By Bryan Eneas

Canoe Lake band member protests funding denial

Sep 8, 2017 | 2:00 PM

A grandmother from the Canoe Lake Cree First Nation has taken to a tent to protest what she felt was an unfair decision.

Mary Durocher-Gardiner said she pitched her tent in protest over two weeks ago because she didn’t obtain band funding to help her with the second year of her nursing education. She said she was previously awarded funding in February to help her complete the second semester of studies, but she’s received nothing this school year for her education. She obtained money for travel expenses from the Meadow Lake Tribal Council. 

Durocher-Gardiner said she felt like she’s being singled out by the Chief and council of the Canoe Lake Cree First Nation (CLCFN).

“In March I spoke up about some money missing that I knew about,” Durocher-Gardiner said. “I asked what had happened about two big conferences [chief and council] were going to set up, and why it never happened.”

She said the missing money amounted to roughly $68,000 from a residential school settlement, which was supposed to be directed towards healing and education within the community.

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She was first made aware of the discrepancy when her late-father received a settlement cheque with a $1,500 deduction from the total.

Durocher-Gardiner said since she spoke up, the CLCFN hasn’t had the answers she needs regarding her education funding. Once she did get responses, she was told she hadn’t submitted documents which were necessary to complete her application. She disputes this.

Since pitching her tent over two weeks ago, Durocher-Gardiner said she’s now camping out on behalf of the future generations as she’s a mother of three and a kokum, or grandmother, of 12. She’s also protesting on behalf of band members who have approached her.

“A lot of people are coming to me and telling me about their stories, about being targeted,” Durocher-Gardiner said. “People who are losing jobs, and getting cut off of

Durocher-Gardiner has created a Facebook page to inform residents and the public in general about her protest.

Durocher-Gardiner said she had two separate meetings scheduled with the post-secondary co-ordinator, councillors and the CLCFN Chief. The first meeting proved fruitless as the chief and post-secondary co-ordinator were called away due to a family emergency. Her second meeting was cancelled with no prior warning.

The kokum said in a Facebook post she has since reached out to the Meadow Lake Tribal Council, the agency which the CLCFN belongs to.

“[I] was told there was [money] available for my band to help me with travel to go to my classes and back to Canoe Lake,” she wrote. “All they need is a call from the post-secondary coordinator for the go ahead.”

paNOW has reached out for comment from CLCFN Chief Francis Iron regarding Durocher-Gardiner’s education funding. However we had not heard back before our deadline.

Bryan.Eneas@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @BryanEneas