National Day for Truth and Reconciliation 2024
Mission Services of Hamilton acknowledges the land on which we live and work is located on the traditional territories of the Erie, Neutral, Huron-Wendat, Haudenosaunee, and Mississaugas.
Today, September 30 marks the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, coinciding with Orange Shirt Day. Our programs and services will remain open.
This day reminds us to honor the lives of those children who never returned home from residential schools, those who are survivors of residential schools, as well as their families and communities.
As a historically faith-based organization, we acknowledge the role that churches played in the creation and administration of residential schools, and we understand that it is imperative that we continually work to reaffirm our organizational commitment to Truth and Reconciliation.
Mission Services Truth and Reconciliation Action Plan provides a guide for how the organization will continue to do this. The Truth and Reconciliation Plan can be found here: Action Plan.
We are encouraging our staff who are settlers to learn and reflect on the legacy of residential schools and its continuing impact on the people we serve and work alongside. Last week our staff attended virtual lunch and learns, provided by the The National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation, on truth and reconciliation topics such as how unconscious bias remains present in societal systems, and ways to confront it.
We encourage all settlers to learn about the residential school system, read the Truth and Reconciliation Commission Report and Calls to Action, and support local and national Indigenous organizations. We have included a non-comprehensive list of places to donate, educational resources, and support lines for survivors and their families.
Places to donate:
- Native Women’s Centre Hamilton
- Hamilton Regional Indian Centre
- De dwa da dehs nye>s Aboriginal Health Centre
- Woodland Cultural Centre
- Indian Residential School Survivor Society
- Legacy of Hope Foundation
Learn/Act:
- Read the TRC Calls to Action
- Watch personal accounts of residential school survivors
- 10 books about residential schools to read with your kids
- Orange Shirt Day – Phyllis’ Story
- Calls to Action Accountability: A 2023 Status Update on Reconciliation
- 48 books by Indigenous writers to read to understand residential schools
- Hamilton Public Library Resources
The Indian Residential Schools Crisis Line (24 hours a day)
Call: 1-866-925-4419
Hope for Wellness (24 hours a day)
Online chat: https://www.hopeforwellness.ca/
Call: 1-855-242-3310
