Fall 2010 - Paytahchemowin Newsletter

1Fall 2010 - Paytahchemowin Newsletter Visit us online - www.moosecree.com

PaytahchemowinFall 2010

in this issue:

Chief’s Officep. 1-3

p. 4

p. 5 - 6

p. 7

p. 8

p. 9 - 11

p. 12

Administration

Economic Development

EPR Centre

Social Assistance

Lands and Resources

Housing

Moose Cree First Nation Newsletter

“There will be important initiatives and projects

happening in the next year and beyond, that will begin to change the lives of our

people for the better.”

From the Chief’s Office - Norm Hardisty Jr.

continued on page 2...

Connect with Moose Cree First Nation!

Subscribe to our RSS Feed

Follow us on Twitter

Join us on Facebook

Greetings to the Moose Cree First Nation members, it is a pleasure to once again be able to re-port to the mem-bership on issues of importance and interest to us all. It has been some time

since we have last published a newsletter regarding our activities at Moose Cree First Nation. It is my hope that all have had a safe and enjoyable fall harvest and a good break in general.

At the time of this report we have lost an elder, and a former member of our community. On behalf of my Council, our deepest condolences go to the Jolly/Sack family in the loss of their loved one, Sophie. Our deepest condolences also go out to the Roach family in the loss of their loved one, Ted. Our condolences go out to all others who have endured hardship and grief this past year. We wish to express our gratitude to those who continue to assist in providing the necessary services to address these hardships.

The staff at Moose Cree First Nation contin-ues to work hard to give the quality of ser-vices that can be provided given the resourc-es that we are able to secure. This leadership has been quite busy in attending to matters such as housing (with 15 more new units to be built this year), Regional Health Care is-sues, Resource Development and the imple-mentation of the Amisk-oo-skow agreement to name a few.

The future holds promises for our member-ship, in particular our youth. The work ac-

complished through our resource activities, will gen-erate further opportunities that will enable the youth of today to further enhance their quality of life and their aspirations. As we work to-gether, we will achieve what we all dream of for our chil-

dren: a better future and better lives than we have all endured in the past.

We are embarking on exciting events and activities for the community and youth with the Right To Play Program. Our Executive has been working diligently on this file and will be reporting on this.

continued from page 1...


The Executive Services office is continually enhancing their services to better serve the membership. Our staff is dedicated to providing information to the membership by making our council meetings public. The Council meetings are publicized every month and the member-ship is invited to attend. We are also continually seeking members at large to sit on our various committees, such as the governance, cultural and language committees. Your input into these committees is valuable and your time is compensated when you take part.

There will be important initiatives and projects hap-pening in the next year and beyond, that will begin to change the lives of our people for the better. This leader-ship believes that change is eminent and we will never know what lies ahead if we do not explore and dare to do what is best for our people. I also ask that patience be part of any endeavor that this leadership and members strive for in the years/decades to come. We have much work to do for the people that we serve and this will take time and resources as we move forward.

I hope that this report will cover some of the issues of interest to the Moose Cree citizens. Until my next report or in some other form of communication please enjoy the rest of the fall season.

Detour Gold

Since our last session on the Detour Gold Agreement on August 24, 2010, we are moving forward in bringing the “Agreement” to the Moose Cree citizens for their con-sideration and ratification process for a “yes” or a “no” vote. Detour Gold has agreed to respect the Moose Cree information and ratification process. They have agreed that they will not commence construction of the Mine until they have the support of the membership. This is virtually unheard of across this country and quite pos-sibly the only situation like this in First Nation country. This was quite an accomplishment to be able to stipulate this requirement during our negotiation process.

We look forward to sharing the information with you. At this time we are preparing materials for the process and presently are collaborating with Detour Gold on a process that can work hand in hand for a better and a well-informed process for the Moose Cree citizens.

Amisk–oo–Skow Agreement

As most are aware construction has now begun (on June 15/10) for the Lower Mattagami Extensions Proj-ect (LMEP). For a project of this magnitude this has been quite a learning experience for all involved. We are attempting to stay on top of all issues at the site and still continue to ensure that the implementation pro-cess with this project is in line with the Amisk-oo-Skow Agreement as ratified by the Moose Cree citizens on May 14, 2009.Through my office and the Resource Protection offices we will keep you abreast on the events and activities on the Amisk-oo-Skow Agreement file.

