On Monday, November 1, Chief Joe Pierre and CAO Carl Ninine of the ʔaq̓am Community facilitated Ktunaxa Nation flag-raising ceremonies at Purcell Golf and Purcell Preschool. In attendance were Duncan MacLeod (Purcell Collegiate CEO/Head of School), Jaret Thompson (Purcell Collegiate Board Chair), Arthur Luk (Purcell Collegiate Director), Simon Jones (Purcell Golf Director of Golf), and Cheryl Anderson (Purcell Preschool Manager). Ktunaxa Nation flags will fly alongside the flags of Canada and British Columbia at all Purcell amenities including Purcell Collegiate School once completed.
Flying the Ktunaxa Nation flag is representative of Purcell Collegiate’s commitment to actualizing its traditional-territory acknowledgement and engaging the Truth and Reconciliation process in a meaningful and impactful way. Purcell Collegiate’s recently-signed MOU with the ʔaq̓am Community will act as a roadmap on the journey toward making the school a lighthouse example of how decolonization can be engaged to create shared opportunity and mutual benefit.
READ: ʔaq̓am Community and Purcell Colegiate Incorporated sign Memorandum of Understanding