THUNDER BAY – It is a night of positive messages, and solid representatives of Thunder Bay. The 2012 Northwestern Ontario Aboriginal Achievement and Recognition Awards at the Victoria Inn offered an amazing variety of young people who are focused on making a real difference in our community and region. There were awards for Peer Mentorship, Academic efforts, Advocacy and Activism, Artistic, Athletics, Community Leadership and volunteerism.
Other categories include Group Achievement, Personal Achievement, Heritage Keepers, and the Sandra Kakeeway Cultural Award.
The evening opened with the Little Bear Drum Group who drummed in the evening’s festivities.
What is very evident is that there is a massive energy with the award winners who are gearing themselves to making a difference first in their lives, then in the lives of others, and finally in their communities.
The goal of the evening is to share that if you work hard, try hard that you can succeed.
In introducing the award winners, Elliott Doxtater-Wynn offered his experience at winning an Aboriginal Youth Achievement Award. This talented MC have his artwork featured as a part of the Vancouver Winter Olympics.
Getting up in front of a full house in the newly renovated Victoria Inn’s conference centre was not easy for many of the youth. However they all did it with enormous confidence and skill.