Residents in Aurora, Ontario can learn about Indigenous culture and the path toward reconciliation through a series of events at the Aurora Public Library this September. The programming runs from September 9 to 30, 2026, leading up to the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30.
The library kicks off its offerings with “Echoes of Truth: Hands-On Beading and Indigenous Teachings” on September 9 from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at 15145 Yonge Street. Guided by Indigenous cultural educators Carol and Janis, the sold-out workshop gives participants a chance to create medicine bags and practice traditional beading in a supportive environment. The evening also includes Bundle Teachings.
On September 30, the library will host two film screenings. “Nechako: It Will Be A Big River Again” tells the story of two Indigenous Nations’ seven-decade legal fight to reclaim the Nechako River and their traditional way of life. The screening begins at 7 p.m. The same day, a virtual screening of “Siksikakowan: The Blackfoot Man” will be available all day. Siksika filmmaker Sinakson Trevor Solway offers an intimate portrait of Blackfoot men as they navigate identity, kinship, and the expectations of manhood.
The events are part of Aurora Town Square’s “A Month of Culture,” a celebration of the venue’s two-year anniversary that includes programming from the Town of Aurora, the Aurora Cultural Centre, the Aurora Museum and Archives, and the library. The Town of Aurora will also hold its own Truth and Reconciliation ceremony on September 30 at Mirkopoulos Plateia, led by Anishinaabe Grandmother Kim Wheatley, Elder Pat Floody, and Ancestral Knowledge Keeper Raiden Levesque.
The National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, established as a federal statutory holiday in 2021, honours residential school Survivors, their families, and the children who never returned home. September 30 also marks Orange Shirt Day, a grassroots movement started in 2013 by Survivor Phyllis Webstad. According to the Government of Canada, 140 federally run residential schools operated in Canada between 1867 and 1996.