Health Bi-lateral Agreement

As most are aware Moose Cree First Nation refused to sign the Weeneebayko Area Health Integration Frame-work Agreement (WAHIFA) back in August 2007. This was a move by Moose Cree First Nation that is/was justi-fied in that there was not enough consultation with this process added to the fact that Moose Cree First Nation felt our Treaty Rights to Health Care would be greatly diminished and abrogated under the umbrella of the Provincial Government. Since the so-called historic deals which have now been signed off by our sister First Nations it is my hope that it has been done with great conviction and assurances that their Treaty Rights to Health Care are first and foremost in dealing with the governments at hand.With Moose Cree First Nation and as advised by our elders we cannot allow the federal government to sim-ply pass off their fiduciary responsibility to the province






when it comes to Health Care and other promises made from within the Treaty of 1905.In dealing with our Health Care issues we intend to keep the federal crown at the table hence our attempt to acquire a Bi-lateral Health Agreement with the Fed-eral Government. After a struggle for close to 2 years we have now received funding commitments from the Feds to negotiate a Bi-lateral Agreement within the next year or so. There are some logistics that will need work in the next few weeks for this process to begin and my office will keep you informed on these very important activities.

ATR Process

In relation to the WAHIFA agreement and the forming of WAHA (Weeneebayko Area Health Authority) an organization we’re not part of, we have the outstanding ATR (Addition to Reserve) Lands Process with Indian & Northern Affairs Canada which has been intact for some twenty years. The present regional hospital sits on

this land and it is the intention of Moose Cree to have this land turned over as reserve land in years to come. Firstly what needs to happen is the environmental work on the property needs to be completed and this work is expected to be done next spring/summer. At the present time, the lease for the property (lands) will be between the newly formed WAHA and Health Canada. Once our ATR has been completed and is deemed officially reserve land it is then that the lease will be between WAHA and Moose Cree First Nation. These stipulations are within the present agreements on the lands mentioned. We look forward to this day happening when our re-serve lands will revert back to the Moose Cree First Na-tion. These assets/lands can/will be a positive acquisi-tion for the membership.

This concludes my report,

May God Bless, Chief Norm Hardisty Jr.


Administration DepartmentSubmitted by: Patricia Wapachee, Director of Administration & Communications

November 5, 2010

Introduction of Communications & Infor-mation Technology OfficerI am so pleased to introduce our newest staff member Paul Chakasim, Communications & Information Tech-nology Officer. Paul joined the Moose Cree First Na-tion team in October 2010. He brings a wealth of skills, talent and work experience in addition to his impres-sive academic achievements. Paul graduated from Canadore College in North Bay with a 3 Year Graphic De-sign Diploma. His skills and accom-plishments include web design, pho-tography, audio production, video production, and many other business and communication skills. You will be seeing a lot of Paul in the coming months at various events shooting photos and video of Moose Cree activi-ties.

Website RedesignPlans are underway for the redesign of the Moose Cree website. Paul has already started designing the new website and if all goes well it will be launched before the end of this year.

Application for Ontario HST Refund for First Nations on or after September 1, 2010I hope everyone had the opportunity to submit their ap-plication forms for the HST Refund that was available for First Nations for the period July 1, 2010 and August 31, 2010 inclusive. The deadline for submitting the ap-plications was November 1, 2010. If you missed out on this one, then take note of the information posted

on the Ministry of Revenue website for refunds on purchases made on or after September 1, 2010.

The Ministry of Revenue website states that applications can be submitted for HST refunds for the period on or af-ter September 1, 2010. To claim a refund for this period, you must use the “Application for Ontario HST Refund for First Nations on or after September 1, 2010”. The in-formation is available on the Internet at http://www.rev.gov.on.ca/. If you are unable to print the forms, copies can be printed for you at the Moose Cree First Nation office. MCFN Membership Meeting RegulationsThe drafting of the Membership Meeting Regulations is now completed and the draft document has been re-viewed and accepted by the Chief and Council. The next step will be the distribution of copies of the draft docu-ment to the membership for review and approval at the next General Membership meeting. These regulations were developed for the purpose of setting guidelines for conducting membership meetings, including frequency of meetings, distribution of minutes, quorum, cancella-tion of meetings, code of conduct and other related topics.

Leadership CommitteeThe Leadership Committee currently has a vacancy for one member from the membership. The Committee is comprised of seven (7) committee members; two (2) representatives from Council and five (5) members from the membership. If you would like more information about the purpose and responsibilities of the Committee or you would like to know where to submit your letter of interest, please contact Patricia Wapachee, Director of Administration & Communications at 658-4619 ext. 243 or by email: [email protected].


Economic Development DepartmentSubmitted by: Juliet Rickard, Director of Economic Development

Farewells & New Faces in Ec Dev:

Congratulations to Kim O’Connor for being the successful applicant for the Tourism Officer position.

