Indigenous-led non-profit organization launched in Lethbridge – Lethbridge | The Canadian News

Now a teepee has been created at Park Place Mall to launch a new organization in southern Alberta.

Mark Brave Rock of the Sage Clan Patrol said the teepee is a symbol of home.

“This teepee is for hope and this is our house, so let’s create a better house, it’s not that it’s bad, but it can be improved.”

The nonprofit We Will Recover offers addiction support services to the community. Lori Vrebosch is the founding director of the indigenous-led, Lethbridge-based organization and said it is a much-needed service to the area.

Part of the launch is hosting their first big event, Napi’s Gift, a campaign that focuses on bringing organizations together to bring education and awareness to the surrounding community.

“We are here to help provide support and recovery in these dark times in an area that has been so incredibly hit and that stretches from the Piikani Nation, the Blood Tribe, to the Lethbridge community,” added Vrebosch.

Shannon Eagle Speaker knows firsthand the deadly effects of opioid addiction. His lesson on loss due to opioids began in 2019.

“I lost two sons, ages 14 and 19, to my mother in December and this is 2021 and we are still dealing with opioids. I have a 16-year-old son who got into them. “

Eagle Speaker hopes that increased awareness like Napi’s Gift will help continue to build recovery supports for the communities and families that need it most.

“I can’t go through this again. I can’t bury a third child. I don’t want to bury a third child. “

Napi’s Gift will run for 18 days at Park Place Mall. It will include educational and awareness displays, recovery support services and fundraising activities.

Several organizations are making the event possible, including Piikani Nation Band Council, Sage Clan Patrol, Lethbridge Chapter of the Crazy Indian Brotherhood, Lethbridge Overdose Prevention Society, Mom Stop the Harm, and McMan Youth & Family Community Services Association.

For more information you can visit the We will recover website.