Halfway River First Nation celebrates taekwondo champions
WONOWON, B.C. — A northeast B.C. First Nation is celebrating the accomplishments of its small but mighty taekwondo program.
Illona Wiebe is a martial arts instructor at Halfway River First Nation (HRFN) and teaches classes with students each Tuesday.
Wiebe says she began the program approximately a year ago, after she was encouraged to start a self-defence class at HRFN by her friend, Chris Souvie.
Souvie is a resident of HRFN. Having married into the community, he lives on the reserve with his family.
'I'd been given private kickboxing lessons,' recalls Wiebe. 'Chris asked if I'd do it out there.
'We decided that doing taekwondo would be better, because I can actually advance the kids and test them for belts.'
Wiebe, a fourth-degree black belt in taekwondo and learned at Fort St. John's Red Dragon Martial Arts, is assisted in the class by instructors Brooklyn Jodoin and Megan Ross.
'My instructors really embrace it,' said Wiebe. '[They] frequently spar for the kids, which is their favourite thing ever.'
She says the class provided the First Nations youngsters something 'fun and new' and an 'outlet you can kick people without getting in trouble.'
Wiebe was even able to get the children tested for a yellow stripe in late April as master Jenny Min from Edmonton's Grand Master K.H. Min Taekwondo came to give a self-defence demonstration.
From there, the small yet mighty team travelled to Edmonton, Alberta on May 3rd for the 2025 Alberta Open at the Kinsmen Sports Centre.
The event was sanctioned by the Alberta Taekwondo Association.
'I feel like they were more excited than they've ever been,' said Wiebe. 'There's a real infectious feeling about going to these tournaments. The energy is really crazy.'
The kids, ranging from five to 11 years old didn't just survive in the big tournament, they thrived.
Zachary Souvie received a gold medal, while Jerome Field, Kaitlyn Gladue, and Dalton Souvie received silver medals, and Sienna Fox got a bronze.
In addition, the eldest student – the 44-year-old Souvie himself – picked up a gold as well.
'They have never trained in a big class,' said Wiebe. 'We took them to K.H. Min's class, where they got to train with 30-odd students. They loved it.
'They were shy at first, but they just embraced it immediately. Now they're asking me when they can go back to Edmonton.'
Ultimately, Wiebe feels with more training and becoming comfortable within their skillset, the martial arts community around HRFN can continue to grow.
'I'm hoping if we can get these kids to their black belt, which [will] probably take conservatively about four or five years, it would really take off,' said Wiebe. 'I could get some kids from the nation to instruct.
'I think these kids need to see other kids like them succeeding. I'm hoping that as [kids] see others from their own community succeed, that they will want a piece of that for themselves.'
The weekly taekwondo program is run on Tuesdays for youth residents of the First Nation.
For more information, contact community care worker Sherry Welch at (403) 510-4408 or by
s.welch@hrfn.ca
.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hamilton Spectator
12 hours ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Right To Play International asks people to play and share their stories on Wednesday
As two of Canada's most experienced Olympians, Miranda Ayim and Erica Wiebe have made careers out of playing sports at the highest levels of competition. But some of their most formative memories are of playing as children with almost no stakes. 'We basically would have a neighbourhood-wide game of tag where we were just jumping fences from yard to yard,' said Ayim, who was on Canada's women's basketball team at four Olympics. 'I don't know if our parents really appreciated that, but we felt so adventurous going from yard to yard and running but still feeling safe to do so in that neighbourhood, and enjoying that time and that feeling of freedom.' For Wiebe, who won gold in women's wrestling at the 2016 Rio Olympics, one of her fondest memories is of instantly clicking with teammates in her first match with a new youth soccer team. 'We started the game with the ball, the whistle blows, and we went tic-tac-toe and just passed back and forth up the field, and it ended with me passing to my teammate and she scored,' said Wiebe in a recent phone interview. 'It was just this joyous moment where everything just fit together. 'It was maybe my first, earliest, flow state experience.' Ayim and Wiebe are two of Right To Play International's Canadian ambassadors, encouraging people to participate in the United Nations' International Day of Play on Wednesday. The aim of the day is to celebrate the power of play in children's lives, and encourage parents to guide their children back into the kind of experiences Ayim and Wiebe still cherish. 'You don't realize that you are missing it until you become an adult, but that kind of taps on the importance of Right To Play,' said Ayim. 