A benefit concert and gala at the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts, in Regina, will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College on Saturday, Jan. 25, 1997. Among those recognizing the value of this unique educational institution are Buffy Sainte-Marie and John Kim Bell. The two are joining forces in a concert that will present traditional and classical music. Preceding the concert will be an art exhibition and sale with the proceeds going to the Saskatchewan Indian Federated College Building Fund. Artists from around the world have donated art, sculpture, carving, jewelry, designer-clothing, beadwork, and paintings. The door prize for this part of the SIFC final celebratory evening is an original oil painting by Allan Sapp. Those wishing to purchase tickets for these events should contact Noreen Deegan at (306) 779-6111. (JKH)
The federal government spends a lot of money and is hoping Aboriginal businesses will work to gain access to "procurements" by all federal departments. "We have seminars dedicated to Aboriginal people right across the country," said Shannon Armitage, Aboriginal issues program advisor for Public Works and Government Services. One of those seminars was held in Regina on Nov. 19, called "How to do business with the government." The point of the seminars is to encourage Aboriginal businesses to identify themselves as Aboriginal and to make their abilities known to procurement officers for various government departments. With the Aboriginal Set-Aside Program now in place, it is essential that businesses learn how government chooses who will do its work. Each department has mandatory set-asides and voluntary set-asides. A set-aside contract is advertised with a notation that it is for Aboriginal business only, meaning that the people who do the job must be more than 51 per cent Aboriginal. Contracts are advertised locally if they are small, nationally if they are over a certain threshold. "Partnerships are being emphasized," Armitage said. "I always emphasize that the set-asides are a step to larger contracts." Aboriginal businesses face hurdles that other companies do not. For example, it is traditionally much harder for an Aboriginal company to qualify for bonding because of the Indian Act. It is Armitage's goal to eliminate many of the barriers, or at least educate Native business people so they can avoid them. (RJH)
The Lac La Ronge First Nation is teaming up with a company from British Columbia to bid on employment contracts in Saskatchewan's mining industry. The band's economic arm, Kitsaki Development Corporation, has formed a joint venture with Procon Mining and Tunneling. The newly formed company will bid on mining contracts in the north and is expected to create as many as 120 jobs. Harry Cook, chief of the Lac La Ronge First Nation, said the firm will be 51 per cent owned by Aboriginal people, and will invite other partnerships with communities affected by uranium mining. Cook said the venture is critical to creating jobs in an area where employment rates hover near 80 per cent. For Procon, the joint venture will provide easier access to employees in an industry where trained workers are hard to find. Company president Ed Yurkowski said quality tradespeople, including miners, mechanics and welders are needed. Procon and Kitsaki will share responsibility for training. (SP)
You know, the weather at Christmas can make you scream "bah, humbug!" We don't look forward to Christmas just because it's in December. If Christmas were in June, we'd be just as happy.
I could see it now, shopping mall Santas dressed in red shorts, tank tops and sandals. Get a tan for Christmas. But if we want to see that, we have to go to California or the Bahamas.
But that isn't going to happen. I've been able to survive 30 Christmases in winter and I figure I can survive 30 or 40 more.
Then again, surviving winter isn't as tough as it used to be. My mother tells me stories about her mooshom having to get up and stoke the fire to warm up the house. So I feel like a wimp if I complain that the linoleum on my kitchen floor is chilly in the morning.
But winter is tough on some people. Christmas is the season of giving. With weather like this, there will be people having a terrible time making it through. So as we get ready for Christmas and all the joy it will bring, take some time out to help someone else who isn't as fortunate as you. Your friendship centre or food bank are two places you can go to give a much needed helping hand. It doesn't take much of your time, and you'll feel a lot better for it because you've helped someone through the season.
Traditionally, winter was the season of stories, and the story-tellers were mostly Elders. I'm sure any Elder out there would appreciate a thoughtful listener.
So have fun this Christmas, despite the icy roads, the vicious winds and the mile-high snow.
*****
From Nov. 20 to Dec. 1, I was in Toronto workshopping my play, Project 7, at the Weesageechak Begins to Dance IX: A Festival of New Native Plays and Playwrights, which was put on by Native Earth Performing Arts.
The workshop process is designed to help a playwright, such as myself, make the play as good as it can be. At the end of this process, all of the plays were read publicly, to a paying audience.
Randy Reinholz, a Choctaw from Missouri, directed the staged reading of my play. Randy, if anyone remembers the 1989 season of Days of Our Lives, played Adam Scott and now teaches acting and directing at the University of Illinois. He's also director of Native Voices, which presents plays by Native playwrights. He's also one of the coolest guys in the world.
I have to publicly thank a lot of people for making my stay in Toronto such a joy. First off, a big thank you to Leslie Sher, Paula Norman, and her son Justin, for taking in a stranger and making him feel at home. Another big thank you to a talented and dedicated cast, Santee Smith, Roger Misquadis, Jonathon Fisher and Lawrence Gervais, whose enthusiasm and insight inspired me to write a better play. A special thanks to Tim Hill, for his directions to the Native Earth offices, and to the other playwrights, Sharon Shorty, Bruce Sinclair, Yvette Nolan, Pamela Matthews, and, of course, Drew Hayden Taylor, who managed to constantly rewrite his play and run the show at the same time.
*****
Correction: Dawn Robinson was incorrectly identified in a photo in last
month's rodeo centre-spread. We apologize for the incorrect identification
and any embarrassment this may have caused.
By Kenneth Williams
Sage Writer
BIRCH HILLS
The Muskoday First Nation signed a water supply agreement with the Prince Albert Rural Water Utility to supply treated water directly to the First Nation.
