1^st Annual Dreamers’ Gala to Shine Light on Indigenous Land and Culture with Atlantic Canadian Indigenous Performer Line-up

 

November 29, 2022 (Halifax, NS) This December, a spectacular fundraising event featuring Atlantic Canadian Indigenous performers, Jeremy Dutcher, Morgan Toney, Sarah Prosper, and the Relatives will be taking the stage at the first annual Dreamers’ Gala in support of the Indigenous-led registered charity, Ulnooweg Education Centre on December 15th in Halifax.

The Ulnooweg Education Centre (UEC) is proud to bring this new and exciting annual Dreamers’ Gala to the Halifax Marriott Harbourfront. The Dreamers’ Gala will feature a spectacular evening of food, stories, and music by world-class Indigenous performers for this winter season. This year’s gala is presented by EverWind, a producer of renewable fuels working towards transforming Nova Scotia into a green energy hub.

The Dreamers’ Gala proceeds support Ulnooweg’s land-based learning and healing initiatives at Windhorse in the Forest Wapane’kati, protected and stewarded by the Ulnooweg Education Centre. The ancient forest is an extraordinary place which brings balance and connectedness with the land and clear midnight skies. This event will experience a sense of the forest at night looking into the night sky with Indigenous sounds, dance, ceremony and storytelling at its centre.

This black-tie optional evening includes:

• Reception
• Gala
• Ceremonial opening with respected elder Jane Meader
• Three Course Dinner
• Feature Performances with Atlantic Canada’s brightest stars:
  • Jeremy Dutcher – Winner of the 2019 Juno Award in the categories of “Indigenous Music Album of the Year” as well as 2019 Polaris Music Prize winner
  • Morgan Toney – Two-time ECMA winner in the categories of “Indigenous artist of the year” and “Inspirational recording of the year”
  • Sarah Prosper – Winner of the 2022 “Indigenous Artist Recognition” Award
  • The Relatives – ECMA nominee for the 2000 “Best Aboriginal Group” Award

Windhorse (soon to be given a Mi’kmaw name) is an enchanting natural landscape consisting of the ancient Forest Wapane’kati and its riparian zone on the shores of Atuomkuk/Wentzell Lake and the Pijnuiskaq/LaHave River. It is a place where the ancestors of the Mi’kmaq flourished for thousands of years in Sin So’sepe’katik/Bridgewater, Nova Scotia.

In 2021, via a historic landback initiative and through a combination of purchase and gift, this land, along with its accompanying conference centre, farmhouse, off-grid retreat cabins, access to 30 km of trails, a 400-year-old hemlock grove, acres of meadow and gardens, several fire circles and various outbuildings, was transferred to the UEC.

Ulnooweg Education Centre has bold, beautiful dreams for this land. Through events such as this year’s Dreamers’ Gala, Ulnooweg Education Centre is gathering the means to expand the possibilities of the space and build a place of land-based learning, healing, and gathering. It will be a place to connect with Mother Nature, to learn about culture, language, ecology, health, science, and a place to heal and grow for all peoples. It will be a place of balance.

“It has long been our dream to see young Indigenous children learning from the land under the same hemlocks their ancestors did long ago,” says Chris Googoo, COO of Ulnooweg Education Centre. “We have been working diligently to bring youth back to the land. We want our people to feel the peace of that forest and its lands. Through reconnecting with the land, learning becomes a way of being, rather than just a way of knowing. “Googoo has multi-year plans for the space including an observatory that will connect the people with the star stories, a world-class performance centre for the arts, and sacred ceremony spaces to reconnect with Mother Earth.

Today, Windhorse stands as a beacon of hope – which is a large responsibility to maintain and grow. Recent upgrades such as installing safety equipment, updating the Wi-Fi connection, and purchasing landscape equipment have put pressure on the charity’s resources, and there is much more work needed to build the space Googoo is dreaming of. Infrastructure and accessibility upgrades to off-grid cabins and the sustainably built conference centre, as well as regular maintenance upkeeps on roofs, heating systems, and water infrastructure are just a few major costs.

For this December 15th, gather with world-class Atlantic Canadian Indigenous performers, communities, and allies to help celebrate their dreams – and more urgently, to raise funds to meet the development and programming goals. Throughout the evening, you will learn about Ulnooweg, the Wapane’kati Forest, and the future they envision for this ancient, living landscape as a place to lift communities and most importantly the next generation.

To support this event and their charity goals, you can attend the gala by purchasing individual tickets or a full table; become a corporate sponsor; or donate any amount at https://www.ulnoowegeducation.ca/dreamers-gala/

This remarkable event brings together Indigenous song, story, and dance, while raising money to build a solid foundation and space for the seven generations to connect with the land, culture and celebrate a future of truth and reconciliation.

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Media contact or Interview Requests:
Andrea Durfee
Communications Manager
adurfee@ulnoowegeducation.ca
902-809-7580

About Ulnooweg Education Centre

The Ulnooweg Education Centre is an Indigenous-led registered charitable organization that aims to bring foundational change and empower Atlantic Canada’s Indigenous communities through the advancement of education. A fundraising campaign to help with the cost of the sale and operations of Windhorse. http://www.ulnoowegeducation.ca/windhorse/