Information, training and friendship offered at office

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A TSO TSII KA KIMAN is a one-year program offered to Siksika members to help deal with the issues surrounding welfare dependency.

The program is offered by Siksika Family Services out of their office in Calgary and focuses on education and employment.

The program is offered in three phases.

The first phase focuses on personal development, where students learn to build their self-esteem and confidence; the second phase works on career development, with computer training, public speaking and other skills sets taught to enhance the individual's career opportunities; and the third phase is a monitoring phase.

"We are here as long as they need to come in," said Marsha Good Eagle, the Siksika Family Service interim co-ordinator. "We do not treat it like once they are gone they are gone. We still treat it as if they are still here and as a result we are still dealing with the previous students. It is their choice, If they feel that they need to go more in-depth in their healing, then we will refer them to other available resources."

She said some of the students have issues that prevent them from reaching their goals or from moving forward, "so this is the time for them to address these issues in a safe environment," she said.

"Our goal is to try to get the people off of the welfare system. We are trying to break that dependency and get them self-sufficient. We are hoping that after they've completed the one-year program, that they would set some goals on either going back to school on a full-time basis, training or seek employment," she said.

Good Eagle said that the last A TSO SII KA KIMAN program, which means 'combined efforts' in the Blackfoot language, was a real success. Out of 16 students who completed the program, 12 are attending local educational institutions.

"We encourage the students not to give up. Some really need a lot more encouragement than others, while others may just need adequate resources. If they have an addiction and they have to go to the treatment centre, we continue to work with them in helping them. We do whatever we can, but at the same time their success is left up to them," she said.

The centre where the program is offered is a hive of activity year-round.

"Hundreds of people come into the centre each week. Not only Siksika members, but also Aboriginal people from different communities. They come in to utilize the resource room. They see our building and they see our logo and see that it is Aboriginal and they want to maybe fax something or maybe go on the computer or they want information to whatever. We've had different nationalities come in and we never turn anyone away who is looking for help," she said.

"I think that our office here in Calgary is unique. It helps our population of Siksika and it is one of the most important resource places that we have. I would encourage any other First Nation to look into something like this, because the Aboriginal population is growing on reserves, and the resources, such as housing and employment back home, are limited, and people are migrating out of the communities to seek employment. This centre gives the people confidence that they not only can come off the reserves, but they also can have a place to go to and there are people here to help them with the transition, where we all know each other. It is reassuring for the members and at the same time we are here to motivate them."

Good Eagle, Shannon Bear Chief, Darren Breaker, Arthur Bear Chief, and Monica Red Crow keep things running smoothly at the centre.