b'2022 INDSPIRE AWARDSCOMING TOGETHER AGAIN:THE 2022 INDSPIRE AWARDSIndspire celebrates renewed togetherness along with 29 years of Indigenous excellenceIts so good to see you! friends, new friends, and familyeach Laureates home community of all kinds were very much inearlier in the year to get a closer Ialmostcantbelievewereevidence, as was the collective joylook at the context that informed all here at long-delayed meetings. their outstanding work. The result was a series of powerful Its been too long! Indspires 29 thannual celebration ofand moving vignettes which gave Indigenous excellence was heraldedguests an opportunity to hear from S entiments like these wereby a return to community strengthsthe Laureates friends, family and overheard again andeven as it embraced a new format,colleagues, as well as the Laureates again during a memorableforgoing the variety show staging ofthemselves. These vignettes were evening in Ottawa this past Maythe past in favour of a celebratorya notable highlight of the eveningmemorable not just for its record- dinner and a more detailed look atand created an immersive experi-breaking heat, but also for thethe lives and achievements of theence that was unique in the history fact that it represented Indspires2022 Laureates. Guests enjoyedof the Awards.very first in-person event in overdelicious Indigenous Fusion cuisine two years.inspired by the vision of Chef DavidThe evening was filled with similarly Wolfman, the 2022 Arts Laureate.lovely multigenerational moments: The 2022 Indspire Awards wereAnd, speaking of old friends, theElder Claudette Commanda held at the Shaw Centre in Ottawadynamic Stan Wesley returned asgiving the opening blessing while on May 12, 2022, and the warmMC, bringing his usual energy andaccompanied by her son, Frankie weather outside was a fittingsartorial flair to the Awards stageCote; Elder Siyamiyateliot Elizabeth match for the warmth within: thefor an unforgettable evening.Phillips being escorted on stage feeling that the Indigenous commu- by a very proud family member nity was finally able to enjoy thisGuided by award-winning Executiveto receive her Culture, Heritage & eagerly anticipated gathering afterProducer Jennifer Podemski, docu- Spirituality Award; and Breanna a very challenging hiatus. Oldmentary crews had travelled toArcand-Kootenay accepting the Law 14indspiration2022'