'When I think back on that feeling of freedom and safety, Right To Play is providing that for a lot of children.' Based in Toronto, Right To Play International has worked for 25 years to protect, educate, and empower children to rise above adversity through the power of play. The charity says that play is in sharp decline because of shrinking access to public play spaces, rising screen time, and academic pressure. Right to Play's Ellen Fesseha says that's a concern because play doesn't just give children a social outlet, it teaches them life skills. 'It's developmentally appropriate, meaning it really meets children at the level that they're at, the active skills that they have at whatever point they're at in their development,' saud Fesseha, a play specialist at the organization. 'It allows them to to engage in meaningful ways, to actively participate, to explore the world around them, and then beyond that, it really allows children to take a step further in what they can do. It really pushes them beyond their limit, and allows them to continue to build skills.' According to UNICEF, around one in five children between the ages of two and four do not play with their caregivers at home. Right To Play argues that 'disappearing play' is not just a parenting issue, it's a public health, education, and equity issue, especially in underserved communities where access to safe, free play is limited or non-existent. 'We focus on education, on learning outcomes. We focus on reaching children in hard to reach places. We focus on helping children through trauma, through crises,' said Susan McIsaac, Right To Play International's president and chief executive officer. 'Play is the instrument that allowed us to reach children, to help empower children, to help children learn. 'That is why we wanted to acknowledge play as an important tool in the world, and it's why the International Day of Play will be a big day of celebration for all of us at Right To Play.' McIsaac hopes that Canadians will participate in the International Day of Play on Wednesday by doing at least one of three things. The first is simple: just play. Play with the children in their lives or with friends and colleagues and share that experience, tagging Right To Play on social media. Second, McIsaac hopes that people will follow Ayim and Wiebe's lead by sharing stories online of joyful play from their childhoods with the hashtag PlayChangesEverything. Finally, Right To Play will accept donations through its website. 'We're hoping that they'll do that, build awareness, support, financially, get out there and play and tell people about it,' said McIsaac. This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 10, 2025.
Hamilton Spectator
02-06-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Basketball players told to put long hair in jerseys, ref facing consequences
An amateur basketball referee has been ordered to forfeit jobs, apologize and take a course on Indigenous culture after asking First Nation boys to tuck in their braids. A minor league game at St. John's High School in Winnipeg's North End ended with tears and frustration for some of the young athletes and family members who were in the stands last Saturday. Sheena Johnston said her 11-year-old was one of three players on a Central Storm basketball team who was told they had to put their long hair inside their jerseys. When her son protested, saying his braid — a nod to his Cree and Ojibwa ancestry — could come loose while he was running, the referee told him to 'figure it out,' she said. 'His self-esteem went low. His hair is his pride and joy,' the mother said, adding she was shocked and angered by the referee's disregard for the cultural symbol. Johnston, who has four children, had never heard of such a request in all of the years she has spent watching her children play recreational sports — including hockey, soccer and volleyball — with braids. Concerns raised by her and other parents prompted a coach to flag the events, including the referee's decision to grab a player who challenged a call on the court, to the league. 'Sports need to be safe places for our young people, where they are not teased about their hair or their choices to share their cultural pride. It's not OK,' said Cheryl James, a mother of a 12-year-old on the boys basketball team. James had to miss the game due to another commitment. She said she was disappointed to learn later on that there had been so many adult bystanders in the gymnasium. The Manitoba Aboriginal Sports and Recreation Council, which runs inner-city recreation programs, has condemned the referee's actions. Co-ordinator Quinton Denechezhe told families immediate steps are being taken to promote inclusivity, protect athletes and address 'the obvious miseducation and inappropriate conduct.' 'There are no rules requiring players to tuck in their braids or long hair, and such a decision is always the discretion of the player,' Denechezhe wrote in a memo Thursday. The email states the referee assignor for the Winnipeg Minor Basketball Association has confirmed the individual in question will forfeit upcoming assignments and issue a written apology. 