Indigenous Education hosted a wonderful Family Wellness Event on a cold snowy wintry evening on February 5th at the Maple Ridge Act Centre. The evening began with protocol welcome by Katzie First Nation and a wonderful Greek meal by Torrie Catering. Families settled into a family dinner setting for the first hour to connect with department staff who joined families in the meal time part of the event. The second hour was held in the theatre with speaker Michael Linklater, one of Canada’s most celebrated Indigenous Basketball athletes and advocates from the Canadian Bureau of Speakers. After each event the Indigenous Education Department (IED) sends out a survey to get feedback to offer events that are relevant to ‘you’ the families. Here is one family response from the event survey:
It was an absolutely beautiful family night!! So much love, care & attention to detail. I love the sticker book activity, that was fun not just for the kids but the families who were doing this together. Having a chance for true connection, to feel loved & supported and to have an inspirational speaker that spoke to me and my kids was life changing!!! Don’t reinvent the wheel, this was outstanding!!! Take aways go well beyond the beautiful door prizes, which were amazing by the way! But huge take aways came from all of the wisdom that Mr. Linklater shared, lessons for us & our families. I’m so grateful to your whole team, they are beautiful, loving people, with the hugest hearts! So grateful, well done!!!
The IED has a few more upcoming events:
- Metis Family Event, April 8, 2025
- Katzie First Nation Family Event, date TBA
- Secondary Awards event at THSS, date TBA
- National Indigenous Month ‘Let’s get Ready’, May 29, 2025 at MRSS.
More Information to be posted and circulated to families by the IED team, parent portal, and on this website.