Events and Programs to Mark National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Sept. 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

city of peterborough photo

The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is a day to honour the children who never returned home, the survivors of residential schools, their families and communities.

“The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation is an important opportunity to reflect on our histories, learn about the injustices committed against Indigenous communities and dedicate ourselves to contribute toward reconciliation,” stated mayor Jeff Leal. “As a community, we need to take meaningful action to fulfil our collective commitment to reconciliation. I encourage everyone to take part in the activities organized by groups across our community.”

The Every Child Matters flag will be flown at City Hall for the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

Programs and Activities:

Peterborough Public Library

Adults and Teens

  • Sept. 24: Adult Book Club - Firekeeper’s Daughter by Angeline Boulley

  • Sept. 27: Quilling with Sandra D. Moore

  • Oct. 10: Just Get Over It: Exploring Stereotypes, Biases and Racism Between Indigenous Peoples and Settlers

  • Oct. 17 - 22: Secret Path Film Viewings

Children

  • Sept. 27: PA Day: Rabbit & Bear Paws - The Way with Chad Solomon

  • Oct. 17: Indigenous Bilingual Story Time

Peterborough Museum and Archives

The Peterborough Museum and Archives is offering an Every Child Matters and reading centre and children’s activity during the month of September.

It’s also providing Every Child Matters stickers, buttons and bookmarks to encourage participation and learning through its National Day for Truth and Reconciliation activities.

Art Gallery of Peterborough

The exhibition “Watershed” is on display until Oct. 6.

It features work by Mary Anne Barkhouse, John Boyle, Brad Copping, Liz Magor, Stan Olthuis, Amanda Strong and Olivia Whetung.

Other Activities

Canadian Canoe Museum - Sept. 24 from 7 p.m. - 9 p.m.: reading, Q&A and book signing of “North of Nowhere, Song of a Truth and Reconciliation Commissioner” with Marie Wilson, the 2024 Jack Matthews Fellow.

GreenUP and Kawartha Land Trust - Sept. 25 from 4 p.m. - 6 p.m. and Oct. 8 from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m.: Saving Native Seeds is a two-part workshop series.

Learn how to collect and save seed from a variety of native trees, shrubs, forbs, grasses and sedges.

Part I is at Ecology Park and Part II is a field trip to the Dance Nature Sanctuary.

Artspace - Sept. 27 from 12 p.m. - 1 p.m.: launch and celebration of the Maker Space Mural, Niimikaage: she/he dances for a purpose, by Anishinaabe artist Josh Morley (Miskopwagan Asin)

Curve Lake First Nation - Sept. 28 (all day): 5th annual Mnoominkewin Gathering at Lime Kiln Park.

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City of Peterborough's Every Child Matters Community Project Accepting Submissions of Kids Artwork

The City of Peterborough invites local youth ages seven to 11 to submit artwork for an Every Child Matters community project that honours the victims, survivors and families of the Residential School system.

Photo courtesy of the City of Peterborough.

Artwork should reflect the theme, “What Does Truth and Reconciliation Mean to Me,” and be submitted for consideration by July 15.

The artwork selected for this project will be used to create a design that will be painted on a sidewalk or trail crossing. This will create a place where residents and visitors will be encouraged to pause, reflect, and continue to learn about the legacy of residential schools and the importance of reconciliation.

"“Throughout the year, this space will serve as a powerful reminder of the legacy of residential schools, honouring the healing journey of survivors and families,” said Mayor Jeff Leal. “It is a call to action to our whole community to engage in the ongoing work of reconciliation. The City of Peterborough, and City Council, remain committed to reconciliation and building positive relationships with our Indigenous residents and our First Nations neighbours.”

The project is expected to be installed in September 2024, aligning with the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. The location will be confirmed later this summer. Throughout September, the Peterborough Public Library will display an exhibition of artwork submitted for this project.

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City's Public Art Program Seeking Indigenous Artists to Commemorate Chemong Portage

The City of Peterborough Public Art Program invites Indigenous visual artists living in Peterborough and local First Nations to submit proposals for a public art project to commemorate the Chemong Portage.

