Eagle Lake, SLFNHA and KDSB sign agreement for healing lodge

EAGLE LAKE – A First Nation near Dryden has embarked on a journey to fulfill a “vision of building a healing lodge that is based on culture and family.”

Eagle Lake First Nation, Sioux Lookout First Nations Health Authority (SLFNHA) and the Kenora District Services Board (KDSB) signed a memorandum of understanding last week to eventually build a regional healing lodge on Eagle Lake land.

Once completed, the healing lodge will provide mental health support services with a specific focus on drug and alcohol treatment for people from the 33 First Nation communities served by SLFNHA.

A news release from SLFNHA said the facilities “will provide space for healing from intergenerational trauma and its deep-rooted effects. The goals are to see healing through the treatment of addictions, mental health challenges, and restoring families. This will be achieved through a culture-based family approach to healing.”

Eagle Lake Chief Bernadette Wabange said a lakeside site has been selected and the design process is underway, but it will be a few years before the lodge is up and running.

The project will fulfill “a longtime vision of building a healing lodge that is based on culture and family to support healing and wellness,” she said.

“We have been wanting to do this for our community but also to share and support other communities in the region,” she said. “This partnership will allow us to realize this vision.”

For the KDSB, “it’s a real opportunity to support a community with a great vision, a really good program,” said Henry Wall, the KDSB’s chief administrative officer.

“And the location the community has for this program, it’s beautiful,” he added. “You can just tell it’s going to work quite well.

“The support and healing our communities need will require communities and organizations working together to create a continuum of care . . . that provides wrap-around supports, has post-treatment programs and is community and culturally driven,” Wall said.

“The KDSB is excited to announce our partnership with Eagle Lake First Nation and Sioux Lookout First Nations Health Authority. Through this work and partnership, we will have a partnership that other communities can model after.”

Sonia Isaac-Mann, SLFNA’s chief executive officer, said the agency is “committed to bringing services closer to home and developing approaches to healing that are grounded in the culture, tradition and values of the communities.”

The memorandum of understanding signed June 26 establishes a collaborative partnership to plan and develop a “family residential healing lodge.”

SLFNHA chief operating officer Janet Gordon said the healing lodge will serve all of the health authority’s region, which includes Eagle Lake as well as communities as far north as Fort Severn.

Funding and design have not been finalized but are well underway, Gordon said, adding that the location is “a beautiful site.”

Mike Stimpson, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Thunder Bay Source