Twenty-two winning videos about Canada's history

Young filmmakers travel to Ottawa to celebrate their work

WINNIPEG, October. 24, 2014 /Canada NewsWire/ - Twenty-two students from communities all across Canada have earned themselves a trip to Ottawa to learn more about our nation's capital and our country's history.

The students were part of a group of over 150 that participated in the Young Citizens program, administered byCanada's History Society, with the support of Great-West Life, London Life and Canada Life and the Department of Canadian Heritage through the Take Charge program. The students were selected following their regional heritage fairs, and tasked with making a short video that demonstrated the historical significance of their topic. The videos were all posted online at YoungCitizens.ca and a public vote encouraged Canadians to watch and support their favourite student flicks. After a combined total of over 34,000 votes, a panel of judges selected twenty-two winners for this year's program.

The winners will receive a trip to Ottawa for the first Canada's History Youth Forum from October 31-November 2, where they'll have a chance to visit some of Canada's most important national sites. As part of the Youth Forum, the students will spend a morning at the Canadian War Museum sharing their projects together and deepening their knowledge of Canadian history.

This year's Youth Forum was also made possible by the Federal/Provincial/Territorial Working Group on Cultural Engagement, which supports national collaborative initiatives that strengthen youth engagement in heritage and arts.

The recipients of the 2014 Young Citizens program are:Abby Peterson, Rocky Mountain House, AB — Canada & Titanic Dominic Shoop, Okotoks, AB —The Flintlock PistolDylan Lee, Vancouver, BC — The Chinese Head TaxAlexandra Mines, Vancouver, BC — Les Réfugiés Indésirables du CanadaJenna Allison, Winnipeg, MB — Nellie McClungRachel Teller, Winnipeg, MB — Sir Frederick BantingMaude Couturier, Fredericton, NB — Les infirmières militaires canadiennesEmma Morehouse, Lincoln, NB — Patrick Owens Covered BridgeJasmine Rahman, St. John's, NL—The Newfoundland Conscience: A History of GivingJack Goldsworthy, Torbay, NL —Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: The Original Way of LifeBen Strickland, Bridgewater, NS —The MosquitoSam Rogers, Lower Onslow, NS — The Black Devil's BrigadeEastyn Klages, Chatsworth, ON — A Little Taste of HomeParis Snake, Rama, ON — Residential Schools: The Intergenerational ImpactsKarla McCallum, Charlottetown, PEI —The Journey of the PotatoHarrison Duffy, Kinkora, PEI  — History Of the PEI RailwayÉlodie Chamberland, Sainte-Hélène-de-Kamouraska, QC — La Seconde Guerre mondialeAndréanne Girard-Lemieux, Saint-Gédéon-de-Beauce, QC — Reproduction de mocassins amérindiensDylan Donald, Regina, SK — Chuckwagon RacingElla Forrest, Regina, SK — My Oma's StoryDuncan Snooks, Whitehorse, YT— Jacques CartierMaximilian Wanner, Whitehorse, YT — North West Mounted Police

Honourable mentions include:Lauren Bale. De Winton, AB — The Evolution Of Canadian Figure SkatingAmina Guo. Vancouver, BC — Japanese Canadian internmentOlivia Richards. Vancouver, BC — 1961 train smoke eatersSiya Johal. Delta, BC — My Sikh Family HistoryLuke Harris. North Vancouver, BC — Vimy RidgeJacob Grant, Winnipeg, MB — Andrew Charles MynarskiLuke Battcock, Paradise. NL — Gros MorneGriffin Fancy, Bridgewater. NS — Prestigious ProvoJulia McNeaney. ON — Ridley CollegeTurner Clarke, Port Colborne. ON — The Wainfleet BogClara Sismondo. Kingston, ON — KCVI : a historyLise Charles, Charlottetown. PEI — Un pėcheur madelinotKarine Champagne, Saint-Honoré-de-Shenley. QC — Le patrimoine des Jésuites en Nouvelle-FranceMakayla Kaye. Whitehorse, YT — Yukon First nation

To view the entries and contest winners, visit www.YoungCitizens.ca.

Joel Ralph, Director of Programs at Canada's History Society remarked, "Through the Young Citizens program, these students emerge as teachers and leaders in their community." He added, "They are committed to sharing their knowledge with others and ensuring that the past is not forgotten."

The students will also be recognized for their work at the Canada's History Forum, a gathering of top historians, teachers, writers and heritage professionals that's held annually in conjunction with the Governor General's History Awards. This year's forum is taking place on Nov. 2 at the Canadian War Museum. The forum is free to attend online or in-person. Visit CanadasHistory.ca/HistoryForum to register.

"It's encouraging to see young people sharing and deepening their knowledge of Canada," said Jan Belanger, Vice-President, Community Relations for Great-West Life, London Life and Canada Life. "We hope our support for the Young Citizens program will help participants gain the insights they need to become responsible and engaged citizens." 

