Culture

The Waswanipi Cree Culture Department welcomes you into a glimpse of our home:

I will not say "welcome to our world", for we all share the same world, but instead I will say "welcome to our home, our neck of the woods where we come from". Our Cree culture is our identity, not just a practice, but a way of life.

Our Cree Culture department is responsible for our Cree way of life, and it is geared to develop programs and activities for the community people of all ages. It is located down by the riverside area where our ancestors met at conjunction of the three rivers, Opawica, Chibougamau and Waswanipi River. The culture department is at the culture village site, and it is managed by Diane J. Cooper who is the culture coordinator. The culture village is managed by Mr. James Dixon, who is the "grounds keeper". The office is in a beautiful Log cabin also known as "elders gathering place". We have a kitchen, lounge and dining area within the same building.

The Goal of Culture Department:

"Be the keepers, the preservers and the motivators to strengthening Cree culture, traditions, customs and its Cree language."

Our Ojectives:

"To keep the spirit of unity, humility, friendship, strength in the cultural heritage, and to keep Cree humour alive through programs and projects we operate yearly"

• {Chiiwetau – "lets return home" } - Chiiwetau is a traditional gathering at the original settlement of Hudson Bay post on Waswanipi lake. The gathering usually takes place on the last 2 weeks of every July.
• {Waswanipi day} celebrates our community's history and life of our people. This celebration always take place on June 10 of every summer.

There are other cultural events that we coordinate and they fall into diverse dates and seasons, such as the wood carving, the sewing workshops, the gatherings, the teachings, and the traditional food harvesting, to name a few projects. We cannot predict the seasons, nor mother-nature's change, we plan according to season, nature and its compassion on us. Culture department, also, assists the school and teachings programs, as well as, other departments that work with different age groups. We are open to do more.

Contact Information:

Diane J, Cooper
Culture Coordinator
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Tel: (819) 753-2562
Fax: (819) 753- 2219
Cell: (819) 753-7215