Photos - Attawapiskat/Kashechewan

I've added more picutres to my facebook fan page from our stops in Attawapiskat and Kashechewan. I can't get over how nice the people were and how welcoming they were to us in their community.

Link to Sami Jo's Facebook Fan Page
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=562089&id=249198750516&saved#!/pages/Sami-Jo-Small/249198750516

Photos from Peawanuck/Weenusk - Sami & Freida

I've put a bunch of photos from our first couple of days on my Facebook Fan Page. Thought that might be easier than uploading them all again. Here's the link, enjoy!

http://www.facebook.com/editphoto.php?aid=560142&id=249198750516#!/album.php?aid=560142&id=249198750516

These kids really need our help in order to be able to participate in sport. Without sports and recreation kids tend to get bored and wrapped up in other less productive activities. Please help all Canadians get active and get in the game! Donate now to help us to our goal of $50,000.

Kashechewan – Our full day of Partnerships and relationships and Friendship! – Freida

Our morning started off with a bit of confusion.  Hanita, one of our MAA partners, and I took a few min to share with the nurses at the station what we are doing in Kash and what Jumpstart is all about.  It was wonderful to hear them offer suggestions and even more to see the nods of agreement in the room for what we explained Jumpstart to be all about across Canada. 

What we didn’t know was that the rest of the team was looking for the missing Hanita and Freida. 

We ultimately found each other and regrouped to prepare to meet the teachers and youth council in the Kash High school. Yes a youth council, different from Attawapiskat and Weenusk.  Kash has actually done something new in that they have engaged the youth of the community to become the leaders of the future, Matthew our guide is the caring leader of this wonderful group. 

Despite their willingness, I want to make sure you are aware of the monumental task these kids have before them.  As I had mentioned in my previous post it seems that the children outnumber the adults in the community.  What that leaves is a community of children with little resources to know how to lead each other.  I don’t want for one min to let you think that there are no adult leaders.  Yet again we meet caring group of people Chief, Band council members,  teachers, health care workers and I can’t forget to mention Brent and Georgina, youth wellness workers dedicated to help engage the community in the opportunities presented to them through Jumpstart.  I’m sure they have a list of other requirements and quite honestly I don’t know who’s there to support them with the other stuff.  What i do know is that with our new admin system a bit of education on their options Canadian Tire Jumpstart is there to help with sports where we can. 

With our meeting with the youth group and teachers completed and a new found sense of hope that someone (Canadian Tire Jumpstart) cares enough to get involved we prepare for a community lunch and time for Sami Jo to share her story of hope with the children. It would have been wonderful to have the time with the kids like we did in Attawapiskat to play a game of hockey but unfortunately the equipment we had sent arrived late. It would have been great. Kash is the only one of the 4 communities that has a girls hockey team. By all accounts a good one at that.  I’m sure they will make use of the equipment once they have been opened and distributed.

For those of you reading these blogs I want to make sure I mention a great deal of thanks to our Canadian Tire Merchandising team.  Without the work that Ambereen and Michael did before the trip, through our vendors we would not have been able to gift 2 complete sets of hockey equipment to each community...... as always Canadian Tire and Jumpstart pulls out all stops to help!

Chief Solomon performs one more important official ceremony in honour of his guests, we like to call it paying respect to the shopping God’s.  Chief Solomon takes us to a local woman that makes beautiful moccasins.  Shopping done... off to the plane and then Fort Albany.

One more day, and back home but now we come back with a new found respect for how our fellow Canadian’s live and how we can help.

See you in Fort Albany (this one goes in the record books --

Rev the engines.... taxi down the runway..... up comes the landing gear..... 1, 2, 3,... down comes the landing gear..... Welcome to Fort Albany total flying time 5 min!

Freida

The Smiles Say it all

You dont have to use any words to describe what these pictures say.....

Attawapiskat, ON - Sami Jo

As I sit in my bed at the nursing station in Kashechewan, ON we’re waiting to go to the local talent show being hosted at 8pm. It’s only 7pm and once again I am completely beat. My smiling muscles hurt!

We spent the day in the community of Attawapiskat, ON. From the minute we woke up until just now, I’ve been on the go. After a night at the Kataquapit Inn,  Freida and I along with our three travelling partners from the Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs were picked up by Joseph, Ruby and Celine and carted around the community. A much bigger community than Weenusk, Kashechewan has approximately 2000 people. Driving around what hits me is the amount of kids walking the streets. Houses are pre-fabricated and are order into the community based on need, but according to our driver there are never enough houses and people are put on waiting lists. Some houses have as many as 30 people living in them and they certainly aren’t that big.

