Friendship Centre-based youth group looks to earn trip to Indigenous conference

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Members of the Fort St. John Friendship Society’s youth group are “hitting the ground running” in an effort to earn money to attend a prestigious Indigenous conference.

Seven members of the Miyo’sen Youth Group are heading to the Gathering Our Voices conference, scheduled to take place from March 17th to 20th in Vancouver.

The group ran for several years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, and was revived recently as an avenue for youth to connect following two youth-related tragedies in Fort St. John.

Billed as the largest conference targeting Indigenous youth in Canada, the Gathering our Voices website says its purpose is to “provide Indigenous youth with the tools to empower and inspire so that they can contribute their gifts to their communities and the world.”

In order to cover the $9,000 for the four-day event for the youth and chaperones, Miyo’sen – whose name means ‘good’ in Cree – teenagers organized a bottle drive at FSJ Return-It during January, with final totals yet to be released.

According to Brandi Kennedy, the society’s health and wellness coordinator, this is one of several fundraisers the group has planned.

A raffle to auction off a bundle from local business, The Butcher Block, has sold out its 200 tickets, and a Valentine’s Day Craft Market will be held at the Friendship Society on February 14th.

“[The group] has been busily fundraising to try to pay for their way to get there,” said Kennedy to Energeticcity.ca. “The bottle drive was really great for FSJ Return-It to do that for us.”

Focusing on craft art, the market will feature local artisans looking to showcase their fare. As part of this event, the group will be selling treat boxes for $25.

Each box will feature chocolate-covered strawberries, homemade chocolates and other goodies. Boxes can be pre-ordered by scanning the QR code on the society’s Facebook page. Orders must be placed by February 11th.

“You get a box of treats you can give to your special someone or someone you love,” said Kennedy.

The Valentine’s Day Craft Market takes place on Saturday, February 14th at the Fort St. John Friendship Society at 10208 95th Avenue from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.