About Heritage Fairs

Heritage Fairs began as a pilot community project in Winnipeg in 1993 and have today grown to involve over 110,000 students each year in schools-based and regional exhibitions in more than 100 communities across Canada. Wholly driven by a network of volunteer teachers and community history organizations, the program benefits from funding support from Great-West Life, London Life and Canada Life, partner in the Young Citizen's video component.

About Great West Life

Great-West Life, London Life and Canada Life offer a broad portfolio of financial and benefit plan solutions and serve the financial security needs of more than 12 million people across Canada. Responsible and ethical management is an intrinsic value of the companies and is essential to long-term profitability and value creation. As an Imagine Caring Company supporting the principles of corporate citizenship and benchmarks for community investment established by Imagine Canada, the companies donate a minimum of one per cent of average pre-tax profits to non-profit, charitable and community organizations each year. Learn more about the organization's corporate social responsibility.

About Canada's History Society

Canada's History Society is a national charitable organization devoted to popularizing Canadian history. In addition to presenting the Governor General's History Awards and publishing Canada's History (formerly The Beaver) magazine, as well as Kayak: Canada's History Magazine for Kids, the Society also produces a number of educational and online programs to encourage more discovery, celebration, and understanding about our rich history and culture. More details can be found at www.canadashistory.ca

SOURCE Canada's History

Ontario Residents Bring History to Life by Turning Tragedy into Tributes

Photo credit: Canadiangeographic.ca

Their Innovative Centennial Remembrance to be Honoured at Rideau Hall

WINNIPEG, October 7, 2014 /Canada NewsWire/ - The community of Goderich, Ontario is being celebrated nationally for ensuring that lives lost will be remembered for years to come.  The Great Lakes Storm of 1913 Remembrance Committee came together in 2012 to plan a series of centennial remembrance events and activities to honour those who lost their lives in the greatest Canadian maritime disaster ever to occur on the Great Lakes.  The storm of 1913, known as the 'White Hurricane,' battered the Great Lakes from November 7^th to 10^th in 1913 and claimed 250 lives. 

The Remembrance Committee designed activities around Goderich to inspire others along the Huron lakeshore to undertake complementary events.  In total, sixty-five collaborations were born that involved over 1,000 volunteers, numerous events that welcomed over 12,000 guests including sixty descendants of the disaster's victims. 

For honouring the memory of those affected in the Great Lakes Storm of 1913 and celebrating a former way of life that was central to the Great Lakes lakeshore communities, the Remembrance Committee is one of this year's recipients for the 2014 Governor General's History Award for Excellence in Community Programming. 

The francophone recipient is La Société historique du Cap-Rouge for their project "Le Centenaire du Tracel de Cap-Rouge."

This year's honourable mentions include:

Harbord Village Residents' Association for Harbord Village Oral History Project.

Living History Multimedia Association for A Desert Between Us & Them: Raiders, Traitors, and Refugees in the War of 1812.

Université Concordia (Ronald Rudin, Philip Lichti, et al.) for Le retour des voix au parc national Kouchibouguac.

On Monday, November 3^rd at 11:30 a.m., His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General ofCanada, will honour the recipients for their achievements and contributions to furthering interest in and understanding of our history and heritage. 

Media are invited to attend the 2014 Governor General's History Awards. Please contact rsvp@gg.ca to confirm attendance.

Announcements continue throughout the coming week and profiles of all the recipients will be available at:CanadasHistory.ca/Awards.

The Governor General's History Awards bring together community and museum organizations, students, teachers, historians, writers and media producers to celebrate as well as learn from each other.  The day prior to the award ceremonies, recipients will participate in a public history forum at the Canadian War Museum.  This year's forum is open to the public to attend onsite or online by registering at www.CanadasHistory.ca/HistoryForum.                                                               

About Canada's History Society

Canada's History Society is a Winnipeg-based charitable organization devoted to popularizing Canadian history.  In addition to publishing Canada's History (formerly The Beaver) magazine, and Kayak: Canada's History Magazine for Kids, the Society also produces the Governor General's History Awards to celebrate excellence in the field and encourage more discovery, celebrations and understanding about our rich history and culture.  More details can be found at CanadasHistory.ca.

About Spectra Energy

Spectra Energy Corp (NYSE: SE), a FORTUNE 500 company, is one of North America's premier natural gas infrastructure companies serving three key links in the natural gas value chain: gathering and processing, transmission and storage, and distribution. For more than a century, Spectra Energy and its predecessor companies have developed critically important pipelines and related infrastructure connecting natural gas supply sources to premium markets.

Based in Houston, Texas, the company's operations in the United States and Canada include more than 19,000 miles of transmission pipeline, approximately 305 billion cubic feet of storage, as well as natural gas gathering and processing, natural gas liquids and local distribution operations. The company also has a 50 percent ownership in DCP Midstream, one of the largest natural gas gatherers and processors in the United States. Spectra Energy is a member of the Dow Jones Sustainability World and North America Indexes and the Carbon Disclosure Project's Global 500 and S&P 500 Carbon Disclosure Leadership Indexes. For more information, visit www.spectraenergy.com.

SOURCE Canada's History