September 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. As we at Prairie North Co-op observe this day, we are reminded that it is essential to remember that the path to reconciliation involves both a collective effort and an individual commitment.

Today is a day to remember the missing children and survivors of residential schools and their families and communities. This federal holiday is a response to the Truth and Reconciliation’s Call to Action #80. On this Indigenous-led day of recognition, the various retails that make up Prairie North Co-op are either closed, or operating on reduced hours; and staff who are working on this day have been provided with an orange shirt to honour residential school survivors, those who did not survive, and their descendants.

This past Friday, orange cupcakes were distributed throughout our organization with a postcard containing a link to a video featuring Phyllis Webstad on Orange Shirt Day and a personal message from General Manager, Terry Tremblay, "I would like to encourage all staff to take a few minutes to enjoy one of the orange cupcakes that we are providing and to watch the video linked to the QR code above. As a leader, I want to ensure our Co-op and its people are sensitive to some of the challenges faced by the First Nations and Métis people and are aware of the intergenerational damage caused by the residential school system. I hope you will join us on September 30th in wearing an orange shirt in solidarity with the communities that have been impacted. I also hope we can all take some time that day to reflect on how we might be a part of the healing process. Thanks for your thoughtfulness as we move forward together. "

At Co-op, we celebrate our diversity and the unique perspectives everyone brings to the table. Web posts like this, and the post card that we distributed to staff, are intended to open conversation while providing tangible tools that help all employees bring their whole selves to work. Let's keep the conversation going.

NOTE: the image used for the header of this webstory, by indigenous artist, Laticia Spence, was commissioned by FCL for a one-of-a-kind orange shirt for this year’s stat holiday recognizing the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation