Iakwahwatsiratátie: Land and Building Owners

Iakwahwatsiratátie Language Nest announcing late Wednesday that they had purchased the current building and land where the school is located. The deal was finalized and the location is now officially their home. Karihwakatste Deer  says that the agreement was initiated by the previous owners:

“It was exactly what we were looking for, they made renovations to accommodate us and we moved in here. So we rented for 5, 6 years and then they approached us and said would you be interested in purchasing the property and the home, seeing that it is a good fit for your program right now and they didn’t necessarily want to maintain it anymore and they said we’d love to see you there.”

John Mayo and his wife Phyllis-Fazio Mayo, felt that the school – that is focused on language and cultural knowledge – deserved to have its own permanent location:

“They believed in the mission and the vision of what we’re doing in working with families and the language. They liked that it’s a very central and visible place in the community, right on the highway, where people can see what we are doing all the time, see our families. When they see cars out here they know that we’re doing something in the language or offering some kind of class to the community.”

The arrangement was made possible through the Early Learning Childcare Partnership Funding as well as through donations and the Foundation.