Bruce Littlechild finds himself in a state of limbo.

Littlechild, Alberta’s chef de mission for the 2011 North American Indigenous Games, is trying to make some plans. But he’s not quite sure how much planning he has to do.

Next year’s NAIG is scheduled to be held from July 10-17 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Though the Games are still about 13 months away, Littlechild admitted he is somewhat frustrated.

Michael Swampy managed to lead his team to a city championship in his final season of high school ball. And now the 18-year-old point guard, who will be graduating from Edmonton’s Jasper Place High School in June, can look forward to playing college basketball.                              
Swampy, who is Cree, had athletic representatives from several Alberta colleges interested in him.

An Alberta man who credits the presence of sports in his life with many of his successes, wants to create more athletic programs to encourage Aboriginal youth to run for a medal and not for their lives.

 “It was the first thing that got me off the streets and out of gangs. I was doing a lot of fighting back then,” said Ron Walker, 38. Originally from Sucker Creek, Walker grew up in Edmonton’s inner city.

One day, a 14-year-old Walker passed by a practice of an inner city running club and decided to join.

Despite having some success, the two Alberta teams came up short at this year’s National Aboriginal Hockey Championships.

Both the Alberta boys and girls squads had their medal aspirations conclude after suffering quarter final losses at the tournament, which ran May 2-8 in Ottawa.

NAHC action attracted 18 entrants, 10 in the boys’ division and eight in the girls’ category.  Teams consisted mostly of bantam and midget players who are 18 and under. But the girls’ clubs were allowed to carry a maximum of five over-agers, who were either 19 or 20.

Amber-Dawn Bear Robe is delighted to have been chosen the successful candidate to fill the position of director at Winnipeg’s Urban Shaman Aboriginal art gallery.

Amber-Dawn Bear Robe is delighted to have been chosen the successful candidate to fill the position of director at Winnipeg’s Urban Shaman Aboriginal art gallery.

 “(Blackstone) is a victory for our production company, and the Aboriginal community in Alberta,” said film veteran Ron E. Scott, who directed the award winning pilot episode. ”We stepped up to the plate with this one.”
The one hour dramatic pilot for Blackstone, the tale of politics and power, all from the Aboriginal perspective, earned Prairie Dog Film and Television five prestigious Rosie Awards.

Stardale girls give back to community

    It may not be standard practice in other Alberta cities, but when people call Mayor Bob Tarleck at Lethbridge City Hall, they are greeted with “Hello” in Blackfoot.
Tarleck has worked for the past 40 years to establish positive relationships with the First Nations communities around Lethbridge, and was recognized for his work by being bestowed with a traditional name shortly after his election to mayor nine years ago. In 2005 he was also inducted into the Kainai chieftainship.

Another piece of Native history from southern Alberta could become a world heritage site. For the Treaty 7 Indian Bands, the writing is on the wall.

 Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park, southeast of Lethbridge, has the largest concentration of ancient Aboriginal rock art in North America. This treasure-trove of Native artwork has been nominated for a UNESCO World Heritage Site designation. If successful, it could join other cultural icons including Stonehenge, the Great Pyramids of Egypt, the Parthenon of Greece and, of course, Head-Smashed-In-Buffalo-Jump, south of Calgary.