Miywasin hosts open house as part of Raising the Curtain
The Miywasin Friendship Centre held an open house event Tuesday to mark “Raising the Curtain” week in Medicine Hat, a celebration of diversity and inclusion.
For Miywasin, the week of events is an important acknowledgment of the city’s cultural richness, but also an extension of what they do on a normal week anyway.
“Miywasin is not just for aboriginals. Non-aboriginals can also attend our programming and help to build that bridge,” explained youth outreach co-ordinator Carol Syrette. “Through our outreach programs, we work on life skills. And through the Medicine Wheel, we work on the mental, spiritual, emotional and physical parts of ourselves. It’s a centre where people can come, can share and feel like they belong, and it’s for everybody to enjoy.”
At Tuesday’s open house, Miywasin also wanted to embody the sense of inclusion Raising the Curtain stands for, with craft-making, free bannock and a comfortable atmosphere to come in an mingle with Miywasin staff and members of the local aboriginal community.
“We want to break down some barriers so people feel more comfortable to come here,” confirmed Syrette. “We are a place where the First Nations, Métis and Inuit meet and come together, but it’s important we build up a good relationship with all community members so we can work on reconciliation, and work together to make Medicine Hat an even nicer place than it is now. We want to share our culture with the rest of the community.”