Wellington County's Warden acknowledged the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange shirt day at County Council today.
Warden Kelly Linton said it is a day to reflect on the devastating damage residential schools have caused to many Indigenous children and their families. He thanked the Indigenous Advisory Committee for creating and selling T-shirts in recognition of Every Child Matters
He said, "I want to pause and reflect on the actions the County has taken recently to honour our unique Indigenous roots here in Wellington. Firstly, I want to thank our own– the IAC - for all the important work that you have done to explore and promote the County’s Indigenous history and culture."
The IAC for created a T-shirt design and County Council Members and staff bought and showed off those t-shirts to demonstrate support for reconciliation efforts. All funds raised from the sale of the shirts will be donated to the Anishnabeg Outreach Healing Lodge and Wellness Programme, which provides counselling support services for residential school survivors.
He also pointed to a new bronze plaque in the Council Chamber, which commemorates the Indigenous Land and Acknowledgement Ceremony held on December 11, 2020. This plaque was smudged by the Indigenous Advisory Committee yesterday.
A virtual Lunch and Learn was hosted by the IAC Thursday focusing on stories from residential school survivors. And the county has promoted Indigenous Canada training to all County of Wellington employees. The free training is offered online through the University of Alberta