Rick Garrick

US and THEM film screens in Thunder Bay

Create: 10/31/2017 - 02:04

US and THEM film director Krista Loughton was surprised with the response to her film’s screening on Oct. 25 at the Finlandia Hall in Thunder Bay.

“I’m a little bit shocked at the state of the situation in terms of homelessness and the deaths in Thunder Bay,” Loughton says after the screening’s question-and-answer session. “The word of the night is shocking, because it is a gateway city to the north. There are so many people to support here.”

Loughton plans to include Thunder Bay in her next film project, which will be focused on Indigenous homelessness.

Lac Seul author hosts Transitions Workshop at Lakehead University

Create: 10/31/2017 - 01:54

Indians Don’t Cry author George Kenny recently described the spiritual beliefs of the Lac Seul Anishinabe during an Oct. 26 Transitions Workshop at Lakehead University.

“The Lac Seul Anishinabe believed in a spirit-filled universe full of magic and the supernatural, including the existence of little hairy people who lived in rocks and caves,” says the Lakehead University masters of environmental studies: archeology student. “They were called Memagkwayshewuk.”

NADF honours excellence at 2017 business awards

Create: 10/24/2017 - 01:26

Twelve-year-old Kiara Paterson, of Whitesand, was recognized for her successful Kakes and Kupcakes by Kiki business on Oct. 20 at the 27th Annual Nishnawbe Aski Development Fund Business Awards.

“The big thing about my business is that everything is made from scratch,” Paterson says, noting that she has been baking for years. “Most of them are basic recipes — some of them I will add little flavours to them so I guess you could call them special recipes.”

Whitesand to generate its own electricity

Create: 10/24/2017 - 01:23

Whitesand looks forward to generating its own electricity thanks to a $3.76 million investment from the federal and provincial governments for an industrial park with biomass and wood processing facilities.

“It’s going to be a huge facility — we are going to be powering Armstrong, Whitesand and Collins,” says Whitesand Chief Allan Gustafson during an Oct. 20 press conference at the Prince Arthur in Thunder Bay. “We are also going to have a (wood fuel) pellet facility to make pellets and put them on the market.”

OIPRD holds community meeting about Thunder Bay Police Service

Create: 09/28/2017 - 00:48

The grandfather of Josiah Begg, one of two First Nations youth found in the Neebing-McIntyre Floodway this past May, wants to see results from the Office of the Independent Police Review Director’s review of the Thunder Bay Police Service.

“I hope it gets somewhere, and that the message is out there that there is a problem here,” says Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug’s Mike McKay, one of hundreds of people who attended the OIPRD public meeting on Sept. 25 at the Da Vinci Centre in Thunder Bay. “Hopefully we create a dialogue.”

Matawa welcomes back students with neighbourhood BBQ

Create: 09/20/2017 - 00:46

A neighbour’s donation of a Morley Kakepetum painting was one of the highlights at the Matawa Education and Care Centre Neighbourhood Barbeque on Sept. 15 in Thunder Bay.

“He (Stan Dromisky) came forward and said he is welcoming of our students and our plans,” says Sharon Nate, education manager for Matawa First Nations Management. “That was good of him to say that and come out here and support us.”

Dromisky, who served as Thunder Bay-Atikokan MP from 1993-2004, looks forward to seeing the former Grandview Lodge long-term care facility being used for education purposes.

NAN welcomes back students in Thunder Bay

Create: 09/15/2017 - 02:44

Nishnawbe Aski Nation’s Working Together for Student Success secondary school student orientation at Fort William Gardens in Thunder Bay was a hit with students, including two Nibinamik students.

“It’s pretty awesome,” says Emily Diamond-Wapoose, a Grade 9 student at Hammarskjold High School. “(There was) a lot of free stuff.”

Hilary Oskineegish, a Grade 11 student at the Matawa Learning Centre, also enjoyed the free school supplies during the Sept. 12 orientation.

DFC student ambassadors to act as role models, leaders

Create: 09/14/2017 - 03:04

A Student Ambassadors/Peer Leaders and Role Models initiative was launched at Dennis Franklin Cromarty First Nations High School on Sept. 5 to help students stay safe and succeed in school.

“All summer I’ve been working on the DFC orientation from a student’s perspective to make sure that they will be safe in the City (of Thunder Bay),” says Ashley McKay, a Grade 12 DFC student from Sandy Lake. “Some of the main points were racism, being safe, making sure where to go on the city buses, and graduation. It is important to graduate.”

Pages

Subscribe to RSS - Rick Garrick