Join the Nation Child and Family Team as we present to Chief & Council and language speakers with the neqsiltet Family Declaration.

The neqsiltet Family Declaration was developed by elders and knowledge keepers, who worked together to support the Nation’s families to revitalize aspects of our sqilxʷ/syilx/sʔukʷnaqínx ways of being and knowing.

*Lunch will be provided!

Open to All Syilx Nation Members & Community Members

The Syilx Nation would like to invite you to join us for a ceremony to honour and pray for styíłc̓aʔ (caribou).

No registration required – see poster for more details!

We are pleased to announce that ONA is providing free LivingWorks Start Suicide Prevention Training for Syilx Nation members & front-line staff to be completed individually online, at your own pace.

LivingWorks Start teaches valuable skills to everyone 13 and older and requires no formal training or prior experience in suicide prevention. The training is approximately 90 minutes and teaches trainees to recognize when someone is thinking about suicide and connect them to help and support.

– Open to Syilx Nation Members (ages 13 and up) and/or Syilx Nation Front-line Staff
– Space is limited to 30 spots – so all participants must register.
– Trainees must commit to aftercare follow up with one the following ONA Staff Members
Kim Montgomery, Mental Health Lead
Charlotte Whitehead, ONRT Senior Coordinator
Tanya MacKeigan, Mental Health & Addictions Specialist

Okanagan Nation Alliance would like to send out holiday wishes and a gift card to our eldest in the Nation, ages 75 and over.

Please join us to discuss the development of a framework including tangible, actionable items to create a space and service provision that is safe, inclusive, and affirming for all of our Syilx 2SLGBTQIA+ relatives

Lunch and gas cards will be provided | Open to Syilx Youth ages 16-30 yrs.

UPDATED LOCATION: We will now be meeting at the ONA Wellness Boardroom – #107-2370 Bering Road, Westbank BC (at the far right of the building)

*Please Note: By order of the PHO, proof of vaccination will be required to attend our in-person events. Starting September 13, you must have at least one dose of a COVID-19 vaccine. By October 24, you must be fully vaccinated. For more info: https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/vaccine/proof

This event is subject to change or cancellation due to COVID-19.

This course offers an Indigenous-focused, trauma-informed and mindfulness-based approach to baseline skills on responding to sexual violence disclosures.

Participants will learn to:
– Understand Indigenous culturally relevant practices
– How multiple identities, social locations and historical contexts inform responses to sexual violence disclosures
– How self-knowledge and self-care are mandatory for the responder.

Open to Okanagan Nation Members, Community Members and/or Okanagan Nation front-line wellness and health staff who are working with people harmed by sexual violence.

Space is limited to 12 spots – so all participants must register.

*Trainees can expect up to 1 hour of homework each day, for three days. Homework may include reading, watching videos, reflective writing (journaling), and self-care activities.

This year’s conference will focus on the history of the Columbia River Treaty and the treaty review process now underway. The conference framework will emphasize social and environmental justice, collaboration towards the common good, and the need for truth and reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples, and healing the river.

To learn more about One River, Ethics Matter, please visit: https://riverethics.org/

Conference Program

All conference sessions will be presented virtually (via Zoom)

Some sessions will be treaty-specific and include discussions on ethics and the human relationship to water, while others will focus on broader, related topics such as:

• Foundational ethical relationships and responsibilities between humans and water, within an Indigenous worldview and Judeo-Christian teachings and practice
• History of the dam-building era and impacts of pervasive systemic racism, including missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls, and residential schools
• Indigenous food sovereignty and restoring ntytyix (salmon) to the Okanagan and Upper Columbia river
• Rivers as our responsibility; moving forward together into a sustainable future

This meeting will host discussions and dialogue for Syilx hunters to share knowledge, concerns, and be informed of hunting related issues in the Nation. These meetings will be an open forum for discussion and information sharing.

Open to all Syilx Nation Members.

Join us in raising awareness around suicide prevention. Come learn more by participating in the upcoming activities and workshops on promoting mental well-being and suicide prevention.

We will be hosting giveaways, sharing resources, and raising awareness leading up to World Suicide Prevention Day on September 10th!

The You Empowered Strong Program in partnership with Archway Society and Legal Aid BC would like to invite you to our information session to learn about Legal Aid BC and the community Partner Program.

This session will provide information on Legal Aid BC’s roles in community, and how to navigate the Legal Aid process.

Open to Syilx Nation members, community members, and community partners

safeTALK is a one-day training that provides tools to identify persons with thoughts of suicide and connect them to resources.  safeTALK is an internationally recognized workshop developed by Living Works Education.

Most people with thoughts of suicide don’t truly want to die, but are struggling with the pain in their lives. Through their words and actions, they invite help to stay alive. safeTALK-trained helpers can recognize these invitations and take action by connecting them with life-saving intervention resources, such as caregivers trained in ASIST.

All participants MUST be 15 +
Open to Okanagan Nation Community Members and Employees

When Love Hurts: Responding to Violence

Join us for a one-day workshop to learn more about the When Love Hurts model and practice to support women who are experiencing abuse from a partner. We will explore how to use four essential exercises to help women name, understand and heal from their experiences of abuse from a partner. We will look at how research and women’s narratives link substance use and/or mental health concerns with women’s experiences of abuse, and learn about the benefits of offering violence-informed, low barrier and harm reduction approaches to best support women and their children.

This workshop will shatter myths and change perspectives about violence and allow individuals to more equipped to support, while also acknowledging gaps in services and the importance of coming together as a community.

Open to Syilx Okanagan Nation and Community Members

When Love Hurts Workshop Poster

About the Facilitator:

Jill Cory is an author, speaker and trainer. She has committed her career to supporting women with experiences of abuse and advocating for systemic changes. Jill has worked as a frontline support worker and developed a group support program for women who have experienced abuse. For nearly 2 decades, Jill worked at BC Women’s Hospital, and led action research to understand the links between woman abuse, substance use and mental health concerns. She is co-author with Karen McAndless-Davis of the book “When Love Hurts” which is used by women’s organizations across North America and is a tool for women to understand abuse and find healing. Their recent publication, When Love Hurts: Best Practices Guide and Curriculum for Supporting Women with Experiences of Abuse is now available as a support for professionals.

Open to Syilx Okanagan Nation and Community Members

Calling all Syilx survivors, families, drummers to Caravan in unity to the Kamloops Indian Residential School In Honour of the 215 children that never made it home.

No registration required. 

KIRS Convoy Poster – June 26

CARAVAN TIMES & START LOCATIONS
The time listed below is the time that vehicles should be departing. Please arrive 20-30 mins prior to that time.

SOUTH OKANAGAN EVENTS CENTRE | 9:00 AM
853 Eckhardt Ave W, Penticton, BC

WESTBANK FIRST NATION OFFICE | 9:50 AM
515 Hwy 97 South Kelowna BC

VERNON OKANAGAN COLLEGE CAMPUS | 10:50 AM
7000 College Way, Coldstream, BC

PULLOUT BETWEEN MONTE LAKE & MONTE CREEK | 12:00 PM
Top of the hill before descending to HWY 1 from BC-97, Thompson-Nicola L, BC

KAMLOOPS INDIAN RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL | 12:30 PM
330 Chief Alex Thomas Way, Kamloops BC

CEREMONY AT KAMLOOPS INDIAN RESIDENTIAL SCHOOL | 1:00 PM