Comox Valley’s Local Governments to Observe National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

September 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and a time for all residents of the Comox Valley to reflect on the history and traumatic legacy of residential schools in Canada, including seven schools that were located on Vancouver Island. 

Public commemoration of the painful history and ongoing impacts of residential schools is a vital component of the reconciliation process. To support the community in acknowledging this day together, the Town of Comox, City of Courtenay, Village of Cumberland and the Comox Valley Regional District (CVRD) will be closing the following facilities September 30 in observance.

• City of Courtenay City Hall
• Courtenay Fire Hall
• Courtenay Public Works
• Courtenay Recreation Lewis Centre
• Comox Town Hall
• Comox Community Centre
• Comox Municipal Works Yard
• Comox Valley Regional District Office
• Comox Valley Sports Centre
• Comox Valley Aquatic Centre
• LINC Youth Centre
• Florence Filberg Centre
• Village of Cumberland Office
• Village of Cumberland Recreation Centre
• Comox Valley Waste Management Centre 
• Campbell River Waste Management Centre

Throughout the year, local government employees are provided with educational tools to learn, acknowledge and raise awareness about the impacts of colonialism. On Truth and Reconciliation Day, employees are also encouraged to participate in local events and activities that acknowledge residential school survivors and the lives of those children who did not come home.

Work continues through the Reconciliation Advisory Table, a group including representatives from the K’ómoks First Nation and community Indigenous groups, to identify ways that local government and the Indigenous community can move forward together on reconciliation initiatives that are appropriate and meaningful to the Indigenous community. More information on the Advisory Table can be found at www.comoxvalleyrd.ca/ReconciliationAdvisoryTable.

What can you do?

• Understand the origins of Orange Shirt Day
  
• Wear orange on September 30
• Attend the Comox Valley Spirit Walk anytime between 11am-5pm. Register at Florence Filberg Centre at 411 Anderton Avenue (hosted by Comox Valley MIKI'SIW Métis Association and Indigenous Women's Sharing Society). For more information, call 250-871-7353 or view the event poster.
  
• Discover and share the origin stories, history and languages of the K’ómoks First Nation
  
• Access learning resources at the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation
  

For more information about the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s 94 calls to action, visit the Government of Canada’s website.  

The City of Courtenay, Town of Comox, Village of Cumberland and the Comox Valley Regional District respectfully acknowledge the land on which they operate is on the unceded traditional territory of the K’ómoks First Nation, the traditional keepers of this land.