The Public Art Policy, adopted in 2009 and updated in 2022, recognizes the role public art plays in creating culturally vibrant cities, identifies processes for generating and selecting projects and committees and commits an annual Public Art fund to maintain existing artworks and to commission new projects from artists across the country. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE CITY OF PETERBOROUGH.

The Chemong Portage is an approximately 10-kilometre-long footpath and portage that once ran between Nogojiwanong/Peterborough and gchi-maang (Chemong Lake).  

The intent of Right of Way - The Chemong Portage Project is to commemorate the portage in a way that allows people to experience it. Visual artists are invited to submit digital images of their original artwork. Selected images will be printed onto vinyl media and wrapped around traffic signal cabinets located close to what is thought to be the original portage route.  

“This is a great initiative to highlight the cultural richness of the Michi Saagiig and educate the city and visitors that they are on an historical portage route of our communities,” said Tom Cowie of Hiawatha First Nation.

The call for artists, including more information about the project parameters with tips about the application process, is on the City’s Public Art webpage at peterborough.ca/PublicArt.  

Information sessions 

Artists are encouraged to attend one of three information sessions in early June. Public art program staff will be in attendance to answer questions.   

Hiawatha First Nation Cultural Centre 

June 3 at 3:30 p.m.  

431 Hiawatha Line  

Hiawatha First Nation  

Peterborough Public Library  

June 3 at 6:30 p.m.  

345 Aylmer St. N, Peterborough 

Curve Lake Nation Cultural Centre  

June 4 at 4:30 p.m. 

1024 Mississauga St.

Curve Lake First Nation 

The application deadline is June 25 at 4 p.m. All applications must be submitted online. 

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Murray Whetung Community Service Award Act (Bill 31) To Be Presented For Third Reading

The Murray Whetung Community Service Award Act will be presented for a third reading on March 25, 2025, announced by Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith on Friday.

The second reading passed unanimously at Queen’s Park in early March last year. pHOTO courtesy of Dave Smith.

In the First and Second World Wars, roughly 7,000 First Nations individuals volunteered to serve. As a result, many who served were stripped of their rights for a time away from the reserve. Indigenous veterans able to retain their status were often ineligible for benefits available to non-Indigenous veterans following the wars.

If passed, the bill will create an award for Cadet Corps and Squadrons at the Annual Ceremonial Reviews. They will select a member who has displayed exceptional volunteerism and citizenship over the previous year for a new award from the province of Ontario, the Murray Whetung Community Service Award.

“Murray Whetung was a pillar in our community. He volunteered fight in the Second World War and dedicated his life to family and service. I was honoured to receive his endorsement for this legislation before his passing,” said Smith. “This bill does more than recognize the life of one man; it seeks to teach others of the injustices First Nations veterans faced for risking their lives in service to Canada.”

“My Shomis (grandfather) was humbled when MPP Smith approached him about the idea of an award named after him. My Shomis did what he thought needed to be done and didn’t expect special recognition,” Emily Whetung, Curve Lake First Nation former Chief. “He was a shining example of choosing happiness in the face of adversity and an inspiration to so many of us.”

The third reading will follow the Opposition Day Motion and will be live on the Legislative Assembly video feed.

“I’ve long stood proud on November 11 because of the commitment and sacrifice he has made and as our second Remembrance Day without him approaches I can’t think of a better way to celebrate his memory,” said Whethung. “Chi-miigwetch for learning our history and ensuring it is remembered by cadets across Ontario.”

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Trent University’s Newest College to be Named Gidigaa Migizi to Honour Professor Doug Williams

To honour and celebrate the memory of the late Gidigaa Migizi (Doug Williams), Trent University is naming its sixth college will be named Gidigaa Migizi College.

Photo courtesy of Trent University.

The Gidigaa Migizi College is being built on the east bank of the Symons Campus in Peterborough. The building will include as many as 700 new beds for first-year students and classrooms, faculty offices and student spaces. The University expects it to open in the fall of 2028. The new college crest, scarf and colours will be unveiled next year.

