akis nuk First Na on News

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1 Community Newsle er November, 2013 akis nuk First Na on News Akisqnuknik Hana Braker Items of interest: Monday, November 18: National Addictions Awareness Week event, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Invermere Lion s Hall. Speakers and interactive presentations. Lunch served Thursday, November 21: Akisqnuk First Nation Community Planning Session with facilitator Andrew Leach, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Akisqnuk Band Hall Friday, November 22: Sharing the Spirit of Qat'muk Play, 7 p.m., at Key City Theatre. A bus to Cranbrook will leave Akisqnuk at 5 p.m. with a pizza dinner served beforehand at 4 p.m. Tuesday, November 26: Report cards sent home from D.T.S.S. Wednesday, November 27: Band meeting at the Akisqnuk band Hall Wednesday, November 27: Fundraiser dinner for Jordon Sam as he pursues his goal of making Team B.C. in basketball at the North American Indigenous Games. 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Invermere Lion s Hall Saturday, December 7: Ktunaxa Kinbasket Child and Family Services Children's Christmas party in Cranbrook. Staff will be going and can offer rides. Contact Dusty for more info, Nelson Phillip: Is offering services splitting firewood this fall. Call him (250) Quit Smoking: Community Health Nurse Kathy Clarke has Nicorette gum available to help. Call the Akisqnuk Health Centre, , to inquire about Kathy s next visit to Akisqnuk Akisqnuk First Nation Council member removed At their November 5, 2013 meeting Council, with great regret, moved to remove former Council member Stephen Nicholas from Band Council with cause. As per the terms of the Akisqnuk First Nation Custom Election Regulations, Mr. Nicholas has until November 20 to appeal this decision. Barring appeal, a by-election will be held in the near future. Due process is being carried out and the First Nation s Custom Election Regulations are being followed.

2 Jordon Sam shoots for team BC Akisqnuknik takes aim at a spot on the under 16 basketball team headed to Indigenous Games.. Congratulations to Akisqnuknik Jordon Sam as he shoots to make the under 16 Team BC in Basketball at the 2014 North American Indigenous Games in Regina, Saskatchewan. Jordon, 14, was selected to progress to phase two of team tryouts after an initial camp held in Kamloops at the end of October. Phase two will be held in Langley, December 20 to 22. This three-day camp will feature Team BC coaches and an intense evaluation Hana Braker shines in softball Akisqnuknik on two competitive softball teams for Hana Braker (on the cover of this newsletter), daughter of Marilyn Teneese and Colin Braker and granddaughter of Wilfred Teneese and Kathryn Teneese has been selected for two highly competitive ball teams for Hana, a pitcher, tried out and made the North Shore Stars 2000 Rep B Softball team. This team represents North Vancouver in the Lower Mainland and in the very competitive process. Competitors will know before the end of the camp if they have been selected to Team BC. To help Jordon with the costs required for his journey, a spaghetti fundraiser dinner will be held on Wednesday, November 27, 5 to 7 p.m. at the Invermere Lion s Hall. Cost is $10 per plate. The 2014 North American Indigenous Games will be held July 20 to 27. Good luck as you drive for your goal Jordon! Lower Mainland Rep League at the under 14 / Peewee level. Hana also tried out and earned a spot on the BC under 16 softball team that will travel to Regina, Saskatchewan for the North American indigenous Games in July, Her family is very proud of her achievements and look forward to seeing her continue to develop her skills on the diamond as a part of these high-level teams. Kinesiologist at Akisqnuk First Nation Shenoa Runge can help with exercise and overall wellness... Shenoa looks forward to meeting people at Akisqnuk and finding out how best to assist anyone interested in activity and exercise as part of an overall health and wellness program. She can help you to: increase your general activity levels; stay active during the cold winter months; know how best to include activity as part of a weight loss and management strategy; recover from injury; better manage chronic pain such as arthritis and back pain; improve control of your blood sugars; recover from heart attack or heart surgery and lower your risk of future heart-related emergencies. To book a visit call the Akisqnuk Health Centre (250) , call Shenoa, , or srunge@ktunaxa.org. First Nations Land Management on Akisqnuk F.N.... As reported in previous editions of the community newsletter, the Akisqnuk First Nation has the opportunity to become a signatory to the Framework Agreement on First Nations Land Management. This would result in the development of a land code which, if adopted by community at referendum, would replace all land provisions of the Indian Act with an Akisqnuk First Nationmade land law. Pending Council s signing on for the opportunity, this self-government initiative will begin April 1, Exactly how the process will unfold is still to be determined, but it will involve extensive community involvement. For an excellent video prepared by the Stz'uminus First Nation on Vancouver Island as they worked toward their land code and community vote, visit: Youth trip to Europe... School District #6 Aboriginal Education Support worker Debra Fisher is organizing a youth trip to Europe in March, The plan is to visit France and Italy. Contact Debra: (250) , debra.fisher@sd6.bc.ca

