Latest news with #Delorme
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Legacy of Cochrane's fallen Grandfather Tree will live on through new bench
The Town of Cochrane has found a way to pay tribute to its most treasured tree. The Grandfather Tree, an estimated 300-year-old white spruce in Cochrane Ranche, was toppled by high winds during a storm in January. Now through a proposal reminiscent of Shel Silverstein's book The Giving Tree, it will live on in the form of a commemorative bench made with its salvaged wood. WATCH | Grandfather Tree mourned by Cochranites: The bench was chosen over two other options presented to Cochrane town council on Monday: a children's book authored by a local author and the production of wooden key chains made from the tree. "In the weeks that followed [the tree's collapse], we saw an incredible outpouring of community sentiment," said Michelle Delorme, the town's director of parks and active living. "Residents left reflections, drawings and stories in a temporary mailbox and journal placed at the site, showing us how much this landmark meant to so many people." The tree is currently commemorated through two public art installations at The Station in downtown Cochrane. The bench will include infographic interpretive signage and a mailbox where visitors can share their Grandfather Tree stories and reflections. Calling the bench project "a meaningful, long-lasting tribute that can be delivered within our parks and active living budget," Delorme said it would cost from $7,000 to $10,000. Some council members balked at that estimate. Coun. Patrick Wilson said he was "amazed" and "kind of disgusted" by the proposed cost. When asked by Wilson, Delorme said the price is in line with that of other municipal benches in Cochrane's parks, with those costing anywhere from $5,000 to $7,000. "I can't believe that number. I'm absolutely aghast that we pay that," he said. Stacey Loe, community services executive director with the Town of Cochrane, said that while the cost would continue to be evaluated, this particular bench will likely be more expensive than others due to the labour involved with creating it from the Grandfather Tree. Delorme added that the entire bench won't be made from the Grandfather Tree's wood, but that the goal is for "at least half" of it to be. "We will have to piece everything back together," she said. Coun. Marni Fedeyko said that "unless it's made out of, like, African rainforest wood, it seems kind of on the high side." She supported the motion but emphasized that hiring local artists and contractors for the bench's construction should be prioritized. Coun. Morgan Nagel acknowledged that the project sounds "a little too expensive," but said it was a reasonable proposal, likening it to "an artisan project off of the woods." Councillors floated the idea of combining the bench proposal with the children's book idea, but ultimately approved the construction of the bench at the proposed price. Six of seven council members voted in favour of the motion, leaving Wilson as the sole dissenter.
CBC
01-05-2025
- General
- CBC
Unique lodge to provide a safe, comfortable home for Indigenous elders in Alberta
Social Sharing After years of planning and building, a new Indigenous elders lodge is about to open near the Rocky Mountain community of Grande Cache, Alta. "It feels good to be here," said Winston Delorme, surveying progress on the 17,200-square-foot Kikinow Elders Lodge. "When we first got here there used to be a road up here and it was just bush," said Delorme. Now it's "almost a full, operating lodge here — for our people." The idea for the lodge, located on the Victor Lake Co-operative, an Indigenous land holding on the north boundary of Grande Cache, 430 kilometres west of Edmonton, was first conceived in 2018 and construction got underway in 2023. Applications are being accepted this month from Indigenous people in the area who want to live in the 14-bed facility. Victor Lake is one of the six Indigenous co-operatives and enterprises in the Grande Cache area. Delorme, a Victor Lake community leader, points to the building's half-moon design — with its teepee and fireplace at the heart of the lodge, smudge area, crafting room and community kitchen — as examples of what makes the $15-million dollar project unique. Kikinow means "our home" in Cree and Delorme said the goal is to create a non-institutional place in the community where elders can age comfortably and safely. "They get to come and go as they please. It's not a jail for them," he said. "If they want to go to town, they go to town, if they want to go home for the night — back to their old home — that's up to them. That's the biggest thing is they're not kept." Hilda Hallock, a 57-year-old Victor Lake community member, said she can see herself eventually living at the lodge. Looking out the balcony of the space, Hallock sees the same mountain views that she's had all her life. "I believe we are the land and the land is us," she said. "This building will allow me to continue to live that life as I age, to maintain that connection and not be removed from it." Hallock described the lodge as "warm and welcoming." Its windows and walls even include etchings of her grandma's flower beadwork pattern, she said. It's a place that Hallock said will free her of life's "everyday stresses," like ensuring her pipes don't freeze and she has enough wood chopped to last the winter. Funding for the project is coming from the federal and provincial governments, the Municipal District of Greenview and other municipal regional partners with help from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation, said Shyam Menon, director of portfolio management with The Evergreens Foundation. WATCH | Take a tour of the Kikinow Elders Lodge: Tour a unique Indigenous elders lodge in northwestern Alberta 4 hours ago Duration 3:04 Applications are being accepted for prospective residents of the Kikinow Elders Lodge, opening this summer near Grande Cache, Alta. Get a feel for Kikinow — Cree for 'our home' — and what it means to the community. The not-for-profit management company will run the seniors living facility. "This project is a unique partnership between a housing management body and an Indigenous organization," Menon said, "bringing much needed culturally appropriate housing and care to the elders in the region." Staff with Scott Builders Inc. are continuing work on infrastructure, landscaping and the interior of Kikinow Elders Lodge with residents expected to move in later this summer. Shirley Delorme, president of the Victor Lake Co-operative, said opening up applications for residents makes it feel real. Delorme said she expects the lodge to be a special place for the whole community. "I think we're going to have a lot of involvement with the younger generation," she said. "This is going to be a common place where they can come and learn from the elders."
