Have you ever wondered where the traditions around Thanksgiving came from? Have you ever considered the links between the American Columbus day and Canada’s Thanksgiving holiday, both occurring every year on the second Monday in October? Students in the YMCA Academy’s World Religions and Native Studies classes decided to honour and celebrate Canada’s Indigenous people for Thanksgiving this year. We hosted a huge feast in our cafeteria and made educational displays about topics like the origins of Thanksgiving, Aboriginal traditions and local foods as well as the truth behind Christopher Columbus’ intentions in “the new world.” We were honoured to have guests from the YMCA of Greater Toronto, the Native Canadian Center of Toronto and volunteers in attendance and we thank everyone for contributing pumpkin pies, traditional fish cakes, roasted squash and homemade cookies!
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