We wish Linda Trudeau, former Special Projects Officer success in her new job with Sibi Board. Margaret Keesic, is currently working on a part-time basis as Special Projects Officer looking after our residential & commercial proper-ties in Moosonee.

We also wish Shannon Trapper, former Employment & Training Officer all the best in her new job at Detour Gold. Gloria Rickard, our Administrative Assistant is acting Employment & Training Officer until that position is filled.

We welcome Julie Hunter, Co-op Student from DDECS who is doing her placement with us selling train tickets and assisting with our tourism unit.

NewsOct 2010 - John R. Delaney Youth Centre receives METS funding to hire 4 trainees at the Centre – much needed help for the staff who run the evening activi-ties. More volunteers are required to help with activi-ties. Please contact Jay Monture, April Cheechoo, or Blair Morrison at the JRDYC 658-2056

Sept 24/10 – Moose River Heritage & Tourism As-sociation has its first Annual General Membership meeting at the John R. Delaney Youth Centre with a good turn out and great discussions. New Board elected.

Summer 2010 - despite issues with water intake, incomplete hot water system, and a break and entry, a few guests still chose to visit Washow.

Oct 2010 – water issues at Washow are finally re-solved and the Lodge now has running water and hot showers.

Oct 2010 - Washow receives funding from METS for 6 tour guide/hospitality host trainees including the Operations Manager to March 2011 – selection of ap-plicants to take place end of Oct. Project to start Nov 2010.

Elders/Youth trip to Washow planned for October gets postponed until a later date, possibly after freeze up.●

●

●

●

● ●

John R. Delaney Youth Centre Report

A separate newsletter will be issued in November.



Moose Cree Properties

Margaret Keesic has been working very hard in getting our books in order, overseeing contractors, and our maintenance personnel in Moosonee. We have a few vacant units in our office building and a couple residen-tial units that will be available soon.

Tourism Unit: Kim O’Connor, Tourism Officer

CCIC:For the Cultural aspect of things I will be looking into starting a sewing group for any interested community members that are willing to learn how to make moose hide gloves, mitts or moccasins. I have one elder that stepped forward as a volunteer to teach many things such as sewing/bead work, tamarack bird making, tan-ning moose hide and also some traditional cooking. I am hoping to start the sewing group as soon as I have all the material needed.

Tourism:Out of town visitors or guests are very pleased with the friendliness of the people we have in our community. They are very impressed with our heritage and cultural ways of the lifestyle we live.

Ticket Office:Good news for travelers on the Polar Bear Express: Rules for train tickets purchased in Moosonee or Moose Fac-tory have changed, effective November 15. For more in-formation, see the article from the Timmins Daily Press on page 7:

Economic Development Committee:

Earl Cheechoo, Council RepresentativeGeorge Lazarus, Council RepresentativeBobby Echum, Council RepresentativeRoy Quachegan, MCFN Membership representativeCaroline Innes, MCFN Membership representativeArthur Morrison, MCFN Membership representativeStella Schimmens, MCFN Membership representative

Economic Development Staff:

Juliet Rickard, Director of Economic DevelopmentGloria Rickard, Administrative Assistant, A/Employ-ment & Training OfficerVacant, Employment & Training OfficerVacant, E&T Project OfficerKim O’Connor, Tourism OfficerMargaret Keesic, Special Projects Officer (part-time)Jay Monture, Youth Centre ManagerBrian Hendrick, Youth Entrepreneurship Coordinator/TrainerJulie Hunter, Co-op Student (Ticket Sales Clerk)Sinclair Trapper, Washow Operations ManagerVacant, Washow Marketing Trainee

Washow Board:

Jean Sayers, ChairpersonJohn Rickard, Vice ChairpersonStella Schimmens, DirectorPaula Spence, DirectorLeonard Echum, Director


Economic Development Department


Equal treatment for Polar Bear ExpressLocal News By The Daily Press Passengers on the Polar Bear Express will receive the same treatment as people riding the rails anywhere else in Ontario.

MPP Gilles Bisson (NDP — Timmins-James Bay) announced Thursday that Minister of Northern Devel-opment Michael Gravel agreed to change the rules for train tickets purchased in Moosonee.

If people missed their train in Moosonee, the ticket was unusable and no refunds were made. Everywhere else, ONTC tickets are valid for 12 months.

The change will be effective on Nov. 15 in Moosonee.

The EPR Centre houses emergency services such as the Fire Department, Nishnawbe aski Police and James Bay Am-bulance. The Centre also leases office space which is occupied by Creewest LTD and Moose Cree Resource Protection. We also provide a Conference Room for Meetings, Dinners, Weddings, Funeral, etc. A Hospitality Suite is also avail-able, it consists of four rooms, a kitchen, dining room, living room and washroom.

