WEYBURN – The family of Avra May Giesbrecht of Pheasant Rump First Nation has been helped in the past with mental health services from the CMHA office in Weyburn, so the nine-year-old decided to pay it forward and help others.
She arrived at the CMHA office on Wednesday dressed in her beaded crown and sash as the Princess of Pheasant Rump Nakota, which she was crowned as last year at the First Nation’s pow wow. The soft-spoken girl handed over $250 in cash as a donation to Tasha Collins, executive director for the CMHA, and Jamie Blunden, vice-chair of the CMHA board of directors and Weyburn’s police chief.
She and her mom Stephanie have been helping out wherever they can with other donations also, as she has been collecting bottles and cans to donate to youth programs on the First Nation, with about $1,300 worth of bottles collected so far.
Stephanie and Avra May were also on their way to Regina to provide a donation for 12 families for the breakfast program of Warriors of Hope Community Inc., which they have donated to before.
Besides collecting bottles, Stephanie noted her daughter had a candy concession booth at the pow wow, and was able to raise a fair amount of money which they then donated to different needs, including buying food hampers for residents of White Bear and Pheasant Rump First Nations, and buying toys for children at the reserves.
“I think you’ll be an inspiration to the young people around you,” Collins told Avra May, thanking her for thinking of them to make this donation.
Stephanie explained a big reason they wanted to donate to the Weyburn CMHA office is that she lost her brother, Avra May’s uncle, to mental health issues, and her 14-year-old daughter has also been dealing with issues. The family has utilized the programs available at CMHA in Weyburn, so they wanted to give support to the programs to help other people.
“I always want to show my daughters the importance of giving back,” said Stephanie. “We’ve been doing this for years.”
Avra May likes to do jingle dance, and she takes part in the Grand Entry for the pow wow, but due to a health condition she hasn’t been able to compete as a dancer.
She will be running again for princess in the upcoming pow wow at Pheasant Rump, set for the Aug. 5-7 weekend.
