September/ October 2022 Edition

First Nations-Owned Horseracing Association and Moosomin Downs Race to the Finish

Saskatoon, SK—Horse racing in Sas katoon wrapped up its final weekend of the season on September 25th. Moo somin Downs—an initiative undertak en by Moosomin First Nation—took the reins from the now shuttered Mar quis Downs after it was announced that Prairieland Park was to turn the track into a soccer stadium. Each weekend in late August and September saw thor oughbred horse racing continuing at the Moosomin Downs.

Instrumental in bringing thoroughbred horse racing to the Moosomin Downs was the First Nation Horseracing Asso ciation (FNHA), a First Nations-owned non-profit and a first of its kind in Can ada. The FNHA launched in the Fall of 2021 as news circulated that Moosom in Downs would take over the license for horse racing in Saskatchewan.

Dean Cameron, President of the FNHA, has been working in horserac ing for about 40 years. Dean grew up with horses, “being First Nation, we all somewhat experience that type of horsemanship as we grow up as chil dren. Whether it’s a pony or a friend’s pony, we all started somewhere. We started off in quarter horseracing at one time with my late father Harvey Cameron and my late brother Darrell Cameron. We slowly transitioned from quarter horse to thoroughbred and for

35 years now I’ve been a farrier and I’ve been a [thoroughbred] trainer for about 30 years.”

With the new association implemented, Dean knew work had to be done: “We knew we had a chore ahead of us. It was something we had to envision along with Moosomin. Moosomin had a vi sion of bringing horse racing back,” ex plains Dean. “We began working with Moosomin as they needed a Horse men’s association to work with to apply for [racing] days with the government.”

The association is proud to be a First Nations-owned horseracing associa tion but Dean wants the community to know that it’s for everyone: “Being a First Nations operator—Moosomin— working with a First Nations horse rac ing association, we also want to stress that we are all inclusive in this,” Dean tells Indigenous Times. “On behalf of our non-Indigenous friends and com petitors, we open up our arms to every body, we want to be all inclusive as part of reconciliation.”

Saskatoon’s horseracing community it self has often distinguished itself from other cities. “Horse racing is one huge family. That’s one thing we noticed about Saskatoon; Saskatoon has always been known for being a friendly type of atmosphere. In a competitive sport such as horse racing, we still have the time

and the type of people who want to still be friends regardless if you’re competi tors,” Dean states.

Hosting a day of thoroughbred horseracing takes effort from multiple parties, especially the Horse people as Dean tells us, “for the last two years we’ve had no horseracing in Saskatch ewan, a lot of dedicated horse peo ple will go to a different city and run their horses there, which is very cost ly.” Dean continues, “you have to buy horses, and [do] a lot of training, it’s about 90 days from scratch—it’s called Spring training. We usually go about 90 days with a horse before we decide to do a registered workout or hard run. There’s a lot of time involved and a lot of dedication. You train your horse, you get them ready for a certain type of race and distance, you have to pick a rider that you feel would suit your horse and put them in a distance that will suit your horse. A lot of factors go into getting to the winner’s circle.”

Dean believes that the effort and ded ication are worth it: “There’s noth ing like doing your own training and watching your horse run—whether you win a race or not, it’s the satisfaction of watching your horse run and show casing what you’ve done to make this horse put on a show.”

With the 2022 season ending, the 2023

horse racing season is already in Dean’s sights. “Overall so far, we’ve had pos itive feedback. Next year we see the same thing and we’ve got the same goal as Moosomin because we want the rac ing to return to Saskatchewan and we know what it takes. We all utilize all of our experience and we work together as a team.”

Horseracing is a lifelong passion for Dean, and this shows in his response to the return of horseracing in Saskatch ewan: “I look down the shed row, the barn area, and I see [long time horse people], they’ve spent their lives at tracks like this and to run horses all their lives. It’s just a passion that you have. For me to look down [the shed row] and see these people right back where they started from and do what they love, it really brings a tear to my eye to be able to know what we’ve accom plished along with Moosomin to bring horse racing back to Saskatchewan.”

FSIN CHIEFS MILE RACE RE

SULTS

Sept 25, 2022

Winner: Father O’Flaherty

Owner: Vern ‘Stick’ Antoine

Trainer: Chuck Pelletier

Jockey: Keishan Balgobin

Mistawasis Canadian Native Basketball Championships held in Saskatoon this year

Respected Elder Jenny Spyglass recalls residential school on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

“Respect is big where I’m from.” King Benz and over coming adversity.

Left to Right: FSIN Vice Chief Heather Bear, Courage Antoine, Vern “Stick” Antoine, Moosomin First Nation Chief Cheryl Kahpeaysewat. Photo_ Facebook (Moosomin Downs 2022)

Horses and First Nations have an ancient relationship. For hundreds of years, they domesticated the first horses, and the horse still remains an essential to many First Nation tribes.

Horses still hold a place of honour in the First Nation culture - having a re lationship that is deeply woven into the First Nations way of life and his tory. And because of horses, the First Nations’ way of living was revolu tionized. A name that was given to a horse is full of beauty and meaning, often inspired by nature, retaining its ties to its historic horse culture.

The horse remains a powerful spiri

tual entity amongst the First Nations people. It is important to culture and healing while bringing prosperity to First Nation communities. For indi viduals that may go through hard ships, the horse can help heal men tally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. The horse continues to enhance the capabilities in hunting, travel, and trade and to this day, this bond between First Nations and the horse is considered sacred.

