Steak
Night
The 2008
RAKC Steak night will be held Thursday February 28 at the Regina Press Box
Sports Bar, 909 Albert Street from 4:00 - 8:00 p.m. For the cost of $20.00 a
steak cooked to your specifications, salad and a beverage of your choice. In
keeping with RAKC tradition a 50/50 draw will be held along with a silent
auction. As usual, RAKC members have secured several excellent items up for bid.
Many objects for bid are to be announced but rumor has it, that a Galloway Golf
Bag will go to the highest bidder.
Sponsorship
Francine Fecteau attended a RAKC Executive meeting and presented on Wascana
Schools’ Pow -Wow dancers – started last year (2006) – started out as a girls
group and now has expanded to 50 + participants including pre-K children and
they meet twice per week; one session for the girls and one for the boys – as
part of learning the dance culture the kids also learn how to make the regalia
and each dancer assists with those preparations – Francine indicated that each
child’s costumes cost approximately $75. 00 per person.
The group is in the process of
constructing Shawl with the school’s emblem – Dancers are instructed by an Elder
- the program receives partial funding from the Board of Education - the program
is expanding and would require further funds to continue to operate. RAKC is
pleased to sponsor this POW-WOW endeavor and look forward to participating with
the young dancers.
Lisa Dunbar and Becky
Middleton presented on the Youth in Motion Cheerleaders from Wascana and Arcola
Community Schools – group runs from September to March – The group needs funding
for track jackets with embroidering will need enough for 20 youth and 2 adults –
they have an estimated cost of $1,200.00 – RAKC is pleased to support this
cause and look forward to meeting and assisting the cheerleaders - the opening
ceremonies for the Community School Challenge is in February 2008 and RAKC as
been invited to attend the opening ceremonies.
Natalie Good from the Regina
Synchronized Swim Team reported: they have approximately 4 Aboriginal youth
swimming with the team - the swim club trains in both speed and synchronized
swimming: the swim team attended the 2006 Summer Games and in the process of
training for the 2008 games: each team member received approximately 3.5 hours
of coaching per week; a portion of the inner city youth’s coaching fees are
waived- RAKC has again chosen to assist the Aboriginal youth involved in the
swim club.
Some PUNS
To write with a broken pencil is
pointless.
When fish are in schools they sometimes take debate.
I wondered why the baseball was getting
bigger. Then it hit me.
The roundest knight at King Arthur's round table was Sir Cumference.
Police were called to a daycare where a three-year-old was resisting a rest.
Did you hear about the guy whose whole left side was cut off? He's all right
now.
The short fortune teller who escaped from prison was a small medium at large.
A thief fell and broke his leg in wet cement. He became a hardened criminal.
Did you hear about the
thief who stole a calendar, he got twelve months.
Thieves who steal corn from a garden could be charged with stalking.
We'll never run out of math teachers because they always multiply.
Deep Thoughts
“People can be divided into three groups: Those that make things happen, those
who watch things happen, and those who wonder what happened.” - John W. Newbern
Kinsmen Connections
Mark Blatz District 3 Vice
Governor visited RAKC in December 2007. Mark reports – people are still raving
about the Zone Convention RAKC hosted in 2005 – other districts are planning to
embrace an Aboriginal Kin Club and may be seeking direction or information from
RAKC – District 3 would like a member of RAKC to sit on the District 3 board of
directors, they meet approximately 4 times per year – RAKC members in attendance
agreed to send a representative in the new year - nationally Kinsmen has been
recognized for directly being responsible for the advancement of research and a
cure for CF – Telemiracle information has been distributed and some fund raising
plans are starting - Bingo is still on hold; trying to work out some
issues.......... Telemiracle information package arrived and was reviewed a
portion of the letter requested “Manpower Application Form” – Kin Donna has the
package and is in the process of reviewing it - RAKC president may have to go
to Saskatoon for presentation of a tri-club cheque.
Michif Language
Michif
was a trade language that developed originally in the 1700's between the
French/English fur traders and the Cree/Algonkian/Sioux speakers from Ontario
and Manitoba. As the Fur Trade spread north and west to Saskatchewan, Alberta,
British Columbia, and the Territories in the 1800's so too did the Michif
language. Primarily it follows the grammatical rules of Cree (an Algonkian
language), while adopting a large vocabulary of words from the French language.
There are several dialects of Michif, with the most common blending French and
Cree words. Other dialects include the blending of French and/or English with
other First Nations languages such as Dene or Sioux. A Michif dialect using
Saulteaux (an Algonkian language) is also common to the Métis, who live on the
Plains.
In
the late 1800's Metis speakers emigrating from Manitoba - Red River, joined
Metis speakers from Saskatchewan - Batoche to further blend the Metis language
in the north with a southern flavour. In the 1900's the residential schools,
hospitals, and churches in the north were run by French nuns and priest, thereby
reinforcing French nouns into the Metis vocabulary. Today in northern
Saskatchewan, Michif and English are the predominate languages spoken in a
number of communities - I'le a la Crosse, Buffalo Narrows, Beauval, Pinehouse,
and Greenlake. Other communities(First Nations) founded on the west side, such
as Canoe Lake, maintain one of the Cree dialect languages and hence reinforce
the Cree syntax base of Michif, or are Dene speaking, such as LaLoche, and have
no impact on Michif. Those working to save or retain the language are at a
disadvantage. Metis languages are continuing to lose speakers while others like
Cree have seen a new revitalization, according to Statistics Canada data
released. The census results show the percentage of aboriginal people in Canada
who speak the Metis languages has dropped to four per cent in 2006 from five per
cent in 2001."What it tells us is that these languages aren't being transmitted
to younger generations." "The Metis are at the greatest risk of losing their
heritage languages, more so than First Nations or Inuit." "Metis are trying to
produce resources but are a step or two behind because the transmission was lost
between the elderly and the baby-boomer generation." "For Metis institutions,
individuals and organizations are playing a lot of catch-up trying to ensure
that the language does not disappear and trying to get children interested in
the language."
Mosaic 2008
Mosiac will run June
5, 6 & 7, 2008.
As always, RAKC is in the early planning stages. Discussions are occurring, as
you read this, in relation to venue, crafters, entertainers, and, of course, the
menu. RAKC plans to remain at the Gathering Place for 2008. RAKC has engaged in
a process to attract some youth ambassadors for the 2008 edition of Mosaic. By
way of a letter to Regina and area high schools.
Check out Past Issues of the Talking Stick