North Battleford students host annual Inter-school Powwow

Page 2

The North Battleford Comprehensive high school (NBCHS) recently hosted its fourth annual Inter-school Competition Powwow. A total of 13 schools took part in the event, including the host school, John Paul II Collegiate, Cut Knife high school, Cut Knife elementary, Cando school, Clifford Wuttunee school, Mosquito school, Connaught school, Sweetgrass school, Chief Little Pine school, Saulteaux Heritage school, Chief Poundmaker school, and Ecole McKitrick.

Cyrina Bull is a Cree 30 student who will be graduating from NBCHS this year. She is also chief and president of the school's cultural club, which organizes the annual powwow. She shared her thoughts about the annual powwow and the preparations leading up to it in the following submission.

The North Battleford Comprehensive high school's fourth annual Inter-School Competition Powwow was a great success this year. It was one of the largest competition powwows we have had. We had 12 schools attending this year, bringing with them at least 60 dancers and seven drum groups. The spectators were terrific and made it more exciting. We were proud to see that everyone was enjoying him or herself at the powwow, meeting their old friends and making new friends.

Being the powwow president for the past three years I've seen a lot of changes in the powwow committee, the Cree 10, 20 and 30 classes. Every year we try to have different traditional teachers come in and show the students the Cree cultural ways and values by sharing with them the language, storytelling, crafts and many other parts of Cree tradition.

At the beginning of the first year that I came to the school, there weren't any activities like the powwow. Then our teacher said, "Why don't we try to have an inter-school competition powwow?" From there we started on our great idea. As the months went by we were making giveaways for the powwow. We would invite traditional teachers, and ask them to show us how to make key chains, earrings, dream catchers, chokers etc. When June arrived the students were excited and wanted to see how it would turn out. It was a good powwow for the first time but we knew that in the following years, the powwow would be a lot better because we knew what to get prepared and which activities needed to be done ahead of time. The students would get together for meetings at lunch hours and after school to discuss new ideas and put more input towards the powwow for the following year.

With our second and third annual Inter-School Competition Powwows we were having greater numbers of dancers, drummers and spectators attending. We knew that we were accomplishing our work and we were very happy that we had successfully held three powwows.

In the fall of 2001 we were looking forward to and planning for our fourth annual powwow. As the students got together, they picked different stations to work for the powwow. The trophies were being made earlier as well as the giveaways. This year though, there were rough times due to students leaving our school in the middle of the school year. Everyone was getting confused and frustrated, because some of the students leaving were the chief and councillors of the powwow committee. In our cultural activity organization, powwow planning slowed down. We had to look at what we had done before, and work from there. We stuck together, for the few interested people that were left, and we made it all happen with teamwork and encouragement for each other, and gradually our powwow group increased in size again. In the end there were 25 students who were working towards the success of our fourth annual powwow. We eventually had all the work done, and we did this by focussing ourselves on the hard work involved in delivering a successful powwow.

Finally it was May 17, 2002 the day for our fourth annual Inter-School Competition Powwow. As the students waited patiently for the teacher to arrive at school, we all knew that we had to get the powwow all set up. It as time fo grand entry to start. The M.C. Gerald Baptiste started calling upon the dancers to line up, and the singers were warming up. We had inter-tribals, competition dancing, hoop dancing, and team dancing. We held a giveaway to close our powwow, and our visitor's left with the feeling that they were appreciated.

Our annual theme for the powwow is "In Understanding and Unity". We use the powwow to honor students who are graduating. We present the graduates who have taken Native Studies or Cree Language with mugs as gifts to show our support and appreciation for their efforts to generate their own understanding of the Cree culture and the First Nations people. And unity is what we hope for as the years ahead start to unfold.

We made another great successful year for ourselves and the people around us. As I leave, I hope that the powwow will still continue and that the students learn more every year and bring in new ideas.

crafts, such as key chains and dream-catchers for give-away. I, personally, made one poster, sanded wood pieces for the trophies, made five key chains and one and a half dream-catchers. I thought it was a lot of fun, because I didn't know how to make key chains or a dream-catcher, but now I do! Yay!!

- Kevin Baptiste, Cree 30 student

Overall, I would give the powwow an eight out of 10. It was much better than last year, which had less dancers and spectators. I was surprised with the outcome of the number of people and dancers that showed up. It was a good powwow with many exciting attributes.

- Jordan Gopher, Cree 30 student

I thought it was pretty cool of my friends who helped clean up even though they weren't in Cree. In the end, I thought the powwow a great success. It was a lot of work for everyone, but I think it was worth it. It made me feel good to see so many people from town and school to come and watch something that I helped to organize and put on.

- Brandon Smith, Cree 10 student

Powwows are a good time for the boriginal people t get together in their own culture, watching and experiencing what is still alive now from years and years ago.

- Pamela Mooswa, Cree 10 student

It was fun helping out and learning how to do different things. I learned how to make earrings from one of my friends. I enjoyed watching all of the different dancers because I haven't been to a powwow in a long time. The powwow was a huge success, because of all of the people, dancers, and singers who took the time to attend an event like our fourth annual powwow. I liked the powwow though it was very windy.

- Fallyn Moccasin, Cree 10 student

This activity was a good way to learn how to make traditional ornaments from the past. It was a fun project to do. A good way to say thanks for coming to support a school. Working at the powwow was a big responsibility and hard work. My classmates had different kinds of jobs too. They worked hard.

- Warren Favel, Cree 30 student

The powwow at the Comprehensive was quite the experience. I personally was never involved in a school activity such as this. It was something I won't forget at this high school. I was surprised that so many people attended and they enjoyed the powwow, the giveaway and the dancers, but most of all, that people got together and really enjoyed themselves.

- Felicia Checkosis, Cree 10 student