CBC
16-04-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Survivors urge all political parties to support residential school burial investigations
Social Sharing WARNING: This story contains details of experiences at residential schools. As Canada's federal election heats up, residential school survivors and their advocates are urging political parties to pledge full support for investigations into unmarked burials and missing children linked to the institutions. The previous Liberal government announced several initiatives following the findings of potential unmarked graves at the former Kamloops Indian Residential School in 2021. Four years later, the programs face questions about their future. Last fall, an advisory committee working on identifying historical documents resigned, citing inadequate funding. Then in February, Canada discontinued funding for the expert committee advising Indigenous communities undertaking searches. "The government of Canada, today, in 2025, should support this," said Cadmus Delorme, who was chair of the eight-person documents committee. Delorme was also chief of Cowessess First Nation in 2021, when the community announced 751 suspected unmarked burials were located at the site of the former Marieval Indian Residential School in Saskatchewan. He said Canada "has a fiduciary financial responsibility in this moment," as communities still seek closure. "We have to address certain things we inherited — we can't just forget about it — and this is one of them." Meanwhile, Crown-Indigenous Relations has announced, then reversed, funding caps to the investigations themselves, and some communities continue to face delays and red tape. "This is Canada's fault. They're to blame," said Janalee Jodouin, finance and project lead for the Wiikwogaming Tiinahtiisiiwin Project. "They need to bring the children home, period. It's not rocket science. They need to fund it and they need to fulfil their promises." The project was started by Grassy Narrows First Nation to investigate the former McIntosh Indian Residential School in northwestern Ontario. The group announced in January it located 114 unmarked burial features on the property, of which 106 were in the historical cemetery area. Frustrated with Canada's lack of ongoing financial commitment, Jodouin invited CBC Indigenous to meet with the project's elders advisory last week to hear about the impact. 'No closure' In the meeting, one survivor likened the institution to a work camp where she was made to do hard labour. Another recalled witnessing kids being beaten. Others described the Catholic-run school's devastating legacy. "I don't understand why they would try to erase the Indian again by not making this known," said Steve Lands, a former McIntosh student and project co-ordinator. "Many of us here have lost friends and family members through the abuse, the trauma, the legacy of the residential schools. This is where we need the funding not cut." "It is important that Canada knows what we have suffered, and then Canada should help us complete this project," said McIntosh survivor Geraldine Fobister. Former Grassy Narrows chief Rudy Turtle said he's concerned about the cuts and would like to hear someone explicitly say they'll fund the residential school searches. "It's part of our truth and reconciliation," he said. "It's part of our healing journey that everyone talks about and to cut it now when you're in the middle, it just makes it worse. There's going to be no closure at all." Parties respond CBC Indigenous contacted the six leading parties for their position. The incumbent Liberals said a new Liberal government would remain committed to advancing reconciliation and healing. "A Mark Carney-led Liberal government will continue this important work to support survivors and communities and move forward on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action. I would refer you to the upcoming platform for additional information," a spokesperson said. The Conservatives cited Leader Pierre Poilievre's comment at a Jan. 22, 2024 news conference. "We should provide the resources to allow for full investigation into the potential remains at residential schools," he said at the time. "Canadians deserve to know the truth and Conservatives will always stand in favour of historical accuracy." The NDP, Bloc Québécois and Green Party all pledged to support full funding for the investigations. "This work must be community-led, trauma-informed, and backed by long-term federal support," said the NDP. "It is essential to support these efforts so that light can be shed on this sad history," said the Bloc in French. The Greens said they would fully support the projects "with long-term stable funding and Indigenous-led oversight to uncover and address Canada's colonial history transparently and respectfully." The People's Party of Canada said it would not support investigations. "We believe enough money has already been wasted on this matter. No body has been found and this story has been blown out of all proportion," a spokesperson said. Laura Arndt, secretariat lead at the Survivors' Secretariat, formed in 2021 to investigate the former Mohawk Institute Indian Residential School in Brantford, Ont., wants candidates to recognize the issue goes beyond partisan politics. She said funding cuts feed residential school denialism, a phenomenon some some scholars define as the twisting of facts about a system the Truth and Reconciliation Commission described as cultural genocide. "We are talking about the truth of history in this country, and a history that can't be talked about without using the word legacy when it comes to Indigenous people," said Arndt. "So I'd like to see the parties really committing to taking forward the issues of Indian residential school survivors and having the records disclosed." Through document analysis, the secretariat has confirmed 101 known deaths at the Mohawk Institute — more than doubling the 48 listed by the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation — but the group is in funding dispute with Ottawa that still may force it to shut down.