3 National Addictions Awareness Week What makes an addiction?... Addictive behavior is maladaptive or counter-productive to the individual. Instead of helping the person adapt to situations or overcome problems, it tends to undermine these abilities. For example, a gambler might wish he had more money - yet gambling is more likely to drain his financial resources. A heavy drinker might want to cheer herself up - yet alcohol use contributes to the development of her depression. A sex addict may crave intimacy - yet the focus on sexual acts may prevent real closeness from developing. Addictive behavior is persistent. When someone is addicted, they continue to engage in the addictive behavior, despite it causing them trouble. So an occasional weekend of indulgence is not addiction, although it may cause different kinds of problems. Addiction involves more frequent engagement in the behavior. Some people who get addicted to substances or activities are very aware of their addictions, and even the harms caused by the addiction, but keep doing the addictive behavior anyway. This can be because they don t feel they can cope without the addiction, because they are avoiding dealing with some other issue that the addiction distracts them from (such as being abused as a child), or because they do not know how to enjoy life any other way. The harm of addiction may only be recognized when the addicted person goes through a crisis. This can happen when the addictive substance or behavior is taken away completely, and the person goes into withdrawal and cannot cope. Or it can occur as a consequence of the addiction, such as a serious illness, a partner leaving, or loss of a job. Akisqnuk First Nation will host a National Addictions Awareness Week function, Monday November 18, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Invermere Lion s Hall. The event will feature speakers and interactive presentations. Lunch will be served. - Information courtesy Danny Burgoyne and Dorene August Spirit of Qat muk Sharing the Spirit of Qat muk is an evening of performances, videos and education regarding Qat muk, which is the Ktunaxa name for the Jumbo Area of the Purcell Mountains. The event which will be held Friday, November 22, at the Key City Theatre in Cranbrook is produced by Akisqnuknik Eldene Stanley and will feature performances by the Ktunaxa Nation dance group, Chris Luke Sr., Joe Pierre Jr., and a visual presentation by Pat and Baiba Morrow on sacred mountain valleys around the world. A special Qat muk Video will be shown and the significance of the area to the Ktunaxa Nation will be explained to the audience. A bus will leave from Akisqnuk First Nation at 5 p.m. on November 22 to take interested people from Akisqnuk to the show. A pizza dinner will be held beforehand, 4 p.m. at the band hall. The event is open to everyone and admission is by donation ($15 is suggested). Funds raised will go to the Ktunaxa Nation s legal efforts to stop the proposed Jumbo Glacier Resort. Columbia Valley Christmas Bureau... This year the Columbia Valley Christmas bureau will change how it delivers its programs. Rather than deliver labour-intensive hampers, the Christmas Bureau will distribute gift cards to local grocery stores. The gift cards will be usable at grocery stores throughout the valley and will exclude liquor and tobacco purchases. A registration form is included at the back of the newsletter. Deadline to apply is December 11. If you re not in need but would like to donate to the Christmas Bureau you can do so in three ways: by mail to Christmas Bureau of the Columbia Valley, P.O. Box 2595, Invermere, B.C. V0A 1K0; by calling Helen or Gail (250) or by dropping off a donation at the Invermere Community Hall on December 19 between 8 a.m. and noon.