“This naming is a testament to Trent’s ongoing commitment to recognizing and celebrating Indigenous culture and heritage,” said Marilyn Burns, vice president of Trent communications and enrolment. “Gidigaa Migizi, a respected elder and a pillar in the Michi Saagiig Anishnaabeg and Trent communities, has left a lasting legacy that will continue to inspire and educate our students for generations to come. Gidigaa Migizi College will stand as a beacon of knowledge, diversity, and respect, embodying the spirit of inclusivity and learning that is at the heart of Trent University.”

The professor, elder, and community leader was known for his dedication to Trent students and for protecting Anishnaabeg's treaty rights.

The decision to select an Anishnaabe name for the new college was a recommendation of the University’s Champlain Report to honour the treaty and traditional territory on which Trent University sits, according to a press release. Meaning ‘spotted eagle’ in English, the name Gidigaa Migizi College was recommended by the University’s Elders and Traditional Knowledge Keepers Council and approved by Trent’s Board of Governors.

“Gidigaa Migizi was a giant both at Trent and in the Anishnaabeg nation. He was a champion of knowledge, of learning, of students and of our community,” said Anne Taylor, Curve Lake First Nation Elders Council member. “In our culture, eagles are held in high esteem and symbolize honour, respect, strength, courage, and wisdom. These are all characteristics we want Trent students to embody.”

Migizi was one of the first graduates of Trent University’s Native Studies (now Indigenous Studies) program. After graduating, he remained involved with Trent, helping shape academic programs, administrative policies, and cultural practices and advancing education about Indigenous peoples.

He was co-director of the Indigenous Studies Ph.D. program and a professor at the Chanie Wenjack School for Indigenous Studies. Migizi served on the University’s Indigenous Education Committee and the Elders Council. Before joining Trent as a student and then as a faculty member, Gidigaa Migizi was a bricklayer who helped build Champlain College at the University.

Migizi was an active negotiator for the legal recognition of treaty rights. His greatest accomplishment in this arena was the advocacy work he undertook in the precedent-setting case R v. Taylor and Williams, working through the court system to bring legal recognition of pre-confederation treaty rights through the interpretation of Treaty 20, 1818. As a result of this landmark case, he defended the right to hunt and fish for signatories to the Williams Treaties as stated by Trent.

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Fleming College Organizing Week-Long Events To Recognize National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

In recognition of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, Fleming College has organized a week’s worth of events and activities to honour the day on their campuses beginning on Monday.

A children’s shoe collection will be on display at Sutherland, Frost and Haliburton Campuses from Monday through Friday, recognizing, remembering, and honouring Indigenous Children who were lost to Residential Schools.

Nish Tees, a local Indigenous business, will be selling orange shirts throughout the week at scheduled times. All proceeds will be donated to the National Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

A full schedule of events can be found below:

Sutherland Campus:
Orange shirts will be on sale from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday. Shirts are $20 each for students, $25 for the rest of the Fleming community.

Monday, Sept. 25:
Welcome and Drum Opening: Main Foyer, 10 – 11 a.m.
Orange Shirt Beading: Main Foyer, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Tuesday, Sept. 26:
Reading of “Phyllis’s Orange Shirt”: Main Foyer, 10 – 11 a.m.
Screening of “The Secret Path”: Whetung Theatre, B3 100, 1 p.m.

Wednesday, Sept. 27:
Orange Rock Painting: Steele Centre Patio, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Thursday, Sept. 28:
Reading of “Phyllis’s Orange Shirt”: Main Foyer, 1 – 2 p.m.

Friday, Sept. 29:
Rock Painting and Orange Shirt Beading: Main Foyer, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

Frost Campus

Thursday, Sept. 28 and Friday, Sept. 29:
Reading of “Phyllis’s Orange Shirt”: ISS Lounge 180A, 12 – 12:30 p.m.
Orange Rock Painting: ISS Lounge 180A, 12:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Haliburton Campus
Wednesday, Sept. 27:
Orange Shirt Sales and Orange Rock Painting: The Great Hall, 11 a.m. – 1:30 p.m.