'The referee will take an education course on Indigenous culture to better understand and respect the cultural practices and traditions of our players,' Denechezhe said, noting he is requesting the individual register in MASRC's 'aboriginal coaching module.' Johnston said she prides herself on braiding her children's hair every morning — a routine during which she gives each child positive affirmations and prays with them. Her boys wanted to grow their hair out after finding out about what happened at residential schools and learning that the braid connects a person to Mother Earth, because it points towards the ground. Indigenous children's braids were chopped off when they arrived at residential schools, an element of the government and church-run institutions' mission to strip their cultural identities. Johnston said her family wants last weekend's events to serve as a learning opportunity for all referees, coaches and athletes. 'We can all learn from this.… Our men and our leaders and our chiefs have always had long hair, and it is just part of who we are as First Nations,' she said. Referee assignor Reid Kenyon echoed those comments in an email. 'Our focus is on ensuring this becomes a learning opportunity for all, as we remain committed to creating a safe and inclusive environment within the game of basketball,' said Kenyon, president of the Manitoba Association of Basketball Officials. Error! Sorry, there was an error processing your request. There was a problem with the recaptcha. Please try again. You may unsubscribe at any time. By signing up, you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy . This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google privacy policy and terms of service apply. Want more of the latest from us? Sign up for more at our newsletter page .
Hamilton Spectator
15-05-2025
- Hamilton Spectator
Halfway River First Nation celebrates taekwondo champions
WONOWON, B.C. — A northeast B.C. First Nation is celebrating the accomplishments of its small but mighty taekwondo program. Illona Wiebe is a martial arts instructor at Halfway River First Nation (HRFN) and teaches classes with students each Tuesday. Wiebe says she began the program approximately a year ago, after she was encouraged to start a self-defence class at HRFN by her friend, Chris Souvie. Souvie is a resident of HRFN. Having married into the community, he lives on the reserve with his family. 'I'd been given private kickboxing lessons,' recalls Wiebe. 'Chris asked if I'd do it out there. 'We decided that doing taekwondo would be better, because I can actually advance the kids and test them for belts.' Wiebe, a fourth-degree black belt in taekwondo and learned at Fort St. John's Red Dragon Martial Arts, is assisted in the class by instructors Brooklyn Jodoin and Megan Ross. 'My instructors really embrace it,' said Wiebe. '[They] frequently spar for the kids, which is their favourite thing ever.' She says the class provided the First Nations youngsters something 'fun and new' and an 'outlet you can kick people without getting in trouble.' Wiebe was even able to get the children tested for a yellow stripe in late April as master Jenny Min from Edmonton's Grand Master K.H. Min Taekwondo came to give a self-defence demonstration. From there, the small yet mighty team travelled to Edmonton, Alberta on May 3rd for the 2025 Alberta Open at the Kinsmen Sports Centre. The event was sanctioned by the Alberta Taekwondo Association. 'I feel like they were more excited than they've ever been,' said Wiebe. 'There's a real infectious feeling about going to these tournaments. The energy is really crazy.' The kids, ranging from five to 11 years old didn't just survive in the big tournament, they thrived. Zachary Souvie received a gold medal, while Jerome Field, Kaitlyn Gladue, and Dalton Souvie received silver medals, and Sienna Fox got a bronze. In addition, the eldest student – the 44-year-old Souvie himself – picked up a gold as well. 'They have never trained in a big class,' said Wiebe. 'We took them to K.H. Min's class, where they got to train with 30-odd students. They loved it. 'They were shy at first, but they just embraced it immediately. Now they're asking me when they can go back to Edmonton.' Ultimately, Wiebe feels with more training and becoming comfortable within their skillset, the martial arts community around HRFN can continue to grow. 'I'm hoping if we can get these kids to their black belt, which [will] probably take conservatively about four or five years, it would really take off,' said Wiebe. 'I could get some kids from the nation to instruct. 'I think these kids need to see other kids like them succeeding. I'm hoping that as [kids] see others from their own community succeed, that they will want a piece of that for themselves.' The weekly taekwondo program is run on Tuesdays for youth residents of the First Nation. For more information, contact community care worker Sherry Welch at (403) 510-4408 or by .
