I am a Métis mother from the family lines Belanger and St. Germaine. I was raised in the Lower Mainland and participated in the provincial French Immersion programming.
A great accomplishment was being the first in my family to graduate university. I finished with a B.A. from Simon Fraser University in French language, with focus on the linguistic analysis of the Michif language. The day of my graduation ceremony was the day I went into labour with my oldest child.
My journey brought me to tiyskĘ·at (the area now known as Powell River), when my husband and I stumbled upon this beautiful, progressive, inclusive community just before the birth of our second child. We made the decision to move here in 2016 and since arriving I began, in earnest, the work of reconnecting to my Métis culture and gave birth to our youngest child in Powell River General Hospital.
I am running for a position on the school board because of my lived experience as a Métis woman and as a parent of a neurodiverse child. It is clear that all students deserve advocacy.
In this role I hope to address systemic inequity while increasing communication between the school board and public. At the core of public education is collaboration, which flourishes in our community.
It would be an honour to contribute to the diligent work of the school board with a continuing implementation of Indigenous reconciliation initiatives.
~ Tabatha Berggren
The upcoming Powell River Board of Education school trustee by-election will be held on April 24. Polling stations at Kelly Creek Community School, Westview Elementary School and James Thomson Elementary School will be open from 8 am to 8 pm.
There will also be advanced voting on April 14 and 21 at the school board office, 4351 Ontario Avenue, also between 8 am and 8 pm.
For more information, go to sd47.bc.ca or contact chief election officer Cathy Greiner at 604.485.7744, or cathygreiner520@gmail.com.
