The National Aboriginal Achievement Awards gala was held in Vancouver on Jan. 27 and many performers in the stage show are very familiar to the Native community on the Prairies.

A number of survivors who expect to receive money through the compensation plan announced in November 2005 are concerned about delays in the application process, and those 65 and over who were to have their payments fast-tracked are wondering where their money is, according to a communique released by the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations (FSIN). The document was prepared by the FSIN to let survivors know what is happening with the compensation process.

If you know of someone who is a graduate of the University of Saskatchewan who is deserving of recognition for their contributions to the Aboriginal community, the U of S alumni association would like to hear from you.

The association is accepting nominations for this year's alumni awards, which will be handed out in Saskatoon on Oct. 12. Awards will be handed out in seven categories, including one recognizing alumni excellence in Aboriginal initiatives.

Two of the three men convicted of defrauding the Saulteaux First Nation of money from its Treaty Land Entitlement (TLE) trust funds will be going to jail after all.

Archie Moccasin and Mervin Night went to trial in the spring of 2005 and were convicted of criminal breach of trust. The two were sentenced to two years less a day to be served in the community and ordered to make restitution. Moccasin was ordered to repay $150,000 and Night $175,000. They were also ordered to perform community service.

The First Nations University of Canada (FNUC) has reached a settlement with fired faculty member Leonzo Barreno.

Barreno, the former head of international programs at the university, was suspended from his position in February 2005, along with two other members of senior management. Barreno's suspension remained in place until August 2005, at which time he was fired.

During the recent federal election campaign, Jeremy Harrison, the Conservative incumbent who had represented the sprawling northern riding of Desnethe-Missinipi-Churchill River, spoke about the good relationships he had fostered with the region's Aboriginal population since his election as Member of Parliament in the 2004 federal election.

The family and friends of Melanie Dawn Geddes are mourning the loss of the young woman and the RCMP have launched a murder investigation to try to determine the circumstances surrounding her death.

Geddes, who was 24 years old and a mother to three young children, had been missing since Aug. 13, 2005. She had been attending a party on the 900 block of Robinson Street in Regina and left at around 1 a.m. to walk home, but never made it to her destination. Her family reported her missing to the Regina Police Service the next day.

There will be a number of things about the upcoming Saskatchewan First Nation Winter Games that will set them apart from past games, but the most notable will likely be the way the sporting competition will be scheduled.

People living in northern Saskatchewan now have access to the same type of media training offered in the southern part of the province, thanks to the Aboriginal media arts organization Y'utthe Askiy's Oski Achimowin/Honi Gothe Elel Daholni, Inc.

The organization has already held two workshops teaching basic video skills, with participants writing, editing and shooting three minute long stories. In November, it added another workshop to its list of offerings when it held Cikastipayicikan Iskwiwak/Ts Ekue Yenathe Nare Tay/Women Standing in Front of Camera.

For the third year in a row, Tracey George Heese has given Inuit, Metis and First Nation youth between the ages of 15 to 30 the opportunity to showcase their accomplishments and successes.
Heese is the creator of A Proud Generation, a calendar project that features young Aboriginal role models within its pages.

"We wanted youth that were living a healthy, responsible and productive lifestyle and what healthy means to me is living in good health, abstaining from things that cause bad health such as drugs and alcohol," said Heese.