Roxanna Thompson
Northern News Services
Friday, April 13, 2007

FORT PROVIDENCE - Staff at the Fort Providence Residential School Society has been pinching every penny recently.

As of March 31, the society's only funding source was put on hold, forcing them to cut all remaining staff positions to half-time, said Joachim Bonnetrouge, the project's co-ordinator. The society relies on funding from the Aboriginal Healing Foundation for their healing project. The Aboriginal Healing Foundation, in turn, is waiting for money promised by the federal government to fund community-based initiatives like the one in Fort Providence.

Despite the lack of funding, Bonnetrouge remains positive.

"We're hanging in here," he said.

After being notified in June 2006 about the delay in the funding, the society spent the following months cutting costs by limiting travel and the delivery of workshops. Bonnetrouge said he's using the resulting surplus to try and keep the society running until more funding arrives.

The society is eight years-old and has received funding for the past six years for their healing project. The funds are used to deliver workshops throughout the year, hold the reunion of Sacred Heart students and provide counseling services for survivors of residential schools.

"There will be a bit of a hiccup in our contact with survivors," he said.

The office will be kept open even if it's on a minimal level, said Bonnetrouge. In the worst case scenario the answering service will be left on the phone.

In other communities in Canada where organizations have been forced to lay off project workers they've still come in to volunteer their time, said Bonnetrouge. He hopes something similar will happen in Fort Providence.

The society's staff normally includes the co-ordinator, an administrative clerk and two fieldwork counsellors, in Fort Simpson and Hay River. The counsellor in Hay River resigned three weeks ago after both counsellors were reduced to half-time in January.

Even if there's no program funding left, the annual reunion will still be held in August, he said.

The society may have to wait until mid-October or November to see more funds.

The Aboriginal Healing Foundation has been given a five-year commitment for $125 million from the federal government. The money, however, is tied to the settlement package for residential school survivors, said Wayne Spear, the director of communications for the foundation.

At this point mid September is the time when the money is expected to flow for both the common experience payments and other organizations, said Spear. Because the foundation has to sign a funding agreement with the government, it will take a further month until they receive their funding, Spear said.

If the settlement is passed and the funding is received, Spear said it would be quickly moved to the community projects. The foundation currently funds nine projects in the territory.