Chelsea's Journey as a British Columbia Ambassador Candidate : Celebration of Traditions

Saturday, April 18, 2015

Celebration of Traditions - Traditional Pow Wow

As I said in an Earlier blog Viveka and I were quite busy on April 11th having attended multiple events in one day. One of these events was more of a chance for a unique cultural celebration as we attended the Celebration of Traditions - Traditional Pow Wow which was being held in Osoyoos and was hosted by School District 53 and the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council. This Pow Wow is an annual event however it's location rotates each year and different schools within the district are the different Hosts.

Even though Viveka and I didn't have an official invitation to the event we were very warmly welcomed by the hosts & everyone there! We were even given the chance to address the crowd to bring greetings to everyone whilst talking a little bit about the British Columbia Ambassador Program.

We arrived just in time to watch the Grand March which included traditional prayers, Grand entrances themselves as well as a flag ceremony. Shortly after the Grand March Viveka and I were invited to speak which was truly such a lovely impromptu experience. We were truly not expecting to be recognized and even though we were slightly put on the spot, it was truly a great opportunity to learn more about the history of where we live and be encouraged to take part in this honored tradition. Also Lucky for Viveka and I that I always carry Thank you Cards in my Purse since being recognized we wanted to extend a token of our gratitude!!!

Viveka and I truly enjoyed our afternoon at the Pow Wow and even though we were only there for an hour or so we were able to see quite a bit of the Pow Wow. We even got to watch the Tiny Tot dancing which was my favorite part! During our time at the Pow Wow we checked out the vendors and bought a few hand painted rocks that had unique spirit animals on them. We also answered questions and spoke to different people at the event!

It was a truly marvelous event and we are so fortunate that we had the chance to attend. We would truly like to extend our sincere gratitude to those in attendance and especially the Hosts School District 53 & the Aboriginal Education Advisory Council for the truly warm welcome and the opportunity to formally speak. We really did have a lovely time!