Indigenous Arts & Stories invites self-identified First Nations, Métis and Inuit youth (ages 6 to 29), to submit a piece of writing or artwork exploring Indigenous identity, history or culture.
Know someone who should submit? Spread the word!
Win up to $2000!
For more information please visit: http://www.our-story.ca/
Have we got an opportunity for you!
The Black Bear Program is a summer employment program for indigenous youth, age 16+, that combines culture and teachings with basic military training. The six-week program takes place from early July to mid-August at 5th Canadian Division Training Centre located in Oromocto, NB.
And get this, participants get paid $4,200! That’s a summer job you won’t find anywhere else. Meals and accommodations are provided while at the camp, and your transportation to and from Oromocto is covered too.
If you’re ready for a challenging experience that develops hands-on skills, encourages teamwork, improves physical fitness and promotes cultural awareness, get in touch with us to register for an upcoming information session.
Please contact Employment Coordinator Vickie MacDonald at vmacdonald@qalipu.ca
For more information, visit this link http://www.army-armee.forces.gc.ca/en/5-cdn-div-training-centre/aboriginal-programs.page
| Black Bear Program Information Sessions | ||
| Location | Date | Time |
| Qalipu Community Room at 1 Church Street, Corner Brook | January 21, 2019 | 6:00-7:00 PM |
| People of the Dawn Indigenous Friendship Centre, 90 Main Street, Stephenville | January 22, 2019 | 6:00-7:00 PM |
| Ktaqmkuk Mi’kmaq Museum, 183 Main Street, St. George’s | January 23, 2019 | 6:00-7:00 PM |
| Sinbad Hotel Boardroom, 133 Bennett Drive, Gander | January 24, 2019 | 2:00-3:00 PM |
| Qalipu Community Room, 28 Hardy Avenue, Grand Falls-Windsor | January 24, 2019 | 6:00-7:00 PM |
Respond to pollution events and contribute your skills to pollution response planning by working with the Canadian Coast Guard Environmental Response team this summer! Students who are hired as part of the Environmental Response Student Recruitment could find themselves headed toward full-time employment or participating in an entry level developmental program upon graduation. Find out more here
Gain real time experience in search and rescue operations and provide assistance to mariners in distress! Every summer, students are hired for the Inshore Rescue Boat Student Program. Here, students are trained in search and rescue operations, and are assigned as crew members to Inshore Rescue Boat stations. Find out more here
Find out more about the Canadian Coast Guard and please reference guidelines on How to Apply
The “Transitions to Work” program is a community partnership between the Qalipu First Nation’s Education & Training Department, the Gander Women’s Centre, and the Department of Advanced Education, Skills and Labour (AESL). The program will provide employment readiness training and supports for Non EI eligible women so that they can access entry level employment.
Participants to the program will hone their skills in problem solving and workplace communications, learn budgeting skills, benefit from career exploration through identifying personal strengths, and obtain workplace certificates such as First-Aid and WHIMIS.
If you or someone you know would be interested in participating in this program, please check out the poster below for more information.
Artist Panel: Resurgence and Media: Creative Practices in Indigenous Storytelling
Friday 30 November, 1-2:30 pm Grenfell Art Gallery
Featuring artists Douglas Walbourne-Gough, Logan MacDonald, Meagan Musseau, and Melissa Tremblett in discussion about their diverse practices in relation to the transmission and revitalization of Indigenous stories and experiences.
Visiting Opening and Artist Talk
Friday 30 November, 4:30-7 pm
As always, these events are free, and all are welcome!
Visiting reflects and unpacks indigenous/settler identity, pan-indigenous cross-cultural exchange, cultural revival, and queerness. Not to provide answers, but to explore endless possibilities that reflect the diversity of individual experiences. While mediating these experiences through installation, drawing and photography, these works contemplate the dynamics of community and belonging while negotiating access and viewership.
Visiting: Logan MacDonald is presented by Grenfell Art Gallery in collaboration with Identify: A Celebration of Indigenous Arts and Culture and Eastern Edge Artist-Run Centre. In this exhibition MacDonald looks at manipulated landscapes, earthworks, structures and signage established by Indigenous communities as a means to assert property against encroachment. These moments of intimacy and movement draw connections between body and land as both sites of colonization and resilience in queer and Indigenous people.
– Emily Critch, Curator
This is one of the 200 exceptional projects funded through the Canada Council for the Arts’ New Chapter program. With this $35M investment, the Council supports the creation and sharing of the arts in communities across Canada.
https://grenfell.mun.ca/campus-services/Pages/community/art-gallery/current-exhibition.aspx
World Children’s Day shines light on every child and their right to live in a world, safe from harm, where they are able to fulfill their full potential (UNICEF). In recognition of this special day, Qalipu First Nation’s Community Development team visited children at Stepping Stones Daycare, Corner Brook, to craft little shakers and sing songs. Smiles and music filled the room as children played their new instruments for the first time.
