It was a close call for this year’s Niagara Regional Native Centre powwow — the yearly gathering, which saw some organizing troubles, was rescued at the 11th hour by community members who stepped in to save the treasured event.
The 11th annual Nurturing Our Roots Traditional Powwow, held Saturday, Sept. 27, drew thousands to the Native Centre’s grounds on Airport Road for a day of dance, arts, good spirits and togetherness.
The powwow was originally meant to be held at Butler’s Barracks, but was temporarily cancelled when not enough teams signed up for a lacrosse tournament meant to anchor the weekend.
On Sept. 22, five days before the powwow, the Native Centre board asked community member Sabrina Shawana to take over planning.
With Butler’s Barracks no longer an option, the powwow was moved to the Native Centre’s grounds, the first time the event was held there since before the pandemic. The powwow had previously been hosted at the Meridian Centre in St. Catharines.
For Shawana, it ended up feeling like a rebirth for the annual event.
“Taking it back to the grounds of the Niagara Native Centre, feels like a revival for this community,” said Shawana.
“I was really hoping to give the community this opportunity to just be human again and have an experience … almost like a hard factory reset.”
Vendors lined the grounds selling jewelry, carvings, art and food, while Meridian Credit Union provided free ice cream until supplies ran out.
Ray Thunderchild emceed the event, guided and the dance circle where people of all ages were invited and compete for prizes, including gift cards to local restaurants.
For Shawana, the motivation to keep the powwow alive goes back to personal experience.
“I restarted this powwow for the community back in 2014 because in 1999, when my grandfather passed, this community really rallied behind my family to support us in our deepest time of grief,” she said.
“That moment showed me so much love that I’ve been doing these radical acts of reciprocity ever since, trying to give that kind of love back to others.”
An elder from the Strong Water Singers, identifying herself as Okie the Two-Spirit Elder, described the powwow as both a celebration and a form of medicine.
She said gatherings like this help people, including herself, heal from trauma while reminding them of their responsibilities to one another.
“I almost want to cry because I’m so happy to see this. This is what we’re supposed to be doing,” said Okie.
She also spoke about inclusion, noting that two-spirit people held important roles in traditional leadership before colonization and that queer spaces in Canada should recognize them as forebears.
“I hope to see our two-spirit people at the round tables with the board members, where the decisions are being made, for the good of all and for the generations to come.”
For vendors, the event was not only about sales but about being in a space where culture and community are respected.
Teyo Hill, a soapstone carver from Six Nations, said taking part in the powwow was a very positive experience.
She described the gathering as welcoming and well organized, with a strong sense of community, and said what she hoped people would take away from the day was simple.
“Peace is the answer,” said Hill.
Held the weekend before the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Shawana said reconciliation is not a simple or easy process, but gatherings like this move people forward together.
“Events like this let us walk in unity together in a way that’s real, not just words. Reconciliation isn’t just a casual stroll,” said Shawana.
The Native Centre has not announced when the next large-scale gathering will take place, but Shawana said she hopes this year’s powwow showed the community’s readiness to keep building spaces of healing and cultural pride.
