For RM of Ritchot employees Danielle Peters and Emma Dequier, inclusion and belonging are feelings they want every resident of the RM to experience all the time. 

Peters is the coordinator of community engagement and Dequier operates as the RM’s recreational program coordinator. Together they’re drumming up ideas they believe will instill a little extra hometown pride. 

Inspired in part by the RM of Springfield’s mascot, Springer the Moose, Peters has determined that a Ritchot mascot would be a great way to help spread the joy at community events this summer.

“We want this to be a community-based mascot,” Peters says. “We didn’t want to just pick something. We gave every [resident] the option to give some input and we’ve had some really great feedback.”

Peters ran an online campaign asking residents to provide mascot ideas which could be either Ritchot-specific or simply begin with the letter R. She ended up with four finalists: the Chimney Swift, the fox, the racoon, and the river otter.

In the coming days, residents can go online and vote for their favourite option. By the end of the month, Peters says she’ll be getting quotes from mascot designers and hopes to have someone filling the suit at this summer’s lineup of outdoor events.

If you’re wondering who will fill that suit, Peters says she’s already had offers from previous summer camp staff. High school students may also provide an option.

“A mascot kind of gives a sense of identity to the community,” Peters says. “It brings that sense of belonging. We’re a part of something bigger than ourselves.”

Peters has other things on the go this spring, too.

A new initiative this year is the Ritchot/Niverville/Hanover flag football league. And to provide a no-cost option to golf enthusiasts, Peters encourages residents to try out the disc golf course in St. Adolphe.

“We have a nine-hole course and this summer we’re actually adding nine more,” Peters says. “As part of our lending program, we have disc golf sets. So you can just come grab your discs and head over to the park.”

While mascot plans are in full swing, Dequier is working on a creative initiative of her own to build community inclusiveness.

Signs of Belonging is an idea she saw featured in a county in Minnesota. Drawing from the talents of local artists, Dequier hopes to install new 12-by-48-inch art signs in each of Ritchot’s communities this summer

Funding for the signs will come from the Healthy Together Now initiative provided by Southern Health-Sante Sud.  

“We like the approach of using public art as a tool for inclusion and we felt it could be meaningful and impactful,” says Dequier. 

Dequier has already sent out requests for submissions. By the end of this month, she’s hopeful that at least four local artists will have stepped forward with their own creative renditions depicting what belonging, connection, and inclusion mean to them.

Artistic designs can include paintings, drawings, or even digitally created art. 

“We’re looking for artists from different backgrounds,” Dequier says. “We believe that it would be important to highlight those underrepresented voices. We could include women, artists with disabilities, people of lower socioeconomic background, people of colour, 2SLGBTQ+, and Indigenous peoples.”

If all goes as planned, each community will be invited to an official hometown sign celebration and pop-up party later this summer, planned by RM staff. 

Beyond the Signs of Belonging initiative, Dequier has also been busy organizing a Biz Camp for Ritchot’s kids.

“We’re partnering with Community Futures to deliver this camp,” Dequier says. “It’s for ages nine to thirteen. Basically, the kids get to come in and learn how to be an entrepreneur. Then they get to design and create a product. At the end of the week, they get to sell it at a mini-market.” 

Peters and Dequier are also combining forces to help residents celebrate National Recreation and Parks month this coming June. 

Activities are being planned for every Tuesday and Thursday throughout the communities in the RM. These will be drop-in and free to the public. Events will include yoga in the park and art in the park. Rec on the Road will make a comeback in June as well.