Nechi lifts his spirits

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Lloyd Auger is one of the longest-serving members of Nechi, proud to contribute as secretary/treasurer on the Institute's board of directors. He's been associated with the Institute for 25 years, from the earliest days.

"Lot's of people from Saddle Lake [First Nation] are involved, have been involved," said Auger.

One change he has seen during his tenure is that at first funding was non-existent and difficult to find; but as Nechi has grown and gained credibility, so has its access to the resources that have helped make the Institute a premiere presence in the community addictions field.

Auger says he'll retire in about a year. His battle with Parkinson's disease is taking its toll. He has high praise for his fellow board members, as well as for Nechi's staff.

"It's therapeutic to attend one of those [board] meetings. There's always lots of humor and laughter, comradeship," while accomplishing what they need to get done," Auger said.

"With Nechi it picks you up - there's no problems to speak of - if there is, Ruth [CEO Ruth Morin] deals with it right away. She's a good administrator."

Asked what changes he's noted over the years in Nechi's methods of delivering training or in administering the office end of things, Auger underlines that they've never veered far from the grassroots foundation they started with, yet he concedes they're employing more highly educated staff.

"Education is the key;" Auger begins seriously, then laughingly adds, "it takes lots to write reports."