News
SUNTEP Prince Albert Honours National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
By Beige Unger
Jan 16, 2023
Posted in: culture, Remembrance, SUNTEP
Truth and Reconciliation is an important topic on the minds of many people both Indigenous and Non-Indigenous. To honour this important issue, SUNTEP Prince Albert students planned a week of activities and reflection leading up to the National Day on September 30th This included an opportunity for students to make their own Orange T-Shirt and participate in a walk to honour survivors and remember those children that didn’t make it home.
This year’s Orange T-shirt Design idea came from third year student Olivia Fetch. The SUNTEP Student Representative Council in Prince Albert strives to support and assist students in leadership within the center so naturally, they were ecstatic to help Olivia bring her vision to life.
This year’s t-shirt designer had this to say about her work…
“The design is inspired by the quote by Sen. Murray Sinclair, “Education is the new Buffalo”. The bison, like our Indigenous cultures, was almost taken from us through harmful colonial practices. As SUNTEP students, we have learned the value of both culture and education in working towards reconciliation. Through education, we can share culture with children who have lost theirs and create empathy and understanding in others. On the sunrays, inspired by the SUNTEP logo, there are 215 hearts. While the number of children found is so much greater, and the number of people impacted over generations seems endless, 215 is the number that started a greater conversation and level of understanding.” Olivia Fetch, Year 3 Student.
Proudly wearing their Orange T-shirts, ribbon skirts and ribbon shirts students and staff participated in a walk and smudge in honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The walk began at the SUNTEP Prince Albert Campus with participants gathering at the MMIWG monument on the Prince Albert riverbank. The walk was the culminating activity from a week filled with learning, listening and sharing together as a SUNTEP family.
