Edward Dennis vividly remembers the northern winter day that four of his fellow students attempted to escape the abuse and starvation of Lejac Indian Residential School in Fraser Lake, B.C. Only one of his classmates survived.

“They were running away from Lejac,” he said. “One of them turned around at Piper’s Glen. He could hear (the other) three fall through the ice.”

Standing on the shore of Vancouver’s False Creek on Sept. 17, Dennis watched quietly as dozens of ocean-going Salish canoes assembled in the waters, greeted by traditional songs and drumming.

During Bigstone Cree Treaty Days, Randall Noskiye (left) and Alvin Young smoked whitefish they caught in North Wabasca Lake. Two days of celebration took place Aug. 14 and 15 on Reserve A in Desmarais.

Fort McKay First Nation and Savanna Energy Services Corp. have formed the Fort McKay-Savanna Energy Services Limited Partnership. The partnership will provide drilling, well-servicing and coring services and oil field rental equipment in the Regional Municipality of Wood Buffalo. Owned between Fort McKay and Savanna, the partnership will be positioned to provide drilling and related services to steam-assisted gravity drainage operators working in the region.

Métis writer Jacqueline Guest is among the five finalists in CODE’s Inaugural Burt Award for First Nations, Métis and Inuit Literature. Her book, Free Throw, published by Random House of Canada Ltd., is in competition with As Long as the Rivers Flow by James Bartleman, Shadows Cast by Stars by Catherine Knutsson, As I Remember It by Tara Lee Morin and Indian Horse by Richard Wagamese. “These stories deal with real, contemporary issues and bring to life characters to which readers can relate,” said CODE Executive Director Scott Walter in a news release.

The Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Lethbridge has launched a new degree program with a focus on Native American Art: the Bachelor of Fine Arts (Native American Art). It is one of only three such programs in Canada and reflects the importance of Aboriginal art and culture in this region and across North America. Developed in collaboration by the Department of Art and the Department of Native American Studies, the new BFA (Native American Art) program offers students majors in Art Studio or Art History/ Museum Studies with an emphasis on Native American art and culture.

Information released by the province earlier this month indicates that approximately 950 people were provided with long-term accommodations in neighbourhoods on Siksika First Nation and High River and an additional 850 people may be moving into temporary neighbourhoods shortly, depending on housing registry needs. Almost $70 million in immediate support was distributed through pre-loaded debit cards or cheques to 40,000 Albertans. The federal government responded in record time in approving disaster funding for the flood.

The latest statics on child poverty released by the province indicate that Aboriginal children are included in the group most vulnerable to experience poverty and financial insecurity. Thirty per cent of Aboriginal children and 21.2 per cent of visible minority children aged five to 18 years live in poverty. Aboriginal (at 19.2 per cent) and visible minority (at 15.8 per cent) individuals have a higher low-income rate than the general population at  9.1 per cent.

The latest statics on child poverty released by the province indicate that Aboriginal children are included in the group most vulnerable to experience poverty and financial insecurity. Thirty per cent of Aboriginal children and 21.2 per cent of visible minority children aged five to 18 years live in poverty. Aboriginal (at 19.2 per cent) and visible minority (at 15.8 per cent) individuals have a higher low-income rate than the general population at  9.1 per cent.

The Confederacy of Treaty 6 is among 50 plus organizations pushing the auditor general to launch a wide-ranging probe into the state of Alberta’s pipelines. The call comes following the release of results of what the government is claiming to have been a “comprehensive third-party review,” which concluded that Alberta is a leader in establishing best practices to manage the industry appropriately.