Weyburn City Council has given the Rainbow District Girl Guides the green light to paint rainbows on the crosswalks in the intersection of Coteau Avenue and Third Street in downtown Weyburn. The rainbows will represent inclusion for all walks of life.

A group of Guides and leaders were in attendance during last night’s regular meeting of Weyburn City Council.

“Girl Guides of Canada recognizes and values the richness of human diversity in its many forms, and therefore strives to ensure environments where girls and women from all walks of life, identities, and lived experiences feel a sense of belonging and can participate fully,” said District Commissioner, Abby Kradovill.

“This commitment to inclusion means Girl Guides of Canada's culture, programming, and practices encourage self-awareness and awareness of others, room for difference, and environments where girls and women feel safe, respected, supported, and inspired to reach their potential,” she added.

Local Pathfinder Maura Tytlandsvik said the Weyburn Girl Guide and Pathfinder units have been working for months on a community service project to improve the streets of Weyburn.

“As part of Girl Guides of Canada’s mandate it is the belief that we explore the diversity within our community,” she said. “This year we hope to make a difference in the lives of others and the downtown area.”

“We would really like to do this because we want all diverse groups to feel safe and welcome. In Girl Guides we learn how important it is to care for others and ourselves,” said Kadyn VanAlstyne. “We want to create a safe walking space that also represents a welcoming space for everyone not matter their way of life. We are all different in our own way and by working with the City of Weyburn we are able to show this in a grand way.”

“In 2016 Weyburn celebrated its first ever Pride Week,” said Jillian Forseth. “Rather than celebrating gender and sexual diversity for just one week, we would like to show our support all year long by painting the crosswalks rainbow. We would supply the paint and ensure that it is approved by Claude Morin. We also commit to maintaining the crosswalks every year as part of our community clean-up program. In the spirit of inclusivity, we as a district want to complete this service project that shows our support of the LGBTQ2 community and also represents our local Rainbow District Girl Guides.”

The representatives noted that letters were sent to the business owners on all four corners, but they have not yet heard back from Grace United Church, nor from the owners of the old City Hall building, Greaves Holdings.

The Guides noted they will paint the crosswalks at Coteau Avenue and Third Street twice this summer in tandem with the City's crosswalk painting.

The project has been fully supported by the Weyburn Youth Council, who helped the Rainbow District group put together their proposal for Council.

City Council unanimously approved the crosswalk rainbow paintings on a one-year trial basis.

An example of how the painted crosswalks will look (photo via screenshot of Weyburn City Council agenda/pdf)