Boyle Street pioneers RHS workers off-reserve

Resolution health support workers are taking their services to the streets in the province’s capital.

With Edmonton having the second largest urban Aboriginal population in the country, it only makes sense that an organization like the Boyle Street Co-Operative is host site for Jane Slessor and Maggie Mercredi.

Two years ago, when Slessor began working as an outreach worker with adults at Boyle Street Co-Op, she
often found herself fielding questions about the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement process. Not knowing enough to help her clientele, she got in touch with the Alberta region IRS Resolution Health Support Program.

“We realized that most of the resolution health support workers were on the reservations and we started talking about how people in the city needed support, too,” said Slessor.

Boyle Street Co-Op put in an application for funding. The proposal saw someone who would work with Edmonton’s inner city homeless (those whose housing is not completely secured) and support them through the process.

Slessor began in the position in May 2008 and in March 2010, Maggie Mercredi became a second support worker, allowing Boyle Street to expand the scope of services it offered for former IRS  students.

Mercredi, a Dene from the Northwest Territories, has lived in Edmonton since 2001, working with a variety of agencies, so is no stranger to the issues that come up on the streets nor a stranger to the effects of residential schools. Her grandmother attended one.

“We hear a lot of difficult stories,” said Slessor. “I have to remind myself it’s not my story. It’s that person’s story. I empathize, but I don’t take it on as my own.”

Having a strong team of support workers province-wide and receiving basic training and then monthly get-togethers help workers to set steady boundaries.
There are 47 workers in Alberta, the most in any province. Brenda Reynolds is the regional coordinator and Slessor characterizes her as “incredibly pro-active. She says where there’s a need, let’s fill it.”

Slessor and Mercredi, and other members of the Alberta team, were among the workers who lended support to survivors at the first national event hosted in Winnipeg in May. They also provided support to the Freeing of the Spirit ceremony held in June at Fort Normandeau.

Slessor and Mercredi help IRS survivors through the entire process involved in receiving compensation.
“People generally come at the early phases for information for the process,” said Slessor, which can be either Common Experience Payments or the Independent Assessment Process.

Workers provide referrals for clients, whether it’s for legal counsel or therapy. They also attend hearings if requested.

“We also provide support for families. The impact is inter-generational,” said Slessor.

Mercredi noted that they work with IRS survivors through all the programs offered by Boyle Street, whether it is to help with housing or to provide a hot meal.
“It’s never just about the settlement agreement,” she said.