National Indigenous Peoples Day will be celebrated in the Town of Olds on June 18.
Town council made that decision during its May 13 meeting.
The day is an opportunity for Canadians to celebrate the unique heritage and cultures of First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples, recognized by the Canadian Constitution as Indigenous peoples.
It will be held in Centennial Park or the Olds Big Rack Cow Palace Event Centre, depending on the weather.
This is the third time the event has been held in the community on this scale. Organizers began staging it annually in 2017.
“National Indigenous Peoples Day started in Olds in 2017," Olds Institute executive director Mitch Thompson said during a presentation to council.
"It was an event that occurred in the community about 10 years ago. Then a grassroots group of community volunteers came together (with) the stewardship of the Town of Olds and put on an event in 2017.”
Joining Thompson in addressing council was Elder John Sinclair who said he has been happy with how it's grown.
“I’m so pleased at the progress that has been made over the past two years,” Sinclair said.
The event will have activities for everyone to participate in and invitations have been extended to Chinook's Edge School Division and Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools to join in the activities.
Activities that will be available include circles of reconciliation, ceremonies and cultural crafts.
“The kids really enjoyed having a laugh and singing along with the songs,” Sinclair said of previous years.
There will also be a number of events happening in Olds in the lead-up to June 18, including screening of the movie Indian Horse on June 17 at the TransCanada Theatre at 7 p.m.
Tickets are free and can be found at everythingolds.ca
Additionally there is a Walk for Common Ground expected to include about 30 walkers. It starts in Edmonton on May 31 and will be making its way through Bowden and Olds on June 10 before ending in Calgary.
Walk for Common Ground isn’t a protest but rather it’s an opportunity to walk, talk, make new relationships and have a purposeful reflection around how an individual can make a meaningful effort to restore treaty relations with Indigenous peoples.
On June 10 the walkers will stop in Olds for the evening and will stage evening activities and a talking circle with the walkers at the United Church, starting at 6:30 p.m.
The next morning the walk will continue from Olds to Carstairs along Highway 2A.
“What we’ve done is encouraged the schools to join a portion of the walk,” said Thompson.
