'No such thing as one career anymore' Chief says

Story by Ryan B. Edmunds

Nearly 800 friends and relatives piled into the Gymnasium at the Education Centre Saturday to witness the convocation of the Information Technology, Office Administration, Human Development and Community service programs.

Grand Council Chief John Beaucage, of the Union of Ontario Indians was invited by Canadore College President, Barbara Taylor, to give the key note address during the convocation ceremony.

Beaucage is the Chief of the Wasauksing First Nation near Parry Sound. He is a graduate of the University of Western Ontario with degrees in English and Economics, and he has done post-graduate work in First Nation planning at the University of British Columbia.

An Economist, Beaucage worked for the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) for over 25 years in Ottawa, Thunder Bay, Toronto, Regina and Saint John, New Brunswick.

Grand Council Chief Beaucage played an instrumental role in the First Ministers' Meeting which took place in Kelowna, BC in November of 2005. Leading up to the FMM, Beaucage served as the Co-chair for First Ministers' Working Groups for both Housing and Relationships.

Beaucage told the 2007 graduates that there is no such thing as one career anymore.

"In today's workplace there are so many things that happen and things are moving so quickly with technology and with the pace of life that virtually nobody stays in one job for thirty-five or forty years anymore." said Beaucage.

"We often change careers midway and even after we retire we often try something different afterwards. We're living longer and have better health so we want to get involved with so many more things so we often have two or three or even four careers in a work lifetime."

After Beaucage's speech he was presented with an honorary diploma in Indigenous Wellness and Addictions Prevention.