The Métis Association Central Okanagan (MACO) hosted its annual Christmas party on December 13th, 2023 to coincide with the MACO annual general meeting. The event was well attended and enjoyed by all. The BC Métis Federation congratulates MACO on a successful year!
The following report was provided by the MACO board of directors following their AGM and Christmas celebration…
Christmas Party
The Métis Association Central Okanagan (MACO) hosted its annual Christmas party on December 13th, 2023 at Swite Corner on Westbank First Nations territory. Special thanks to the MACO Board and members who helped with the setup and preparation.
The Old Time Fiddlers from Kelowna started the festivities with some Métis favourites like Maple Sugar and Redwing. They welcomed the crowd of over thirty members and friends and got them clapping along. Gary Swite, a Westbank First Nation Band member and respected Elder in the community, welcomed the group to the Westbank traditional territory and encouraged everyone to continue to work together as Indigenous people by identifying areas of common concern.
At dinner, Greg Mazur, MACO President, welcomed the members, friends and guests followed by a prayer over the meal and sending wishes of good health to everyone, especially those unable to attend due to health issues. After dinner, all the youth in attendance went to the Christmas tree and received a Christmas stocking filled with goodies and a gift certificate.
Angel Fisher and Zia Yazdani from the Coastal Water Protectors initiative gave an informative presentation about the history of the Coastal Water Protectors and their current activities. They encouraged everyone to join up and judging by the applause, they should have a great group of supporters in the Okanagan.
There was a special presentation about the Spark Métis skills and employment program provided by Lana St Hilaire and Jennifer Percival. They wrote the original Spark Métis curriculum and delivered the first program for the BC Métis Federation. Rounding out the presentations was an overview of all of the current BCMF programs, including the Scholarship program and the Emergency Assistance Program.
The Old Time Fiddlers continued to entertain the crowd and multiple door prize draws kept the excitement high. Everyone in attendance was a winner as there were Christmas hamper gift certificates presented to all on behalf of the BCMF Christmas program.
Annual General Meeting
MACO started the 2023 AGM with certification of quorum and approval of last year’s AGM minutes. The Financial report showing that MACO is in a healthy position was presented and approved. The election of Board members for the 2024 year was conducted in accordance withy MACO bylaws.