On the last day of September, the Souris Valley Museum in Estevan will open its doors to the community for a day of reflection, learning and shared food. The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, held every September 30, brings together two local organizations this year: the museum itself, which hosts the morning and midday programming, and the Estevan Public Youth Centre, which takes over the afternoon.
The day begins at the museum with a traditional lunch of hamburger soup and bannock, served by the Métis Nation Saskatchewan Estevan Local 25 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Admission is by donation.
The lunch is only part of what the museum has planned. A free dream catcher craft will be available, and the grounds will play host to a striking piece of handmade artwork: a set of wooden wings standing 16 feet tall, crafted by Greg Rideout of GWR Creations in Weyburn. Each feather has been individually made from wood. The wings will be set up from 10 to 10:30 a.m. and again during the lunch, offering what museum director-curator Melanie Memory calls a "really cool" photo opportunity. Memory said she had only seen the wings in pictures before and was looking forward to viewing them in person.
Rideout's path to the project runs through an unusual life story. Born and raised in Ontario, he moved to Alberta after high school to work in Edmonton theatres, then spent a decade in British Columbia's lower mainland as a carpenter in both film and theatre. He and his wife later pursued adoption and moved to rural Saskatchewan to raise their family, adopting two children of First Nations descent. In his profile with the Saskatchewan Craft Council, Rideout writes that he and his wife strive not only to teach their children about their culture but to embrace it. The family has now lived on a Saskatchewan acreage for 18 years, where Rideout keeps a woodworking shop he describes as a second home. His work spans cabinetry, garden furniture, oversized Adirondack chairs, bowls and cutting boards, and he favors a variety of wood species for the contrasting colors they bring to each piece. The wings have already drawn attention beyond the province — Creative Saskatchewan, the province's creative industries agency, has featured them as a client project.
The museum's own history adds another layer to the day. The Souris Valley Museum exists largely because of one man's collection. Stan Durr wanted to donate his artifacts to the city, and the local tourism committee saw an opportunity to display them as an attraction. With guidance from the Western Development Museum and oversight from committee members Gord McMurtry and Stan Burnard, the building was completed and opened in September 2001.
The museum has hosted Truth and Reconciliation programming before. In past years it partnered with the Métis Nation local and Southeast Newcomer Services/Southeast Advocates for Employment on an "Every Child Matters" event, opening its doors and its Indigenous display so visitors could ask questions and learn about the history and cultures of Indigenous people in southeast Saskatchewan. Mark Veneziano, then the museum's executive director, said at the time that the museum was approached to partner and answered, "Absolutely." The museum's Facebook post for this year's activities describes them as a chance to gather in reflection, learning, remembrance and community.
The afternoon shifts to the Estevan Public Youth Centre, which has organized a sequence of events beginning at 1 p.m. with opening ceremonies featuring smudging, good intentions, a welcome and respect. An awareness walk along Fourth Street will follow, drawing attention to truth and reconciliation and to missing and murdered Indigenous women, girls and two-spirited people. At 2:30 p.m., participants can take part in beading and Indigenous music, making jewelry and lanyards. A jingle dance and drum session at 3:30 p.m. will teach five basic dance moves along with drumming, vocals and war cries. Closing ceremonies at 4:30 p.m. will feature story-telling, connection, sharing thoughts and a final smudging.
The youth centre's commitment to reconciliation is written into its own mandate. On its website, EPYC acknowledges that it operates on Treaty 4 territory, the long-standing home of the Nêhiyawak (Cree), Anihsinapek (Saulteaux), Dene, Nakoda, Lakota and Dakota peoples and the traditional homeland of the Métis. The organization states that it recognizes the harms and injustices of the past and present and dedicates its efforts to working together in a spirit of collaboration and reconciliation, committing to making reconciliation part of all interactions among Indigenous and non-Indigenous people, organizations and community stakeholders. EPYC serves youth in grades 7 through 12, offering free programming to lower barriers to access.
The date itself carries weight that stretches back decades. September 30 is both the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day, a pairing rooted in a single child's memory. In 1973, six-year-old Phyllis Webstad, a Northern Secwepemc girl, chose a bright new orange shirt to wear on her first day at the Mission School near Williams Lake, British Columbia. The shirt was taken from her. Her story became the seed of Orange Shirt Day, and the orange shirt became the symbol of a movement to remember the children who were sent to residential schools. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission's calls to action led the federal government to establish September 30 as a national day of commemoration in 2021.
For Estevan, the day is a chance to mark that history close to home. The museum sits on Highway 39 West beside Redhead Equipment, and its doors will be open for the duration of the activities. Visitors are encouraged to wear orange in support. Between the soup and bannock, the dream catchers, the towering wooden wings, the awareness walk and the jingle dance, the day offers something increasingly rare in a small city: a free, drop-in gathering where anyone can walk in, share a meal and take part. As the museum put it, the activities are a chance to gather in reflection, learning, remembrance and community — and this year, a hand-carved set of wings, feather by feather, will stand at the center of it.