M'Chigeeng designated a safe community

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M'Chigeeng First Nation on Manitoulin Island has become the first Native community in Canada to receive a safe community designation from the Safe Communities Foundation (SCF).

Members of the M'Chigeeng community action safety team celebrated their achievement Nov. 18.

"We have the ability to work, play, live, learn and raise our children in a safe, healthy and secure environment," team member Peggy Simon told those gathered to mark the occasion. "We have a lot to be proud of already. We just need to enhance what we have."

A year ago M'Chigeeng volunteers contacted the SCF in a bid to address local safety issues. "It has been very exciting to get to this point," Simon said.

The national not-for-profit charitable organization was founded in 1996. Paul Kells, the prime mover behind the campaign, had lost his 19-year-old son Sean in a workplace explosion in 1994. The grieving father set out on a mission to eliminate such preventable tragedies from Canadian workplaces.

"At first we started out with a crime prevention approach," Simon said. "But we found out that safety is much more than that. Safety means being able to walk down the street. It means not being bullied in school. It means feeling safe at work. We need a community approach with all agencies working together for a common goal. We need to show a commitment to a culture of safety in M'Chigeeng."

M'Chigeeng Chief Glen Hare reinforced Simon's comments. "It is important to make our children think and feel safe," he said. "The responsibility for safety lies on our shoulders. We have a lot of work cut out for us when we leave here today."

Hare urged community members to support Crime Stoppers and report incidents of drinking and driving or drug abuse. "Safety doesn't take a holiday," he said.

Police Chief Albert Beaudin paid tribute to the volunteers who spearheaded the initiative. "Only when we get community involvement can we have a better place to live in," he said. "We need to all make a commitment to the safe community idea. And we need to ask ourselves if we are a contributor to the problem or part of the solution to the problem."

In a moving ceremony, Kells presented the "key to safety" to the M'Chigeeng organizing committee. November 18 marked the tenth anniversary of his son's death.

"This key is a symbol of our commitment to the children," he said. "The lesson that I learned through the death of my son is that once you know something is wrong, you have a responsibility to try and make a difference. Once your team gets going, I know you will save lives."

He emphasized the importance of individual action in promoting safe communities. "It all comes down to the power of one person saying, in a private moment 'I am going to do something about this.' If you see something that doesn't feel right, don't let the moment pass you by. Make the call. One person can make an infinite difference in the lives of other people."

In addition, to the key, Kells also delivered a cheque for $8,000 to launch safety initiatives in M'Chigeeng. "Larger communities got the same amount of money," he pointed out. "You are the smallest community in Canada to get the designation. Size doesn't matter. What matters is what you do with the money."

The goals of the M'Chigeeng community safety action team include undertaking community enhancement projects that will support social and economic development. The team has also pledged to speak out against acts of violence and to incorporate Anishnabek culture and values in all strategies.

There are currently 45 safe community designations across the country covering 22 per cent of the population. The foundation is supported by five major national banks, Dupont Canada, Hydro One, CN, Imperial Oil, the Co-operators and the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.