Resources necessary to save languages

I could not imagine a world without Wawatay. I am sure many of you who grew up with Wawatay TV, WRN or Wawatay News were happy in the knowledge there was a form of media reporting on people like us, First Nations, or hearing the beauty of our languages spoken over the airwaves.
For me personally, this made me proud of being First Nation.
As the interim chief executive officer of Wawatay for more than the past year, I have enjoyed the challenge of running a well-known Aboriginal media organization tasked with the ever important mandate of preserving, maintaining and enhancing Indigenous languages and culture of northern Ontario.
A huge mandate for sure, but most importantly, very much needed.
In a world of ever dwindling resources, it is certainly difficult to operate an organization without the support of its members or the people whom it was created for.
Wawatay Native Communications Society is a self-governing, independent community-driven entrepreneurial Native organization dedicated to using appropriate technologies to meet the communication needs of people of Aboriginal ancestry in northern Ontario, wherever they live.
In doing so, its founders intended that Wawatay would serve their communities by preserving, maintaining and enhancing Indigenous languages and culture.
Wawatay has delivered newspaper, television and radio programming services for 36 years to the First Nations people of northern Ontario.
We are beginning to implement the “Save Our Languages” Campaign.
The campaign helps support the continued delivery of the many valuable Aboriginal language services and programs Wawatay continues to provide including bi-weekly newspaper production and distribution, daily radio programming, television production services, a regularly-updated website, print services, translation services, and SEVEN Youth Media Network.
You can help.
Nishnawbe Aski Nation and Treaty 3 First Nation communities are members of Wawatay Native Communications Society and are urged to send in their annual membership fees of $500 to our Sioux Lookout bureau to the attention of Grant Chisel and note the payment is for ‘membership fee.’
We are looking for volunteers for our radio-a-thon which we are hoping will garner support in the following ways:
• Membership drive (encourage member First Nations to pay their annual membership fee);
• Generate donations from individuals, businesses and organizations; and
• Create awareness of our products and services and generate support.
Contact Evange Kanakakeesic at our Sioux Lookout Bureau or e-mail her at evangelinek@wawatay.on.ca. We are seeking volunteer hosts, musical talent, storytellers, comedians and others.
If you would like to make a donation, please send it to our Sioux Lookout bureau to the attention of Grant Chisel or check out our ‘donate’ button on www.wawataynews.ca.
Please make any cheque or money orders payable to “Wawatay” and note it is a donation for the Save Our Languages campaign or for SEVEN Youth Media Network if you would like to support our youth initiatives.
Wawatay is a charitable organization and can provide tax receipts.
Unless requested, a receipt will not be issued for donations of less than $20.