A box crafted with the pain that one grandmother suffered while attending residential school sat in the centre of the first sharing circle hosted by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission at the TRC’s inaugural national event in Winnipeg June 16 to 19.

Paul Daniels sat by himself, the Assiniboine River his backdrop at the Forks National Park, as he ate a bagged lunch courtesy of the churches.

For Daniels, it’s the least the churches could do. He’s waiting on a hearing through the independent assessment process to see how much financial compensation he will receive for the sexual abuse he suffered during his eight years as a day scholar at Fort Alexander residential school northeast of Winnipeg.

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, but if it’s clearly in need of repair, roll up your sleeves and ‘get ‘er done.’ And what is clearly broke is the hosting model being employed by the North American Indigenous Games Council.

Every year that the games are to be hosted in the United States we brace ourselves for the inevitable announcement that the event has been cancelled.

Jane Ash Poitras enjoys a stellar career as an accomplished artist recognized the world over for amazing visual art. But her destiny for greatness wasn’t obvious when as an orphaned five-year-old she was taken into the loving care of her foster mother Marguerite Runck, a devout Catholic of German descent.
“She taught me German and I taught her English and helped her with her reading and writing,” Poitras said. “We were good for each other and she was a wonderful woman whose own kids were grown up and she was lonely so she took me in.”

Alex Janvier of Cold Lake is no stranger to awards, accolades and honours for his remarkable, lifelong contribution to the arts. This past April, Janvier was named as one of the recipients of the 2010 Alberta Order of Excellence, the province‘s top honour.

Wanda Baptiste’s call for support from the chiefs across Canada resulted in the passage of Resolution 47 on the final day of the general assembly for the Assembly of First Nations.

Baptiste, a special project liaison worker at Maskwacis Cree, was pleased to get the support for the last-minute resolution that calls for the federal government to suspend any further discussions in parliament for Bill S-11, the Safe Drinking Water for First Nations Act.

George Poitras is not shy when it comes to sharing his distaste for Alberta’s tar sands. He has travelled the globe  telling how the oil and gas industry is devastating his northern Alberta community, and he has no plans to stop.

Across Canada, National Aboriginal Day was celebrated with numerous round dances in many communities that spread friendship and respect among Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal people.

The city of Red Deer was included in this by a special gathering of 150 people that danced in honour of 16 Aboriginal community members.

The Red Deer Friendship Centre, with the help of various partners, hosted the Second Annual Turtle Awards Gala to celebrate the success of individuals who have contributed greatly to their respected communities, said program director Tanya Schur.

Stimson work part of Harbourfront celebrations

Despite allegations of wrong doing with the local school, Paul First Nation chief and council has placed in the top 10 according to the Aboriginal Governance Index (AGI).
“The six main questions we asked may not have captured that issue,” said Joseph Quesnel, senior policy analyst with the Frontier Centre for Public Policy. “We’re looking at maybe a longer short survey that will capture more of the issues.”