Diabetes message delivered

Page 11

From Oct. 17 to 19, the Diabetes Wampum Belt was biked and walked into Walpole Island to bring diabetes awareness to the community.

It was the latest of a series of treks that brought the respected symbol into First Nations across Ontario.

The Diabetes Wampum Belt has made the trip from its home in Kahnawake to Akwasasne, Tyendinaga, Alderville, Hiawatha, Curve Lake, Mnjikaning, the Barrie Native Friendship Centre, Beausoliel First Nation, Six Nations, Oneida of the Thames, and just before Walpole Island, it went to Moraviantown.

Joe Jacobs of Kahnawake got the dream to do this. In fact, he has had many dreams about carrying a message of diabetes awareness and prevention to First Nations.

He's dedicated to help the Diabetes Wampum Belt travel across the entire country eventually, "because all this came to me in dreams that I had in 1996 and 1997."

Communities keep the belt varying lengths of time, he said. "There's been some times where it moved three or four times throughout the summer."

Jacobs has special memories about the most challenging trip he ever took, in 1999.

He asked, "You know how Lake Simcoe can be, eh? We crossed that in a canoe from Curve Lake to Rama." Twelve people made the trip in two voyageur canoes. The roughest part of a two-day journey by water, Jacobs said, was the Lake Simcoe portion, which on a calm day had waves two-and-one-half feet high. "The majority of paddlers were women from Curve Lake," said Jacobs.

He feels they were protected on that trip. "For me, I think each time that belt moved since all the good words that it had picked up, I think we've been watched."

Jacobs added, "If it were for diabetes, I wouldn't hesitate to cross that lake once again, if it was to deliver a message of that sort."

The Diabetes Wampum Belt is beaded with the message Teiakonekwenhsatsikhe:tare, which means "our blood is sweet" in the Mohawk language.

Jacobs has accompanied it on every walk so far, even arranging vacation days to accompany the belt. One time he biked and walked six days from Six Nations to Oneida Nation. Each journey is marked on the belt.

"This has come to me. I must share and keep going with it for our children, our future, being the diabetes (is) so high. It's time that we do something, and each community has to work together."

Community members get the belt from place to place by various forms of physical activity that include biking, jogging, walking and canoeing.

The motivation of participants has always been simple: to remind people that diabetes is a disease that has reached epidemic proportions in Native communities, and no age group is spared. The message is balanced by another reminder, that individuals can control diabetes and live productive, happy lives if they are willing to make healthy lifestyle choices involving a balanced diet and physical activity.

This time, it was members of Walpole Island, Moraviantown and Kahnawake that accompanied the belt on its journey. Penny Williams, the CHR at Mnooyaang-Gamig (Walpole Island Health Centre) said it took two days to walk the belt from Moraviantown to the Walpole Island bridge.

"They had Elders walking it the first day. Then the youth walked it the second day. On the third day, they were on the other side of the bridge and that's where the Walpole Island people met with Moraviantown," Williams said.

"We had a cleansing of the belt by Nelson Shognosh, and then we had some prayers from Joe Jacobs, and prayer from one of our pastors, former chief Joseph Gilbert. And then we also had a speech from our chief, Donna Day."

Alex McCumber, who works for the Kahnawake School Diabetes Prevention Project and is very knowledgeable about training diabetes prevention workers, spoke to the community about healthy choices. McCumber "really emphasized being a role model," said Williams. "If you're smoking and you're not eating healthy, you can't be telling your kids to eat healthy or exercise. He had a very good message, making halthy choices and being role models to prevent diabetes.

Williams said her community has a goal to train youth to canoe the Wampum Belt up the St. Clair River. "The First Nations have to write to our chief if they want the belt," she said. "It goes from chief to chief. The chief has to want it; the chief has to write for it. It's a community thing, it's not a health centre thing."