TRUTH, TRADITIONS and TREATIES

An event series offered throughout 2022 by Emmanuel Anglican Church with The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre with the goal of educating and inspiring community about living as treaty people in Saskatchewan.  Learn about and experience elements of Indigenous culture and grow as community.

FALL 2022 EVENT SCHEDULE - Closed


October 13  - Custodians: A Story of Ancient Echoes - with Facilitator, David Neufeld

December 9 - Reserve 107: Reconciliation on the Prairies - with Facilitator, Rev. Jason Johnson

Custodians: A Story of Ancient Echoes - Film and Group Discussion

with Facilitator, David Neufeld

Date:  Thursday, October 13  

7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. - refreshment will be offered

Location:  The Refinery, 609 Dufferin Avenue, Saskatoon - Upper-level Theatre

No Charge Event

*Silver Collection donations will be accepted with proceeds used to fund Truth, Traditions and Treaties program initiatives.

Custodians: A Story of Ancient Echoes is a documentary that tells the story of the land surrounding the Ancient Echoes Interpretive Centre.  The privately owned land, located near Herschel, Saskatchewan, has significant Indigenous artifacts, such as teepee circles, sacred circles and petroglyphs.

The film explores the calling to settlers of how to care for and share the land respectfully and graciously.  This is a new film from award-winning producer Brad Leitch / Rebel Sky Media.  This story of Indigenous sacred sites, and landowners from Herschel, explores questions of land and reconciliation in rural Saskatchewan. 

Join in community to view the documentary and participate in a small group discussion, with opportunities to share thoughts and questions and reflect.  

The film is 1 hour and 14 minutes in duration.  Refreshments will be offered.

ANCIENT ECHOES INTERPRETIVE CENTRE, Herschel, SK visit:   https://www.ancientechoes.ca/index.html

Reserve 107: Reconciliation on the Prairies

with Facilitator, Rev. Jason Johnson

Date:  Friday, December 9  

7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m. - refreshments will be offered

Location:  The Refinery, 609 Dufferin Avenue, Saskatoon - Upper-level Theatre

No Charge Event

*Silver Collection donations will be accepted with proceeds used to fund Truth, Traditions and Treaties program initiatives.

Reserve 107: Reconciliation on the Prairies tells the story of a group of Mennonite and Lutheran settlers living north of Saskatoon on land that was opened to settlement, in spite of it being previously assigned as a reserve for the Young Chippewayan Band in the Treaty 6 settlement of 1876.  Learn how these three groups banded together to overcome injustice; and, to understand the influence this has on us today.

This award-winning documentary was directed by Brad Leitch and produced by Adrienne Leitch of Rebel Sky Media.  The film continues to facilitate conversations in other land disputes, and is seen as a model for Indigenous conversations across Canada. 

Viewing this documentary with community provides an opportunity for group discussion, refection, and shared learnings about issues and actions which have happened, and continue to happen, close to home.

For those unable to attend the in-person gathering, we invite you to view the film and explore the Study Guide, at a time and place of your choosing.


Exciting Update, written by Jason Johnson:

June 22nd, 2022, a gathering took place on top of Stony knoll (the original site of St John’s Lutheran Church) to mark the official opening the Stony Knoll interpretive site. There has been a long journey of relationship building that has brought us to this point. There have been gatherings, the film Reserve107, the signing of a memorandum understanding, meetings, but most importantly the building of our relationship.  What this day signifies for us Lutherans, Stony Knoll First Nation (Young Chippewayan), and the Mennonite churches is the embrace of our common journey of reconciliation to one another and to the creator.  This is a journey that began with many underpinnings of frustration, anger, distrust, and lack of awareness.  Today we celebrated a relationship of trust, mutual respect, friendship, reconciliation and of seeking understanding.

 This interpretive site was established to become a permanent visual structure that shares the history in the story of St Johns Lutheran Church, the Stony Knoll First Nation, and the Mennonite community.  It is our commitment to the past (our histories) to the present (our activity) into the future (our hope).  Chief Sylvia from the Stony Knoll First Nation shared that as she drove up to the site she was overwhelmed with the feeling of coming home.  For myself this was one of the most significant things that happened that day.  It is significant because it marks the coming together of all of us as one people.  It also signifies the openness and the acceptance of the people of St Johns Lutheran, Stoney Knoll First Nation, and the Mennonite community.

It is also important to note that this is a story about people of faith. 2 Corinthians 5:20 states that “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”   This story is about the activity of our church striving to make reconciliation of part of who we are as people, because are we not called to be participants as ambassadors for Christ and as well as recipients of Gods reconciling work.

