The Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre recently hosted a Sprouting Ceremony to mark the beginning of work on its new Wije’winen centre. The friendship centre serves as a central hub for urban Indigenous people in Halifax, delivering early childhood education, employment supports, and other key programs and services. With the Wije’winen centre, the friendship centre will be able to grow its essential services through a health centre, an education department, and an outdoor gathering space for ceremony. The ceremony saw a birch tree and an ash tree planted at the new site to represent the roots of the tree holding people together. “In Mi’kmaw, Wije’winen means ‘come with us’—an open invitation that reflects the heart of everything we do at the Centre,” said Mi’kmaw Native Friendship Centre Executive Director Pam Glode Desrochers. “As we move into this next phase of constructing our new Wije’winen Centre we keep this spirit of welcome and inclusion at the forefront of our work.” The centre is expected to open in Summer 2027.
