recordings grounded
Cathedral in the grand scheme of things Archbishop dreams of a major revamp at Saint Mary’s Cathedral Basilica that would add to the vibrancy of downtown Halifax
Vic Toews pauses eavesdropping plan over privacy-infringement concerns
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halifax
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Wednesday, June 20, 2012 News worth sharing.
metronews.ca | twitter.com/metrohalifax | facebook.com/metrohalifax
Community fights for aboriginal youth program Saving Kitpu. Large turnout for meeting
Quoted
“I’ve seen kids change dramatically after a couple of weeks. They’re just brighter.”
haley ryan
Rebecca Moore on the impact of the Kitpu Youth Program
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this van will be taking prisoners page 8
Justice Minister Ross Landry, left, looks inside a compartment of the new $238,000, 16-seat prisoner-transport van on Tuesday during the rollout of the new vehicle at Province House. The vehicle has been dubbed the “Cadillac” of prisoner-transport vehicles. Spencer Buell/for metro
Ramia plays waiting game
Haligonian on Cool-as-can-be Olympic verge not-guilty plea
But news possible on Nova Centre this summer page 4
Best season of career could take sprinter to London page 31
Body-parts accused makes first court appearance page 11
A tiny, elderly woman in a pink jacket frowned at the video camera in the centre of the room, chanting with the people around her. “We need Kitpu. We need Kitpu,” the circle of over 30 people sang loudly, pounding their fists into their knees. Their voices echoed off the colourful walls of the community centre. On Tuesday night, the Micmac Native Friendship Centre on Gottingen Street held a meeting at the nearby George Dixon Centre to brainstorm a plan of action to save the Kitpu Youth Program, which provides a free and safe environment for young people in the city to socialize and learn about aboriginal culture. They filmed part of their chant on Tuesday night to
2012 TOYOTA
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make a short video, which will be shared through social media in the hopes of raising awareness about the program’s financial troubles. Kitpu had been receiving over $100,000 annually from the federally run Cultural Connections for Aboriginal Youth Program, but found out last week they wouldn’t be getting any of it this year due to budget cuts. “It was heartbreaking. It was almost unbelievable. We weren’t prepared at all,” said Rebecca Moore, former president of the Kitpu Youth Council. Moore, who joined the program when she was a teen, said it gave her pride to belong to a group and discover her own Mi’kmaq roots.
Glenn Knockwood, recreation co-ordinator for the centre, said after the meeting on Tuesday they could reopen the program on a very tight budget if a public-health grant comes through, but added it’s a “big ‘if.’” “Maybe in a year, or ideally six months, they will redesign the program,” Knockwood said of Cultural Connections. “But I feel like it won’t be culturally based anymore.” As for now, the centre is planning an art auction and youth dance to raise money for the program, and there will be a Day of Action on July 12, when people gather across Canada to ask the federal government to save the country’s aboriginal programs.
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