This event is about unity, its about us coming together in unity for justice and love.  So why would we be sharing the story on our own.  We are a unified voice, one voice. As a small symbol of this unity, we have asked that we share the story of this event using the same article that was written by Emily Summach for the Canadian Mennonite Magazine  https://canadianmennonite.org/stories/interpretive-path-tells-story-reconciliation-efforts-rural-saskatchewan  

SPRING 2022 EVENT SCHEDULE - Closed


March 19  - Doctrine of Discovery: Stolen Lands, Strong Hearts - with Rev. Karen Sandell and Bishop Chris Harper

April 6  - Indigenous Sharing Circle - Traditional  Indigenous Knoweldge Keeper, Randy Morin

April 20  - Storytelling and Cree Language - Traditional Indigenous Knoweldge Keeper, Randy Morin

April 25  - Educational Equity in Saskatchewan  - Speaker, Sandy Bonny

May 29  - Indigenous Women, Girls and Two Spirit Peoples - Speaker, Marilyn Poitras

May 29  - Faceless Dolls Project - Led by The Elizabeth Fry Society

May 30 & June 6  - The Art of Beading - Cree/Norwegian Artist, Vanessa Hyggen

June 11  - Mapping the Ground We Stand On - PWRDF

June 13  - A Historical Look at Treaties and The Indian Act - Speaker, Charlotte Ross  

June 15  - Reconciliation and Treaty Relevance Today - Speaker, Rhett Sangster 

The Doctrine of Discovery: Stolen Lands, Strong Hearts 

with Bishop Chris Harper

Date:  Saturday, March 19  

1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Location:  Emmanuel Anglican Church

No Charge Event

*Silver Collection donations will be accepted with proceeds used to fund Truth, Traditions and Treaties program initiatives.

The Doctrine of Discovery:  Stolen Lands, Strong Hearts is a challenging and truthful documentary, meant to educate  people on the doctrine and create an awareness of its legacy.  View the documentary and participate in a small group discussion, with opportunities to share thoughts and questions and reflect.

The film is just one of the responses of the Anglican Church's Primate's Commission on discovery, reconciliation and justice.   The purpose of the film is to respond to the calls to action by helping to provide education and insight into the racist foundations of many of our property and other laws still in existence to this day.

For those unable to attend the in-person gathering, we invite you to view the film and explore the Study Guide, at a time and place of your choosing.


Indigenous Sharing Circle with Traditional Indigenous Knowledge Keeper, Randy Morin

Date:  Wednesday, April 6 

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Theatre

Join us at the circle.  Participate in an Indigenous Sharing Circle and share in the experience of a smudge, prayer and guided meditation.   A circle topic will be pre-determined by circle leader, Randy Morin.


Randy Morin is from Big River First Nation, located in central Saskatchewan on Treaty 6 territory.   He currently lives in Saskatoon with his family.  Randy holds a Bachelor of Arts in Indigenous Studies from the University of Regina, a Bachelor of Education from the University of Saskatchewan, and a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Victoria, in addition to a lifetime of traditional Plains Cree teachings and knowledge.  As a Cree language keeper and a traditional Indigenous Knowledge keeper Randy is passionate about maintaining and teaching his Cree language and culture and empowering others.

Storytelling and Cree Language with Traditional Indigenous Knowledge Keeper, Randy Morin

Date:  Wednesday, April 20

7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Theatre

Storytelling is an incredibly important way of expressing Indigenous knowledge, culture and oral traditions.  Randy Morin's passion for sharing Indigenous culture and his committment to Indigenous language revitalization will inspire and help us understand the power of stories passed down generation to generation.

Randy Morin is from Big River First Nation, located in central Saskatchewan on Treaty 6 territory.   He currently lives in Saskatoon with his family.  Randy holds a Bachelor of Arts in Indigenous Studies from the University of Regina, a Bachelor of Education from the University of Saskatchewan, and a Master’s Degree in Education from the University of Victoria, in addition to a lifetime of traditional Plains Cree teachings and knowledge.  As a Cree language keeper and a traditional Indigenous Knowledge keeper Randy is passionate about maintaining and teaching his Cree language and culture and empowering others.

Educational Equity in Saskatchewan with Speaker, Sandy Bonny

Date:  Monday, April 25

7:00 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Theatre

K-12 education in Saskatchewan is demographically and geographically divided between high and low resource clusters, funded with little historic coordination between provincial and federal authorities.  Despite intergovernmental statements prioritizing fair access to education, Northern rural and remote schools, in particular, face resource and specialist teaching shortages that complicate student pathways to grade 12 graduation, and preparation for post-secondary opportunities beyond, with unequal impact on Indigenous youth.  In this talk, Dr. Sandy Bonny will share publically accessible data to illustrate current challenges to educational equity in our province, and to highlight promising avenues of change. 