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Curve Lake First Nation Athletes Bring Back Five Medals From North American Indigenous Games In Halifax

Curve Lake First Nation representing Team Ontario is bringing back five medals including one gold, two silver and two bronze from Halifax in the 2023 North American Indigenous Games in softball and soccer.

(From Left to Right) Top Row: McKenzie Taylor, Softball; Danika Jacobs, Soccer; Abagail Jacobs, soccer; Grady Taylor, Softball and Quinn Jacobs, Softball. Bottom Row (softball): Jeffery Jacobs, Quinn Jacobs, Carter Jacobs, Tristin Williams, Ryker Jacobs, Louis Jacobs, Josh Knott and Grady Taylor. Photo courtesy of Curve Lake First Nation.

McKenzie Taylor was the lone gold medalist for U16 Female Softball. Team Ontario split the finals with Team Manitoba for gold due to weather cancellations for the playoffs.

The following are Team Ontario’s results for U16 Female Softball:

  • Game 1, July 17: 9-0 win vs. Alberta

  • Game 2, July 17: 9-4 win vs. Nova Scotia

  • Game 3, July 18: 7-3 loss vs. Manitoba

  • Game 4, July 19: 8-1 win vs. British Columbia

  • Game 5, July 20: 12-3 win vs. Saskatchewan

  • Game 6: July 20: 15-2 win vs. Wisconsin

  • Gold Medal Game: vs. Manitoba (cancelled)

Danika and Abagail Jacobs were able to take home silver for Team Ontario in U19 Female Soccer. Ontario went undefeated with a 3-0-1 record in their preliminary pools (Pool B) but fell short in the finals to Team Alberta, 5-1.

The following are Team Ontario’s results for U19 Female Soccer:

  • Game 1, July 17: 9-0 win vs. Nova Scotia

  • Game 2, July 18: 6-2 win vs. Wisconsin

  • Game 3, July 19: 0-0 draw vs. Saskatchewan

  • Game 4, July 20: 2-0 win vs. Saskatchewan

  • Finals, July 22: 5-1 loss vs. Alberta

Grady Taylor and Quinn Jacobs were the lone boys who brought back medals for Curve Lake, earning bronze in U16 Male Softball representing Team Ontario. They had a 2-2 record in the preliminaries that qualified them for the bronze medal match that they won 12-5 vs. British Columbia.

The following are Team Ontario’s results for U16 Male Softball:

  • Game 1, July 17: 13-3 loss vs. Saskatchewan

  • Game 2, July 18: 11-4 win vs. Nova Scotia

  • Game 3, July 18: 5-4 win vs. British Columbia

  • Game 4, July 19: 14-7 loss vs. Manitoba

  • Silver Medal Game, July 12: 12-5 win vs. British Columbia

The U19 Male softball team had finished in fifth place and had nine Curve Lake First Nation members (one coach and eight players).

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Curve Lake First Nation Sends 10 Athletes to North American Indigenous Games In Halifax

Curve Lake is sending ten young athletes to represent Team Ontario in the 2023 North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) in Halifax, N.S. in five days of competition beginning Monday.

Photo courtesy of NAIG 2023.

Representing Curve Lake for Team Ontario are Louis Jacobs, Carter Jacobs, Rivor Taylor, Tristin Williams and Josh Knott who are all teammates for U19 Male Softball. Abagail Jacobs and Danika Jacobs are entered for U19 Female Soccer. McKenzie Taylor is the lone athlete for U16 Female Softball while Quinn Jacons and Grady Taylor are in U16 Male Softball.

The event started on Saturday and runs until July 24 with opening ceremonies that began on Sunday. There are 756 Indigenous Nations with over 5,000 athletes competing in 15 different events in this year’s games according to the official NAIG website.

