NATIVE AWARENESS TRAINING
LIMITED to 20 Participants
WHO: White Bear Services.
Facilitators: Walter MacDonald White Bear- Samantha Whelan Kotkas
WHAT: Native Awareness Training
WHERE: # Arts Commons, 205 8 Ave SE, Calgary, AB T2G 0K9
Arts Learning Center Room
When: Feb 12 -2024 - 9:00 AM- 3:00 PM.
WHY: To meet the accreditation requirements for staff that work with Native people in the social services- correctional services, or to expand your knowledge!!
HOW: COST FREE!! rainsky44@yahoo.ca / TXT 403-714-2398
PLEASE NOTE:
The session will be Videotaped for promotional purposes- Waivers to be signed
SO YOU ARE AGREEING TO BE FILMED
No Audio will be used for the session. But optional brief interview at end of day
NATIVE AWARENESS TRAINING
Walter MacDonald White Bear
About Walter: He has over 30 years of experience working within the education system – social services sector working with First Nation Youth and Families. Walter has earned his BA in General Studies from the University of Calgary and has been following the traditional teachings for over 25 years. Walter brings a wealth of experience and workshop skills that is respectful of all worldviews. Facilitated in a positive approach, and is delivered in a highly educational and theatrical style. Utilizing contemporary music as well as traditional music.
Walters’s facilitation skills- comes from a place of spirit channelled through heart-felt music, personal stories and traditional teachings that have been passed on by sweat lodge holders and pipe carriers.
He also speaks about the power of choice, compassion for all worldviews and the “special gift “ that all human beings were born with.
The workshop can be customized from a one-hour presentation- to a full day activity that includes a variety of personal growth exercises to sharing circles.
Walter also highlights the effect of lateral violence and internalized oppression and how colonization has had a powerful impact with sharing the traditional Aboriginal worldview.
Walter uses music and stories to connect with various audiences on a personal level. He shares his teachings openly, coming from a place of spirit that is a refreshing change. Connecting people with their gifts provides tools for a different outlook on their journey.
Walter has been sharing cultural teachings that he has acquired over the past 25 years from a variety of teachers of Cree, Blackfoot, Ojibwa, Odawa, Saulteaux and Métis’ Nations ancestry.
Walter has worked with Samantha Whelan Kotkas with the National Arts Center for the past decade and will share a unique Cross-cultural experience
About Sam!!
Samantha Whelan Kotkas is a professional trumpet player, teaching artist, storyteller and award-winning children’s book producer with over 20 years working in the Alberta, Canada and International Arts communities. She is the second trumpet player in the Red Deer Symphony and performs regularly with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra, Rosa Barocca, and Altius Brass. She has authored several works which she narrates with Symphony Orchestras and Canada’s top jazz and classical musicians. She was very honored to be asked to serve as the "Distinguished Graduate" at the University of Calgary’s convocation ceremony in June of 2018.
In conjunction with her active career as a performer, Samantha is the education advisor for Calgary Pro Musica and a teaching artist for the National Arts Centre
of Canada (NAC) where she finds the cross-cultural work she does with Walter MacDonald White Bear, as part of the Music Alive Program, very meaningful. She has written outreach and music teaching guides for the NAC, the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra and the Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra. She is currently writing and producing ‘Wandering with Wonder’: an immersive outdoor musical storytelling experience with original live and recorded music, story, puppetry and dance which was premiered in September 2021 at the Leighton Arts Centre.
Native Awareness Training- Objectives
Topics that will are covered but not limited to:
*The symbolic meaning of the Medicine Wheel/The Cycle of life
*Symbolism within the culture Eagle feathers.. sweet grass, Elders
*Impact of colonization and residential schools
*Understanding lateral violence and internalized oppression
*Building healthy relationships- strategies for moving forward
*Understanding the Native worldview and the similarities and differences of the Western worldview
*Dispelling the myths and stereotypes of Native people
*The objective of the training is to create a safe space for people to ask questions about Canada’s first peoples.
