NIȽ TU,O Child and Family Services Society is wrapping up its series of ten culture workshops designed to give children and families from Beecher Bay, Pauquachin, Tsartlip, Songhees, Tsawout, Tseycum and T’Sou-ke an opportunity to enjoy culture-rich activities in a community-centered environment.

(Shown above is a poster promoting the return of the Culture Night Series this Summer)

NIȽ TU,O’s Culture Nights provide delicious, catered dinners and community connection. Each Culture Night includes either a SENĆOŦEN language skills lesson taught by Knowledge Holder TELTÁLEMOT (Ivy Seward) or a workshop on traditional games and crafts.

(Shown above, Community Members at the series’ special Paint Night)

(Shown above, a community member at the medicine-making Culture Night)

NIȽ TU,O has already offered nine Culture Night events in 2024, drawing children and families from several communities. These events have successfully connected community members with one another and with W̱SÁNEĆ culture.

According to the leader of the SENĆOŦEN lesson series TELTÁLEMOT, attendees at the SENĆOŦEN language lessons are learning the basics of SENĆOŦEN and having fun along the way. “I know it’s a language that feels really different to the tongue,” TELTÁLEMOT says, but community members are “willing to risk feeling uncomfortable, they walked in that door, and that’s what I appreciate of those who attend.” Once community members overcome the fear of showing up, TELTÁLEMOT shares, they realize it’s very fun.

Craft and game events – including a painting night, medicine-making event, a Traditional Stick Games workshop, and a rattle-making workshop – have been equally impactful. Over a dozen attendees joined the rattle-making workshop, for example, hand-threading vibrant red, purple, or blue thread to tie rattles together.

(Shown above, Culture Night attendees learning rattle-making)

It’s not too late to register for the final culture night, a SENĆOŦEN lesson and dinner which will take place on August 21st. The session will begin with a 5PM dinner, followed by the SENĆOŦEN lesson from 5:30 to 7:30 PM. The session will take place in NIȽ TU,O’s Community Room, located at 2475 Mount Newton Cross Road Saanichton.

To reserve a seat, please contact Lydia Jim at ljim@niltuo.ca.

NIȽ TU,O is proud to offer this opportunity for cultural connection. In the words of Community Wellness Facilitator Lydia Jim, “Bringing back our culture is important, and having different facilitators come in and do that with our communities is coming together in a good way.”

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