To provide a safe, inclusive, and culturally relevant space for such teachings, Gull Bay Sacred Heart of Jesus R.C. Church has chosen to purchase a teepee. The teepee will serve as a hub for land-based activities and a space for sharing knowledge, language and culture between Elders, spiritual leaders, Knowledge Keepers, youth, and children.
Providing financial support for Indigenous students in their educational journey is a key part of reconciliation. Bursaries often play an important role in opening the door to continuing studies, fostering self-esteem, and cultivating skills that students can later contribute to their communities.
Residential schools have left wounds of generational trauma and cultural disconnection not just on those who attended the institutions, but on their children, grandchildren and other family members. In Thunder Bay, Ontario, the Indigenous Ministry understands the need for intergenerational healing and connection and has created the Residential School Survivor Listening Circle, a place for sharing stories and finding healing.
For many Indigenous communities, food is medicine and medicine is food. Growing food is a connection to Traditional Knowledge and others in the community. Indigenous women, especially, hold important wisdom about healing with traditional plants.
Boozhoo, a greeting, and miigwech, an expression of gratitude – these words are the foundation of the Ojibwe language. In a deliberate attempt to sever the ties that bound Indigenous people to their cultural roots, speaking Ojibwe or any other Indigenous language was forbidden in the residential school system, resulting in a loss of cultural identity that is still acutely felt in communities today.
