Our Legacy Space: A path towards reconciliation
We had the opportunity to build a physical Legacy Space in a central area of our office; a space designed to promote awareness of the Downie Wenjack Fund, showcase Chanie Wenjack’s tragic story and provide literature about the true history of Canada.
As some of you might know, we are proud partners of the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund. The Downie Wenjack team share our office space, and we fortunate to experience firsthand their ongoing efforts to create a path towards reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.
I have a personal connection to the Downie Wenjack Fund and the Downie Family, and I encouraged the leadership at FUSE Create to enter a more formal partnership with the charity. Why? This wonderful country of ours has enabled our business and people to grow and thrive, but Canada is far from perfect and not without its own troubled past and a history that bears scars of wrongdoing and injustice. We want to do our part to acknowledge the true history of Canada and promote education, dialogue and reconciliation.
As part of this partnership, we had the opportunity to build a physical Legacy Space in a central area of our office. The space is designed to promote awareness of the Downie Wenjack Fund, showcase Chanie Wenjack’s tragic story and provide literature and information about the true history of Canada and our country’s relationship with its Indigenous peoples.
The Legacy Space is meant to be a safe and welcoming place to bring Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples together to build connections and understanding while ensuring Indigenous perspectives are represented and celebrated. Through educational materials, training resources and art, our FUSE Create team has brought reconciliation into the workplace and weave it into our everyday conversations.
We are proud to showcase the incredible space our team worked on in partnership with the DWF team. Here’s an in-depth look at the process.
A Behind the Scenes Look
When we moved into our new office space back in 2022, we knew this would also be the perfect home for a Legacy Space. The new building has so many cool rooms, spaces and open walls – where should we build it?
We chose the second-floor landing and built Downie Wenjack material into three separate but connected walls. This location forces everyone who enters our building to see it; it’s also the place where many staff gather to catch up. We think it sends a strong message to everyone who walks into FUSE Create – featuring eye-catching artwork, large images of Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack, and the generous use of the colour purple (which holds cultural and ceremonial significance for Indigenous people in Canada). It was also Gord’s favourite colour!
“The Legacy Spaces program is an opportunity for corporations, government, organizations, and others to provide education, raise awareness, and take meaningful action on the path to reconciliation,” said Sarah Midanik, President and CEO of the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund. “By thoughtfully placing materials in a high-traffic area, FUSE is encouraging more people to engage with and learn the true history of Canada and reflect on our collective journey toward reconciliation.”
We helped the DWF team with a pop-up at Union Station a few years ago and decided that the artwork featured in that activation would be perfect for our space.
Meaning of the Art
From artist Blake Angeconeb, the “We Are Still Here” exhibit at Union Station showcased nine pieces of art that act as a tribute to youth, the next generation of Indigenous resilience and strength, as quoted in Anishinabek News.
We commissioned one of these images, a depiction of Chanie Wenjack’s story in vibrant colours titled “Chanie”. It’s the most prominent element of the Legacy Space, along with the accompanying poem by Danielle H. Morrison. We were so thankful to have both artists attend our event and share their experience and inspiration in brining Chanie’s story to life.
Launching it for the Team
The last step to complete the Legacy Space build was a dedication ceremony. On March 4th, we invited the Downie Wenjack team, friends of FUSE and the FUSE leadership team to celebrate the official launch of the space. It was an intimate event, featuring comments by our distinguished guests, including Chief Claire Sault of the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation, Mike Downie, Sarah Midanik, Blake Angeconeb and Danielle Morrison and an emotional smudging ceremony led by Elder Garry Sault.
The dedication ceremony marked neither a beginning nor an end, but just one marker on our journey of education, remembrance and reconciliation.
