National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at Beechwood Cemetery

In honour of the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada (Caring Society) and Beechwood Cemetery Foundation have continued to partner to host a day committed to reconciliation and ensuring that we learn from residential schools and other forms of colonialism so we can all implement the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action.

Join us at the Beechwood National Memorial Center’s Sacred Space screening of the Spirit Bear and Children Make History short film. This stop-motion animation film tells the story of Spirit Bear hopping a train to Ottawa and banding together with children and animals to end injustice against First Nations children at the Canadian Human Rights Tribunal.

Following the screening, we will be leading visitors onto the grounds for a 45-minute Reconciliation Tour, where we can learn from key historical figures who were involved in the Indian Residential Schools whilst learning about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 Calls to Action.

Participants will also have an opportunity to make the Calls to Action a reality with action tables. We will be inviting visitors to take the Reconciling History Walking tour of downtown Ottawa, each point of interest along the route is an opportunity to learn about the role of non-Indigenous peoples and the federal government in residential schools, and the lessons we can glean from history to address contemporary injustices experienced by Indigenous peoples.

This complete program offers an opportunity to recognize and commemorate the legacy of residential schools and take a quiet moment of reflection and understanding.

This program will be offered from 9 AM to sunset on September 30 2022. The entire program will take about 2 hours.

Leading up to September 30, Beechwood and the Caring Society will be screening a CBC-Radio play, The Story of the National Crime, originally aired on September 30 1970, which has a discussion between Dr. Peter Henderson Bryce and Duncan Campbell Scott and speaks of the National Crime publication and the Indian Residential School. It will be airing nightly behind the mausoleum from September 27 to 30 after sunset.

We welcome people from around the city of Ottawa to experience the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation at Beechwood Cemetery.

First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada: The Caring Society works to ensure the safety and well-being of First Nations youth and their families through education initiatives, public policy campaigns and providing quality resources to support communities. Using a reconciliation framework that addresses contemporary hardships for Indigenous families in ways that uplift all Canadians, the Caring Society champions culturally based equity for First Nations children and their families so that they can grow up safely at home, be healthy, achieve their dreams, celebrate their languages and culture and be proud of who they are. The Caring Society proudly works with our partners in Canada and around the world to promote the rights of Indigenous children.

Beechwood Cemetery Foundation: Beechwood was created by Canadians, for Canadians, and remains a welcoming place for our families, visitors and neighbours. As a result of its beauty, historical significance and commitment to being open and accessible to all cultures and faiths, it was designated as a National Historic Site and was named the National Cemetery of Canada through an Act of Parliament. The Beechwood Cemetery Foundation was created for the purpose of safeguarding Beechwood’s future and increasing public awareness of Beechwood, as well as the important historical persons buried within it.