‘A spirit of togetherness shone brightly’ at the 2024 Concordia Pow Wow
Cheyenne Henry: “There’s a lot of power in learning about something by doing.”
The Pow Wow is now a fall tradition at Concordia. This year’s edition stands out in the mind of Cheyenne Henry, manager of the Otsenhákta Student Centre (OSC), who hosted the event. “There’s a spirit of togetherness that really shone brightly,” she says.
Henry is a member of Roseau River Anishinaabe First Nation, Treaty One territory, and she grew up in Winnipeg. She elaborates on what made the third annual Pow Wow so remarkable.
‘You could see the ripples’
You’ve said you were blown away by the wider community’s response to the Pow Wow this year. What did you experience?
Cheyenne Henry: A great team of people came together with open minds and a willingness to work together. Having those strong values present, which is an Indigenous way, made it so successful. It shows the power of collaboration and having strong relationships with each other.
I think that spirit really came through on the day of the event.
Everyone who attended the Pow Wow contributed to that as well. People enjoyed themselves; they were excited. The part that pleased me the most was that togetherness — you could see the ripples.
Why do you think the Pow Wow resonated so deeply for people?
CH: There’s a lot of power in learning about something by doing: How to approach an Elder because you’re bringing them water, for example. Those teachable moments happened in being put to work as a volunteer.
The arena director, Ray Deer, from Kahnawà:ke, shared how wonderful it was to see children and young people at the Pow Wow. When they had the kids in the circle in the Round Dance — the majority, if not all of them being non-Indigenous — he shared how important it was for these young people to see and experience Indigenous Peoples and our traditions and cultures in such a positive environment.
That will impact them for the rest of their lives — and these are our future generations. For them to see that is so important.
What is the importance of the Pow Wow for you?
CH: Pow Wows are celebrations. We can share who we are with others. Across Turtle Island, people travel from Pow Wow to Pow Wow. They’re going to have a good time: eating great food, getting the best-looking beadwork, adding to your regalia, watching the dances, seeing family, visiting a neighbouring community.
It’s a time for us to come together, to be a community and to be proud of who we are through the doing. I’m very happy and very proud to be an Indigenous person and especially so at these events where we get a chance to show who we are.
When we’re showcasing our dances and our drumming, the drum itself represents the heartbeat of our Nations.
What goals did you have in mind as you were planning this year’s Pow Wow?
CH: We struck together a working committee made up of people from across the university. Myself, Bo Kim and Savannah Matteini-Gabriel were the OSC reps.
We also invited a community member from Kahnawà:ke, Lance Delisle, who had MC’ed past Pow Wows, as well as dozens and dozens across the province. He was able to provide guidance, help with bringing in protocols and remind us about the values and the purpose of our Pow Wows in general.
Lance reminded us that when we host a Pow Wow, we are inviting people into our home and treating them as guests. That idea of hospitality became a foundation for our planning.
I’m so proud of and honoured by the response to the event, and I want to acknowledge all the other key players who made it possible, including:
- the committee members from Hospitality, Petra Alves and Stephanie Croteau
- Oliver de Volpi from Food Services, who ensured that we could feed and hydrate everyone
- student Aidan Condo, who works in the Office of Indigenous Directions and led volunteer coordination
- the Book Stop, which contributed a donation of gifts for participants and performers
- The Hive, which provided free food for Pow Wow attendees
- all the performers, community vendors, and student and staff volunteers
Working with representation from different areas of the university is how I want to move the Pow Wow forward in the future, especially always having a student sitting on our committee. We want to thank everyone for contributing to the success of the third Annual OSC Pow Wow! Chi Meegwetch, Nia’wen!
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