The following is the schedule for Team Ontario with Curve Lake athletes:

U19 Male Softball

  • Monday, vs. Manitoba at 10:15 a.m.

  • Tuesday, vs. Nova Scotia at 8 a.m.

  • Tuesday, vs. Alberta at noon

  • Wednesday vs. Eastern Door and the North at 8:15 a.m.

  • Thursday vs. British Columbia at 1 p.m.

  • Thursday vs. Saskatchewan at 5 p.m.

U19 Female Soccer

  • Monday, vs. Nova Scotia at 8 a.m.

  • Tuesday, vs. Wisconsin at 8 a.m.

  • Wednesday vs. Saskatchewan at 8 a.m.

U16 Male Softball

  • Monday, vs. Saskatchewan at 4:15 p.m.

  • Tuesday, vs. Nova Scotia at 10:15 a.m.

  • Wednesday vs. Manitoba at 10:15 a.m.

  • Wednesday vs. British Columbia at 5 p.m.

U16 Female Softball

  • Monday, vs. Alberta at 7:30 a.m.

  • Monday, vs Nova Scotia at 3:30 p.m.

  • Tuesday, vs. Manitoba at 11:30 a.m.

  • Wednesday, vs. British Columbia at 9:30 a.m.

  • Thursday, vs. Saskatchewan at 8:15 a.m.

  • Thursday, vs. Wisconsin at 12:30 p.m.

All games can be streamed via Youtube on NAIG’s official channel.

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National Indigenous Peoples Day Celebrated Throughout the Peterborough Community

To mark National Indigenous Peoples Day on Wednesday, several activities are being held throughout the community, announced by The City of Peterborough.

File Photo.

“National Indigenous Peoples Day is cause for all Canadians to recognize and celebrate the unique heritage, diverse cultures, and outstanding contributions of First Nations, Inuit, and Métis peoples,” said Mayor Jeff Leal. “It’s also an opportunity to reflect on the calls to action of the Truth and Reconciliation commission and to renew our commitment to fulfill them."

The following are events from City of Peterborough facilities: 

Peterborough Public Library 

National Indigenous Peoples Day: 

Other upcoming events marking National Indigenous History Month: 

Peterborough Museum and Archives

  • Quilling workshops will take place from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. This registered program is full, but visitors are encouraged to drop in to see the work being completed.  

  • Art responses activities for all ages. 

The exhibition will continue at the Museum until mid-November. 

The Nogojiwanong Project 

The City’s Public Art Program invites you to visit the Nogojiwanong Project. Located at the south end of Millennium Park, this project was a collaboration undertaken in the spirit of kinship between local First Nations, Indigenous peoples, and the City of Peterborough in recognition of the 200th anniversary of Rice Lake Treaty No. 20. Through the collaboration, this gathering space was created to encourage learning and reflection with a series of interpretive panels highlighting the evolution of local treaties and inherent rights of Indigenous peoples. The “Gathering” provides the focal point for the space. 

Michael Belmore’s, entitled “Gathering,” complements the panels and anchors the space. It consists of a grouping of glacial erratic boulders, carved, lined with copper, and fitted so that they sit slightly apart and seemingly radiate heat. The stones are embellished with the Treaty 20 Clan Totems or Dodems as they are called in Anishinaabemowin. 

Nogojiwanong is an Anishinaabe word meaning “place at the foot of the rapids” and the name given to the gathering place, at the bottom of a turbulent stretch of the Otonabee River, renamed Peterborough by European settlers. 

Millennium Park forms the present-day landfall and eddy along the western shoreline. It is also the site of the trailhead to the Chemong Portage – a six- or seven-mile historic footpath between the Otonabee River and Chemong Lake. 

The Nogojiwanong Project location acknowledges these ancestral lands and the thousands of years the Michi Saagiig navigated this route between their winter camps and traditional fishing grounds at the mouth of the Ganaraska River on Lake Ontario. 

