THUNDER BAY — Indigenous women, girls and two-spirit people had an evening of self-care, pampering and female empowerment.
The third annual Love Yourself was held at the Slovak Legion on May 6 by the Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre and Shoppers Drug Mart.
“We're having this event to bring women, girls, two-spirit people together, celebrate Indigenous sovereignty, Indigenous power, Indigenous femininity, and really just get people to gather together in such a positive way," said Kennedy Tarabocchia-Curtola, lifelong care program support worker at the Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre.
“Even in the room together here tonight, all you can smell is sage in the air and it's such a beautiful experience. I think it's just such a feeling of home,” she said.
Tarabocchia-Curtola was a participant at the first annual Love Yourself in 2023, where she was inspired.
“It was my first event away from my daughter at home and I just felt so loved, felt so showered and admiration and support that I just left in tears. I felt so proud to be invited to something like this that I ended up actually going back to school for Indigenous studies and I said I wish that I could be in a job like that and do something for women like this one day.
“I started to reconnect with my culture, I started to reconnect with my community, and I became a lifelong care program support worker at the Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre, and now I am helping to put on the third annual event.”
There were multiple guest speakers, including Elders, talking on various topics such as personal journeys and teachings.
Before the doors were opened, organizers saw a long line of people waiting to attend.
“It was really surprising in a way, but also almost something that I knew would come to fruition just from how much love we put into this and how many people got together and everyone's thoughts and inputs kind of being mixed together.
“Seeing the outpour of love we had in our own hearts, even on the days that we were going through tough things on our own journeys, we just persevered and we knew that the big picture was to make sure that everyone felt loved, that everyone felt special, and that everyone had a time to come together for the event to make themselves feel special and to know that we're here, we support you. The Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre wants to be present in the community and show people that we're here,” said Tarabocchia-Curtola.
More than 250 people attended the event, and there were many volunteers and workers filling up the room to nearly 300 people.
Tarabocchia-Curtola said the event started with about 80 people three years ago, and has nearly tripled since then.
This event was created when Laurie Reed and Kathy Spence connected with each other.
Reed, an employee of Shoppers Drug Mart, helped organize the event.
“I had the privilege to meet this wonderful lady, Kathy Spence, that came up to me to ask me if I wanted to do an event for 20 residential school survivors . . . and we had our first event here at the Slovak.
“I feel proud to be able to use whatever privilege I have to make a difference in the world, to let people know it doesn't matter what colour you are or where you come from, you're loved and your life matters,” Reed said.
Spence works at the Thunder Bay Indigenous Friendship Centre with the Lifelong Care program, and also helped organize the event.
“I just thought, I (saw) a group of Anishinaabekwe women and they're all so beautiful in their ribbon dresses here and it makes me so proud of how successful it's been and that everybody wants to be a part of it.
“I feel proud as Anishinaabekwe to see all the beautiful women here and all their gifts and all this positive energy and healthy energy,” Spence said.
