By Leanna Pankratz (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: November 23, 2011
UFV’s recent Métis Awareness Day—held on November 15 for students, faculty and staff—showcased the rich Métis history and culture. The three-hour event boasted a history of the Métis shared by Rene Inkster, a traditional Métis lunch with a menu of soup and baked bannock bread, and a demonstration of a jig (a lively Métis dance often set to irregular fiddle, top tapping and spoons) presented by Beverly Lambert.
The Métis are a distinct people group that are descendents of 18th and 19th century French and British fur traders who married First Nations and Inuit women – primarily those of the Cree, Ojibwa, and Saulteaux bands. While the Métis began as simply a term to describe the children of these early Canadian interracial couples, Métis intermarriage and subsequent children resulted in a new aboriginal group that is still thriving to this day. The Canadian Métis National Council finalized its national definition in September 2002 – a statement that recognized the Métis as a distinct people separate from other aboriginal nations. The Métis are often overlooked as a separate nation with unique customs, traditions and culture, and work very hard with regards to maintaining social and federal prominence as well as preservation of the very distinct Métis culture – a culture that celebrates the melding of the people who developed Canadian civilization and the European pioneers that brought it international prominence through sea trade.
Michelle Lavergne is the president of the Fraser Valley Métis Association, a local ‘officially recognized and non-profit society’ whose near 500 members hold regular meetings, cultural gatherings, and send out information to subscribers concerning various political and social issues. She spoke about the event with The Cascade. While Lavergne herself was unable to attend UFV’s Métis Awareness Day, she knew of it and spoke fondly of such events that are focused on Métis cultural awareness and preservation. “The Association really pushes for events like this, and it’s wonderful to see our local university playing a role,” she said.
Lavergne attributed the relative lack of events in Abbotsford that celebrate Métis culture to “a matter of funding.”
“The Association would love to see a larger amount of local cultural events,” she explained. “The catch is, though, we’re an association that is entirely non-profit, and is run entirely by dedicated volunteers. We rely solely on funders whose generous donations keep us going, yet inevitably we run out of funding, which is really too bad, because there is so much good the organization is doing.”
Apart from promoting awareness, the FVMA also declared on its website that it has established and supports a “Métis community resource center that provides social, educational, cultural and family services,” as well as many programs for youth between the ages of 10 and 30. These include opportunities to obtain workplace-oriented skills such as Foodsafe and basic training. The FVMA notes that opportunities such as this promote “self-determination” and “positive community relationships” in the Métis people, and further enrich the nation as it pushes for greater social prominence.
“We hold monthly gatherings and community fundraising,” said Earl Cathers, the FVMA’s Director of Natural Resources. “The availability and prominence of such events really depends on the community and its willingness to donate and be a part of such an organization. We do our best to promote awareness of our culture.”
But the proposals and grant letters for potential funders are proving troublesome for the FVMA. “The proposals we send out for funding are often extremely in-depth,” Lavergne explained, “and another of our main problems is finding volunteers to write the proposals and grant letters. One letter we sent out was 140 pages long! It’s hard to find a willing writer.”
Lavergne said that UFV students interested in doing their part in Métis cultural preservation could offer their services as proposal writers.
“The best way to get involved would be to visit our website, and subscribe to our newsletter, which will occasionally come with a call for proposal or grant writers. A dedicated university student and business writer would be perfect for this job. It would look fantastic on a resume, and would be great community work. If we can get proposals out there to funders, there will be a greater chance of more events like this happening that celebrate our beautiful culture.”
For more information regarding the Fraser Valley Métis Association and potential opportunities to get involved, email Michelle Lavergne.
