Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung to remember Treaty #3

National Aboriginal Day, and the signing of Treaty #3, will be remembered and celebrated at the Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre, just west of Barwick, on Thursday evening.
“What we’re doing is from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. [on] Thursday. We’re having traditional dancing and drumming, and we’re gong to have some traditional food,” noted historical interpreter Art Hunter.
“Everyone is welcome to come out,” he added.
Organizers hope the celebration will be another free event following the popular fish fry there last month, and promote what the facility and museum have to offer.
“A lot of people come through and when we take them through the round house, they ask if we hold little pow-wows and if they are available to the public, so we thought we should make it available to them,” explained Hunter.
“We want to have that available to the people who want to learn a little more about our culture,” he added.
The evening will feature a local drum and several local dancers.
“This is strictly a social dance,” said Hunter. “In fact, we encourage people to come and dance because the drum beat, especially in the round house, is really powerful–you can feel it.
“We’d like people to experience that,” he enthused.
Guests also will be treated to traditional foods, including wild rice and bannock, and they can visit a new exhibit in the historical centre that features a recently-completed mural depicting the signing of Treaty #3.
One of the original Treaty #3 medals, handed out to First Nation chiefs when the agreement was signed in 1873, also is on display at the museum.
The Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre has been a busy spot this week as today–for the first time ever–it served as the training grounds for Indian and Northern Affairs Canada (INAC) employees.
The facility was recognized as a landmark for aboriginal history and the seminars, held three times annually to train the federal employees, will run throughout the day.
The centre also hosted an all-day conference today on Cross-Cultural Sharing to Strengthen Business Relationships, sponsored by the Rainy River Future Development Corp. and Seven Generations Education Institute.
The goal of the conference is to promote the sharing of economic development initiatives between aboriginal and non-aboriginal residents, businesses, and governments.
“We’re building partnerships and trying to understand two different cultures,” noted Telford Advent, RRFDC chair and interim manager of the historical centre.
“We’re probably going to have 40-50 people between businesses and First Nations,” he said.
After opening ceremonies at 9 a.m., several speakers will address participants, including Rainy River First Nation elder Anne Wilson, AWPI regional co-ordinator Brenda Nadjwan, Geoff Gillon of the RRFDC, and Seven Generations CEO Delbert Horton.
The lineup also will feature Manitou Forest Products general manager Dale Kaemingh, Red Dog Inn manager Tammy Hayward, Canadian Wilderness Floating Lodges manager Ron Allan, and Laura Horton, director of post-secondary education at Seven Generations.
“It’s basically discussing how First Nations think and how we think,” noted Advent. “It’s time to get together instead of everybody going off.
“And it’ll definitely be educational,” he added.