THUNDER BAY - Fort William First Nation and the city of Thunder Bay are looking to build a brighter future through unity by taking to the ice in a new hockey tournament set for later this winter.
The Anemki Unity Winter Classic will be held from Mar. 13 to 16 at local arenas in Thunder Bay and Fort William First Nation. The theme of the tournament will be building brighter futures for the communities.
Fort William First Nations chief, Peter Collins, said the idea came from having various conversations with youth from Thunder Bay who wanted to learn more about First Nations communities and issues.
“I came up with a crazy idea to put this tournament on,” he said. “Hopefully it goes a long way in building that relationship, building that friendship, and building that understanding between both sides of our communities from First Nations and non-First Nations. I think it’s going to be a good opportunity for families to make new friends, come together, and understand each other.”
Bess Legarde, Fort William First Nation culture and recreation coordinator and chair of the Anemki Unity Winter Classic, said 10 teams have already registered for the tournament and she is hoping to see a total of 68 teams participate.
Teams will range from tyke to midget divisions and registration is open to communities across the region. Legarde is hoping to see a strong showing from remote communities in Northern Ontario. So far, more than 25 communities from the north want to participate in the Winter Classic.
“In our rules and regulations, our standard is 50 per cent of your team needs to be First Nation or have an ancestry of First Nation and 50 per cent of it can be non-First Nation,” she explained.
The tournament will also include a Special Olympics basketball tournament. Legarde said the Anemki Winter Classic will fill the void of sports available to youth during the March Break in both communities.
“Usually we don’t have much hockey, especially during March Break,” she said. “The whole point of the tournament was to bring First Nations communities and non-First Nations communities together during that time.”
Collins said sport is a great way to bring people together, especially young people, and he believes that this tournament will leave a lasting impact.
“I hope this changes our communities forever,” he said. “We talk about racism in Thunder Bay and Fort William First Nation on a constant basis, hopefully this helps curb that, helps guide it in the right direction, and changes the thinking of our communities as we build those new friendships and new relationships.”
Early bird registration for teams closes on Jan. 10, 2017 and the final registration deadline is Jan. 20. Details and registration forms are available at the Anemki Unity website.
“We are hoping that it’s going to be a great success,” Legarde said. “It’s our first time doing this and we are looking to do this annually and make it bigger every year.”
