The Corner Brook Mi’kmaq Band was the
first Indian Band council formed on the West Coast of Newfoundland and the
first organizational meeting was held in the early 1970’s.
In attendance, was a small group of
interested people of Mi’kmaq descent. The purpose of the meeting was to
devise a strategy that would one day move the aboriginal movement closer to
reaching their goal of gaining status as registered Mi’kmaq people.
Likewise, it was the goal of the meeting to gather other Mi’kmaq people to
join with the Conne River Band to aid in their plight with The Department of
Indian and Northern Affairs for recognition. Eventually, the group would
join with Conne River and a band from Labrador and become The Native
Association of Newfoundland and Labrador (N.A.N.L.)
A copy of the N.A.N.L. news dated May
17, 1975 carries a report from the Corner Brook Band Council dated April 20,
1975. This report states that an annual meeting was held at the Holiday Inn
in Corner Brook and guest speaker for the evening had been Mr. Bart Jack who
was the president of the Native Association of Newfoundland and Labrador. An
election was held that evening and Mr. Jack Mitchell was elected President
and Marie Mitchell was elected Vice-President.
Eventually the Labrador contingent
withdrew from the N.A.N.L. and went their separate way.
Another report from the newspaper (the
Caribou) printed in St. George's dated June 30, 1982, stated, that at a
meeting of the Corner Brook Indian Band Council, a motion was passed to
change the name of the band to the Bay of Islands Indian Regional Band
Council. An election was held at that meeting and Mr. Gerard Webb was
elected as President. From 1982 onward, the band decided that elections
would be held every two years instead of every one.
Eventually the Bay of Islands Indian
Regional Band was dissolved and the Corner Brook Band and the Benoit’s Cove
Band operated independently.
By 1984 the Conne River Band received
their status from the Department of Indian and Northern Affairs that left
the rest of the bands on the island having to deal with Indian Affairs from
a new vantage point.
An election held in 1999 saw Ms. Marie Newman elected
as chief for two years. An election held in January 2004 saw Ellen Edmunds
elected Chief. To date Ms. Edmunds has resigned and Ed Webb is currently
acting Chief.
Band
Activities:
Corner Brook
Aboriginal Women’s Association
The Corner Brook
Aboriginal Women’s Association would like to take this opportunity to
introduce our Association. This commencement took place in April 2003.
We are a grassroots and aboriginal women’s organization committed to the
promotion and enhancement of the rejuvenation of our cultural and spiritual
heritage. Our vision is to build strong Aboriginal families proud of their
culture by:
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Enhancing and respectfully learning the Aboriginal culture
- Promoting
community awareness of the Aboriginal culture
- Liaising with
other Provincial and National Aboriginal Organizations with
common goals
- Developing
programs and activities for Aboriginal women and families
- Being a voice for
Aboriginal women
- Addressing issues
faced by Aboriginal women
- Serving as a
resource within the community
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Board of Directors |
| Co-Chairs: |
Gwen Campbell & Michelle Gillette |
| Secretary: |
Michelle Matthews |
| Treasurer: |
Shelley Connolly |
| Elder Representative: |
Elizabeth Campbell |
| Youth Representative: |
Sonya Bennett |
| Members at Large: |
Gail Anderson, Jean Murphy, Joanne Keough |
Since our commencement, we have had meetings on the second Thursday of each
month, 7:00 pm at the Corner Brook Women’s Centre. Special guests have
included Candace Russell and a youth drummer who performed Mi’kmaq songs and
cultural speaker who joined us in the early fall, 2004, and Victor Muise who
participated in a Talking/Healing Circle ceremony at a Pot Luck meal prior
to Christmas. During our meetings we have discussed and performed sweet
grass ceremonies using tobacco, sweet grass, sage and cedar. We have had
topics of discussion regarding the medicine wheel, dream catchers, talking
stick and sweat lodges. We created an Awareness Board for June 6th
Aboriginal Day. We have had the wonderful experience to make and taste
bannock. Our latest and largest task was a submission of the very first
Aboriginal Float for the Corner Brook Christmas Parade. Its purpose was to
create awareness that this group is very active and to welcome any new,
interested Aboriginal Women to join us at our monthly gatherings. We were
pleasantly surprised to have won 1st place in non-commercial
category. We have done several fundraising projects to offset expenses
incurred for these activities such as a 50/50 Draw, Halloween and Christmas
Baskets. We must thank the 35-40 active members for the donations they have
made.
