The Niagara Regional Native Centre’s second annual youth and elders conference was the perfect chance for people of all ages to share teachings and lessons about Indigenous history, knowledge, cultures and more.
Held from April 9 to 11 in Niagara-on-the-Lake, the three-day conference brought guest speakers from across the country to make presentations to the centre’s Indigenous community.
Halley Irwin, the Native Centre’s director of development and community engagement, told The Lake Report what an important opportunity the annual conference gives kids in the area.
“Intergenerational knowledge-sharing is very important and unfortunately, many of our kids don’t have that opportunity on a daily basis,” Irwin said.
On Friday, Ojibwe drummer Harvey Dreaver was a guest of honour.
“It’s all about the youth, the next generation,” Dreaver said in an interview.
Dreaver’s presentation emphasized the importance of seeking education and history.
“They need to seek the life of culture, our traditional roots, our language, we need to educate ourselves,” he said.
Dreaver said learning is a lifelong journey.
“I’m 63 and I still need a reminder.”
Sean Morriseau, known for his social media presence as NativePoolBoy on TikTok, was Friday’s emcee.
Along with amassing a social media following of more than 100,000 people, Morriseau is also a published author and musician.
Morriseau’s youthful take on Indigenous education makes lessons more accessible for kids in the audience, Irwin told The Lake Report.
“I have a lot of relatable stories I could share and then the youth in the crowd could probably look at that and think ‘You know what, I can do that when I’m older too!’” he said.
Along with guest speakers, the free event featured live music and lunch for guests.
The Native Centre also provided transportation to those needing a lift to the conference.
“We are lucky to have a few vehicles that we own and our staff are happy to go pick up people in the community, since we don’t have bus service here,” Irwin said.
