As we enter our second year officially commemorating National Truth and Reconciliation Day, many Canadians have sought not only to reflect upon our country’s past, but learn from it and strive to do better. At Fueling Brains Academy, we recognized the importance of making a difference in the Indigenous community, on top of showing solidarity.

So this year, we collaborated with a budding Indigenous artist, Tawny Tougas, of the Mohawk Nation, to design a meaningful piece of art for us to share with our students and families.

Tawny drew the most beautiful image of a turtle, and provided us with a back story on why the turtle is a significant symbol in Indigenous culture. We put her design on an orange t-shirt and made them available for FBA families to purchase, with 100% of the sale proceeds going to a local Indigenous organization.

Within one week of putting the shirts up for sale, we almost completely sold out. Through the generosity of our amazing parents, we have raised almost $5000 towards the Sunrise Healing Lodge.

Pictured in this post is the amazing team at the Sunrise Healing Lodge Society. Their agency has been providing addictions treatment since 1974, through Indigenous Culture & the 12 step program of recovery to people of all walks of life. They are the only addictions treatment centre where Indigenous culture and spirituality are used harmoniously with the traditional 12-step program, an important piece of helping individuals heal through and connect with their customs.

We are overwhelmed at the responses we’ve received from our orange t-shirt initiative, and are excited to see our students come to school on September 30th, in their special shirts, to celebrate Indigenous culture and to learn how to appreciate and respect such a huge part of our lives as Canadians.