Conference Room Rental Rates:Half Day $200.00 weekdays - $300.00 weekends.Evening $200.00 weekdays - $300.00 weekends.Day $ 300.00 weekdays - $400.00 weekends.

Hospitality Room Rates: $85.00/ night

Rental Forms for both the Conference Room and Hos-pitality Suite can be picked up at the EPR or by emailing:[email protected]

Office Phone: 658 2740Conference Room: 658 2927Hospitality Suite: 658 2926

Staff: Raymond Butterfly - Acting EPR Manager Clint Cheechoo – Maintenance

EPR CENTRESubmitted by: Raymond Butterfly, Acting EPR Manager


Social Assistance DepartmentSubmitted by: Norma McComb, Director of Social Assistance

October 29, 2010

Greetings to membership. Just a quick note to provide you with a brief update of our program.

StatisticsOur total caseload on October 1st, 2010 is 263 and is broken down into the following categories:

Two Parent Families 27Single Parent Families 54 (48 female, 6 male)Single Persons 156 (51 female, 105 male)Temporary Care Children 26

StaffingNorma McComb, Director of Social AssistanceEdna Sutherland, Case Worker Hayley Cheechoo, Case WorkerFinance Clerk/Receptionist – Vacant *Sandra Innes has left our employ. We wish her and Brian and their family the best. We are currently in the process of filling the position.

Social Assistance CommitteeMildred Alisappi, Councilor RepresentativeWally Turner, Councilor RepresentativeValerie Chakasim, Community RepresentativeMildred Dick, Community RepresentativeVacant, Community Representative *a community member needed

The Social Assistance Committee is mandated by Chief and Council to provide for the efficient and effective de-livery in the area of social assistance to serve the Moose Cree First Nation membership and residents.

The purpose of the Social Assistance Committee is to:

a) Act as an advisory body on behalf of Chief and Coun-cil.b) Develop strategies and policies in conjunction with the goals and objectives of the Moose Cree First Nation Social Assistance Program and Moose Cree First Nation as a whole.c) Advise and support staff for the efficient and effective delivery of services.d) Analyze social assistance issues, develop solutions and/or alternatives and make recommendation to Chief and Council.

ActivitiesOn October 7th, 2010, Hayley and Norma graduated from the Social Welfare Administrators Course from Algoma University. Congratulations! We have earned a certificate in this field along with six university credits as well. This course was the first of its kind and was very successful. ONWAA (Ontario Welfare Adminis-trators Association) went into a joint venture with Al-goma University to provide this accreditation course for welfare administrators in Ontario.

Along with managing this program, and as part of the Moose Cree’s senior management team I have been in-volved in organizational projects such as the Harvest-ers Program, Strategic Planning Strategy, Trappers As-sistance, Employment Agreement Negotiations, MCFN Social Committee, and other special projects, etc.

Please feel free to drop by the office or call in to arrange an appointment should you wish to discuss social assis-tance matters, ideas for enhancement for programming and such. Thank you and take care.

Norma McCombDirector of Social Assistance


Lands & Resources DepartmentSubmitted by: Lillian Trapper, Land Use Plan Coordinator

Internal Community Consultation Protocol:We will continue with the development of a draft internal consultation protocol. To date, there were 4 meetings held to provide input to the consultation protocol. The protocol will assist and guide the Moose Cree leadership and Moose Cree citizens on what is to be done when MCFN receives notice or request from the government, resource developer, municipalities, tourism operator, non-government organizations, academia, general public, other First Nations, and Moose Cree citizens regarding lands and resources. Your continued involvement is appreciated and we welcome those who wish to participate. We are all responsible for taking care of our Homelands to ensure sustainability for our future generations.

Important Bird Areas Project:L&R has partnered with Canada Nature is planning a workshop on identifying ways to protect Important Bird Areas along the James Bay coast and associated watersheds in our Homelands. This information will be integrated with land use planning efforts .



Forestry:The L&R unit has been monitoring forestry activities through receiving copies of forest management planning notices and minutes. Leadership has approved a team of MCFN negotiators to engage with Tembec and other forest manage-ment agencies to ensure that MCFN is part of the management of our Homelands in which L&R staff will provide assistance to.

Aggregates:The L&R unit continues to work towards developing an aggregate permit approvals process in which aggregates are gravel pits and quarry. Plans are to have a draft approvals process in place so that it may get approved and tested.

