CALGARY -- When the Calgary Hitmen face off against the Red Deer Rebels on Saturday things will be a little different. It’s going to be an historic game that’s being called “every child matters” -- and it's going to be broadcast across the province in Blackfoot.
It’s being dedicated to Indigenous youth empowerment through sport and it’s being presented by Siksika Health Services in partnership with Siksika Child and Family services and First Nations Health consortium.
Siksika Health Services C.E.O. Tyler White described the Feb. 1 game as the first of its kind.
“Has anything like this ever happened in the Saddledome before? I don’t recall.” He said.
"Have we ever served our traditional foods in the Saddledome? I don’t think so. Has there ever been a round dance in the Saddledome? I don’t think so. Has there ever been play-by-play in Blackfoot at one of the games? It’s never happened.”
Blackfoot play-by-play man Francis Wolfleg, who's an elder at the Siksika Nation, said Saturday's game is going to be very special.
“It was really I guess you could say a unique wake up call," Wolfleg said. "That we were actually using our own language with a powerful media outlet and that people are going to really hear what our language is all about.”
The Every Child Matters game was a no brainer for the Hitmen to host, said Hitmen Vice President Mike Moore, who added that there’s a goal for this game and that's the message the team hopes to send.
“Messaging that every child matters," Moore said. "That we need to work together in communities of all religions, beliefs and cultures and work together for the future of our kids.”
Lieutenant Governor Lois Mitchell, who donned a special Hitmen jersey at the press conference, hopes this game serves as an education for all people.
“That’s what it’s all about. I think it’s wonderful if we could all listen and learn. I think that’s really important but this is really an education for all of us.”
White believes this game is going to impact a lot of people.
“This is opening doors I believe for First Nations across the country," he said. "When I think about this I think about reconciliation. It’s a word that gets passed around quite a bit but this is an example of reconciliaction.
"You know putting the action into this. Not just some game or some event but way beyond that," he said.
"The (far-reaching) impacts that it will have is what I think about.”
Saturday, there will be a teepee in the concourse, with the goal of this game, besides all the goals being scored on the ice, being to bring cultures together.
The game between the Hitmen and Rebels is at 1:30 pm Saturday afternoon at the Scotiabank Saddledome.
