Newfoundland and Labrador reported one death due to COVID-19 over the last week period, according to the government’s pandemic dashboard.

That brings the total to 340 people who have died because of the virus since the pandemic started in March of 2020.

The person was 80 years old or older and living in the Eastern Region of the province.

The province also reported 17 new hospitalizations over the last two-week span.

One of those people is in critical care.

Courtesy CBC News.

After 2 years, the Labrador Aboriginal Training Partnership is finally up and running to offer training again soon.

Leah Blake is the new worker with LATP.

She says there is a training program coming up in June and is looking for 12 people to do the training.

There is an open house today until 4pm; they will be taking names for anyone who would be interested in doing any training.

Click here to hear the interview with Blake on her new position with LATP.

The 36th annual Hopedale RCMP Volleyball tournament was another success this year.

We spoke with one of the organizers, Jacqueline Dicker.

Dicker says the tournament was held from Friday April 21 and finished on Sunday April 23 at 2pm.

This year they had 16 teams registered; teams from Nain, Natuashish, Makkovik, Postville and Hopedale.

Here are the winners for this year:

1st place for the female division was “hips don’t lie” 2nd team were Pringles, and for the male division for the Men’s team were the “Holy Mack” team from Nain, and the “Attackers” team from Hopedale.

She adds that the Most Valuable Player for the male division was Curtis Dicker from Nain, the Most Valuable Player for the female team went to Michelle Nochasak from Makkovik, the Most Sportsmanlike Male went to Jaden Rich of Natuashish, and the Most Sportsman Female went to Ashley Abel from Hopedale.

This year’s prizes were t-shirts for 1st place winning teams, a gold medal and a trophy, and the second-place winners won medals.

Despite warnings from Canada’s Chief science observer, that long COVID could be a “mass disabling event,” it remains unclear whether Newfoundland and Labrador government or authority has any plans to address the condition.

What is clear is that it’s affecting thousands of people in the province, says infectious disease’s researcher Tara Moriarty.

She says it’s likely that so far, somewhere between 15,000 and 20,000 people in the province developed COVID symptoms in December 2021 that have lasted longer than three months.

“We’re still looking at a really substantial number of people in Newfoundland and Labrador who probably developed COVID-19 in the last year or so,” said Moriarty, who leads an organization called COVID-19 Resource Canada, which provides a weekly forecast about the risk of COVID-19 in different regions.

The health authority has refused to talk to CBC news about what is any, treatment plans for long COVID it has.

“While the department sets provincial priorities and strategic objectives for the health system in Newfoundland and Labrador, the provincial health authority, now known as NLHS, is directly responsible for the operational administration and delivery of health services,” reads the Department of Health’s statement.

The NunatuKavut Community Council is stressing the importance of having Indigenous voices inform climate change research.

Members of the NCC were in New York City over the past week for the United Nations Forum on Indigenous Issues.

The NCC addressed the forum on the massive impacts climate change is having on northern Indigenous communities.

Dr. Amy Hudson, Governance and Strategic Planning Lead and Associate Negotiator with the NCC, says in their communities, they are rapidly seeing the disappearance of sea ice.

She says in many communities, sea ice is a “highway”, connecting them to traditional lands, food, and knowledge.

Hudson stresses the need to have representation in government decisions.

She says researchers and scientists are saying that Indigenous voices, experiences, and research is increasingly important to respond to climate change.

The TaKuaKautik is a volunteer based, community lead food bank in Nain Nunatsiavut.

The TaKuaKautik is available to anyone in need, with one bag per family, and are open once a month, on the last Thursday of the month.

This month’s distribution will be held tomorrow Thursday, April 27, 2023.

Distribution of food bags will be from 5-8pm at the red warehouse on Sitsik Street.

Orders must be made for food bags in advance; to place an order, place your name in the blue boxes at the Post Office.

They accept orders up to two days before distribution.

Please note that they accept any monetary and food donations.

Please keep an eye out for updates, fundraisers, and volunteer opportunities.

The Research Project is seeking parents in Nain to participate in an interview on Housing insecurity and the welfare of families in Nunatsiavut.

Christina Goldhar is a PhD Student in Geography and Planning at Queen’s University.

She is conducting a research project called “An Interrogation of the housing crisis in Nunatsiavut and Nunavut, outcomes for women, children and families” for her PhD degree.

This project in being completed with the support of the Nunatsiavut Government. A similar study is also being conducted in Nunavut.

This study seeks to better understand connections between the housing crisis in Nunatsiavut and the welfare needs of families.

Interviews will take up to one hour and may be conducted in English or Inuktitut. All participants will be compensated for their time with a $50 gift card for Northern, and only one interview will be conducted per household.

If you are a parent in the community and you are interested in participating, please drop by the Nunatsiavut Government Administration Building from 8:30am-4pm, Monday-Friday to register your interview.

Interviews will be held until Thursday, May 4th; evening and weekend timeslots are also available.

You can also call 709-922-2942 or message Christina on their Facebook page “Housing and welfare, Nunavut and Nunatsiavut” to register.

There were many Inuit travelling to the St. John’s Harbour (kangitluasuk) Base Camp in summer of 2017.

When re-visiting the trips north of Nain, it’s interesting to hear of the events that took place.

Late John Jararuse was an Inuk elder from Nain.

He says he attended the visit up north, and told stories of the name places, and the way of life in the past up there.

Click here to hear late Jararuse’s story from 2017.

The 2nd Annual William Tuglavina Memorial Volleyball Tournament will be held in June this year.

There will be women’s and Mens Divisions, with a minimum of 5 players and a maximum of 7 players.

The 2nd annual William Tuglavina Volleyball tournament will be held in Hopedale from June 9 to June 10, 2023.

You can now register your teams by June 7 at 4pm; the registration fee is $30 per player, and you must be ages 14 and up.

For more information, you can visit their Facebook page, 2nd Annual William Memorial.

May 5 is Red Dress Day, the National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and 2SLGBTQQIA+ people.

Come out to the JS Centre on May 5th from 12-5pm to honor and celebrate the lives of the MMIWG who are no longer with us.

There will be tables set up for Red Dress Seal Skin Brooch and Red Dress ornament making as well as craft table for kids.

A memorial table will be set up, so if you would like to have a picture displayed, you can email it to catherine.mitsuk@nunatsiavut.com.

An elder and/or people will be available on site for individual support.

Subway will also be served at lunch time, and will conclude the day with a memorial walk.