Applying horse war paint to their horses as well as themselves, First Nation tribes demonstrate the value they have for their horses and con tinue to hold them in the highest es teem. Whether it’s going into battle or a participating in a sporting event. And both could be a risk for the rider and his horse. The war paint portraits a prayer for the rider and his horse, and the different colors and symbols hold different meanings. Horse racing is one of the most an cient of all sports. Its basic premise is to identify which of the riders is the fastest over a set course and dis tance. Extreme horse racing does just that - attracting a well-engaged crowd and potential riders that show interest in racing themselves now or in the future, continuing to gain ex perience and learn more about the culture that relates to the warrior

and his horse.

Congratulations to the First Nation Horse Racing Association (FNHA) for a successful season. These events brought First Nations together with high spirits and a sense of competi tiveness while celebrating the indig enous culture.

Attending the indigenous events and celebrations in person always brings joy to my heart. I remem ber my younger days when I would sit next to my late kokum and her friends during these times. With the new norm and technology, the social network provides more stories and practices that we can easily witness from home.

Business ventures, artwork, pow wows, national holiday celebrations and more always puts a smile on my face. It gives me great joy to be able to share photos and stories with my own children. I teach and show them the roots of the indigenous culture, reminding them to always be proud of where we come from. I’m proud to hand them opportunities, showing them what it takes to pursue their dreams and goals. I always make a strong effort to at tend pow wows with my family. They are powerful Indigenous gath erings where you will find multiple generations coming together to en

joy food. There we are honouring tradition, forging a sense of commu nity, and practicing spiritual healing. We bask in the joyful reclamation of traditional dances and songs and rev el in the palpable pride of indigenous dancers, drummers, and singers as they embody the power of pow wow.

I am truly grateful for our publi cation, Indigenous Times, to have come out with another Edition in 2022. Thank you everyone for your continued support. Take care!

Kota. Nene sti lo sa. Marsi Tcho

Hiy Hiy Jordan LaPlante Editor, Indigenous Times

New boundary signage marking Treaty 4 and Treaty 6 installed along Highway 11

The Treaty Commissioner of Sas katchewan attended the installa tion of the new boundary signs marking Treaty 4 and Treaty 6 along Highway 11. These signs are part of the ongoing work by Office of the Treaty Commis sioner to increase awareness and knowledge of Treaties and the Treaty relationship in Saskatche wan.

“A sign seems like a small action, but it represents something signif icant. It is common sense to ac knowledge the Treaty boundaries, these Treaties were here before the province was created and be fore roads were here,” said Treaty Commissioner Mary Culbertson.

Indigenous Times News Box 280 Cochin, SK S0M-0L0

Editor: Jordan LaPlante editor@indigenoustimes.ca

Copy Editor

Christina Cherneskey ccherneskey@yahoo.com

Website: www.indigenoustimes.ca

Advertising: sales@indigenoustimes.ca

Designer: Alexandra Jarrett axisimageryyxe@gmail.com

The location of the signs, near Bladworth, was selected by Cul bertson based on oral history de scriptions contained within the OTC archives, Treaty text, local practicalities, information from ISC Canada and Saskatchewan Registry, and Geographic Infor mation System for Treaty areas of Canada.

People travelling the highway towards Saskatoon will see the Treaty 6 sign, and those driving towards Regina will see the Trea ty 4 sign. Each sign has an image of the Treaty medal, wording from the Treaties, and a welcome in the Indigenous languages of the re spective Treaty areas. Ensuring

the inclusion of Indigenous lan guage was an important part of the sign, as Indigenous languages were here long before the two of ficial languages of Canada. The Government of Saskatchewan funded these signs as well as co ordinated their production and in stallation.

“It is so important to see this proj ect underway, we are starting with one sign, but hope to see this for all our Treaty boundaries,” Culb ertson said. “There are Treaties 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, and 10. We will work with our knowledge keepers and the Elders Advisory Council to ensure that other Treaty boundar ies that cross provincial highways

The editorial policy of this newspaper is determined by an editorial committee established by Indigenous Times. We invite submissions, upcoming events, comments, and opin ions. Please submit them with your name, address, telephone number or e-mail. The expressions and/or opinions of au thors published in the current issue of Indigenous Times are not necessarily those of Indigenous Times or the editorial committee. No part of this publication in whole or in part may be reproduced, translated into another language, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without consent of Indigenous Times. Products, names, logos, design titles, words, or phrases within this pub lication may be trademarks, servicemarks, or tradenames on their own or otherwise may be registered in certain jurisdic tions.

will be marked with signs in the coming years.”

Each new sign includes:

An image of a Treaty medal. The medals were provided to Indig enous leadership following the close of the Treaty negotiations.

Wording of the original Treaties to indicate they will remain valid “as long as the sun shines, grass grows and rivers flow.”

A welcome in the respective In digenous languages of each Trea ty area.

Saskatchewan is the first Cana dian province to mark a Treaty boundary along a major provin cial highway.

OTC

Photo Credit: Curtis Cameron

Money Leader Clothing founder sees growth and expansion in the future

Written By: Christina Cherneskey

Waylon Arcand is the first to admit spring and summer were much different than he’s used to. The creator of Money Lead er Clothing says thanks to the pandemic, the economy and changing work habits, life has changed. But Arcand says despite all of that, he’s pushing his company for ward.

“I had a good summer,” Arcand admits. “I had a good spring too. I got my golfing product out to the public and I did fairly well. I play a lot of golf tournaments and a lot of people are telling me they see my apparel everywhere now.”