Research Projects:A) Photovoice & Photo-History: Visualizing Climate Change From The Moose Cree First Nation Perspective, this study is ongoing in which Moose Cree people are taking pictures of changes in the environment that they have wit-nessed out on the land and in the community. Photographs from long ago will be gathered from various sources and will be analyzed for changes that have happened because of climate change. This information will assist Moose Cree First Nation in addressing climate change at the community level through the land use planning process.

B) Namao – Lake Sturgeon within Moose Cree Homelands study is gathering tissue samples from sturgeon from eight rivers from within the Moose Cree Homelands. This summer has seen some extreme low water conditions adding to the difficulty of reaching the selected sites on the rivers. 5 of the 8 rivers selected have little or no fisheries data. So it is important to obtain this baseline data on the 5 rivers. At a later date, we will conduct a survey with selected people regarding sturgeon and fish to add our project study. As a special note, the sturgeon in the North French River is considered to be of special concern, due to genetics, until further studies prove otherwise. We are positive this initial project will dictate that there is a need to conduct further studies on all traditional foods and possibly conduct bio-monitoring on individuals .


Lands & Resources Department



C) Poverty, Homelessness & Migration in Northern Ontario study has been slow in getting started. However, MCFN will be participating in this study in which various information will be collected that may assist MCFN on settlement, housing, social needs issues and other planning initiatives.

Community-based Information ArcGIS Initiative:The Housing and Public Works departments are partners with L&R in this project. We have started the field data col-lection including preliminary structuring of the infrastructure database. The objective of the project is to establish a GIS-based asset information system that will contain asset data associated with the housing and public works depart-ments. The Asset Valuation Toolkit (AVT) for ArcGIS was selected to implement this initiative that is able to carry out valuation and depreciation of Moose Cree properties and assets. This database will assist with auditing procedures of MCFN assets.

We are sorry to inform the community that the Lands and Resources are limited to carry out any GIS and printing services. The former Forest Liaison Officer, GIS Technician and Administrative Assistant have pursued other endeav-ors and we wish them well. As a result, the Unit is lacking capacity to carry out the L&R mandate. Therefore, your understanding and cooperation is greatly appreciated at this time.

Lillian “Mishi” Trapper – Land Use Plan CoordinatorDerek Moses – Environmental Monitor (DeBeers)Ron Spencer – Data Entry Clerk (ArcGIS Initiative)


Lands & Resources Department


Visit us online - www.moosecree.comAnd find us on Facebook! Search Moose Cree on Facebook to join.

Housing DepartmentSubmitted by: Doug Rickard, Director of Housing

October 29, 2010

This update focuses on a few current and future activi-ties of the housing program.

2010-2011 Housing Project

Chief and Council recently approved the 2010-2011 project to construct thirteen (13) units. The project consist of 4 – 3 bedroom duplexes and 5 – 4 bedroom single units and will be located on Pakeishimon Street. Construction commenced on the first week of October 2010, with water and sewage installation. At the time of this report, all footings have been poured and crawl-space walls being erected.

First Nations Market Housing Fund

Capacity development under the First Nations Market Housing Fund (FNMHF) has begun with some staff taking courses through the Aboriginal Financial Of-ficers Association. Donna Cona a firm based out of Ottawa, ON obtained the services of Sylvia Olsen and John Scherebnji to identify gaps within the Housing and Financial Policies. A presentation on Homeownership was made to the Housing Committee. We are waiting word from the FNMHF to proceed in the next phase. Training on Sage ACCPAC was held recently (October 25-29, 2010) for the Finance, Human Resources, Social Assistance and Housing staff. Training was provided on site by Abenaki Associates.

The next areas of focus are development of policies for land use and land tenure and the surveying of lots. This will involve staff from Public Works, Economic Devel-

opment, Lands and Resources, Housing and Executive Services.

Housing Policy

This remains at Chief and Council level with no con-firmed date for further review. It is expected additions to be added to identify market based housing as part of the work being proposed through the FNMHF.

Housing Quality Initiative (HQI)

We signed a letter of agreement with Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation under its Housing Quality Initiative from October 1, 2010 to October 1, 2011. This initiative provides workshops and training such as Basic Home Maintenance, Builders Series, Client Counseling, Mold Remediation to name a few. Some workshops will be open for the community.

Housing Committee

The Housing Committee is comprised of three members from Council and four Community members.

Council: Pauline Rickard Bobby Echum George Lazarus

Community: Caroline Chum Florence Morrison James Rickard Sr. Pat Garrett Chum

Fall 2010 - Paytahchemowin Newsletter

Documents

Transcript of Fall 2010 - Paytahchemowin Newsletter