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City of Peterborough Community Activities for National Indigenous History Month and Pride Month 2023

Activities are being held throughout the community, including at City of Peterborough facilities, for residents to take part in National Indigenous History Month and Pride Month in June.

photo courtesy of the city of peterborough.

Highlights from the activities at City of Peterborough facilities:

Art Gallery of Peterborough

250 Crescent St.

  • Exhibition: Special Project: Tea with the Queens, June 7 to June 29, 2023

  • Opening reception for new exhibitions, June 7, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

  • Afternoon Tea with the Queens, June 11 and 14, 2 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. and June 11, 13, and 22, 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

  • Indigenous Day Celebrations at Hiawatha First Nation: Art Gallery of Peterborough tent; June 17, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Peterborough Public Library

345 Aylmer St. N.

  • PA Day Family Movie: Indigenous Cinema Shorts for Children, June 9, 10:15 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.

  • Crafternoon: Beaded Rings with Malinda Gray, June 10, 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.

  • Teen Book Club: Firekeeper's Daughter by Angeline Boulley, June 13, 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

  • Sunset Story Time with Betty Baker, June 16, 6:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.

  • Non-fiction Book Club: Unreconciled: Family, Truth, and Indigenous Resistance by Jesse Wente, June 20, 7 p.m. to 8 p.m.

  • Summer Solstice Story Time, National Indigenous Peoples Day at Millennium Park, 130 King St., June 21, 10:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.

  • 10 Indigenous Titles You Should Read this Month featured at the Seniors Showcase, Peterborough Sport and Wellness Centre, 775 Brealey Dr., June 21, 10:30 a.m. to 11:15 a.m.

  • Tween Book Club: Barren Grounds by David Robertson, June 22, 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

  • Friday Film & Discussion: Voices Across the Water, June 23, 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.

  • Adult Book Club: A Minor Chorus by Billy-Ray Belcourt, June 27, 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

  • Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Legacy Space, open during library hours

Peterborough Museum and Archives

300 Hunter St. E.

  • ‘To Honour and Respect: Gifts from the Michi Saagiig Women to the Prince of Wales’ exhibit, open during museum hours until mid-November

  • Quillwork Workshops, June 21, 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. and 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., registration required

  • Pride Flag Scavenger Hunt, during open hours all through June

  • Pride Craft based on the book ‘My Rainbow’ and Stories station, during open hours all through June

  • Indigenous Day Kids Crafts, June 21, during open hours

  • Interpretive tours of the ‘To Honour and Respect: Gifts from the Michi Saagiig Women to the Prince of Wales’ exhibit, available June 21, watch for details on the Museum website and social media

The City of Peterborough’ s Public Art Program invites you to visit The Nogojiwanong Project

The Nogojiwanong Project, located at the south end of Millennium Park, was a collaboration undertaken in the spirit of kinship between local First Nations, Indigenous peoples, and the City of Peterborough in recognition of the 200th anniversary of Rice Lake Treaty No. 20. Through the collaboration, this gathering space was created to encourage learning and reflection with a series of interpretive panels highlighting the evolution of local treaties and inherent rights of Indigenous peoples. The “Gathering” provides the focal point for the space.

Michael Belmore’s, entitled “Gathering,” complements the panels and anchors the space. It consists of a grouping of glacial erratic boulders, carved, lined with copper, and fitted so that they sit slightly apart and seemingly radiate heat. The stones are embellished with the Treaty 20 Clan Totems or Dodems as they are called in Anishinaabemowin.

Nogojiwanong is an Anishinaabe word meaning “place at the foot of the rapids” and the name given to the gathering place, at the bottom of a turbulent stretch of the Otonabee River, renamed Peterborough by European settlers.

Millennium Park forms the present-day landfall and eddy along the western shoreline. It is also the site of the trailhead to the Chemong Portage – a six- or seven-mile historic footpath between the Otonabee River and Chemong Lake.

The Nogojiwanong Project location acknowledges these ancestral lands and the thousands of years the Michi Saagiig navigated this route between their winter camps and traditional fishing grounds at the mouth of the Ganaraska River on Lake Ontario.

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