Arcand hails from North Battleford, Saskatchewan. From Moosomin First Nation, Arcand says he was brought up by his grandmother and single mom and tells Indigenous Times he had very little growing up – except for big dreams and lots of ideas. And the creation of his com pany, Money Leader Clothing. And Ar cand says hard work over the spring and summer are starting to pay off.

“The word is getting out there now, Ar cand said. “It’s getting bigger and it’s exciting now because the of the positive feedback I hear. Very often, people will ask me how to get some of my product.”

A website is in the works as part of Ar cand’s winter projects. But that’s not the only thing on his list.

“I’m starting to branch out to other things now that hunting season is upon us,” Ar cand said. “I’ve got, camo hunting hood

ies and hats made. So, I’m actually, I’m in the process of selling those right now and they’re very popular. It’s really pick ing up steam. And I made a new logo for the hunting season with some antlers on it and the people like it that way!”

Arcand says he appreciates the recogni tion as Money Leader continues to grow, adding he was humbled when he saw his logo on the hockey rink ice at Moosomin First Nation.

“I was honored that they did that,” Arcand said. “I gave hockey sticks to the kids there and I’ll continue to do that again.” But it’s not the recognition Arcand wants. It’s giving back to his communities and showing others that hard work and perse verance can pay off.

“I’m kind of small time right now still,” Arcand admits. “But I try give as much as I can. And eventually once I start get ting bigger and bigger, I want to help out more of my community. There’s a lot of poverty in North Battleford and it’s my goal to help out the people that I see on the streets struggling with addictions and homelessness.”

Arcand admits he’s had his struggles in the past and is proud of how he has man aged to move forward with his goals.

And it’s something he wants everyone to know – especially the youth in his circles.

“I just see the positives all the time in ev erything, and I just feed off of that. My biggest dream is to be the next Nike.

I love sports so much. I want to dress young athletes and make them look good and feel good about themselves.”

The thing with Money leader, it’s like I am - First Nations owned. It’s one-hun

dred percent First Nations owned, but the product I create? it’s for everyone.”

Money Leader Hoodie

By: Jordan LaPlante

Bouncing back and finding a way to overcome misfortune and de feat. That’s King Benz’s method for dealing with adversity and it shows in his music. His goal is to give his fans a chance to get a way from the negativity and not allow themselves to become over whelmed with destructive emo tions or thoughts. King Benz says he takes the time to process what they’ve been through then resume moving forward – even when fac ing disaster.

“The story I share in my music is about overcoming adversity. I tell the story of the troubled youth. The survivors of broken homes, dysfunctional families. Those from poverty, addiction and trau ma,” King Benz said.

He says a past experience can help an individual find their in ner strength and resistance adding that when someone goes through hardships and misfortunes, they can still carry a level of confi dence that helps them to be capa ble of handling whatever comes along.

“Respect is big where I’m from,” King Benz said. He adds his back ground influences him to shed light on hard truths; to represent the street element. He always ap

proaches other artists with hu mility and appreciation for their shared value of the arts.

He was inspired by rap itself, fol lowing a playlist that was intro duced to him at a young age. King Benz naturally adapted to the rap culture from lis tening to music in his surroundings while growing up with family and friends. Eventual ly he learned how to master the craft of singing mu sic himself. The performances es calated, and the crowd sizes got bigger. And lead him to a brandnew world which of appreciating the huge rush he got while shar ing his music live and feeling/seeing people’s reactions.

“I get energized from the crowd,” King Benz said.

“I’m humbled and grateful to always

receive a great response.”

King Benz’s plans for the future are to make more music and do some public speaking. It’s his aim to work with communities and atrisk youth. And, of course, to con

tinue to raise his kids and enjoy his relationship with his beautiful partner.

King Benz music can be found on Spotify, APPLE Music and You Tube.

“Respect is big where I’m from.” King Benz and overcoming adversity.

Benz Album Cover

Ethical Digital launches Indigenous Women in Tech Research Project

BUSINESS

By: Alexandra Jarrett

Ethical Digital has a mission to change the trajectory of the inter net through their digital products and services. This year Ethical Digital has taken on the endeavor of an swering call to action #92 in re gards to economic reconciliation. They re ceived a grant from Women and Gender Equality Canada to launch the Indigenous Women in Tech Re search Project. This November they are wrapping up phase 1 of the project where they will have interviewed and spoken with 100 Indigenous women. The goal is to create a re port with the information collected

that can help connect more Indig enous Women with Tech and tech adjacent careers. Ethical Digital is hoping to create a conversation that puts Indigenous women at the forefront of the conversation.

We know that women only rep resent six per cent of technology founders in Canada, and the numbers aren’t even collected for in digenous women. <https:// www.ethicaldigital.ca/ iwt> The information collected will create a valuable dialogue that will guide further steps towards closing that gap.

Companies that are look ing to hire Indigenous and be Indigenous inclusive will be able to understand the responsibili ties that come with those goals.

“This is an im portant initia tive for tech

companies and tech funders to help make the ecosys tem more inclusive,” Ethical Digi tal CEO, Katrina German says. “I would

love to see many, many more in digenous women involved in the tech community in Canada and beyond.”

If you are looking to participate or

share our initiatives please find an online survey button through our Ethical Digital webpage: https:// www.ethicaldigital.ca/iwt.