Dr. Sandy Bonny has an interdisciplinary background in the academic earth sciences (PhD UAlberta 2007) and in the literary and visual arts. A lifelong member of Saskatoon’s Treaty 6 community, and current Team Lead for the Indigenous Student Achievement Pathways post-secondary STEM access initiative at the University of Saskatchewan, Sandy teaches, coordinates, and creates at intersections of narrative understanding. 

Indigenous Women, Girls and Two Spirit Peoples with Speaker, Marilyn Poitras

Date:  Sunday, May 29

1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Theatre

Marilyn Poitras is passionate about developing solutions for building recognition, inclusion, and the promotion of historic and contemporary Indigenous perspectives.  She enlightens audiences to the historic violence against MMIWG and 2SLGBTQ+ with solutions, empowering all to create change within all spheres of influence.

Marilyn Poitras is an innovative changemaker of Michif descent hailing from Southern Saskatchewan.  Marilyn is a lawyer, negotiator, professor, film producer, and most importantly a community builder.   Combining her Master of Laws from Harvard and the teachings from traditional Knowledge Keepers in communities all over the world, Marilyn is paving the pathway to an Indigenous language of design thinking for social change. 

Faceless Dolls Project Led by The Elizabeth Fry Society

Date:  Sunday, May 29

3:00 p.m. - 5:00 p.m.

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Lower Level Gallery Space

The Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC)  is committed to the issue of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls.  Through community education and  engagement activities NWAC helps to grow the awarenes of this epidemic in our country and the devastating impact it has on communities.   

Originally a beautiful collection of faceless felt dolls were used to create a travelling art ehibition.  This creative hands-on project  was meant to visually and physically create a representation of the thousands of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls in Canada.   Communities accross the country continue to embraced the The Faceless Dolls project. 

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We invite you to share time and space with us to create our own felt faceless dolls.  All materials will be  provided in pre-packaged kits.  The dolls we create will remind us that strong, beautiful and loving Aboriginal women are 'faceless' victims of crime, and these women represent every number quoted - "each statistic tells a story."

The Elizabeth Fry Society of Saskatchewan The Elizabeth Fry Society of Saskatchewan strives for a just community, advocating for the rights, freedoms, and fair treatment of all women and girls involved with the justice system.   To learn more about The Elizabeth Fry Society please visit  The Elizabeth Fry Society

NWAC Faceless Dolls Project Event in Edmonton, AB - 2018

The Edmonton Journal - by Shaughn Butts

Faceless Dolls Project Kit

*Our kits were created using a sample kit graciously provided by NWAC.

The Art of Beading with Woodlands Cree/Norwegian Artist, Vanessa Hyggen

Date:  2 Mondays - May 30 and June 6

7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Lower-level Gallery Space

Explore the beauty of this traditional art form.  Artist, Vanessa Hyggen will introduce the beautiful art of beading.  On week one she will teach the basics of one-needle beading, taking participants through the steps to create a flat stitch beaded pattern.  On week two, a backing, pin, and edgework will be added to the beadworks created, resulting in a wonderful piece of wearble art.  

Vanessa Hyggen is a painter and beadwork artist living in Saskatoon, SK whose focus is mainly on painting the boreal forest.  She is a Cree and Norwegian female who is passionate about her sense of belonging in the North – these memories serve as a palette for her work.   Hyggen loves light and color and hopes to always continue to grow with her artwork and never become stagnant. 

Mapping the Ground We Stand On 

with PWRDF Facilitators, Elizabeth Bonnett and Jennifer Marlor

Date:  Saturday, June 11

10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m.

Location:  Emmanuel Anglican Church Hall and The Refinery Lower-level Gallery Space

No Charge Event

*Silver Collection donations accepted.  *proceeds will be used to fund Truth, Traditions and Treaties program initiatives. 

An interactive workshop exploring Indigenous and Settler relationships.  You will be invited to explore the Indigenous presence on the map of Canada, the history of Settler arrival and their relationship to one another.  It also offers an opportunity for learning and reflection on the concept of Terra Nullius - or "empty land" - and the Doctrine of Discovery as foundational to colonialism.  Participants will walk on the map, reflect on their own presence on it, and discuss how they might respond to what they have learned.

As part of its commitment to support the findings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the Primate's World Relief and Development  Fund (PWRDF) developed Mapping the Ground We Stand On.  PWRDF has a 20-year history working in Indigenous communities in Canada.

To learn more about the work of PWRDF and their impact please visit  Work and Impact of PWRDF

A Historical Look at Treaties and The Indian Act with Speaker, Charlotte Ross

Date:  Monday, June 13

7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Theatre

Reconciliation and Treaty Relevance Today with Speaker, Rhett Sangster

Date:  Wednesday, June 15

7:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

Location:  The Refinery Arts & Spirit Centre - Theatre