Sacred Roots

Indigenous women are experiencing profound disconnection from culture, language, land, and identity due to colonization, residential schools, the child welfare system, and intergenerational trauma.

For women from rural and northern communities who relocate to urban settings, their struggles are often compounded by limited access to culturally safe spaces, Elders, and traditional healing practices. 

Since 1999, the Talitha Koum Society (TK) in British Columbia has dedicated itself to empowering women living with addiction to reclaim their lives through critical programming and a healing environment. It has made great strides in the community and is expanding its healing and reconciliation efforts through the Sacred Roots Project. This new initiative will provide Indigenous women in recovery with culturally grounded, land-based programming. An outdoor healing garden will be established with traditional medicines such as sweetgrass, sage, cedar, and culturally significant foods. There will be a fire circle and space for ceremony and reflection. Monthly workshops guided by Elders will focus on seasonal teachings, traditional wellness practices, plant medicines, Indigenous cuisine, smudging, storytelling, drumming, and more. TK will also host community feasts to bring together residents, their families, Elders, and community partners to experience connection and cultural pride. 

TK has made an incredible impact with Indigenous women in recovery. The Indigenous Reconciliation Fund (IRF) has seen the light it brings to those in darkness first-hand through previous contributions. The IRF is contributing funding to support TK with its new Sacred Roots Project, which will respond to the needs expressed by Indigenous women in recovery, alongside other essential components of the recovery process.

Archdiocese of Vancouver