Over the weekend, Portage got a tour around the world at the Fort la Reine Museum's "I Heart Heritage Festival". Emma EnsMacIver, the museum director, takes the time to explain what the event is all about.
"I Heart Heritage is just a celebration of local culture and the diverse mix of heritage and ethnicities we have in Portage la Prairie. What happens at our festival is a little different. Cultural groups will set up pavilions around the museum in different heritage homes, and then people get an opportunity to go and learn about the culture. They'll see different traditional clothing, maybe learn some games unique to that culture, et cetera."
She says that every one that came out to see all of the cultures enjoyed it.
"We received positive feedback all around. We didn't see quite as many people out as we have in previous years, but I was still really happy with the turnout, and I think, from what I heard, everyone enjoyed it and is looking forward to the next museum event."
EnsMacIver also notes how it takes about 50 volunteers to pull something like this off.
"We do volunteer rotations so that I get everybody doing a different job, as well as being able to take a break and enjoy the festival. That's something that I wish I had more time to do is walk around and enjoy it as a visitor. We had volunteers from each of the partner organizations as well as our core group of dedicated volunteers from the museum, which I appreciate."
Next year's I Heart Heritage Festival is already in the works. EnsMacIver notes that they will have a meeting on what went well and what they think they can improve on for next year.