For more information about World Children’s Day, please visit
Qalipu First Nation is always looking for opportunities to participate in forums and discussions that advance the interests of our membership. We are often asked to sit on committees and boards to bring an Indigenous perspective to various issues. We are pleased to announce three recent appointments.
Tara Saunders, Tourism Development Officer, has recently been elected to the board of the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC). This national organization supports the growth of Indigenous tourism in Canada and addresses the demand for development and marketing of authentic Indigenous experiences. Tara has previously represented the Band on the provincial and atlantic ITAC advisory committees.
Sara Leah Hindy, Community Development Officer, has been appointed to the Newfoundland and Labrador Indigenous Education Advisory Committee. The committee is a working group of the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development, established to advance Indigenous education within the provincial K-12 school system and implement the recommendations outlined in the Premier’s Task Force on Improving Educational Outcomes.
Ralph Eldridge, Director of Community Development, has accepted an appointment as Director with Skills Canada Newfoundland and Labrador. Skills Canada’s mandate is to encourage and support a coordinated Canadian approach to promoting skilled trades and technologies to youth. The Board educates and encourages young Canadians to develop skills that address labour shortages and support Canada’s economic well-being.
Do you live in one of our Newfoundland Mi’kmaq communities such as Bay of Islands, Flat Bay, Burgeo, or Badger? Do you have roots in Port au Port, Exploits or Millertown?
Have you camped, hunted or travelled Newfoundland areas and have stories or pictures that you would like to share? Have you heard family stories about logging, guiding or fishing in Newfoundland?
We are collecting stories, pictures and information that we can add to our online interactive Mi’kmaq place names map.
Sharing knowledge through storytelling is a strong Mi’kmaq tradition that we continue today. By capturing some of these memories, and adding them to an online interactive map, we can preserve stories about the places that are special to us.
If you would like to share, please contact Nicole Travers at the following email: ntravers@qalipu.ca or tel. (709) 634-3856.
We also invite you to view our interactive Ktaqmkuk Mi’kmaq Place Names map of Newfoundland.
Would you like to save lives, assist in search and rescue missions, patrol Canadian waters, support scientific surveys, and help deal with pollution in our oceans? These are some of the functions of the Canadian Coast Guard and through their Officer Training Program (OTP), you can become a Ship’s Officer and join the Fleet.
The OTP provides training in Marine Engineering and Marine Navigation over a 45-month training period. Your education, text books, training costs, room and board are provided for, and participants are entitled to Federal Public Servant Benefits like medical, dental, vacation, pension and a monthly allowance.
The Qalipu Education and Training Department is committed to sharing opportunities that will help our members succeed and realize their full potential. The OTP looks like an exciting opportunity to train and work toward making a real difference on Canada’s waters. If this sounds interesting to you, find more information about the program here: http://www.cgc.gc.ca/
If this program isn’t for you, maybe something else is calling your name. Please, feel free to talk to us about our programs and services including wage subsidies, grad incentive programs, employment and training opportunities and education funding.
Find contact information for our team here: https://qalipu.ca/about/office-and-e-mail-addresses/ and follow us on Facebook to stay in the know on valuable information about your benefits, as well as current opportunities, and announcements.
On October 19, the Long-range Small Business Week Committee held their Annual Business Awards Dinner at the Caribou Curling Club in Stephenville. The sell-out event hosted many business owners/operators, along with industry stakeholders, to pay homage to their efforts throughout the past year. Qalipu First Nation is very active in providing business support to member businesses throughout our regions and, as such, are very proud to present an award to one Qalipu Business Network member each year from the Stephenville and surrounding area.
After careful consideration, this year’s Qalipu Business Network Award was presented to Cecil Ryan of Amgwes Safety Incorporated. Amgwes Safety Inc. is a certified NCSO / CSO safety management & consulting firm located in Stephenville. Mr. Ryan, owner/operator, of the firm and has over 34 years in the construction industry, with the last 20 of those heavily focussed on safety.
Mr. Ryan started his company 4 years ago. He said, “I anticipated 50 clients the first year, 100 the second and 150 during the third. Amgwes safety served 180 clients in the first year, 410 in the second and today has over 1000 from many different parts of the island.”
Mr. Ryan is a proud member of the Qalipu First Nations Band. The word Amgwes is a Mi’kmaq word that means first as in “First and Foremost”