Former Manitoba Catholic youth camp to be transformed into healing village
A former Manitoba Catholic youth camp is being repurposed as a healing village for Indigenous women.
Clan Mothers, a group of Indigenous women who work with those dealing with intergenerational trauma, held a ceremony Saturday on the grounds of the former camp in Belair, near Lake Winnipeg, to mark the beginning of a new kind of care.
Co-founder May Louise Campbell said the healing village will be a place that offers mid-term and long-term support for Indigenous women.
“We have to take those buildings down, we have to change this whole area and do it our way,” said Campbell.
The demolition of the existing building will begin next spring.
The Réseau Compassion Network, formally known as the Catholic Health Authority, donated the land to the Clan Mothers so they could build their healing village.
Campbell said the village will help the women living there discover who they are as Indigenous people.
“To reclaim so that we can continue to share our knowledge and our wisdom with all those who are open to wanting to learn,” said Campbell.
Elder Mary Brian, a Sixties Scoop survivor, said the healing village will also help the women who attend deal with their trauma.
“I think they will learn a lot about their culture, and how to use their cultural ceremonies and dance ceremonies. That will help them heal,” said Brian.
CEO of Réseau Compassion Network Daniel Lussier said he’s been working alongside the Clan Mothers on this project for close to five years.
He said returning the land to Indigenous people was the right thing to do, and a step towards reconciliation.
“We have a history we own with our organization, which is affiliated with the Catholic Church and its role in residential schools. Not that this is solving that, but it is part of the long journey ahead of us,” said Lussier.
Prairie Architects has been working with the Clan Mothers on a voluntary basis to realize the vision for the new space.
Principal Architect Melissa McAlister said the first phase of the project is expected to start in the spring of 2022.
“It’ll be five cabins to start. An elder’s cabin and a staff cabin, as well as a long house that will have kitchen facilities and multi-purpose space,” said McAlister.
Campbell said the demolition of the old buildings is part of the change that is needed for people to begin healing.
“Change has to happen and we need to be responsible for that change. Not you, not the government, not anybody else, we.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
LIVE B.C. seeks ban on using drugs in 'all public spaces,' shifting approach to decriminalization
The B.C. government is moving to have drug use banned in 'all public spaces,' marking a major shift in the province's approach to decriminalization.
Air traveller complaints to Canadian Transportation Agency hit new high
The Canadian Transportation Agency has hit a record high of more than 71,000 complaints in a backlog. The quasi-judicial regulator and tribunal tasked with settling disputes between customers and the airlines says the backlog is growing because the number of incoming complaints keeps increasing.
Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
AFN chief says Air Canada offered a 15% discount after her headdress was mishandled
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief complained to Air Canada about how staffers treated her and her ceremonial headdress on a flight this week, she says the airline responded by offering a 15 per cent discount on her next flight.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
U.S. flight attendant indicted in attempt to record teen girl in airplane bathroom
An American Airlines flight attendant was indicted Thursday after authorities said he tried to secretly record video of a 14-year-old girl using an airplane bathroom last September.
76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid says he has Bell's palsy
Philadelphia 76ers All-Star centre Joel Embiid has been diagnosed with Bell’s palsy, a form of facial paralysis he says has affected him since before the play-in tournament.
More than 115 cases of eye damage reported in Ontario after solar eclipse
More than 115 people who viewed the solar eclipse in Ontario earlier this month experienced eye damage after the event, according to eye doctors in the province.
DEVELOPING Bird flu outbreaks: WHO weighs in on public health risk
The current overall public health risk posed by the H5N1 bird flu virus is low, the World Health Organization said on Friday, but urged countries to stay alert for cases of animal-to-human transmission.