Jeff Ward and the Community of Membertou

In the First Nation community of Membertou, Alumnus Jeff Ward, General Manager of the Membertou Heritage Park, is supporting members of his community the best way he can - at a distance.

In Membertou, there is one value that everyone seems to abide by and that is taking care of one another. This includes visiting friends and family who are lonely, caring for sick, gathering for healing and prayer ceremonies and practicing various traditions of the Mi’kmaw culture. In the face of a global pandemic where there is a focus on physical distancing to help flatten the curve, this can be hard. Jeff Ward, BACS ’14, has been working help ease the worry and uncertainly in his community.

On March 27, Jeff, along with other members of the drum group, Son’s of Membertou, Austin Christmas, Darrell Bernard and Graham Marshall, also a CBU alumnus, posted an announcement via Zoom encouraging the community to follow the advice from public health agencies. They also took the opportunity to sing an honour song, like they have hundreds of times before. But the only difference this time, they were at their respective homes – an important message to the community.

You can view their video here.

“Even more than before, we are checking in with elders. If they need anything, we act quickly and ensure they aren’t in need. We are always respecting physical distancing rules but are ensuring they are well taken care of,” comments Jeff.

Jeff is also involved in many groups and programs in the community. One program he heads is called LOVE – Leave Out Violence. This program is for youth in the community to work toward raising awareness and ending violence. The group used to gather every week for a group talk and social. Now, this weekly meeting has moved to the online conference service called Zoom.

“It was important for us to keep this group going through this difficult time,” says Jeff. “To see almost 50 kids’ faces on the screen was awesome! It was good for them to see that everyone is in this together and here for one another.”

To find out more on supporting Cape Breton University, visit www.cbu.ca/alumni