Exciting news! Work on our trauma healing lodge just got a $7-million boost.

Our MP, Michael McLeod, recently announced that the Endacho Healing Society was awarded a $7-million grant for a building. Woohoo!

Late last summer, we got news we could apply for funds to build a facility. We started working on it and have been ever since. Part of it was looking for land, getting an architect to do drawings, and meetings, meetings, meetings, working on the submissionSA国际影视传媒� and more meetings, meetings, meetings. Yes, great news, but I canSA国际影视传媒檛 tell you any more about the grant as we havenSA国际影视传媒檛 received all the details. And weSA国际影视传媒檝e been told we canSA国际影视传媒檛 communicate with federal employees about the grant until the federal election is over.

But, Jean and I are super excited. Let me tell you about the actual lodge, which I have written about before. ItSA国际影视传媒檚 good to remind people about a totally awesome thing. Eschia, take it easy, eh!!

We are calling our centre the Endacho Healing Lodge. SA国际影视传媒淓ndachoSA国际影视传媒� means eagle in Slavey. We chose a Slavey word for eagle because Slavey is the Aboriginal language that is spoken in the most NWT communities. We are starting the lodge to help people deal with their traumas, which are a major cause of addictions. Many people drink and do drugs to help them deal with the effects of trauma. One reason we decided to open a trauma healing lodge was because we could no longer send our people to Tsow Tun Le Lum, an Indigenous substance use and trauma centre in B.C. It was basically the only Aboriginal trauma center we knew of.

And we knew that dealing with trauma helps keep people sober. Unfortunately, when people return home from addictions treatment, they usually have not dealt with the root cause of addiction: the effects of trauma. Through our research and guidance from Elders, we decided that people will only have to be sober for 35 days before coming to the lodge. That means participants can come to the Endacho Healing Lodge right after going to addictions treatment. I say, SA国际影视传媒淟ook at it as a form of aftercare,SA国际影视传媒� as many people are not ready to go back into the community after treatment.

Coming to the lodge will keep people away from temptation for a longer period of time, while dealing with their traumas. This makes it easier to stay sober after treatment.

LetSA国际影视传媒檚 look at trauma

Are you wondering SA国际影视传媒渨hat is trauma?SA国际影视传媒� A traumatic event is when something shocking, scary or dangerous happens. It can affect us emotionally and physically, and it can happen once or it can be ongoing. Shocking events include when a party, that starts with fun and laughter, turns into screaming and fighting. Everybody there could be affected, especially children. Kids may seem OK if they were not physically hurt, but it affects how they think and act until they deal with the traumas. It also affects their ability to learn in school.

Traumatic events include being in accidents or seeing injured people at the scene. It includes being robbed; physically attacked; bullied; screamed at; frightened; or sexually assaulted, while awake or asleep. People are traumatized from being neglected as children; a sudden or violent death in the family; seeing violence at school; and spiritual or religious abuse. DonSA国际影视传媒檛 forget verbal and emotional abuse.

Of course, many of these things happened to kids in residential schools. And nearly all Northern Aboriginal people were forced to go to residential schools for 60 years SA国际影视传媒� so much trauma to so many people.

Fires and evacuations are also traumatic. And nearly 70 per cent of the NWT population was evacuated in summer 2023. Then last summer, Fort Good Hope was evacuated. That makes people afraid. ThatSA国际影视传媒檚 a good example of the effects of trauma. 

About the healing lodge The Endacho Healing Society is a not-for-profit organization that will operate the lodge. It will offer a healing program that will treat trauma and support physical, emotional, mental and spiritual health. Holistic trauma healing services will be offered for up to 24 clients at a time to come for six to eight weeks for culturally-relevant healing.

The Trauma Healing Lodge will operate under guiding principles that include the following: NWT Indigenous people should be able access healing from trauma without going south. Trauma comes from residential school experiences, colonization and other factors. It creates ongoing intergenerational impacts for Indigenous people and communities.

Without healing from trauma, itSA国际影视传媒檚 difficult to be free of addictions and to achieve well-being. The lodge programs and supports will address the different healing needs of people facing trauma. The lodge will work in partnership to build on the strengths of communities and existing systems. Healing is a journey that occurs over a personSA国际影视传媒檚 lifetime and over generations for communities.

Indigenous culture and connection to the land will be fundamental to healing. The holistic Indigenous healing approach connects mind, body, spirit and emotion. Western healing will provide complementary programming. Both are valuable and necessary.

The lodge will make people feel physically and emotionally safe to participate fully in the programs.

I want to acknowledge the support from GNWT during our application, and, more specifically, the recently announced senior envoy to the Government of Canad. His support, advice and political advocacy for our project was essential, and we appreciate the premierSA国际影视传媒檚 commitment to providing this type of connector to Ottawa.

This project has loads of support. Letters of support have been received from almost every Indigenous regional government and both the federal and territorial governments are assisting with our work. And now, with $7 million smackaroos for a building, we know the Endacho Healing Lodge is on the road to success.