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms and have advanced the rights of Manitobans. Congrats are in order for Christie McLeod who is the recipient of the Youth Award. Former recipients include our very own Bannock Lady Althea Guiboche!

MB HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION:http://www.manitobahumanrights.ca/publications/news_releases/2015_12_01.html
CBC: http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/canada/manitoba/meet-me-at-the-bell-tower-wins-manitoba-human-rights-award-1.3345446
Winnipeg Free Press:http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/local/Meet-Me-at-the-Bell-Tower–359666441.html
APTN: http://aptn.ca/news/2015/12/01/winnipeg-community-initiative-wins-human-rights-award/
WINNIPEG SUN:http://www.winnipegsun.com/2015/12/01/meet-me-at-the-bell-tower-wins-honour

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The public is invited to attend the award reception on Dec. 9 at the Union Centre, 206-275 Broadway St., from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

Registration is available online or call 204-945-7653.

https://www.eventbrite.ca/e/2015-human-rights-awards-tickets-19712800517

5th Annual Christmas Shoebox Drive

Announcing the 5th Annual Christmas Shoebox Drive. See below for the poster, a message from the organizers and a link to the Facebook event page.

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Saturday December 19th
12-3pm
607 Selkirk Ave

“We are pleased to announce our 5th year of gifting children of the North End and core area , if you would like to contribute fill a shoe box with small toys, hygienes, socks, mitts, books, art supplies, gift cards, candy & treats or anything you think a child would enjoy. Label it with gender and age and keep the lid open. We will accept boxes right up to the day of the event at 12:00 noon for those who cannot drop off any sooner, however boxes can be dropped off the night before at address provided.
The Christmas shoebox is a gift filled with many smaller gifts inside.  For many Christmas can be a stressful time of year the added pressures and expenses to a low income family can be hard at this time of year ,some children will get very little at Christmas here is your opportunity to bless a child with something extra , if you cannot make a box you can sponsor a gift box for 30$ to 50$ depending on what you can afford for more info on sponsoring a gift box email

creeativenative@hotmail.com

Donations can be dropped off at 1089 Manitoba Ave or you can call 203-869-1963″

Facebook link: https://facebook.com/events/1157995760895262