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Jenn Ashton is the Indigenous Cultural Sensitivity Leader at St. Clement's, where the beloved Rev. Helen Dunn (previously Vicar at Christ Church Cathedral), serves as Rector. We have received Jenn's permission to share the resources she has created for this ministry.

One resource I am sharing with you is a video message from Dr. Ray Aldred with some thoughts on how we might honour Indigenous History Month, and another is the message from Jenn to the St. Clement's congregation that I've added below.

You can learn more about Jenn and her work on the St. Clement's website. 

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My name is Jenn Ashton, and I am from Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) First Nation. I'm a parishioner at St. Clement's, on the Parish Council, and currently Discerning for the Diaconate. I am also the Indigenous Cultural Sensitivity Leader.

The work of decolonizing is filled with hard questions and many unknowns as we move forward to delivering on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's 94 Calls to Action. 

It is with these guides in mind that we came up with this position to help us move forward in a good way, in consultation with our leaders and the congregation to be more effective in the Indigenous community, toward building a church that can be a welcome place for our local Indigenous community to come and not only have a relationship with God but with the church as a whole. It is not about finding a need and filling it. Instead, it is about collaborating with our neighbours, whose land we humbly reside upon.

I hope to begin by looking at boundaries that are keeping us apart and learning how to unravel these places through education and truth-telling. I want to discover how we as a church community can be different in this changing Truth and Reconciliation landscape and help us work towards reconcili—ACTION!

This will all be the work of a lifetime, but if we could start now, maybe years down the road, we would see more Indigenous faces among us, and we could all share in the worthwhile work we are doing, not only at St. Clement's but in the Anglican Church in Canada as a whole.

I know this position will help me always remember why I'm here: to love God, to love my neighbour, and to include everyone!

Thank you all for your support.

Huy chexw a (Thank you)

Jenn