Celebrating the Strawberry Moon at St. James Major

Julie Druker | Jun 24, 2015

Over 100 local kindergarten students along with youngsters from the local community took part in the eighth annual Strawberry Moon festival at St. James Major Catholic School on June 17.

The event was in celebration of National Aboriginal Day (on June 21) and it also marked the wrap up of “First You Plant the Seed”, an Aboriginal educational program for kindergarten students based on the Algonquin full moons, which is run through Northern Frontenac Community Services and aims to bring First Nations culture to youngsters in local schools.

Marcie Asselstine, who headed up the festival, also ran the program this school year, and throughout the year she visited various junior and senior kindergarten classrooms at four local area schools, including Clarendon Central in Plevna, Land O'Lakes in Mountain Grove, and St. James Major and Granite Ridge in Sharbot Lake.

Those students attended the festival, as did other youngsters involved in other early learning programs that are offered at the Child Centre in Sharbot Lake. At the event, the children visited four areas, including a craft table where Lily Davis showed students how to make their own totem poles using recycled materials.

Just outside in a traditional tee pee typically used by First Nations people from the plains, Grandmother Danka Brewer, local member of the Shabot Obaadjiwan First Nation, told the children the story of the race between the fox and the frog, as a way to teach them about peer support and cooperation.

Also outside, a men's drumming circle headed up by Josh St. Pierre, Leslie St. Pierre and Joe Wilson with the help of the Kokumis Women's Drum group, taught the children numerous songs, and traditional dancers Alesha Mercier and Madison and Logan St. Pierre wore their traditional regalia and demonstrated traditional dancing.

Lastly, Bonnie Murphy assisted the children at a traditional foods section where the youngsters made their own edible strawberry treat and enjoyed traditional bannock.

The Strawberry Moon Festival is based on the Algonquin peoples naming the June full moon as the strawberry moon and the festival is funded through the Limestone School Board, the Community Foundation for Kingston and Area, and the Algonquin and Lakeshore Catholic District School Board (ALCDSB).

Shawn McDonald, assignment teacher for Aboriginal education with the ALCDSB, was present at the event and explained that it signifies a coming together and celebration of all the traditional knowledge and learning that has been taking place at the schools throughout the year. “This is a perfect time to celebrate the traditional learning that has been taking place in the classrooms with these younger students and it is also a wonderful learning experience for their teachers as well. By bringing in a number of local Aboriginal people who know first hand about traditional Aboriginal culture, everyone here today is learning and sharing and that is what makes this event so exciting and worthwhile.”