Welcome to AMMSA.COM, the news archive website for our family of Indigenous news publications.
Page
It's another new year for Kakisa Lake resident Madeline Simba. Unofficially, this makes 101 new years which the Deh Cho woman has been around for. That number, however, may be even higher.
Madeline Simba's exact age is not known.
Ten years ago, she told an interviewer that according to her grandmother, she was born in 1897 near Burnt Island in the Northwest…
Page 4
People and Places
Oki. Did you miss me? I missed me. Just kidding.
The last month of 1997 was not a very good one for me. I mean, everything seemed to happen to me. I think it was El Nino's fault.
Anyway, I want to share something that happened just before Christmas. It kind of shows you how my December went.
I went to an Edmonton Oilers hockey game.…
Page 16
The northeastern Alberta community of Lac La Biche is helping to create a trust fund for the children of Bertha Castor, a 29- year-old Aboriginal woman who died after receiving massive burn injuries in an Edmonton house fire almost two years ago.
Castor, originally from Lac La Biche, died Jan. 20 at the Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital, after clinging to life for more…
Page 15
The Native Student Services department at the University of Alberta wants to enlist as many successful Aboriginal university graduates as they can.
The department plans to unveil the National Aboriginal Graduate Student Directory as a web site on the Internet by this summer.
"I think every university in Canada will benefit from it," said Art Beaver, the department…
Page 14
Money is what makes the elk farming industry go round.
That, according to elk farmer Alan Gros-Louis of Wildwood, Alberta. Gros-Louis chose elk farming because of simple economics, said the Aboriginal man and former Indian Affairs employee.
"In the winter domestic cattle eat between seven and eight round bales of hay, but elk only eat two. A round bale of hay sells…
Page 13
Losing a child in a busy shopping centre is harrowing. With adrenaline rushing, parents rush through the crowds looking for their toddler who has wandered off. Most times, the little guy or girl is spotted in a store or staring at a toy or candy through a window - most times. But what if your child simply disappears.
Statistics from Child Find Alberta are frightening for…
Page 12
In any given year across Canada, tens of thousands of children run away from home. Estimates from agencies who help to find missing children put the numbers anywhere from 75,000 to 200,000.
According to police agencies and organizations like Child Find Canada, runaways make up 75 per cent of all missing children.
Many runaways end up on the streets of major cities…
Page 11
Connie Ness can toss heat at 100 km/h, and the 18-year-old Edmonton softball pitcher's talents have been realized by a university south of the border. Ness, a 5'9'' right-hander has been signed to the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga as a serious prospect for the school's softball team.
In the states, collegiate softball is big. The Tennessee university just built a…
Page 11
Young Native hockey players who have the caliber to go beyond the community or reserve level rarely do, but Warren Crowchild of the T'suu T'ina Nation wants to change that situation.
Crowchild is using the expertise he gained playing semi-pro in the United States to help Native hockey players improve their skills and their prospects.
He has established the Native…
Page 10
The public is being asked to forward their nominations for Aboriginal women who they see as being role models for other Aboriginal women in the community. The selected women will be honored at a special gala and banquet later this spring.
The Third Annual Esquao Awards Banquet will be held on May 15th, at the Chateau Louis in Edmonton. The gala event is again sponsored by…
Page 10
Fara Palmer, 25, wiping tears from her eyes and cheeks, explains: "This part of the song always touches me. Some of my lyrics speak so directly from my heart I am sensitive to them."
The song "Pretty Brown", to which she weeps, is from her soon-to-be-released second CD. It is a song which shows the deep love of her People.
"People heard it, I hope it entered their…
Page 9
The southern Alberta town of Pincher Creek opened up its doors from Jan. 21 to 25 for the eighth annual Cross Cultural Days. The special event is geared to increase awareness about Aboriginal culture and traditions within Native and non-native communities.
Pincher Creek's location makes for an ideal place to host the event as the town is bordered by the Peigan First…
Page 8
In non-Aboriginal communities, drugs are prescribed by doctors with very rare exceptions. Only when doctors have given permission to use their authority can nurses prescribe antibiotics and perhaps other drugs.
In Janvier, Fort Chipewyan and Gregoire Lake, the Medical Services Branch of Health Canada hires registered nurses to prescribe drugs, said Jodi Rutley,…
Page 6
Aboriginal women in rural communities have faced many barriers in the past when dealing with the health and well-being of their own bodies. But now, with help from Screen Test, an Alberta program for early detection of breast cancer, and the Red Road Healing Society in Edmonton, Aboriginal women will have better access to breast cancer awareness in their own communities.
…
Page 6
A new board game is hoped to bring the new generation of Aboriginal people closer to traditional, healthier lifestyles. Caring Together is an interactive game developed by a panel of Native educators and health officials. Unlike other board games, Caring Together isn't about winning. It is a game which relies on the responses of the participants to bring everyone to the finish at…