MEDIA RELEASE: NSGEU Partners with NAIG Host Society to Support Volunteers and Training in Dartmouth

Friday, March 31st, 2023

The NSGEU is announcing it is partnering with the North American Indigenous Games (NAIG) Host Society to provide an accreditation centre and volunteer call centre for the nine-day event, which will bring together 756 Indigenous Nations to celebrate, share and reconnect through sport and culture.

“We are honoured to be able to support NAIG Host Society in making these games successful,” says Sandra Mullen, President of the Nova Scotia Government & General Employees Union (NSGEU). “NSGEU wanted to lend our support and seeing as our main office in Dartmouth at 255 John Savage Ave is located close to some of the venues, we were well-positioned to offer space to help them coordinate and train volunteers.”

Brendon Smithson, CEO, NAIG Host Society: “We’re just over one hundred days away from the kickoff of the Games. You can feel the excitement building in welcoming thousands of athletes, volunteers and everyone involved. Without our volunteers, the Games are not possible. The support throughout the province has been overwhelming and will help make this the best NAIG yet.”

The North American Indigenous Games will be held in Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia) in Halifax, Dartmouth, and Millbrook from July 15^th – 23^rd, 2023. NSGEU will be encouraging its almost 36,000 members to volunteer for the games and their conference centre will host training days in the lead-up to the games.

One volunteer, Jennifer McKeane, is also a member of the NSGEU Human Rights Committee and has been a champion of NAIG since the announcement that they were being held in Mi’kma’ki (Nova Scotia).

“As a proud NSGEU member and Civil Servant working with the tourism sector, I look forward to volunteering at NAIG 2023. Being a volunteer has allowed me to learn more about Indigenous and Mi’kmaq history, to learn more about the ancestral territory of the Mi’kmaw People and understand how to be an ally during NAIG 2023. Sport has the power to build community and this is an event not to be missed,” says McKeane.

Laura Seaboyer, Director of People, NAIG Host Society: “NAIG 2023 requires over 3,000 volunteers, so we are very thankful for the amount of support we’ve received from the community and partners like NSGEU.”

The NSGEU Board of Directors represents approximately 36,000 public sector workers delivering services throughout the province. On their behalf, we are proud to welcome the 5,000 athletes and 756 nations who are coming together in a celebration of sport and culture this July.

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The Nova Scotia Government and General Employees Union represents nearly 36,000 workers who provide quality public services Nova Scotians count on every day.

For more information, or to arrange an interview with NSGEU President Sandra Mullen, please contact:

Deedee Slye, NSGEU Communications Officer,

902-497-6761 (cell)

dslye@nsgeu.ca