We met with the school and community leaders explaining what Jumpstart was all about. Explaining that Jumpstart wants to help them help their youth participate in sports and recreation. We got to show them the activity kits that will be delivered to their community as well as hand off the 12 sets of hockey gear that Canadian Tire vendors have donated. Christmas in November! Stella, the local youth wellness worker who has been funded by Canadian Tire Jumpstart was all smiles as she will be tasked with ensuring the equipment gets used as well as figuring out what else is needed in the community.

From the meeting we went to lunch where we were treated with a local specialty of moose stew and bannock that one of the local women had cooked for us. As we ate, we chatted with local teachers as they explained how their community worked and what was most needed to curb the crime rate amongst their youth and how to engage them in physical activity. Only a couple teachers were of Cree decent, most were southerners of all different cultural backgrounds lured up to Attawapiskat by the peaceful way of life and all seemed to have fallen in love with the land and its people. 

From lunch, we headed on a tour of the community including a stop at the local arena where DeBeers was hosting a tradeshow about their diamond mine situated a couple hours away that employs some of the local people. The indoor arena looked alright from the outside; however, in conversations with some locals, the arena is rarely open. The intention is to open the rink in September, however, there are always delays, whether the ice system is broken or the lights are out or something else, it seems that there is just never enough money to get all the repairs done and open the rink so it goes un-used. The ice pad sits lonely waiting for kids. Yet all the kids in the community seem to love hockey. They all tell me stories about their hockey exploits and seem to be bubbling over with anticipation of the rink opening. They ask me if I know when it will open and all I can say is, “I hope soon.”

We headed back over to the high school where I had no idea what to expect. As we set up, the gymnasium started to fill. Just like high school kids anywhere I could see the cliques forming, the kids looking at me with mistrust and wondering who this “white woman” was coming to their school. As I began my speech there were mumblings, kids whispering to each other and parkas loudly shifting. But suddenly the gym stopped as I pulled out my Olympic Gold Medal. The kids never took their eyes off the medal and gradually the whispers turned to silence. The gym door was open and as I continued my speech more and more people from the community started to pile in the gym. The paramedics, the nurses and the police officers lined the walls. A fully dressed firefighter even entered the gym. The elementary school kids started to filter over. I guess like any small town word travels fast. By the end of the my speech the gym was packed!

The second portion of the presentation included a ball hockey game. We had decided on teachers versus students. As I ran around the gym I felt like a kid again. I forgot about the fact that I didn’t know a soul or really speak the same language but through sport was able to participate in the community. Smiles and laughter were contagious and despite my team of teachers getting booed every time we put the ball in the net, I had a great time. About mid way through the game I looked around and realized there were no girls playing. We can’t have that! Immediately, I suggested next goal wins so that we could start an all-girls game. As I picked girls from the crowd to come play, they were shy, they didn’t seem to want to be part of the game. But as soon as the ball dropped, the girls forgot about their inhibitions and just started to play. It was so amazing to see.

I had to leave the game just as it got into the second frame as we had to catch a flight bound for our next community. I was sad to leave, but the smiles on the kids faces will last in my memory forever. Not only did we leave equipment behind, I think we left something much better; hope.

...Sami

Kashechewan Part 1.....

We arrive in Kashechewan late on Tuesday night and honoured by Chief Solomon greeting us at the airport.

We are staying at the Nurses station in town.  Very warm and welcoming accommodations.  We settled in and then off to the Band office to met some of the Band council and to share some dinner made for us by the students cooking class at the local school.  Yet again, humble, wonderful warm people.  Beautiful faces looking on at us with a hint of shyness.  Thank God Sami is with us.  Instantly they gravitate to her.  She’s a celebrity with great warmth and her celebrity status all due to her extraordinary accomplishments with sports.   It is an instant barrier breaker and a common ground for the children to engage and connect, after all she plays hockey and so do they..... At least they’d like to.  Its strange we all know the benefits of sports and recreation -- we talk about the social benefits.  It is so obvious when you see it right infront of you.  The children stood and sat taller as they talked about their hockey accomplishments.  I got the sense that in their minds they were doing the "if she can I can game"...... and so they should... its exactly what Sami's message is about and why Jumpstart cares!

We are invited to a local talent show one of many celebrations for Addiction week.  A week dedicated to help the children understand the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.  What a great week to be here and present, share and inform the community about Canadian Tire Jumpstart.

What was amazing to me as I look around the gym was the amount of children.  Easily tonight children outnumbered adults by 3 to 1 – if not more.  We were told that 50% of the population in Kash are under the age of 20.

