I've put a bunch of photos from our first couple of days on my Facebook Fan Page. Thought that might be easier than uploading them all again. Here's the link, enjoy!
http://www.facebook.com/editphoto.php?aid=560142&id=249198750516#!/album.php?aid=560142&id=249198750516
These kids really need our help in order to be able to participate in sport. Without sports and recreation kids tend to get bored and wrapped up in other less productive activities. Please help all Canadians get active and get in the game! Donate now to help us to our goal of $50,000.
November 18, 2010
Kashechewan – Our full day of Partnerships and relationships and Friendship! – Freida
Our morning started off with a bit of confusion. Hanita, one of our MAA partners, and I took a few min to share with the nurses at the station what we are doing in Kash and what Jumpstart is all about. It was wonderful to hear them offer suggestions and even more to see the nods of agreement in the room for what we explained Jumpstart to be all about across Canada.
What we didn’t know was that the rest of the team was looking for the missing Hanita and Freida.
We ultimately found each other and regrouped to prepare to meet the teachers and youth council in the Kash High school. Yes a youth council, different from Attawapiskat and Weenusk. Kash has actually done something new in that they have engaged the youth of the community to become the leaders of the future, Matthew our guide is the caring leader of this wonderful group.
Despite their willingness, I want to make sure you are aware of the monumental task these kids have before them. As I had mentioned in my previous post it seems that the children outnumber the adults in the community. What that leaves is a community of children with little resources to know how to lead each other. I don’t want for one min to let you think that there are no adult leaders. Yet again we meet caring group of people Chief, Band council members, teachers, health care workers and I can’t forget to mention Brent and Georgina, youth wellness workers dedicated to help engage the community in the opportunities presented to them through Jumpstart. I’m sure they have a list of other requirements and quite honestly I don’t know who’s there to support them with the other stuff. What i do know is that with our new admin system a bit of education on their options Canadian Tire Jumpstart is there to help with sports where we can.
With our meeting with the youth group and teachers completed and a new found sense of hope that someone (Canadian Tire Jumpstart) cares enough to get involved we prepare for a community lunch and time for Sami Jo to share her story of hope with the children. It would have been wonderful to have the time with the kids like we did in Attawapiskat to play a game of hockey but unfortunately the equipment we had sent arrived late. It would have been great. Kash is the only one of the 4 communities that has a girls hockey team. By all accounts a good one at that. I’m sure they will make use of the equipment once they have been opened and distributed.
For those of you reading these blogs I want to make sure I mention a great deal of thanks to our Canadian Tire Merchandising team. Without the work that Ambereen and Michael did before the trip, through our vendors we would not have been able to gift 2 complete sets of hockey equipment to each community...... as always Canadian Tire and Jumpstart pulls out all stops to help!
Chief Solomon performs one more important official ceremony in honour of his guests, we like to call it paying respect to the shopping God’s. Chief Solomon takes us to a local woman that makes beautiful moccasins. Shopping done... off to the plane and then Fort Albany.
One more day, and back home but now we come back with a new found respect for how our fellow Canadian’s live and how we can help.
See you in Fort Albany (this one goes in the record books --
Rev the engines.... taxi down the runway..... up comes the landing gear..... 1, 2, 3,... down comes the landing gear..... Welcome to Fort Albany total flying time 5 min!
Freida
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