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In West Chezzetcook, N.S., National Acadian Day is about more than the festivities, says R\u00e9b\u00e9cca-Sarah Potvin. It was about preserving culture.<\/p>\n
Potvin is the executive director of historic site L\u2019Acadie de Chezzetcook, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe wanted to make it bigger, share more about our history here at L\u2019Acadie Chezzetcook,\u201d she said in an interview at the event.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re here to share stories, we\u2019re here to share what happened to the people of this community.\u201d<\/p>\n
Dozens gathered to commemorate the milestone with music, a barbeque as well as demonstrations of Acadian traditions like butter churning and clam shelling.<\/p>\n
Canada\u2019s Minister of Canadian Identity and Culture Marc Miller, Central Nova MP Sean Fraser and Coun. David Hendsbee were also in attendance.<\/p>\n
L\u2019Acadie Chezzetcook chair Cameron DeBaie said the 30th anniversary marks an important step forward in the revitalization and preservation of Acadian culture and the French language in Chezzetcook.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrowing up, my grandmother spoke French but wouldn’t speak French in public. My mother never learned French,\u201d said DeBaie.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThis next generation that is growing up really values their roots.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Cameron DeBaie and R\u00e9b\u00e9cca-Sarah Potvin helped plan the event and spoke about the importance of preserving Acadian culture. (Kheira Morellon\/Radio-Canada)<\/p>\n
Shirley Doucette Lowe is a community member and volunteer at the Acadian House Museum. Residing in Grand Desert, she recalls the formation of L\u2019Acadie Chezzetcook in 1996 and has been a part of its preservation work ever since.<\/p>\n
Like DeBaie, she said there’s a renewed passion among the community\u2019s youth.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are sort of a minority and in this particular community, people of my generation lost the language,\u201d Doucette Lowe said. \u201cSo it\u2019s really important for a place like this to talk about the culture and to bring back the language.\u201d<\/p>\n
One way that\u2019s happening, she said, is at the French school in Porter\u2019s Lake Ecole des Beaux-Marais. The school was taken over in 2011 by Conseil scolaire acadien provincial, which administers the province’s French-language schools.<\/p>\n