FSIN donates wild meat to Friendship Centre

“My family was no different. We struggled to make a living, we went hungry many days, we didn’t have much clothing,” he said. “Now I’m in a position where I can, where we can, offer this little bit of help and I’m happy to do it.”

Sweetgrass Chief Lori Whitecalf, Lucky Man Chief Terry Okemow, Lucky Man councillor Joanie Buffalo, and Saulteaux Chief Kenny Moccasin joined Cameron to make the donation.

Moccasin, who hunted some of the meat, said it’s important to share with community members who can’t go hunting because of physical or financial reasons.

“Not many of them can go out and actually hunt and help themselves, so this is a really good thing to have traditional foods for them,” he said.

Moccasin said he also donates meat from hunting trips to his community of Saulteaux First Nation. Recently, in addition to donating meat to community members, the community made an educational event out of it, teaching kids at Saulteaux’s school how to skin the animals, divide the meat and cut the hides.

The friendship centre’s executive director Jackie Kennedy said the meat donated by the FSIN will be given out via food banks on Friday to members of the Housing First program.

“We very seldom get meat, so this is very exciting for all of them,” she said. “We let them all know, so every Friday we’ll be giving them something.”

The Housing First program partners with the Lighthouse to keep community members in permanent housing. The program’s employees help members find housing and do whatever they can to keep them in their own home and living a healthy lifestyle, whether that’s helping them find a job, apply to school, taking them to appointments or getting them treatment.

Kennedy said there are 34 people in the program right now, and the staff already have some ideas to expand the program next year.

The FSIN is also donating meat to food banks in Prince Albert, Saskatoon, Regina and Yorkton.

Sarah Rae is a reporter for battlefordsNOW. She can be reached at Sarah.Rae@jpbg.ca or tweet her @sarahjeanrae.

by Sarah Rae

FSIN donates wild meat to Friendship Centre

What's Trending