If you have further questions or would like to be involved in the coming phases of this project please do not hesitate to contact Tara@ethicaldigital.ca

Christian Boyle, Glyph Creative, Katrina German, Ethical Digital, Annie Charles, FHQ Developments, Denis Carignan, PLATO Testing, Leanne Bellegarde, Akawe Technologies

Photo Credit: Sweetmoon Photography

Prince Albert, SK. -- Optek Solu tions LP (Optek), an IT Services company that is owned by Athabas ca Basin Development, Peter Ballan tyne Group of Companies, and Kit saki Management as well as Aebig Investments, is pleased to announce the acquisition of Prince Albert Pho tocopier Ltd (PAP).

PAP is a full-service IT solutions business and long-standing Ricoh Canada dealer serving the central and northern Saskatchewan market and is considered the market share leader in the area. PAP collaborates with customers of all sizes and com plexities to help determine their physical and digital infrastructure requirements to optimize their oper ations and simplify the management of their IT systems.

Prince Albert Photocopier Ltd. purchased by IT ser vices company, Optek Solutions LP

Optek provides IT services, support and solutions to organizations of all sizes across Saskatchewan. Optek was started by Athabasca Basin De velopment, Peter Ballantyne Group of Companies and Kevin Aebig, the company’s CEO, in 2021. Kitsaki joined ownership of Optek in June 2022 as part of the deal to acquire PAP. “As a group, we are very excited to work together to acquire PAP and build on the excellent foundation es tablished nearly 30 years ago by Dan Fenton and Carolyn Fenton,” said Geoff Gay, CEO of Athabasca Basin Development and a representative of the ownership group. “As investors, when we looked at PAP, we all saw a

successful, established business and we look forward to supporting the company as it continues to provide excellent service to their customers.”

Dan Fenton will stay on during the company’s transition. “Atha basca Basin Development, Kitsaki Management, and Peter Ballantyne Group of Companies are three very successful Indigenous-owned in vestment groups based here in Sas katchewan that collectively own over 35 businesses, including an IT Services company whose leader has decades of experience in IT,” said Dan. “Carolyn and I felt this was the right group to take good care of the company and help take it to the next

level.”

PAP has 16 employees and will be headed by Kevin Aebig, the CEO of Optek, once the transition is com plete. “This is a very exciting op portunity for everyone,” said Kevin. “PAP is a solid, established business with a strong track record of provid ing service to a huge geographical area. PAP is a growing company in a growing sector and the focus for all of us is in taking care of customers and employees and continuing the spirit of the legacy that was estab lished. I look forward to working with Dan and the employees to en sure the transition is as seamless as possible.”

Saskatchewan Intercultural Association erases barriers through cultural bridging

Written By: Jody Wolverine

Established in 1964, the Saskatche wan Intercultural Association works to create intercultural understanding between all people in Canadian soci ety. SIA erases barriers and fights for equity and anti-racism through its in tercultural, settlement, employment, language, and youth programs. One of their priorities is cultural bridg ing and education between newcom ers to Canada and Indigenous people. This occurs through a number of pro grams and events.

Learning Interculturalism Through Employment is an employment pro gram that brings Indigenous and new comer youth together to learn about cultural awareness and take on work

Winter Culture Day - Fire Building

placements that boost their career.

SIA’s Intercultural team provides workshops in English language class es about history, residential schools, and colonialism from an Indigenous perspective. Their coordinators make learning hands-on, drawing from their First Nations and Métis heritages to facilitate traditional activities. This has included beading orange shirts, red dresses, poppies, and the northern lights. They also provide anti-racism education and equity, diversity, and in clusion training to people in the public and private sectors.

SIA works with many community members and organizations on rec onciliation projects. They’ve worked with Saskatoon students to create their own Orange Shirt Day designs, invit ed Indigenous storytellers and knowl edge keepers to online webinars, and have an extensive network of

intercultural performers and experts who share music, dance, and cultur al cuisine through their Intercultural Gathering and Intercultural Cooking series.

In March, SIA hosted a Winter Culture Day featuring Clarissa Burns, Queen Trapper. She shared her traditional knowledge and land-based teachings with newcomer families from eleven different countries. The youth were impressed with her fire building, Bannock baking, log toss ing, and nail pounding!

SIA’s current collabora tion is with Reconciliation Saskatoon for their event Rock Your Roots, an annu al walk for reconciliation that honours Residen tial School Survivors on

National Indigenous Peoples Day. Learn more and connect with SIA at saskintercultural.org.

LITE Grad

Dax & Ibrahim - Orange Shirts

Beading in Language Class

FSIN MEDIA RELEASE

www.fsin.ca For immediate re lease

(Treaty 6 Territory, Saskatoon, SK) —The Federation of Sover eign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) Executive has partnered with TryCycle Data Systems (TDS), a Canadian digital health solu tions company, to launch the new Talking Stick App. A First Nations peer support platform that pro vides culture-based support and confidential conversations.

“The Talking Stick platform will help in advancing First Nations social support systems and eco nomic development, as 200 com

APP OPENS DIALOGUE

munity-based First Nations peer advocates will be hired in Sas katchewan,” says FSIN Chief Bobby Camer on. “Talking Stick is a “by First Nations, for First Nations’ ap proach to encourage anonymous conversations and listening. As First Nations, we traditionally build relationships in person, but with COVID-19, it’s impacted our abilities to connect and pass on stories, knowledge, and wisdom. The Talking Stick App will help in communicating the needs of our people and reduce common barriers that exist today.” Every Voice Matters is the theme of Talking Stick, a commitment to language, inclusion, and self- de termination, with the emphasis on

Written By: Christina Cherneskey

Canada has marked its second Na tional Day for Truth and Reconcil iation which honours the children who died while attending resi dential schools. It also pays trib ute to the survivors, families and communities still affected by the legacy of the residential school system.