We are very proud of what we have accomplished since our commencement and we
are looking to what the future holds for the Mi’kmaq Women in Corner Brook
and the rest of Newfoundland. For further information, contact our Co-Chairs
Gwen Campbell @
634-8308 or Michelle Gillette @ 632-3079.
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In December,
Corner Brook Aboriginal Women=s
Association held a Taking/Healing Circle Ceremony headed by cultural
speaker, Victor Muise. Joining him are the elders that attended the
ceremony. |
Corner Brook
Youth
The youth in
Corner Brook have been involved in a number of initiatives, and have been
active members in their band area. There have been a small number of youth
involved with the youth activities hosted by the FNI youth program, but
their dedication is unparalleled. The youth of the Corner Brook Band have
also been involved in such initiatives as the E-Spirit Business Plan
Competition, which is sponsored in part by the Business Development Bank of
Canada, which saw them competing with hundreds of Aboriginal Youth in Prince
George, B.C. during the summer of 2004. They have also been involved with
fundraising efforts to attend various cultural events, namely the 2nd annual
Conne River Powwow, in which they fundraised the highest amount of funds per
person to attend the event. Richard Louvelle, is the leader for the Corner
Brook Youth Group. He is a very dedicated young Aboriginal Person who has
learned a significant amount about his culture since he began his
involvement in 2003.
Below is an
example of the Column “Youth Speak” that was created by the FNI Youth
Committees and developed by Youth Leader Cindy Kyle of the Flat Bay Indian
Band Council Youth Group:
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Richard Louvelle, Leader of Corner
Brook Youth Group |
Youth Group
Leader
Richard Louvelle is sixteen years old
and a member of the Corner Brook Indian Band Council.
Richard became very interested in
finding out more about his Mi’kmaq culture after attending the Youth Crime
and Victimization Conference in September of 2003. When he was informed of
the creation of Youth Committees Richard leaped at the opportunity of
getting involved.
He did this by becoming a youth leader
of the Corner Brook Indian Band Youth Committee. As youth leader, Richard
plans educational activities, fundraisers and meetings. He also helps the
youth get involved by letting them know that these events are there for them
to experience.
Being
involved with the youth committee has helped Richard in a variety of ways.
He has become a very strong leader and it has raised his self-esteem. For
example, at one point in time Richard was extremely shy and not comfortable
to speak in public. However, since his leadership of the youth committee he
has found the confidence to make such speeches. He feels that it has also
given him the experience to deal with a number of situations that at another
point in time he could not have handled.
In addition to communication skills
Richard has been able to learn a great deal about his culture. Through
being involved with the youth committee, he has become introduced to various
Mi’kmaq crafts and has taken up making dream catchers in his spare time as a
result. He has also learned a great deal about the traditions and
ceremonies. He has had the opportunity to meet individuals with this
knowledge and participate in some ceremonies such as the sweet grass
ceremony.
Over all
Richard says that being involved makes him feel great as an individual and
that it has helped shape the outcome of tomorrow for him.
Council:
| Ed Webb (Acting Chief) |
Phone: |
(709) 634-1696 |
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Email: |
ewebb_234@hotmail.com |
| Daphne Park (Secretary) |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Brenda Power, Treasurer |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Derek Baldwin, Board Member |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Shannon Morgan, Board Member |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Eugene Webb, Board Member |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Joan Oxford, Board Member |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Ellie Edmunds, Board Member |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Marie Sparks, Band Elder |
Phone: |
N/A |
| Chrissie Pike, Youth Representative |
Phone: |
N/A |
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