4 First Nations Health Authority Assumed responsibilities from Health Canada October 1... Connecting with Elders book launched... This phased process has been divided into three main stages: Transition, Transfer and Transformation. The First Nations Health Authority (FNHA) has reached the Transition stage. In this stage, the FNHA has built all of the infrastructure, systems and processes that need to be in place. It is important during this stage that the new FNHA get to know current programs and services and fully understands how programs are being administered to allow the FNHA to effectively take on service delivery. Transfer is one of the activities that is part of Transition and refers to the Transfer of responsibility for Health Canada programs and services to the FNHA. In July, 2013 the FNHA assumed responsibility for non-insured health benefits relating to: dental, pharmaceutical, and medical supplies. In October, 2013 FNHA took on Regionally Delivered Programs: Non- Insured Health Benefits Program (Patient Travel, etc.); Children and youth programs (i.e.. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, Aboriginal Head Start on Reserve); Chronic Disease Programs and Injury Prevention; Primary Care (i.e. Community Primary Care and Nursing Services, First Nations Home and Community Care); Communicable disease control programs (i.e. Vaccine, Immunization) Blood Borne Disease and Sexually Transmitted Infections (HIV/AIDS), Respiratory Infections (i.e.. Tuberculosis,); Mental Health and Addictions Programs; Environmental Health and Research Programs; Health Governance/ Infrastructure Support; Health facilities and capital maintenance; Youth Solvent Abuse Program, National Aboriginal Youth Suicide Prevention Program. Now that the health transfer has occurred, the FNHA enters the Transformation stage. This entails analyzing, upgrading, and re-orienting current health programs and services to better meet the needs of BC First Nations. Community engagement on the transformation of programs and services will follow the engagement process with which communities are familiar. - Courtesy FNHA. Visit Last month staff of Rocky Mountain School District #6 as well as Elders and Youth released a new book called Connecting With Elders. The book features stories and photos of Elders as they visited classes throughout the local school district. Aboriginal Education Support Worker Deb Fisher would like to thank the Elders and Elders in training who helped make the book a reality and the youth who helped work on the project. For more information on the book or to order a copy, contact Debra Fisher, debra.fisher@sd6.bc.ca Tim Hortons jobs... Invermere Tim Hortons is hiring a shift supervisor and a food counter attendant. Medical, dental, and group benefits are offered. Apply by timhortonsinvermere@gmail.com Akisqnuk First Nation #3050 Highway 93/93 Windermere, B.C. V0B 2L2 (250) info@akisqnuk.org

5 At their November 5 meeting, Akisqnuk Chief and Council received a presentation and the attached letter signed by members of Akisqnuk First Nation. The letter asks for actions by Council within 30 days of receipt: December 5, Chief and Council thanks these Akisqnukniks for this feedback. We are taking this letter, and other feedback received over the past year(s) seriously. Prior to receiving this letter, actions to address governance, communications, and strategic planning were being undertaken, with a focussed effort from November 19-21, 2013 with professional facilitator Andrew Leach. Mr. Leach will facilitate governance training, strategic planning, and organizational development session with Council, staff, and the community ( The community session will be held on November 21 st from 6:00 to 8:00pm at the Akisqnuk Band Hall. For those that are unable to attend the session at Akisqnuk, Chief and Council will host an open meeting in Cranbrook one week later, in addition to a Band meeting on November 27 th, The date/time and location of the Cranbrook session will be confirmed as soon as possible. Additionally, online tools and reports will be available to the membership not living in the area during this pivotal time in Akisqnuk First Nation s affairs. The First Nation s webpage is Thank you for your engagement and commitment to your Nation s future.

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8 Attention Youth 18 to 25! Would you like more Youth programing: recreation; culture; Youth gatherings? If so you are invited to an Indian taco dinner at the Akisqnuk Health Center November 13 th, 2013, 6 p.m. Bring ideas and your input Please R.S.V.P. by acolli@ktunaxa.org or call Angelle Colli at (250) ext or by acolli@ktunaxa.org What Do You Want to Do this Winter for Fun? Attention all Adults! Are you interested in being a role model for Youth in your community by: helping plan activities; sharing your knowledge and culture; attending monthly planning meetings? This is a great opportunity to make a difference in your community and have a positive impact on Youth! The deadline to put your name forward is November 22 nd. For more information please contact Angelle Colli at (250) ext or by acolli@ktunaxa.org