The All Girls Gathering 2023’s agenda includes a motivational speaker from Manitoba, live vocal music and a session on self-defence for Treaty 3 members ages 13-18. And that’s just some of the agenda.
The event is set for 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Nov. 21, at the Dryden Regional Training and Cultural Centre, and will be repeated Nov. 22 in Fort Frances and Nov. 23 in Kenora. It is presented by the Treaty Three Police Service and Grand Council Treaty #3.
Karen Kejick was the main organizer of the gathering’s first edition, which took place in 2015 on the Iskatewizaagegan (Shoal Lake) #39 reserve southwest of Kenora.
At the time, Kejick was coordinator of Treaty Three Police’s anti-violence programs. In a recent interview, she said the idea for the gathering sprang from the First Nations’ culture that includes “a duty and an obligation to provide positive and empowering knowledge” to youth and “lift each other up.”
At the time, she continued, she was “thinking about the missing and murdered Indigenous women issue, and … that’s a really hard and tough issue. Sometimes, you know, we need those spaces that celebrate who we are in a culturally responsive and safe and fun and empowering way.”
“So, the All Girls Gathering had an energy for the girl, right? It was for the girl, about the girl. And we really wanted to celebrate who we are as Anishinaabe (women and girls).
“I thought, ‘We need to get all of the girls together to also send a message to them that they're valued and they're important,’” Kejick said from Winnipeg, where she now works for Treaty 2 First Nations as their intergovernmental relations director.
At that first girls’ gathering, she recalled, “we had people coming to share their stories and send really good key messages to the girls. And every girl was given a gift for coming, to show our appreciation for their presence, for their energy.”
Looking back, Kejick said she’s proud of her role in founding the All Girls Gathering and glad to see a fourth edition happening this year.
The keynote speaker at this year’s All Girls Gathering, on all three days, is musician and podcast host Kristen McKay from Pine Creek First Nation in Manitoba.
Besides music, a self-defence session and motivational speaking on empowerment, the agenda also includes warrior paint, cultural activities, traditional women’s teachings and prize draws.
Treaty 3 girls can contact the police service’s Betsy Linklater (betsy.linklater@t3ps.ca) before Nov. 15 to register. A registration form can be found on the police service’s website.
