Edmonton career fair doubles attendance this year

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Blueprint for the Future, an Aboriginal youth career fair at Edmonton's Shaw Conference Centre was buzzing as an estimated 2100 Aboriginal youth converged on the annual fair sponsored each year in a different Canadian city by the National Aboriginal Achievement Foundation in Toronto.

The location each time around coincides with whatever city is hosting that particular year's National Aboriginal Achievement Awards.

The foundation's chief executive officer, John Kim Bell, expressed surprise and delight at the turnout.

The youths more or less took over, commandeering the entire two lower levels of the conference centre. Whenever there was a break between sessions, it seemed everyone had to walk sideways, duck or dive just to get from point A to point B.

"Last year we had around 1,200 youth; this is well beyond what I had anticipated," said Kim Bell. They had expected 1,600 to 1,800.

Primarily designed for Grades 10 through 12 students, the fair offered a choice of 32 workshops and presentations about occupations as diverse as airplane pilots and zoologists. Students also had the pleasure to listen to Ted Nolan who, a couple of years ago, won coach of the year when he was with the Buffalo Sabres in the National Hockey League.

Many of the workshop presenters did admirable jobs as they employed creativity and energy to get their message across to the youth.

For example, Jana O'Connor and and her team's "Get a Life" show utilized lots of good old-fashioned humor to keep their audience interested, participatory and laughing.

There were the more serious sessions too. Ones on film work, writing and communications, music, health ad safety, forestry and law, for example.

When time allowed, all sorts of young, energetic kids travelled the hallways, a few would rap or break dance and draw a crowd, while still others simply mingled and socialized with new or former acquaintances.

There was also a constant flow of traffic through the dozens of displays by business interests and services that deal with the Native community and are trying to attract individuals from the Aboriginal communities as clients or as prospective employees.

The closing ceremonies involved a number of free draws for ghetto blasters, watches and a bicycle. Sportsman Ted Nolan presented the prizes.

Wilton Goodstriker, a Blood tribe member who lives in Edmonton, provided the closing prayer.