Wáhta Breakfast

Kahnawa’kehró:non may be familiar with Iakwahwatsiratátie’s ‘Wáhta Breakfast Fundraiser’, which took place annually at the Moose Lodge. However, there had not been one since the onset of the Covid Pandemic. This year we decided to bring it back, but with some changes to reflect where we are at in 2024, primarily that it was not a fundraiser.

The Wahta Breakfast 2024 was a small event held at the Golden Age and attendees included Onkwehonwenéha 1st language speakers and language nest participants. In order to facilitate an atmosphere of learning and inclusion, each table was thoughtfully arranged to have two first-language speakers and two language nest participants (one participant from each learning level).

Our goal was to show our appreciation for Onkwehonwenéha first-language speakers while also giving our Iakwahwastsiratátie families a chance to speak and socialize with one another in a natural yet supportive setting. To have a roomful of people coming together to speak and practice Onkwehonwenéha is such a powerful experience and we will be forever grateful to be able to facilitate this type of gathering reminiscent of traditional intergeneral transferences of language.

Our delicious buffet was catered by TLC Wholistics (tlciekhonnis on Instagram) and was enjoyed by all ages, from elder to baby.

Ieronhiénhawi McComber

“Iakwahwatsiratátie’s wáhta breakfast bringing together our language nest families and first language speakers from 3 communities, Kahnawà:ke, Akwesásne & Kanehsatà:ke. It was a beautiful thing to hear aóskon onkwehonwehnéha being spoken in every crevice of the room amongst all generations. The conversational opportunities are so vast in this type of setting and the stories that we get to hear and share amongst each other mean the world. Nowhere else can we gain this kind of inherent wisdom, storytelling connections to our past, and sense of humour but through our elder L1 speakers. It felt like the best day ever. We were fortunate to have had a true wáhta buffet style breakfast catered by TLC Wholistics complete with the Wahta works & a unique onkwehonwehnéha touch and nothing but healthy and wholesome ingredients. Lots of warm hugs, beautiful smiles and happy bellies at the end of the day. Our hearts are full . Looking forward to spending more time with our elders. Kwah í:ken tsi ion’wesénhne.”

Karihwakátste Deer

“Where we are at today many of our families don’t have elders or anyone that speaks Kanien’keha. When you’re learning your language it can be very intimidating to approach fluent speakers or other learners and that can hinder learning. We are so fortunate to be able to create a guided & safe environment like this for our families to connect to elders and other learners and begin to become comfortable in making new connections in order to develop and strengthen their Kanien’keha communication skills. Hopefully when they see each other around the community they can now feel comfortable to engage in conversations and that will lead to Kanien’keha being used and heard more and more around us and that is the main goal”