Port Hope to host screening of Gord Downie’s The Secret Path

The Municipality of Port Hope and Northumberland County will host a free screening of ‘The Secret Path’ at the Capitol Theatre on September 30, 2026, to observe the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

The film project, created by the late Gord Downie, depicts the story of Chanie Wenjack, an Anishinaabe boy who died in 1966 while attempting to walk home after escaping a residential school in northern Ontario. The screening aims to highlight the impacts of the residential school system on Indigenous communities through music, animation, and storytelling.

Following the film, a panel discussion moderated by Mayor Olena Hankivsky will feature Indigenous leaders, including Marsha Smoke, Dr. Hayden King, and Chief Taynar Simpson. While the event is free, donations will be collected for the Aron Indigenous Circle and the Past Time legacy project.