Building Bridges with Indigenous Communities in Winnipeg
Last year, The Salvation Army’s Centre of Hope in Winnipeg launched a three-year strategic plan to better respond to the city’s needs. A major part of this was to build stronger relationships with Indigenous communities. It’s all about collaboration, listening and committing to truth and reconciliation.
The first step was bringing Corinne Peterkin in as the organization’s Indigenous liaison. Corinne, a survivor of the Sixties Scoop and someone with a background in Indigenous studies, became a key voice guiding this effort.
“We wanted three things—to develop relationships with outside Indigenous organizations, to be there for program participants and to give culturally appropriate training to staff,” Corinne shares.
The Salvation Army now has board seats with 2Spirit Manitoba, an Indigenous 2SLGBTQ+ group and Sixties Scoop Manitoba, which supports survivors of the practice of removing Indigenous children into non-Indigenous families. These aren’t just symbolic connections, but actual collaboration.
“We wanted three things—to develop relationships with outside Indigenous organizations, to be there for program participants and to give culturally appropriate training to staff.”
Since Corinne’s appointment, The Salvation Army has supported Indigenous-led cultural and memorial events by providing food and drinks when needed.
Inside the Centre of Hope, one of the more unique projects is the creation of a medicine garden, an initiative that honours traditional Indigenous healing practices and serves as a way to build community.
“Whenever we have an excess of plants, we will be sharing them with other organizations. It’s a nice neighbourly thing to do. And to be honest, I think it helps build stronger community relationships,” Corinne adds.
They’re also launching Iskwewak Mamawi (women together/gathering), which will serve as a meeting space for female participants and programming such as sharing circles, beading workshops and drumming sessions—activities that not only celebrate culture but also offer healing.
“This is a good step towards reconciliation. We hope to do a lot more healing-focused initiatives, making meaningful change within the sector to make it more welcoming to Indigenous people,” Corinne says.
Staff education is another key part of the plan. Rather than relying on structured training sessions, Corinne prefers a more casual approach.
“If you have an interpersonal conversation, chances are you’re going to take more things away from it than if you’re in a classroom,” she says. “When you explain cultural practices, connections are made and it’s demystified.”
For Corinne, this work is deeply personal.
“It’s a real honour and a big responsibility to be part of this. Because I am a Sixties Scoop survivor, I didn’t grow up within the culture. It has been a great journey learning and sharing my culture and spirituality.”
By Juan Romero
