Downie Wenjack Fund

🎉 The Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund is honoured to present DWF Artist Ambassadors Nimkii and the Niniis at the legendary Mariposa Folk Festival in Orillia, ON, July 3–5!

Explore the full lineup at www.mariposafolk.com and secure your tickets today!

#DownieWenjackFund

With help from their Wine Rack Store Teams who wanted to #DoSomething, and all the community members who donated, Wine Rack Canada raised $57,575 to support our work in providing access to education on the true history of Canada and the ongoing impact of residential schools. #ReconciliACTION

Resident Orca is a documentary that tells the story of the captive Southern Resident orca, Sk’aliCh’elh-tenaut, also known as Lolita. The film explores the deep connections between Indigenous people and the orca, while examining the environmental threats these beings face.
#ResidentOrca

Louis Riel Day is observed annually in Manitoba on the third Monday in February. It honours the life and legacy of Louis Riel, a Métis leader, political visionary, and founder of Manitoba who defended Métis rights, culture, language, and land.

#LouisRiel #MétisNation #IndigenousHistory #Manitoba

Indigenous Olympian Spotlight: Milano Cortina 2026 🛷 Raised in Pemberton, BC, Trinity Ellis is a proud Métis athlete whose passion for luge drives her to inspire Indigenous peoples to pursue their dreams. Ellis made her Olympic debut at Beijing 2022. #Olympics #Olympics2026 #TeamCanada

Have a Heart Day is observed each year on February 14 and calls on people in Canada to stand up for First Nations children. The day focuses on the need for equitable access to child welfare, education, health care, and essential services for First Nations children and youth.
#HaveAHeartDay

Established by UNESCO in 2011, World Radio Day celebrates the unique power of radio to connect people, amplify voices, and provide vital information, especially for vulnerable communities. Listen to an episode of A DAY TO LISTEN:https://ow.ly/qWgt50YeE9i
#WorldRadioDay #ADayToListen #ReconciliACTION

Attention educators! 📚 Are you attending the Calgary City Teachers' Convention (CCTC) February 12-13? Visit the DWF table to discover resources, programs, and ideas to support reconciliation in your classroom.

Learn more: legacyschools.ca

cctca.com
#ReconciliACTION #DoSomething #CCTC2026

Indigenous Olympian Spotlight: Milano Cortina 2026 🏂

Liam Gill represented Canada in men’s halfpipe at Beijing 2022, competing as the country’s only snowboarder in the event.

#Olympics #Olympics2026 #IndigenousOlympian #TeamCanada

Jocelyne Larocque is a three-time Olympic medalist in women’s hockey, winning gold in 2014 and 2022 and silver in 2018. Larocque is a Métis woman from Ste. Anne, Manitoba, and was the first Indigenous woman to play Olympic hockey for Canada and the first to win gold. Photo: Leah Hennel #Olympics2026

Finding the Secret Path tells the story of how Gord Downie brought Chanie's story to the national stage—featuring concert footage, reflections from the Wenjack and Downie families, Indigenous leaders and the musicians who worked on Secret Path.

Watch: https://ow.ly/tHNr50Y9CPx

#DownieWenjackFund

February 6 marks Gord Downie’s birthday – a time to celebrate his extraordinary artistic legacy and his deep commitment to reconciliation. Gord believed in the power of art to spark change and confront uncomfortable truths. #GordDownie #Reconciliation #ChanieWenjack #TruthAndReconciliation

As the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic Games kick off, we’re proud to launch our Indigenous Olympian Spotlight series, celebrating the Indigenous athletes representing Team Canada on the world stage.

Pictured: Alexandra Loutitt (Ski Jumper)
#TeamCanada #IndigenousOlympians #Olympics2026

What does reconciliation look like to you—in your workplace, your school, or your community?

To honour the 10th anniversary of the TRC’s Final Report and its 94 Calls to Action last year, we asked to hear your vision for the future.

#TRC
#CallsToAction
#Reconciliation
#TruthAndReconciliation

Black History Month is observed in Canada and the US as a time to honour the histories, contributions, and lived experiences of Black communities. In Canada, BHM was officially established in 1995, following the work and advocacy of Jean Augustine, the first Black woman elected to Parliament.