Tomorrow will be another day filled with meetings –but for tonight its dance off’s, sing off’s and battle of the bands.... oh ya and a swarm around Sami for autographs.

see you tomorrow .... Freida

Attawapiskat – and our Cree naming of Jumpstart “Grasshopper” – Freida Rubletz

What a wonderful day spent with the children, health workers, our Youth Wellness worker Stella, and my new guide to the Native People Joe.

Joe became our guide to the community he has called home since birth.  He’s a well travelled medicine man that has returned to Attawapiskat out of love and heritage.

Our first set of meeting was with the teachers and guidance councillors in the community.  We were able to talk to them about Jumpstart and our commitment to the community.  Interesting though, as i spoke of what we are here to do and our commitment to the community I look around the room.  Stoic faces  with a hint (no actually outward mistrust)  I used all the words I could to explained Jumpstart.  When i ran out of words i asked Ruby another one of our guides to help bring in a sample of the kids activity kit we brought. 

New sweep of the crowd – and a new look of awareness.  Jumpstart isn’t just dropping a couple of balls from the sky we are giving them a chance to choose their sports for their communities to help their children – and a little awareness of how we are here to stay and help.

Next stop a scrumptious lunch made by one of the elders in the community and off to hear Sami Jo fill an auditorium with words of inspiration.  Words filled with YOU CAN, words that the children only heard for the first few minutes – but felt and understood the min she pulled out the Gold Medal.   Lets think.....  You are in a First Nations Reserve crippled in many ways by the isolation.  Hurt deeply by youth suicide – and an Olympian shows up with a medal we only see on TV – I believe with all i am that the room changed for hearing to listening!

I know we left Attawapiskat with a pride to be part of the Jumpstart family as new Community Partners in our new James Bay chapter.  I reassured them that they didn’t have to rush into hasty decisions about their activity kit.  Now that they have an understanding of Jumpstart I encouraged them  to talk to the children and find out what sports they wish to play and help them by showing them that Canadian Tire Jumpstart is here to help.

.......Swept out of the gym and off to the airport – 20 min flight and now landing in Kashechwan.

Freida

Arrival in Peawanuk – Weenusk – Freida Rubletz

Our arrival really signified the remoteness of the community.  Our plane lands and taxies to park next to a pickup truck and a car belonging to one of the 3 people managing the airport.

And so our tour begins.....

We are greeted by a man name Ivan our host for the day.  It starts with a drive around the community. A series of roads past house after house, prefab’ed houses slightly different colors slightly different front porches abut all yet the same.

Its a community filled with wonderful people, elders, Native Canadian’s rich in culture and dedicated to teaching their children how to live and respect the land around them.

What we experienced is a community desperate to take care of their kids and help them to experience as much as they can... what we learned was the limitations of their ability to do this given some of the natural barriers of access. 

We met the Chief and council, teachers and elders.  Each committed to helping in any way they can to assist Jumpstart in helping their children.  I’m not sure the community fully understands the opportunity, but I’m confident that they will work to understand. 

Freida

Weenusk, ONTARIO - Sami Jo

So incredibly tired!  I can barely keep my eyes open and it’s not even 9pm. I’m sitting in a small motel room in Attawapiskat, ON. We arrived here on a small charter plane after a full day in Weenusk.

We departed Timmins early this morning. Five of us packed our huge bags into a six seat charter plane. As we walked out on the tarmac light was just started to illuminate the surroundings. We didn’t really see much of Timmins, but we’ll be back on Friday. The communities that we’re visiting only have schools up to grade 8, so children that decided to go to high school have to move away from their isolated reserves, from their families and bravely try to make a life in Timmins, almost an hour flight from their home community. I can’t wait until Friday when we get to meet all the kids from the four communities that are now attending school in Timmins. I’m not sure I could have left home at the age of thirteen, but many of these kids have extended families they can lean on for support.

As our small plane flew over the land enroute to a gas stop in Moosenee I chatted with my travel mates from the Ontario Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs about what to expect in Weenusk. Hanita, Ayn and Chelsea had lots of background on Weenusk and told me how the community had flooded twenty years ago for the umpteenth time and was ultimately moved further down the coast away from the mouth of the river. Formally called Peawanuk and now renamed Weenusk, it’s unimaginable, that this entire community was uprooted and rebuilt miles down the river. Because of this, most of the buildings and homes are very modern and very recently built.

The community of Weenusk impressed me so much. Everyone seemed so warm and welcoming as well as outgoing and funny. A very well educated community, the elders were very involved with the daily activities of their youth. The community is still very traditional, teaching their young people to hunt and fish off the land and I could see that the kids at the school seemed to be very happy. They only have an elementary school up to grade eight in Weenusk. After that if the kids decide to continue their schooling they have to travel down and live in Timmins to attend high school. I chatted with many grade eights very nervous about leaving home, unsure if they could make it through without missing home too much.

