October 2021

HIGHLIGHTS

A GOOD NIGHT’S SLEEP – DONATE TODAY!

True North Aid, in partnership with Silk and Snow, kicked off A Good Night’s Sleep, a mattress campaign dedicated to bringing new bed sets to northern and remote communities across Canada.

We are still accepting donations! Help us reach our goal of $200,000! We are currently at 5% of the goal needed to fulfill all applications!

Learn more

True North Aid donates $30,000 Iqaluit’s Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre.

Our response to the water crisis in Iqaluit, Nunavut

True North Aid is committed to supporting Iqaluit as the community manages the devastating water crisis that has unfolded. To show our support, we have donated $30,000 to Iqaluit’s Qajuqturvik Community Food Centre.

The Centre has been delivering food and water to high-risk members of the community during the state of emergency. We encourage you to visit their website to learn more about how you can support the Centre with donations.

TRUE NORTH AID DONATES $30,000 FOR TWO CHARITIES SUPPORTING RECONCILIATION

True North Aid is proud to highlight the incredible work of two charities. This month, we provided $15,000 donations to the Canadian Roots Exchange and the Legacy of Hope Foundation in honor of National Truth and Reconciliation Day.

The Legacy of Hope Foundation (LHF) is a national, Indigenous-led, charitable organization that has been working to promote healing and Reconciliation in Canada for more than 19 years. The LHF’s goal is to educate and raise awareness about the history and existing intergenerational impacts of the Residential School System (RSS) and subsequent Sixties Scoop (SS) on Indigenous (First Nations, Inuit, and Métis) Survivors, their descendants, and their communities to promote healing and Reconciliation.

Founded in October 2008, Canadian Roots Exchange (CRE) is a national, youth-led, charitable organization firmly founded on the principle that all youth in Canada must be given the opportunity to play a leading role in the hard work of reconciliation. CRE’s primary objective is to bridge the divide between Indigenous and non-Indigenous youth, ages 14 to 29 years old, through impactful leadership programs that facilitate dialogue and strengthen relationships.

Wapaw Helps Community Supported with Flour, Lard and Baking Powder

True North Aid is proud to support the Wapaw Helps Community Project in Pelican Narrows, Sask with flour, lard and baking powder to make bannock, a staple in Indigenous cuisine!

From Sarah in Pelican Narrows:

“The whole community benefited from the distribution from our elders right down to the children. When the truck arrived on the early evening of Sept 16th I had so community members waiting at the school parking lot to pick up their items….an elder said “Tiniki, Thank you for the flour it really means a lot to us”….Some of the families on Facebook were even making Bannock with their children. Seeing the children’s smiles was priceless. Some people were posting Bannock with moose meat or soup.”

WOMEN IN TOYS AND LEGO REPLAY DONATE BOXES FOR ST. THERESA POINT

True North Aid would like to thank the Montreal chapter of Women In Toys and their team lead, Marcela Quinto Aguirre for their amazing donation of toys to the St. Theresa Point Early Years program in remote Manitoba! A huge thank you to the staff at the Early Years School there especially Stephanie Wood!

Another thank you to Emilie at LEGO Replay for helping to donate over 400 boxes of LEGO for youth ages 4 and up!

Children in remote communities often do not have the opportunity to play with toys because of the limited supply within their community, or simply because their families cannot afford to purchase extra items due to the high cost of essential items in northern and remote communities.

MORE BACKPACKS FOR SASKATCHEWAN

MOTNREAL LAKE AND PELICAN NARROWS YOUTH RECEIVE NEW SCHOOL SUPPLIES

120 full, school-ready backpacks filled with pencils, sharpeners, markers, glue sticks, binders, pencil cases, rulers, erasers, duo-tangs, notebooks, and water bottles were created and distributed to children in Montreal Lake and Pelican Narrows this fall!

Truly amazing work from Jai Budanhall and the team at the Montreal Lake Child and Family Agency!

STAT PAY FOR TRUTH AND RECONCILIATION DAY FUNDRAISER

“What if on this day, as a way to start the path of Reconciliation, any person receiving stat pay for September 30th donated it to an organization with boots on the ground assisting the very Indigenous people and communities the holiday was created to honour in the first place?”

Cst. Blake Chursinoff is a five-year member of the RCMP. After being posted to a community in the Northwest Territories, Blake and his family were welcomed into the Indigenous community and saw firsthand the many barriers that people in this community faced. This promoted Blake to contact True North Aid about an initiative to encourage others to donate the stat pay that they received for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30th.

On behalf of Blake and his family, and True North Aid, we thank you for your kindness and generosity as a total of $2,330.37 has been raised so far!

NELSON HOUSE, MB GETS ON THE BOAT FOR ON THE LAND LEARNING

Youth from the Nisichawayasihk Neyo Ohtinwak Collegiate ( N.N.O.C.) in Nelson House, Manitoba were finally able to use their boat that True North Aid helped purchase to explore on the land activities in their area.

Students learned valuable skills like the art of patience when calling a moose, setting and retrieving a net, filleting fish, identifying moose tracks, making a fire, respecting the land and working together

From Nic Campbell, Education Director for NNOC: “True North Aid has helped tremendously with revitalizing our culture!”

PROJECT DIRECTOR ATTENDS RECONCILIATION EVENTS IN BC

True North Aid’s Project Director Amanda Stolk traveled to British Columbia last week to attend The Ballantyne Project Truth and Reconciliation Day Event in Port Coquitlam, which was a major success with over 250 people in attendance. The event featured drummers, artists, workshops, and speakers including Dwight, B’yauling Toni who shared his journey visiting 20 residential schools in Saskatchewan on his bike, and Doctor Jennifer Myrven who spoke about the impact of intergenerational trauma.

During this visit, Amanda connected with the Ballantyne Project’s team Dwight Ballantyne, Denise Trottier, and Natasha.

Amanda took time to visit the site of the Kamloops Indian Residential School on the territory of the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation, which was one of the largest residential schools in Canada and operated until 1977.

Thank you to all who made this trip a success. Memories that will last a lifetime were created. Together, we hope to continue to support communities in British Columbia.

BIG RIVER FIRST NATION RECEIVES HOCKEY EQUIPMENT FROM OAKVILLE!

8 pallets of hockey supplies were delivered to Big River First Nation in Saskatchewan’s hockey programs last week and we’re so excited that the kids will have the equipment to play hockey this year! Thank you to Shelley Poulton and her son Nolan and friends in Oakville for collecting over 49 bags of hockey equipment for the community. This is truly #reconciliaiton in action!

From Brenda in Big River: It takes many to support and build our future leaders in the community. With hope provided, we are able to put one foot in front of the other thanks to True North Aid.

FYM FOUNDATION SENDS SUPPLIES TO PIKANGIKUM FIRST NATION

Thank you to the FYM Foundation for their donations of blankets, pillows and other necessary supplies that have been received by Pikangikum First Nation.

On behalf of True North Aid, we are so grateful to FYM for supporting northern remote communities in Canada through True North Aid.

GOOD ALLY PROJECT’S RECONCILIATION WALK A SUCCESS

The weather was perfect for Good Ally Project’s 2nd “Bridging the Gap: A Walk Towards Reconciliation” on September 25th at Little Cataraqui Creek Conservation Area. Over 100 people came to walk the trails and learn about Canada’s relationship and history with Indigenous peoples. Thank you to all the volunteers, participants and donors who made the day become a great success.