What does reconciliation look like to you—in your workplace, your school, or your community?
To honour the 10th anniversary of the TRC’s Final Report and its 94 Calls to Action last year, we asked to hear your vision for the future. Over the next few weeks we will be sharing some of those responses.

In October 2024, with the support of the Reconciliation Action Grant, the Atlantic Ballet Theatre of Canada launched a student outreach initiative which featured two presentations of "PISUWIN," a Wolastoqiyik story. theblanketfund.ca
#OshkiWupoowane #TheBlanketFund #DownieWenjack

#AustralianInvasionDay holds different meanings throughout Australia. For many Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islander peoples, it is a day of reflection that marks the start of British settlement in 1788 and the profound harm that followed, including the loss of land, culture, and lives.

What does reconciliation look like to you—in your workplace, your school, or your community?
To honour the 10th anniversary of the TRC’s Final Report and its 94 Calls to Action last year, we asked to hear your vision for the future.
Over the next few weeks we will be sharing some of those responses.

Join us for a special DWF LIVE session featuring Dr. Tasha Hubbard, the director of Singing Back the Buffalo, a powerful documentary that explores buffalo rematriation and the deep relationship between Indigenous Peoples and the buffalo.

#SingingBacktheBuffalo #TashaHubbard #DWFLIVE

Martin Luther King Jr. Day is a moment to remember the life, leadership, and lasting impact of Martin Luther King Jr., whose work helped shape the fight for racial justice. His commitment to nonviolence, collective care, and speaking out against injustice continues to resonate today. #MLK #MLKDay

Today, Chanie would have turned 72. His life, like thousands of other Indigenous children, was profoundly impacted by the residential school system.
His story reminds us of the harm caused by colonial policies and the responsibility we share to ensure this history is neither forgotten nor repeated.

What does reconciliation look like to you—in your workplace, your school, or your community?
To honour the 10th anniversary of the TRC’s Final Report and its 94 Calls to Action last year, we asked to hear your vision for the future.
Over the next few weeks we will be sharing some of those responses.

Nechako is a powerful film that follows two Indigenous Nations, the Stellat’en and Saik’uz, as they fight to restore the Nechako River and the way of life it has sustained for generations.

Director Lyana Patrick joined us for DWF LIVE to share her experiences and insights.
https://ow.ly/LAbh50XX0OT

Regina Public Library (RPL) is an urban library system in Saskatchewan committed to providing community services, spaces, and technologies to inspire discovery, learning, and connection.

theblanketfund.ca

#OshkiWupoowane #TheBlanketFund #Reconciliation #CanadianTire #DownieWenjack

Practice and learn a few Anishinaabemowin phrases from "Gchitwaawendaagod Kiing, The Land is Sacred", read by author Bomgiizhik Isaac Murdoch. Let's keep Indigenous languages alive! 📢 💬

Music: “Son” by Gord Downie
#Anishinaabemowin #IndigenousLanguages #DoSomething

MAMAWO PAYIWAK, organized by the Edmonton Aboriginal Seniors Centre (EASC), was a two-day event leading up to the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in 2024 that featured a pipe ceremony, dancers, singers and drummers, open-fire cooking, ceremonial feasts, storytelling, and more.

The girl who ignited a cultural movement reflects on changes since she was shamed for wearing a ribbon skirt About five years ago, Isabella Kulak, a member of the Cote First Nation in Saskatchewan was shamed for wearing a ribbon skirt to formal day.

The girl who launched a cultural movement when she was shamed for wearing a ribbon skirt to a school formal looks back on all the changes since the incident.
www.aptnnews.ca?p=281852

National Ribbon Skirt Day recognizes the importance of ribbon skirts as expressions of identity, culture, and strength for many Indigenous women, girls, and gender-diverse people.

Learn more about Ribbon Skirts: https://www.theribbonskirtproject.ca/whatisaribbonskirt

#NationalRibbonSkirtDay

With the support of the Reconciliation Action Grant, ACEH hosted the Spirit of Na’tsa’maht’, a summer-long series of cultural events running from June to September 2024 that fostered community and addressed the stigma around homelessness and harm reduction.