Ivan was our tour guide for the day and he ensured that we saw all that was good in his community. He was amazing even taking us down to the Winusk river to see the incredible rapids where the fish are in abundance.

I visited the elementary school and helped distribute equipment to the kids including hockey sticks, gloves and helmets. The kids, along with Ayn, Chelsea and Hanita helped me take everything out of the packaging as the kids faces started to glow. The excitement was palpable as the kids tried on all their new gear and suddenly as makeshift ball hockey game broke out. Unfortunately, the gymnasium was the was the size of a classroom so as 50 kids tried to play hockey in the neutral zone, I at least was thankful that the vendors provided helmets!

Ivan always had just one more stop for us. From the school we took a trip to his mom’s house, to see his teepee in the backyard and his so called, “Love Shak”. The teepees are used for smoking meet, usually Caribou and Moose, the “Love Shak” I didn’t bother asking what that was used for!  From there we went across the street to visit the town’s Zamboni. How they ever got a Zamboni here I’ll never know, but for some reason it was parked, broken down on the front of the neighbor’s lawn. Ivan told us how he floods the local outdoor rink with a long hose, but unfortunately, the boards for the rink are so decrepit they had to take the rink down last year, leaving the kids with no place to play. He promised us he was personally going to ensure the boards were fixed and that the Zamboni was repaired to that the kids could use all the gear we just left the community.

One more stop to listen to a “story teller”. His name was Louis Bird and he was an elder in the community. His smile was infectious, his language impeccable and his stories amazing. As he explained legends and stories about his people, my imagination was activated like never before. I never wanted his stories to end, however, we were already late for the plane. As Ivan drove us to the plane that was parked beside a snowplow, parked beside a truck in the middle of a field, a day felt like a lifetime. The incredible people I met, from the teachers, the community workers, our host Ivan to all the smiling faces on the children, I really have the feeling that this town is on the right track. The equipment will get well used, their dreams will be nurtured and the community will continue to grow stronger together.

Sami Jo

Getting Ready - by Sami Jo

The day is finally here! I'm so excited, but also frantically rushing around trying to get everything ready. I don't want to forget a thing, especially not all the fun things we're bringing for the communities.
My puppy Sochi sits on my lap while I type this post, I'm trying to get in all the last minute cuddles I can. My fiance was down playing sledge hockey with our National Team in Rochester this week. I drove down to watch him play, but that's not the same as hanging out with the person. He gets back from Rochester in time to come watch my game this afternoon in the Canadian Women's Hockey League and then say hello and goodbye as I have to jet to the airport. I'll miss him the most as I tour the James Bay region. It's been such a hectic week, I really hope I remembered everything. We played a game last night in Glencoe, ON, about 3 hours from Toronto. I tried to pack almost everything last night, including my 1600 autograph cards I'm bringing, but it was late. My bags are heavy, but I know Freida's (my travelling buddy from Jumpstart) are even heavier!
Now it's off to pack my goalie equipment for my game, put the suitcases in the car, take Sochi for a walk, and then head to the arena. My excitement is starting to build as I am getting closer to the departure time, but I can't think too far ahead. My mind is already up north, already picturing what it will be like to hang out with the kids, and already getting ready for the adventure...oh ya, I still have a game to play!
Sami Jo

Packing, Packing and More Packing

We're putting the finishing touches and preparing for our visit. More than 14 bags full of sport and recreation equipment has been shipped out! Now to pack the Team's bags and get warmer winter coats!

Jumpstart, Sami Jo Small & Ontario Government Lauch the program

Oct. 28: Today we had the official launch of the new program! Here's a summary of this exciting program.

Canadian Tire Jumpstart in partnership with Sami Jo Small and the Ontario Government have created a new sport and recreation program for First Nation communities along James Bay. This program will provide much needed resources to help communities engage youth through sport and recreational activities.  

This unique partnership provides the building blocks for long-term success: youth wellness workers, sport and recreation equipment, and mentorship.

• Youth Wellness Workers: Canadian Tire Jumpstart provided funding for an additional youth wellness worker in Attawapiskat to ensure that all First Nation communities along the James Bay coast have youth wellness workers. (The Ontario Government provided funding for the other 4 workers.)

• Sport and Recreation Equipment: Seven northern First Nation communities will receive a customized Canadian Tire Jumpstart Kids Activity Kit. Each Kit includes equipment to start or extend programs in their community.

• Mentorship: The Canadian Tire Jumpstart team and three-time Olympian, Sami Jo Small will vist Attawapiskat, Fort Albany, Kashechewan, Weenusk, Chapleau Cree, Missanabie Cree and Taykwa Tagamou First Nations from Nov. 15 – 19.