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National Day for Truth & Reconciliation – Sept 30

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Warning — the content of this email may be distressing.
Information regarding mental and emotional support services are provided below:

Where can I go for immediate support?
Your well-being is important to us. If you require immediate mental and emotional support, the following are resources that you can access:
– The BC crisis line run by the KUU-US Crisis Line Society can be reached at 1-800-588-8717, and a 24-hour national crisis line for former students and those affected can be reached at 1-866-925-4419.
– Indian Residential School Survivors Society for crisis support 24/7 1-800-721-0066
– BACI’s employee and family services provider, Telus Health, offers counselling and wellness resources at www.baci.lifeworks.com. Telus Health can also be reached at 1.844.671.3327.
– For immediate mental health support or referral, call the BC Mental Health Support Line at 310-6789 (no area code) 24 hours a day.

As you know,  the provincial and federal governments have declared September 30 as a National Day for Truth and Reconciliation. All BACI programs and services that typically close for a statutory holiday will be closed on Monday, September 30.
 
BACI appreciates this step taken to commemorate Truth and Reconciliation and will respect this opportunity for our employees to “…honour Survivors, their families, and communities, and ensure that public commemoration of the history and legacy of residential schools remains a vital component of the reconciliation process.” (TRC Call to Action #80)
In light of the listening, learning, work and commitment needed to move toward Truth and Reconciliation, we have included some suggestions below for activities to participate in:
Some other ideas:
If you spend the day in nature, learn and acknowledge which First Nation’s unceded land you are hiking or biking or camping on. Consider that the highways and roads you took to get to that park or lake are most likely built on what were Indigenous trails and reflect on what that means.
 
Again, these are only suggestions. We encourage you to find ways to honour this day of remembrance and reflection that are meaningful to you.
 
BACI agrees with the words of Murray Sinclair, the former Chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, who said that “reconciliation is not an Aboriginal problem, it is a Canadian problem. It involves all of us.” He also stated: “reconciliation is yours to achieve. We owe it to each other to build a Canada based on our shared future, a future of healing and trust.”

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