Parliament approved the federal statutory holiday in 2021 — days after the Tk’emlúps te Secwépemc First Nation announced the dis covery of 215 burial sites on the grounds of a former residential school in Kamloops, B.C. In June 2021, the Government of Canada passed Bill C-5 to name Septem ber 30 as a federal statutory day. It is observed as the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation September 30th is also known as Orange Shirt Day. While this day aims to raise awareness for rec onciliation in Canada, it is, more specifically, an Indigenous-led grassroots commemorative day intended to raise awareness of the individual, family, and communi ty inter-generational impacts of residential schools, and to pro mote the concept of “Every Child Matters.”

Respected Elder Jenny Spyglass is a Senator with Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN). She’s a former chief and is the first female appointed to Battlefords Agency Tribal Coun cil and the Federation of Sover eign Indigenous Nations Senate, as well as the first female appoint ed from Mosquito, Grizzly Bear’s Head, Lean Man First Nation. She tells Indigenous Times that her time spent in a residential school has left her – to this day – still emotionally drained. She attended Thunderchild residential school in the 1940s. She was three years old when she was taken from her family’s home on Mosquito-Griz zly Bear’s Head-Lean Man First

NEW PLATFORM

job creation, skills development, and training. The app has a chat service, which is available in 7 First Nation languages (Plains Cree, Woodland Cree, Dene, Da kota, Lakota, Nakota, Salteaux).

Talking Stick is a Nation-to-Na tion program. The peer advocate network and infrastructure are de signed to compensate for the lack of resources and cultural supports that exist today for First Nations people.

“The Talking Stick app is a great example of helping people to learn more about vaccinations in an easier and more relatable way.

The FSIN created this idea and now are sharing it as a tool across the country,” says Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Indige

nous Services. “The Government of Canada will continue to support FSIN on this project, and work with First Nation leaders as they continue to enhance the tools, supports, and resources they need to support their members to feel confident about vaccinations and other issues.”

Talking Stick will help to ad dress the unique challenges and emotional impacts that are affect ing First Nations communities in these uncertain times. Talking Stick will encourage confidential conversations and listening as it relates to vaccine hesitancy, men tal wellness & emotional health, violence & anger, isolation (de pression, stress, loneliness), trau ma, grief, and loss.

Respected Elder Jenny Spyglass recalls residential school on National Day for Truth and Reconciliation

Nation. Established in 1901 by the Roman Catholic Church just outside the village of Delmas, Saskatchewan, about 30 kilome tres west of North Battleford, the school was designed to house and educate First Nations children in the area.

According to research submitted to the Law Commission of Cana da, 15-per-cent of students at the school died in 1928. It’s a rate nearly five times the provincial average for non-First Nations stu dents.

Spyglass says despite the fact that so many Indigenous youth lived through the residential school era, she finds there are still some non-Indigenous people who do not believe the documented atroc ities even occurred.

“I honestly believe that some non-indigenous people don’t believe it really did happen to residential school survivors,” Spyglass said. “I’ve spoken a few times on this in Alberta and Saskatchewan about residential schools and how we were treated. But I felt that they didn’t really believe me. How we were treat ed. We never went to school. All I learned is how to pray the rosary.” Spyglass speaks to Indigenous youth as well as other gathers of ten in Saskatchewan and says she tries to always underscore the im portance of Indigenous culture.

“I do speeches in schools, and I always tell them it’s very im portant to know your culture,”

Spyglass said. “Because I lost it when I was small. I think I always think of that. I always think that the younger ones are better able to learn about their culture. Yet, that was the time they took my culture away.”

“When I talk, I always told the young people to have respect for their parents,” Spyglass contin

ued. “Be cause I didn’t have that.

The time I needed my parents the most was the time I was taken away and there was no love after that.

That was school. No hugs. No nothing.

So, I I al ways tell them;

your parents are the most import ant thing in your life.”

Spyglass is convinced it’s why there are so many gangs and vio lence in communities.

“That is why there’s so many gangs. There’s so many drugs and alcohol because so many parents just don’t know how to be parents anymore.”

September 30th also is considered Orange Shirt Day in Canada. The “orange shirt” refers to the shirt Phyllis Webstad was given by her grandmother for her first day at St. Joseph’s Mission residen tial school in British Columbia. When Phyllis got to school, they took away her clothes, including her new shirt, which was never re turned.

Spyglass says she can completely relate to this story.

“When we were small, my mom made me a little doll out of den im,” Spyglass recounted. “And I never let it go. It was my baby. It was mine. And when I took it with me to residential school. It was very important to me that I had that little denim doll with me

all the time. They took my clothes off and threw them in a garbage. Except that denim little doll. They didn’t put it in the garbage. They let me have it.”

In 1948, Thunderchild Indian Residential School burned down. Apparently, the fire was so large, it could be seen miles and miles away.

“When that school burned down, my denim little doll burned in there,” Spyglass recalled. “And it was a sad day for me because I lost my little doll in there. It’s similar to that little girl who had her orange shirt taken away from her. It was special to her.”

Starting in 2013 and inspired by Phyllis Webstad’s story, Orange Shirt Day has been a day to com memorate the trauma of the resi dential school experience, to hon our the healing of survivors and their families and to recognize the ongoing need for the process of reconciliation.

Throughout Saskatchewan and Canada, there were gatherings and events to commemorate both Or ange Shirt Day and the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.

