By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

be part of the circle

Community Spring Feast at Fort Normandeau to focus on healing from COVID loss

May 10, 2022 | 11:25 AM

The 14th annual Community Spring Feast is this weekend at Fort Normandeau.

The event will look fairly close to its pre-COVID format, says Community Elder Corky Jonasson, who joked that the last couple years, it’s just been her, husband Lynn, a bowl of soup and some berries.

Lynn Jonasson helps manage the Healing Blankets Program at Safe Harbour Society, which is sponsoring this year’s event.

“The Community Feast, which is for everyone, represents the beginning of or return to ceremony. For this year’s theme, it’s a time for people to work through losing loved ones during or to COVID-19. This is a time to honour them, bring their favourite food, sit together in a circle and eat together,” says Corky.

“We help each other when we heal together.”

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She adds that the feast is about letting everyone know we’re all part of that same circle.

Corky added that it has been uniquely difficult for the Indigenous community to say goodbye to loved ones during the pandemic.

“It was. Everything in our life… if you follow the Indigenous ways of knowing, you’ll know that life is about being surrounded by ceremony,” she says. “By getting together, healing each other, feeding each other and nurturing each other, we can do that.”

“A lot of people the last two years have died alone,” Corky adds.

The Community Spring Feast, which is rain or shine, goes May 14 at 12 p.m.

Attendees are asking to bring their own food, chair, blanket, and anything else to make their stay more comfortable.

Ahead of the feast, there are several sweatlodge ceremonies taking place, also at Fort Normandeau:

May 11: Women’s Sweat – 5 p.m.
May 12: Men’s Sweat – 5 p.m.
May 13: Co-ed Sweat – 5 p.m.
May 14: Community & Helpers Sweat – 5 p.m.

More information about the sweatlodge ceremonies, attire, food, and attitude for the event can be found here.