The signing, which took place at the Muskoday Community Hall on Nov. 8, was witnessed by Austin Bear, chief of the Muskoday First Nation, Colin Sheldon, chairman of the water utility, Lawrence Joseph, councillor with the City of Prince Albert, Ray Gamercy, a representative of Indian Affairs, plus a number of Muskoday residents.
"By this time next year, every home will have treated water piped right to the homes," said Bear.
Muskoday is about 30 km southeast of Prince Albert.
This will go a long way to rectify a water supply problem on the Muskoday First Nation, a water supply that has been inconsistent and of a poor quality.
"We have a water treatment plant and raw water was fed to it from a well," said Bear. But "the water had a large content of iron and it just finally caved in."
Another well was drilled, but it too caved in from silt and sand, he said.
So it was a convenient coincidence that the rural water utility was planning on laying a pipeline in the direction of the reserve.
"We approached Muskoday when we planned on going in their direction," said Sheldon. "We first notified them a year and a half ago."
Negotiations between Muskoday and the utility began almost immediately, and continued on and off for over a year. Muskoday, however, had to analyze its water supply situation before the community agreed to get water from the utility.
"We had several options: drill a new well, pump water from the river, or to see about water from the city," said Bear. "But for a good reliable source and supply of treated water, this was our best option.
"Our source of water will come from the city, already treated to our plant, and we'll distribute it," he said.
This is the first agreement between the rural water utility and a Saskatchewan First Nation and Sheldon hopes it isn't the last. The utility has approached other First Nations.
"We're willing to deal with any First Nation group that is interested, as long as they are within our vicinity," said Sheldon.
We've got a very good relationship with Muskoday and other First Nations should look to Muskoday as an example of the benefits of using the rural water utility, he continued.
This is a beneficial arrangement for both Muskoday and the utility because the First Nation is connected to a reliable source of water and the utility has accessed 150 homes in one contract.
"We'll be the largest user on that system," said Bear.
"We're their supplier as long as there's water in the Saskatchewan river," said Sheldon.
The main pipeline itself is about 75 to 80 km long, plus an additional
7 km that was laid towards the Muskoday First Nation. Double K Excavating
from Tuxford were the contractors who laid the pipe. The rural water utility
is a governing body independent of the City of Prince Albert.
By R John Hayes
Sage Writer
WHITE BEAR
The third of four First Nations casinos was opened by the Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority Inc. at the White Bear First Nation on Nov. 12. The official opening marked the second time the Bear Claw Casino has been opened: it was opened in 1993, but was raided and shut down within a month. Since that time, the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations and the Government of Saskatchewan have been able to come to terms on a gaming agreement.
"We have negotiated in good faith a very unique and viable gaming agreement with the provincial government that will see both First Nations and non-First Nations people benefit economically from gaming as well as address basic funding issues for social programs," said FSIN Chief Blaine Favel.
"The Bear Claw Casino will open its doors to opportunities that did not exist before, create job opportunities, procurement opportunities and generally boost the local economy, in particular be a catalyst to the existing tourism business," Favel said.
Funding for alcohol-, drug- and solvent-abuse programs and programs addressing gambling addictions, sexual addictions and eating disorders is generated for the First Nations Addictions Rehabilitation Foundation by the SIGA casinos. Profits go back to the member Nations of the FSIN.
"Our profits are structured so that 50 per cent goes back into the community, meaning the 72 First Nations in Saskatchewan," said SIGA chief executive officer Dutch Lerat. "And we've exceeded our expectations both in terms of revenue generation and employment on our first two casinos. We can't make an accurate prediction on the two new casinos because we don't know the income yet, but even if we break even - and I'm sure we will - we will continue to exceed our predictions."
The Bear Claw Casino joins the Gold Eagle Casino in North Battleford and the Northern Lights Casino in Prince Albert, which were opened in early March. Lerat said that the Painted Hand Casino, SIGA's fourth, will open on Dec. 14 in Yorkton, and that SIGA is exploring opening a fifth casino in Swift Current.
White Bear Chief Brian Standingready said that the casino will employ 100 people and that it had already provided jobs during its construction. The $2.25-million facility has 1,350 sq.m of gaming space, accommodating 53 slot machines, 67 video lottery terminals, eight blackjack tables, a roulette wheel, a poker table and a big wheel. There is also a restaurant and a gift shop, and a 36-room hotel adjoining hotel will open late this month.
The entry lobby is dominated by the figure of a white bear standing on its hind legs, framed by replica tipi poles. The centre of the gaming area has a raised, painted ceiling, and the casino is decorated throughout by the works of local artists.
"This has been a long time coming," said Standingready, who became chief in June 1995. The casino had been originally opened in the term of former chief Bernie Shepherd, who was chief from 1991 to 1995. Both chiefs were honored by Favel for their commitment and dedication during the opening ceremony.
"If Bernie was the spark plug that saw this issue come to light, Brian was the vehicle that drove it through," Favel said. "Much of the difficult work of financing, project management and the building of this facility fell to his initiative and his courage, and the courage of his council."
"We want to present and acknowledge that one-two punch that kick-started gaming in Saskatchewan and Canada," Lerat said.
"But for the steps taken by the people of White Bear, but for the courage and commitment shown by the previous chief Bernie Shepherd and the current chief Brian Standingready, there would not be Indian gaming in this province," Favel said. "This casino was forged by the determination of the people of White Bear."
"We can see the smiles and the pride on the faces of all the people in attendance here today," said councilor Terry Littlechief, "what this idea has created: making this the first on-reserve casino in Canada."
While the casino is on-reserve, it is not owned by the White Bear First
Nation. SIGA owns all casinos, and rents the sites from the various local
authorities, in the case of Bear Claw, from White Bear. The First Nation
will, however, reap whatever side benefits are created by gaming, such as
increased revenue from tourism and ongoing permanent employment in the casino
and at supporting businesses.
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