Elder Jenny Spyglass

Pipe ceremony at Edmonton’s Royal Alberta Museum hosted by Fineday family

Written By: Jordan LaPlante

On September 26th, members of the Fineday family and those closely connected, traveled to the Royal Alberta Museum in Edmon ton to hold a feast and pipe cere mony with items from their ances tor’s bundle.

Fineday, who was born in the 1850s and died in the mid 1940s, was the Chief of the Little Rattler Warrior Society, Sundance Chief, and medicine person. He was a principal informant for sociolo gists who came to learn about the Plains Cree during his life, as well as a respected community leader. The items the museum houses in clude a pipe stem, two rattles, two headdresses, a medicine pouch made from a bear’s paw, a snake skin belt, moccasins, and more.

“Just because these items are not in our possession at the moment, does not mean our responsibility to them is gone,” said Wes Fineday, a traditional knowledge keeper and great-grandson of Fineday.

During the day, the participants shared stories about Fineday’s life, his accomplishments, cultural and spiritual protocols, and the impor tance of maintaining connections to our past.

“It’s important for my generation

to begin to take responsibility to make sure these items are cared for in a way that respects our pro tocol,” said Max Fineday, son of Wes and organizer of the event.

days in this ceremony, their teach ings around these ceremonies will persevere long into the future.”

“I would encourage other Indig enous families to research where their ancestors sacred items ended up, to go find them, sit with them in ceremony. Our ancestors are

waiting for us there, all we have to do is find them,” Max said.

The Royal Alberta Museum staff participated in the event and com mitted to the Fineday family to continue to make these items avail able for ceremonies in the future.

“One day, our parents’ generation will have traveled on, but because we had four generations of Fine

Members of the Fineday Family

Written By: Christina Cherneskey

Despite taking two years off be cause of Covid, the Mistawasis First Nation Canadian Native Bas ketball Championships returned to the court for its fourth year in Sep tember. The event began in 2017 and Mistawasis Band Councillor Robin Daniels, who organized the event, said it was great to see so many athletes back together.

But there was one major wrinkle which Daniels said was quickly repaired, thanks to the Saskatoon Tribal Council.

“At the last minute, we learned we just couldn’t host the tournament at Mistawasis First Nation,” Dan iels told Indigenous Times. “And it was the Thursday morning, right before the event was to start.”

Daniel said they reached out to Saskatoon Tribal Council which agreed to help out. Saskatoon is about 125 km south of Mista wasis and Daniels said the distance wasn’t too formidable.

“Saskatoon Tribal Council, on the Thursday morning said they were willing to move things around and help us have the tournament,” Dan iels said. “And they brought in the staff for the weekend and the staff helped run the tournament. They also sponsored the tournament as well. Those guys, I mean it, they’re awesome!”

Mistawasis Canadian Native Basketball Championships held in Saskatoon this year

The event this year was hosted at Buffalo Youth Lodge in Saskatoon and Daniels says because of the sudden changes at the last min ute, the tournament didn’t carry as many of the social events they have had in the past.

Daniels also admits there were fewer teams playing this year, but it didn’t take away from the excite ment of the event. “We had a cou ple teams that backed out last min ute. But that was understandable,” Daniel said. “As far as players at tending? I would say approximate ly 150. When we were pre-Covid, we had 20 teams and then the one before that, we had 24 teams.”

Daniels says there’s always been excitement surrounding the tour nament. “In the past, we’ve had teams coming from the States, Vancouver and, a few Manitoba teams too. There’s lots of kids that come to watch the games on the Friday while the kids are in school.

So, the classrooms can come and watch, and a lot of the elders will come out as, as well.”

He says Mistawasis does put a lot of resources into its youth sports programs, adding a lot of the kids that excel in sports and show prom ise don’t always have that support system at home. Daniels says even

sports like la crosse attract many Indige nous players and Mistawasis tries to support the young ath letes.

“So, we do have a lot of athletes coming out of our communi ty,” Daniels said. “And with this tour nament and

seeing all these native athletes that have played at a high level, you know it’s good for them.”

“I think especially with basketball, the majority of our kids will play. And when we have the tournaments on the reserve, we have so much participation –not just from the athletes, but from ev eryone,” Dan iels said. “You know, the kids watching these

tournaments are inspired. Seeing the athletes and wanting to be like them. Well, that speaks volumes.”

Womens Champions: Winnipeg Pride

Mens Champions: Boys With Braids

Photo Credit: Axis

Indigenous jigging model from Saskatoon makes mark on international stages

The trip to New York was amazing.

Written By: Jody Wolverine

Tansi, Aanin and Hello.

My name is Courtney-Dawn An aquod I am Anishabe Cree-Metis Woman I Come from Muscowpe tung Saulteaux Nation of the treaty 4 territory. Currently, I reside in Sas katoon, SK. This is my Q & A with Indigenous Times and I’m excited to be part of this edition. Here we go:

1- Who Influenced you first? Was it a particular model? Or the genre of jigging modelling?

I come from a long line of powerful and resilient women in my family. They are the ones who influenced me, my kokum and my auntie, An geline Anaquod, who was a young indigenous model in her 20s. My cousin Natalie was also a young In digenous model.

2- Tell us about some of the events, projects, and expos you were a part of and the experiences you want to share.

In 2019, I made my first debut in the Regina Fashion Week where I modelled for Christine Tournier of S.S River Designs. In October of 2020, I was nominated for the Inter national Indigenous Arts & Fashions Awards Model of the Year and won!

In 2022, I walked and jigged on the New York runway at the Interna tional Indigenous Fashion Week.

