Aboriginal Veterans Tribute List – National Launch April 2019

March 31, 2019

Aboriginal Veterans Tribute List  – National Launch April 2019
From: Aboriginal Veterans Tribute  [http://www.aboriginalveteranlist.ca]

Backgrounder

OVERVIEW

Paying tribute to Aboriginal Veterans and their families in the defence of rights and freedoms of Canadians “is just the right thing to do” says Jeff Schlingloff.  For over 20 years, Schlingloff, a Veteran historian and researcher, has been collecting photos, stories and Aboriginal Veterans names, which he shares freely on his website and on Facebook. Currently at 7,000 names, the Aboriginal Veterans Tribute List is continuing to grow as request for names to be added come in.

Dr. Connie Delisle, President and Founder of Storyline Associates Inc. was en route by air to Vancouver from co-leading a workshop with a First Nations Band on BC’s North West coast, contacted Jeff Schlingloff. She had found his Aboriginal Veterans Tribute site while looking for a means to contact the Aboriginal Veterans she met.

Their brainstorming resulted in agreement on a project and a successful funding application to Veteran Affairs Canada’s Commemorative Partnership Program to go forward with this project. By January 2019, ComputingStack, a unique Canadian-grown E2E cloud solution provider, was forming the list into a cloud-based database with easy search and online name submission capability. Shannon Peel, of The MarketAPeel Agency is collaborating on the website’s redesign to effectively reach out to Veterans, as well as encourage schools and researchers to undertake projects on Aboriginal Veterans.

Benefits to Veterans, Families, Supporters and Canadians include:

• No requirement for ongoing public funding, as the ownership and management of the Aboriginal Tribute List remains with the Veteran historian;
• An easy, freely accessible website for Aboriginal Veterans, families and supporters to nominate to the Aboriginal Tribute List;
• A cloud-based evergreen database (the List), offering researchers a starting point for inclusion of historic information in papers and studies;
• A source of information for historians to seek collaboration on projects related to honouring Aboriginal Veterans and their families;
• A consolidated source of information that schools, not-for-profits or Veterans Associations will reference when honouring Aboriginal Veterans and their families during commemorative events;
• A communication channel where Veteran Affairs Canada (VAC) and other government departments, Parliamentary Committees with mandates related to Aboriginal Veterans will find information to facilitate outreach to Aboriginal Veterans and their families; and
• A source of information for educators to develop curriculum or improve training courses about Aboriginal Veterans to improve historical accuracy and contribute to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada’s Call to Action.

This project exemplifies the sprit of collaboration and commitment to taking action. It involves Indigenous organizations, a Veteran historian who is of First Nation descent, the Government of Canada, local charities, and small businesses from Ontario to British Columbia.

Associated Links

Veterans Tribute List Facebook Site

Storyline Associates Inc
Veteran Affairs Canada Commemorative Partnership Program