To help address the intergenerational trauma and facilitate healing, the Women of the Dawn Ministry hosted the Healing Hearts Conference, a 3-day workshop for Elders, Survivors, and intergenerational survivors, in Regina, Saskatchewan, allowing attendees to learn together through traditional healing methods.
The weekly Wellbriety Circle at the Dilico Anishinabek Family Care Centre in Fort William First Nation, near Thunder Bay, Ontario, offers a culturally based approach to support healing from addiction and intergenerational trauma. The program uses cultural values and teachings to address not only addiction but co-occurring disorders and the deep wounds of intergenerational trauma. While rooted in Indigenous cultural practices, the program welcomes participants from all backgrounds.
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.
The "Rock Your Roots - Walk for Reconciliation", which takes place on September 30, the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, is more than just a walk. Now in its sixth year, the event is a joined effort to combat racism, honor Residential School Survivors, and build bridges between Indigenous, non-Indigenous, and newcomer communities.
In Mission, B.C., the Stó:lō community, along with Residential School Survivors, is embarking on a journey to honour and remember the children who never returned from St. Mary's Residential School. The Xyólhmet ye Syéwiqwélh (Taking Care of Our Children) Ceremony seeks to heal wounds, acknowledge pain, and reclaim cultural heritage.
Hosted by Keeseekoose First Nation, a Saulteaux band government located in Kamsack, Saskatchewan, the Truth Telling Gathering held from September 15-17, 2023 in Regina brought together survivors, Elders, community leaders and Indigenous peoples from across Canada together to share, listen and participate in the truths of Survivors of Residential schools, honouring them and the children who never made it home.