My father, Donny Anaquod and my cousin Rosanna Anaquod accompa nied me. We rented a car and drove through eight states along the wayeach state I stopped and made snips of videos of me jigging my way to New York City.

3- Explain how your indigenous background influences you to be a jigging model.

I am a self-taught jigger, and inspi ration comes from my father and grandparents. I’ve been involved

with Metis Jigging and square-danc ing for the past 27 years and in structing jigging workshops for the last 15 years. Aside from my mod elling, I am also a youth mentor for the Saskatoon Public school Board Indigenous Ensemble where I do in struct jigging classes and some pow wow to the youth who are wanting to learn more about the Indigenous culture and the importance behind dancing. Most importantly I am also a mom of beautiful teenagers. My daughter who is 13 is following right in my footsteps as a younger danc er herself both in jigging and pow wow. My son who is soon to be 17 is young pow wow singer.

4- What’s it like to jigging model?

Feedback/ energy from audience?

When I was on the runway jigging, it was absolutely an amazing feel ing, I felt confident and being proud of who I am. Our people are very beautiful and all come with natural creative ways to display and show our heritages, culture and traditions whether it be with our ceremonies, our way of dancing or celebrations or arts and designs.

5- Where can we see your work as a model? Facebook? Or Instagram?

Facebook is my main-stream social media and that’s where I post most of my stuff and what I am doing. I do have an Instagram where I post some content. I am just get ting into the world of Tik Tok as

well.

I share my stories about my journey and overcoming personal struggles to remind youth that it does get bet ter and to help and bring hope to others through their own challenges. This is why my New York trip was a memorable one. It doesn’t matter how old you are, you can still make all your dream possible.

Dancing brings healing and comfort. I dance like everyone is watching and I dance with pride.

Blue Ribbon Skirt by Candace Gadwa. Sash Moccasin by Candace Stevenson. Photo Credit: Getty Images IIya S. Savenok

Yellow Dress by Sandra Foher/ Ecco Tripping ‘Mother Earth Collection: The Rooted Ones’ Photo Credit: Getty Images IIya S. Savenok

Written By: Christina Cherneskey

The pain has not yet subsided in Indig enous communities in Saskatchewan following the horrific attacks in early September on James Cree First Nation.

On Sept. 4, 10 people were stabbed to death and another 19 injured in the community and the neighbouring vil lage of Weldon, Sask.

The suspects, brothers Damien and Myles Sanderson, also died — Damien from non-self-inflicted wounds and Myles from medical distress while in RCMP custody.

Saskatoon Tribal Council Tribal Chief Mark Arcand was directly affected by the tragedy. Arcand said his sister Bon nie Burns, 48, and his nephew Gregory Burns, 28, were among those fatally stabbed in the incident.

Speaking to Indigenous Times, Tribal Chief Arcand said he cannot speak on behalf of the James Smith community but could only share how he and his family have been directly affected.

“Right now, our family is turmoil,” Tribal Chief Arcand said. “This is still very, very fresh. It’s hard to deal with. And it’s been a lot of devastation to our family.”

He says he and his family are sharing a lot of love and compassion, adding if his family and others don’t try to find a way to heal the trauma, it will affect them for the rest of their lives.

“It’s hard,” Arcand said. “I’m 51 years old and the surviving kids are 9, 11 and

STC Tribal Chief Arcand admits pain from James Cree First Nation murders will never be erased

now 14. So, we’ve got to think about getting the proper help for individuals.

And making sure the community gets support too. I went to the funeral for my sister and my nephew. I saw people coming from other funerals. So multi ple funerals in one day. You talk about that trauma, that stress and the grief that people have to deal with. But at the end of the day, there must be forgiveness. We’ve got to look forward because the people that were killed were all good people.”

Tribal Chief Arcand says the pain from this incident will never be erased, but he urges communities to support each other.

“I believe we’ve got to support our communities - whatever decisions in dividuals make to deal with this. And we’re really trying to get that support out there. I started a GoFundMe page for my nephews and my brother-in-law because I feel that if we don’t address this trauma right now, it’s going to af fect our lives and. It’s not going to have a good outcome. So, we need to focus on their quality of life first and foremost. And being kids again is what the youth deserve to have. They don’t deserve to have all this trauma in their lives.”

There will be a public inquest into the deaths on James Cree First Nation. The announcement was made by Saskatch ewan’s chief coroner in late September.

Saskatchewan’s Chief coroner Clive

Weighill said it’s expected the inquest will be held in front of an all-Indige nous jury. It’s also anticipated the public hearing will occur in late spring or early summer of 2023.

A separate inquest will be held into the death of Myles Sanderson since his death occurred on a different day and while in police custody. That inquest is separate from the Saskatoon Police Service’s investigation into Sander son’s death, which is being monitored by the Saskatchewan Serious Incident Response Team.

Tribal Chief Arcand says the Saskatoon Tribal Council is helping anyone who reaches out following the stabbings on James Cree First Nation.

“We’re still trying to help people and we’ve helped many fami lies already that were here during the week follow ing the James Smith inci dent,” Arcand said. “They were in Saska toon in hospi tals or visiting family. We helped them with transpor tation, food,

and things like buying people glasses or going shopping for clothes. We even threw a birthday party for an eight-yearold. But that’s what we wanted to dohelp people.”

He says the compassion has shown through from many people throughout Saskatoon. “They come up to you and say ‘our condolences’ or ‘we’re sor ry for your loss’. That means so much more than a monetary donation because now the community is coming together. Whether you’re indigenous or non-in digenous. And like I said, I’ve never wished this on anybody to happen.”

