Lakehead University hosting Indigenous Veterans Day ceremony and exhibit

Press Release

November 4, 2022

Lakehead will host an Indigenous Veterans Day ceremony on Tuesday, Nov. 8 at 1 pm in the Agora with speakers from the University and invited guests.

There will also be an exhibit featuring photos and artifacts from the World Wars.

See below for more about the exhibit, which will be on display from Tuesday, Nov. 8 until Friday, Nov. 11.

The Indigenous Veterans of Treaty #3 project was developed back in 2018 by the Fort Frances Museum and Cultural Centre, Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre, and Glenn Jourdain of Couchiching, whose research and photos laid the foundation of this project. Unfortunately, Jourdain passed away in July of 2021.

This exhibit was curated in the spirit of collaboration and reconciliation. It shares the triumphs and sometimes shocking realities faced by Indigenous veterans across Canada and specifically those from Treaty #3.

With a focus on the First and Second World Wars, including other wars to the present day, this exhibit highlights veterans, their triumphs, setbacks, Indigenous women roles, mixing Indigenous and military culture. It honours those who came home and those who did not.

This is a growing exhibit – it started with around 100 names of veterans, and now it has 324.

The exhibit will also include artifacts and displays highlighting veterans of Anishinabek Territory-Robinson Superior Treaty (1850) and Métis veterans.

Special thanks to the Fort Frances Museum and Cultural Centre, Kay-Nah-Chi-Wah-Nung Historical Centre, Thunder Bay Museum, Métis Nation of Ontario, and the City of Thunder Bay’s Indigenous Relations Office for loaning Lakehead these displays.

Lakehead welcomes everyone to this exhibit.

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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8110 ext. 8372 or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.

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