Coming together for powwow

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It was a rainy day in Peace River, but spirits were high at the 10th annual Aboriginal gathering and powwow held June 10 and 11.

The event was moved indoors to the local hockey arena, but the weather did not stop the 300 people in attendance from enjoying the competition powwow.

The event is unique in that it is not held at a First Nation location and it is open to the general public, said Dennis Whitford, chairperson of the organizing committee for the event.

The organizing committee is made up of Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people, and the event is intended to raise the profile of Aboriginal people in the Peace River country.

Thunderhills drummers from the Sunchild First Nation, and Wandering Spirit from northern Alberta provided music for the gathering.

The gathering also included Metis dancers and a fashion show.

The event was organized with the assistance of Alberta Government Children Services Region 8, the Sagitawa Friendship Centre, the Holy Family School, the Manning Aboriginal Centre and Alberta Native Counciling Services.

"For Peace River to put on this event, it is kind of a gamble," said Denny Bellerose, master of ceremonies for the powwow.

"You don't know exactly how many people are going to show up because this is not really powwow territory."

Georgina Supernault is the volunteer organizer for the gathering. She said the event keeps getting bigger and bigger.

With more than 50 volunteers, there was no problem finding people to assist with the event.

"The support for the Aboriginal community is great," Supernault said.

Whitford said that with all the people involved with the event working together, organizing the gathering was easy and everything fell into place.

"For the future we are looking to grow the event," said Whitford.

"We are looking to grow both in terms of the number of dancers, the number of participants, but more important we want to grow in terms of the impact on the broader community in this area," he said.

"My impression is that the Native community is often hidden, and with an event like this in a town such as Peace River... there is more opportunity to have an impact on the community as a whole."

Constable Kimberly Grenier of the Peace River RCMP was part of the grand entry for the gathering. She makes a point of attending Aboriginal events in the area on behalf of the RCMP.

"I think it is important for the young people to see that we care about how they are doing and how their culture is presented in our community," said Grenier.

Frank Oberle, MLA for Peace River and a new member of the legislature, was honored to be invited and pleased to take in his first powwow.

"This is a chance for us to teach and to learn with each other over the next few days," said Oberle.

"It is a chance to encourage partnership between our communities and yours and to welcome people to this region."