“Just want to say thank you to people for their kindness and their generosity and being there for everyone during a difficult time.”

STC Tribal Chief Mark Arcand, brother of Bonnie Burns, who was killed at James Smith Cree Nation, holds up a photo of them at a news conference in Saskatoon, September 7, 2022. (REUTERS)

Armand LaPlante

Jade Roberts is a member of the Lac La Ronge Indian Band where she grew up; she moved to Sas katoon where she attended the In dian Teacher Education Program (ITEP) at the U of S, graduating in 2018. Soon after, she began teach ing in classrooms while at the same time discovering a new passion for podcasting.

Jade’s first podcast, Still Here Still Healing, presented the opportuni ty for residential school survivors to share their stories, experiences, and the impact that those experi ences had on their lives.

In Summer of 2021, Jade’s person al journey took her down the road of sobriety. While becoming sober, it was evident to her that tradition al methods of attaining sobriety such as AA weren’t for her. Being an avid podcast listener herself, Jade found that there was a lack of young Indigenous people like her self in the podcasting space shar ing stories and knowledge about addictions and sobriety. This re alization led Jade and podcasting partner Leora Badger to launch a podcast and community initiative called The Sobriety Circle.

The Sobriety Circle podcast, which has recently wrapped up season 1, is a space for young Indigenous women to share their experiences with addictions and sobriety and the benefits and challenges that they face on this journey.

The Sobriety Circle is more than a podcast, it has also become a com munity online and offline with the

The

pair hosting a sober meetups where like-minded individuals can come together to get together socially and soberly. The Sobriety Circle also has its own merch as well as its own alcohol-free beer called Ayoskan Sour which is available on tap at the Better Brother Brew ing Co. in Saskatoon.

Indigenous Times had the plea sure of sitting down with Jade for a brief Q&A.

Indigenous Times: Has being In digenous affected your approach to this initiative and this podcast?

Jade: Yes, for sure. A lot of peo ple who get sober [have used other methods that weren’t] created for Indigenous people [or]for women.

So, the Sobriety Circle, we wanted to create a space that is for those people, that is […] inclusive-- that includes the queer community or women or Indigenous people or people of colour. We want to have a more inclusive space. So being Indigenous and having that per spective like [another method] is not going to work for me, and then creating something that will work for me.

IT: On your podcast, you really speak candidly, and I understand some of these experiences can be tough to talk about; what drives you to discuss these experiences on a public platform such as the podcast?

Jade: I’ve always been a really open person and I kind of pride myself on that too because a lot of people carry a lot of shame with the experiences that they’ve

sober

been through. All of us have been through traumatic things and we’re often taught to not talk about those things and to keep quiet. For me, I’ve always wanted to be a voice that can bring out those healthy conversations and hard topics. With the Sobriety Circle, I am re ally candid on it because I know that if I share my own story and my own experiences—the good, the bad, and the ugly—then it might help someone else feel okay with sharing their story as well. That’s huge for me. I’m a teacher and I work with youth and I want them to be as open as possible, I want to be a good model for that as well. I want them to feel comfort able sharing whatever is going on in their lives, so I feel like if I mod el that, if I be that person or that role model that is an open book that talks about what’s going on in my life then I hope that it helps someone.

IT: You’ve been sober for over a year now, has it gotten easier? And have you found more spaces suit able for yourself and your journey? Jade: It did get easier; I feel like my first 3-4 months were proba bly the hardest […]. When you’re learning not to use alcohol as your crutch or to numb things, you re ally have to feel everything in those first couple months and learn how to feel things. It’s been years where I haven’t been feeling my feelings, and then you have to kind of relearn or learn for the first time how to do that, so within those first 3-4 months of sobriety there’s a lot of learning and it’s hard. […] I wouldn’t say that it’s easy, it’s dif ferent every day, I feel like every day’s a new day and you have to learn how to go with it.

In terms of finding more space for people like me, I think with starting the Sobriety Circle it has definitely

more than a

opened the doors for me for meet ing other Indigenous women who are also sober from across Turtle Island. We are active on Tik Tok, Instagram and Facebook […], it’s really cool to see how many young people are out there getting sober.

Us creating the Sobriety Circle is the space that I needed.

IT: There are probably a lot of un heard Indigenous voices and In digenous people with experiences and knowledge they would like to share, how could one get into the podcasting space and begin their podcasting journey?

Jade: In the podcasting world, when I first started [around] three and half years ago, there was bare ly any Indigenous podcasts out there, and now we’re seeing more and more pop up all the time and I love to see that because that is an underrepresented voice on that platform.

If you have a topic that you’re passionate about, and you can talk about for a series of episodes then that’s already a good start. Doing some research about the equipment that you’ll need is also a good start.

Podcasting is very accessible, it’s very easy to get onto these large streaming platforms like Apple and Spotify. I think if people knew that it is accessible to get your content out there then they might start.

Season 2 of the Sobriety Circle podcast is planned to be released Winter 2023 available on most podcasting platforms including Apple Podcasts and Spotify. The Sobriety Circle is also planning to launch a 4-week guided sobriety & self-care journal program—this and other initiatives from the So briety Circle can be found on their Facebook page or on their Insta gram/Tik Tok @thesobrietycircle.

Written

Founders of The Sobriety Circle Podcast Jade Roberts (left) and Leora Badger.

Jade Roberts, one of the founders of The Sobriety Circle podcast

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