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BATC to host 2026 Tony Cote Games, announced at the Truth and Reconciliation gathering By Averil Hall Freelance Reporter/Photographer
Ends August 3, 2025
Ends August 2025 Ends Nov 2,3,2025
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Battlefords Area Tribal Chiefs (BATC) and their member nations announced on Truth and Reconciliation Day, September 30, that they will host the 2026 Tony Cote Games. The announcement was made at the Agrivilla, with BATC chiefs and local dignitaries taking part in a panel to discuss the event. The games are scheduled for July 26 to 31, 2026, and are expected to bring more than 3,500 athletes, coaches, officials, and parents to the Battlefords. Organizers estimate the total number of visitors could reach 15,000. Athletes will come from thirteen tribal councils and First Nations across Saskatchewan. The Tony Cote Games, formerly known as the Saskatchewan First Nation Winter/Summer Games, began in 1974. They were started by Chief Tony Cote and the Cote First Nation Council to give First Nations youth under twenty opportunities to participate in organized sports, which many were excluded from due to economic barriers or lack of representation. Continued on page 2
BATC Chiefs, Dignitaries and Organizers pose with the official Tony Cote jackets in front of the new logo. | Photo by Averil Hall
Survivor shares her painful experience attending residential school By Angela Brown SaskToday.ca
THE RIDGE — Linda Whitford wasn’t allowed to speak her Cree language when she attended residential school as a child. She remembers being hit on the head whenever she tried to speak Cree. “You know, we got hit for no reason,” Whitford said. “Sometimes I didn’t even want to breathe when I went by a nun.”
Thanks to her grandmother, she was able to learn Cree again when she came home from residential school 11 years later. For Truth and Reconciliation Day, Whitford hopes it helps remind people that the stories shared about residential school trauma are true. “It’s for people to believe what we went through because I know so many don’t believe it,” she said. Continued on page 5
People gather for a walk to the Battleford Industrial School cemetery on Oct. 1. | Photo by Angela Brown
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