One Seat Can Change a Story
Every weekday morning at 7:10, a little girl named Daenerys stood at the end of a long country road with her mom and her younger brother, Kostyn. She was in Grade 2 and Kostyn had just started Kindergarten. Together, they climbed onto a yellow school bus and began the nearly hour-and-a-half ride to Mamawi Atosketan Native School.
At the end of the day, they climbed back onto that same bus, often not arriving home until after 5:00 in the evening. For children so young, those were long days.But Daenerys knew what was waiting for her at school.
Friends. Teachers who cared . A place where she could learn about her Cree culture, and be surrounded by people who believed in her. Mostly, a place to learn about Jesus,
Today, Daenerys is preparing to enter Grade 5. She is quiet and a little shy, but also funny, creative, and full of talent. She loves to draw and dance, and in 2024 she proudly represented her community as the Samson Cree First Nation Powwow Princess. She has many sibling, cousins and other family members that have attended and graduated from Mamawi. When Daenerys grows up she wants to be a teacher so she can help other children learn too.
Her story is beautiful but it is not the only one.
Every day, hundreds of students at Mamawi Atosketan Native School climb onto buses from across Maskwacis and surrounding communities. Some live nearby. Others, like Daenerys, travel a long way just to get to school.
For many families, the bus is not a convenience, it is the only way their children can come to school.
Why Transportation Matters
At Mamawi, students receive more than an education. They are welcomed into a safe and caring school community where they are known by name, encouraged by their teachers, and reminded that they have purpose. They learn about Indigenous culture. They build friendships. They grow in confidence. They hear about the love of Jesus. They begin to imagine who they can become. But before any of that can happen, they have to get here.
That is why transportation matters. Every bus seat represents a child with a story still being written.
A future teacher.
A future artist.
A future tradesperson.
A future nurse.
A future parent.
A future leader.
Fill a Seat. Plant a Seed.
Students love coming to school and for many families the bus is the only way to get to school. It costs approximately $1,000 each year to provide transportation for one student. Our goal is to find 200 people willing to sponsor one child’s journey to school.
When you fill a seat on one of our buses, you are providing far more than a ride to school.
You are planting the seed of education, giving a child the opportunity to discover new ideas, develop their gifts, and build a future filled with possibility.
You are planting the seed of friendship, where students learn to laugh together, encourage one another, and become part of a caring school family.
You are planting the seed of respect, helping children learn to value themselves, their culture, their community, and those around them.
You are planting the seed of resilience, giving students the confidence to overcome challenges, persevere through difficulties, and believe they can achieve more than they ever imagined.
You are planting the seed of hope, reminding every child that their future matters and that someone believes in them.
Most importantly, you are planting the seed of God’s love. Every day at Mamawi Atosketan Native School, our students experience a place where they are known, prayed for, encouraged, and reminded that they are deeply loved by their Creator.
The impact of your gift may never be fully known.
Every journey begins with a single seat.
Will You Help us Fill a Seat and Plant a Seed?
Fill a Seat. Plant a Seed.
Give Today
E-transfer: etransfer@mansalberta.ca
Help us reach our goal of $200,000
to ensure every child has a ride to school.