June is (was) Recreation and Parks Month
With July upon us, June is Recreation and Parks Month (JRPM) has come to an end. We’re looking back on this year’s event and already looking forward to JRPM 2020.
In May, we were overwhelmed by the number of applications received from communities across the NWT for June Get Active grants! After approving 70 grant applications in 24 communities, it was exciting to have so many great JRPM events happening across the territory to help recognize the importance of recreation and parks to the wellbeing of our communities.
A variety of events celebrated JRPM and a number of special days in June, which provided the perfect opportunity to celebrate the importance of recreation and parks. We saw rock climbs, foot races, canoe excursions, swims, square dances, tennis matches, northern games, water gun fights, squash tournaments, and string games. Did we mention yoga, archery, and ladder-ball? Or jigs, scavenger hunts, walks with Elders, cookouts, seniors’ teas, bike rodeos, and drum dances?! Needless to say, communities were active in a number of ways this year and showed us a thing or two about how to celebrate the many benefits of recreation and parks.
We hope you had fun, whether you danced at Inuvialuit Day celebrations in Aklavik, ran through Whatì for a photo scavenger hunt, walked along the South Nahanni River for National Health and Fitness Day, learned about water safety in Fort Smith, or stopped by Colville Lake on National Indigenous People’s Day for a community cookout and outdoor activities for all ages. Many events encouraged knowledge sharing and created connections across generations, which was fantastic
It was wonderful to have a lot of activities bring different generations together and to see recreation take so many forms across the territory. Thank you to everyone that made these fantastic events happen, and thank you to everyone that took part! For more information on June is Recreation and Parks Month, visit our JRPM page.