Project of Heart Memory Labyrinth at Beechwood Cemetery Walkthrough
The National Day of Truth and Reconciliation and Orange Shirt Day at Beechwood Cemetery
Join us at the Beechwood National Memorial Center’s Sacred Space for the first ever full public display of 57,000 tiles made by children and youth across Canada to honour the children who attended residential schools as part of the Project of Heart education program.
The Project of Heart Tiles were displayed on September 30th as a memory labyrinth for guests to learn the historical and contemporary truths of First Nations, Metis and Inuit peoples and their relationship with Canada.
Project of Heart was started by students in 2007 who were shocked with what they were learning in their history class. With the help of their teacher, concerned community members, and IRS Survivors, it became a collaborative, inter-generational artistic journey of seeking truth about the history of Aboriginal people in Canada. Its purpose is to examine the history and legacy in the Indian Residential Schools, to commemorate the lives of the thousands of Indigenous children who died in the schools, and to call Canadians to action through social justice endeavors, to change our present and future history collectively.
The First Nations Child and Family Caring Society works to ensure the safety and well-being of First Nations youth and their families through education initiatives, public policy campaigns and providing quality resources to support communities. Using a reconciliation framework that addresses contemporary hardships for Indigenous families in ways that uplift all Canadians, the Caring Society champions culturally based equity for First Nations children and their families so that they can grow up safely at home, be healthy, achieve their dreams, celebrate their languages and culture and be proud of who they are. The Caring Society proudly works with our partners in Canada and around the world to promote the rights of Indigenous children.
The Assembly of 7 Generations is an Indigenous owned and youth-led, non-profit organization focused on cultural support and empowerment programs and policies for Indigenous youth while being led by traditional knowledge and Elder guidance. A7G believes that the assembly and unity of Indigenous youth from across Turtle Island will not only contribute to our own success and healing of today but also that of our next seven generations. Video by Alan Ryckman Design by Snow Larc Landscape Architecture