Please join the Rotary Club of Edmonton West on Monday May 17th when John Boyko will speak to the topic of his most recent book "The Devil's Trick: How Canada Fought the Vietnam War" (published in April 2021). John notes that this story will shock readers who thought they understood the tragic Vietnam war and believed that Canada had nothing or little to do with it. In fact, Canada was intricately involved as it tested who Canadians were and what we stood for. Thousands of Canadians continue to be touched by this war.

John Boyko was born in Hamilton, Ontario, grew up in Peterborough and now lives in the Village of Lakefield. He has earned degrees from Trent, Queen’s, and McMaster Universities, served on and chaired many boards, and has been elected to municipal office. You can follow John at www.johnboyko.com

The ZOOM coordinates for the meeting are provided below. ZOOM will open at 11:45 AM and our Edmonton West weekly meeting will start promptly at 12 Noon. Please click on the link below to join our meeting. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/84008166963?pwd=SkJGYlowc3pXWDZFWFFtczJqdEZvUT09

For those who need it, the meeting ID is 840 0816 6963

Edmonton West Rotary Club weekly meetings typically finish by 1 PM

Rotary District Indigenous Committee - Speaker Series

Time:                                                 Tuesday May 18, 2021 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm 
Join Zoom Meeting                        https://zoom.us/j/92665194123
Meeting ID:                                      926 6519 4123
Dial In:                                               +1 778 907 2071 /  +1 587 328 1099 
Meeting ID:                                      926 6519 4123

Rotary District Indigenous Committee - Speaker Series 

Guest Speaker - Cheryl Whiskeyjack 
Speaking on Canada 150ish

I often say that “Canada” thinks it knows the Indigenous folks of the land but what they know is bits. This session will unpack the elements of Canadian policies and actions that continue to impact ALL of us today. All the pieces of laws and legislations like the Indian Act, cultural prohibitions, residential schools, 60’s scoop (as well as the present scoop), MMIWG etc. All of these happened while Canada was being formed as a nation. I also often say we have this awesome prequel! A hybrid balance of this prequel place is where I work hard to help our community to arrive at.

Cheryl Whiskeyjack is Executive Director of the Bent Arrow Traditional Healing Society

https://bentarrow.ca/. The Society is committed to building upon the strengths of Aboriginal children, youth, and families to enable them to grow spiritually, emotionally, physically, and mentally so that they can walk proudly in both the Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal Communities.  A distinguished alumna from MacEwan University, Cheryl is a key leader in the not-for-profit sector both locally and nationally.  In Edmonton, she has fostered partnerships with many organizations, including Edmonton Public Schools, Edmonton Police Service, Alberta Children’s Services, Blue Quills University, MacEwan University and University of Calgary.  Cheryl is a general member at the National Advisory Council on Poverty.

Suggested Pre-Viewing:  Lion 
Starring: Dev Patel and Nicole Kidman https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3741834/?ref_=nv_sr_srsg_7

Please join the Rotary Club of Edmonton West on Monday May 31st when Dr. Jared Wesley (Department of Political Science at the University of Alberta) speaks to us about "Equalization: Politics, Policy, Myths and Misconceptions". Is this fall's constitutional referendum really about equalization? This discussion delves into the Government of Alberta's high stakes political gamble, addressing the substance and implications of attempting to reform Canada's system of fiscal federalism.

The equalization formula / system will become topical for each and every one of us later this year since the Alberta government plans to conduct a referendum on the equalization system in conjunction with the municipal elections in October. 

Dr. Jared Wesley is a pracademic -- a practicing political scientist and former bureaucrat -- whose career path to an Associate Professor role in the Department of Political Science at the University of Alberta has included senior management positions in the Alberta Executive Council and the Alberta Public Service Commission.  He studies the politics of bureaucracy and the bureaucracy of politics.

The ZOOM coordinates for the meeting are provided below. ZOOM will open at 11:45 Am and our Edmonton West weekly meeting will start promptly at 12 Noon. Please click on the link below to join our meeting. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83402094035?pwd=bWVHTnBEeTZ3aDVvOFlBRjRZZC8xZz09

For those who need it, the meeting ID is 834 0209 4035

Edmonton West Rotary Club weekly meetings typically finish by 1 PM

Please join the Rotary Club of Edmonton West on Monday June 21st, Canada's National Indigenous Peoples Day, as Lorelei Higgins speaks to us on "Reconciliation and Peace Building". 

As a Métis Canadian, Lorelei Higgins comes by her peacebuilding roots naturally. Lorelei’s Métis heritage can be traced from the Red River in Winnipeg, Manitoba where her great-grandfather came across to Canada from Kent, England, and met her great-grandmother – a Cree and Ojibwe community leader. In this beautiful coming together of different worlds, Lorelei says that peacebuilding is literally in her DNA. Lorelei has often found herself weaving and mediating between these different worldviews, finding the beauty at the points where the worlds come together – that of her Indigenous ancestry and her European heritage. It is not always easy to be Indigenous, especially as a Métis person. But, as Lorelei has deepened her own cultural exploration over the years, she has learned to look at this duality of identity as a gift. She no longer sees herself as between worlds. Rather, she embraces the beauty of both worlds, inspired by Terry St. Amant’s words: “We are not ‘half’ of anything, but doubled.”

Lorelei's work has taken her across the globe: she has been based in Asia, South Americam Europe, Africa and North America, working on various projects. When she was 17 Lorelei went on a Rotary youth exchange to South Africa in 1998-1999.

The ZOOM coordinates for the meeting are provided below. ZOOM will open at 11:45 AM and our Edmonton West weekly meeting will start promptly at 12 Noon. Please click on the link below to join our meeting. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83005284964?pwd=enZ2QmM2aW1MUU1KaFpHdUZrdDAzdz09

For those who need it, the meeting ID is 830 0528 4964

Edmonton West Rotary Club weekly meetings typically finish by 1 PM

Bio extracted from https://mediatorsbeyondborders.org/weaving-between-worlds-member-spotlight-lorelei-higgins/

Please join the Rotary Club of Edmonton West on Monday June 28th as we say goodbye to David Weir's 2020-2021 Rotary year and welcome Jason Bossert's 2021-2022 Rotary year. 

This has been a most unusual year, with all of our weekly, board and committee meetings, conferences and learning sessions, and other meetings being held virtually on ZOOM and similar tools. The start of the 2021-2022 year may have a similar look and feel but we are also seeing the light at the end of the pandemic tunnel and should return to enjoy face-to-face gatherings in Jason's year. 

At our June 21st weekly meeting David will summarize the highlights for his year before he passes the reins to incoming Club President Jason Bossert who will in turn set the stage for his upcoming year.

The ZOOM coordinates for the meeting are provided below. ZOOM will open at 11:45 AM and our Edmontion West weekly meeting will start promptly at 12 Noon. Please click on the link below to join our meeting. 

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85161019561?pwd=NlZzZUJ0bEg2cTAxUnN3UzdoeXVIQT09

For those that need it, the meeting ID is 851 6101 9561

Edmonton West Weekly meetings typically finish by 1 PM.