Page 19

After about a decade of getting paid to play other people's music, Jay Ross decided it was time for some drastic measures.

The decision to start writing and playing his own songs has paid off handsomely for the Saskatoon-based singer.

Page 18

For the past eight years, the Native Law Centre of Canada has been helping to open doors for Aboriginal youth by sending them to other countries.

Each year, the centre selects a handful of Aboriginal youth, aged 18 to 30, to take part in its Youth International Internship program, funded through the federal government's Youth Employment Strategy (YES) and the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT).

Page 17

With their steps blending in perfect formation with their partners, it was not hard to see why the Sakitawak Michif Dancers from Ile-a-la-Crosse took home a first-place win at the fifth annual Metis Fest in Edmonton on Nov. 15. Under the direction and supervision of co-ordinator Liz Durocher, the dancers, who range in age from 9 to 11, really showed the audience what dancing was all about.

Page 15

There are many reasons why driving after you've had a few drinks is a bad idea. The main one, of course, is that every time you get behind the wheel after you've consumed alcohol, you're putting your life, and the lives of others, at risk.

But there are also serious legal implications if you get caught drinking and driving.

Page 14

The Central Saskatchewan chapter of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) has launched a new television commercial contest and is inviting high school students from across the province to enter.

Page 13

The annual Saskatchewan Book Awards were handed out at a gala event held at the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts on Nov. 29, and when it all was over, Cheryl Troupe and the Gabriel Dumont Institute (GDI) walked away with two awards.

The wins, in the First Peoples Publishing and Publishing Education categories, came courtesy of the book Expressing Our Heritage: Metis Artistic Designs, written by Troupe, the curriculum developer with the GDI publishing department.

Page 12

If reading Christmas stories to your children is part of how you celebrate the holiday season and you're looking for something new to supplement the tried and true Christmas classics, here are a few Christmas books written by Aboriginal authors that you might want to check out.

Baseball Bats for Christmas

By Michael Arvaarluk Kusugak

Annick Press Ltd.

24 pages

$6.95 (sc) $15.95 (h/c)

Page 11

The Song Within My Heart

Written by David Bouchard

Illustrated by Allen Sapp

Raincoast Books

32 pages (h/c)

$21.95

Whether you're looking for a gift this Christmas for a child, an art lover, or even for your grandmother, the award winning book The Song Within My Heart may be exactly what you're looking for.

Page 10

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the Saskatchewan Native Theatre Company's (SNTC) Black Box Theatre, as the company's youth ensemble gets ready to stage the latest installment in their annual Christmas production.

Page 9

With their steps blending in perfect formation with their partners, it was not hard to see why the Sakitawak Michif Dancers from Ile-a-la-Crosse took home a first-place win at the fifth annual Metis Fest in Edmonton on Nov. 15. Under the direction and supervision of co-ordinator Liz Durocher, the dancers, who range in age from 9 to 11, really showed the audience what dancing was all about.