An Innu Elder, mother and grandmother testified before the Inquiry Respecting Innu Children in Care yesterday.

Elizabeth Penashue, who has been widely recognized for her work in keeping Innu children connected to the land, their culture and history, wiped away tears as she described the pain she felt when she witnessed a child being removed from his parents by a social worker.

Speaking through an interpreter, Penashue says the incident affected her very deeply, and even the translators appeared emotional as she described the incident.

She says the child immediately wanted to return to his family and his mother.

She was so upset she called the department to ask whether the child could be returned to the family but was only told the child was doing alright.

Penashue recalled how happy and self-reliant the Innu were when they lived on the land in tents—before they were moved into houses. She lamented how much things have changed, and says she misses the way life used to be.

Other elders miss it too Penashue testified. She says they miss “seeing and hearing children that are healthy within their families.”

Story courtesy VOCM of news.

Sunday, February 19th of this year will be a special day for the Nain Moravian Church.

First, the Nain Moravian Church will be celebrating it’s Nain Moravian Church Anniversary Festival Day.

It will be Estomich Sunday; the start of the remembrance of Holy Week.

Church services will be as follows:

10am Church Anniversary Festival Day Address, 11am Estomich Sunday Address, 3pm Love Feast, 5pm closing service, and 7pm Holy Communion.

There has been a lot of issues about housing and medical flights along the coast for quite some time.

Lela Evans is the MHA for the Torngat Mountains District.

She says she’s been very busy dealing with the ongoing issue about the vacant housing units since she was elected in 2019.

She met with the Minister and says right now, there are 7 vacant houses in Nain and 3 in Hopedale that needs housing repairs.

The other issue she been dealing with is the medivacs for the North coast.

Click here to hear more from MHA Evans on these issues.

The Nain Moravian Church members held a meeting on Friday, February 3.

It was a good turnout of 14 members attending.

The main issue discussed was the Widows Traditional Day, where most of the chapel servants wanted the date changed to a warmer weather for all the widows, because the day is always been on the coldest winter months.

On that issue, all members agreed to the change and next year, the Widows Traditional Day will be held on the second week of May, which is on Mother’s Day.

With the new furnace installed, there was 4 oil drums used from this fall through Christmas and New Years before 9 drums was used. The Nain Moravians Church Members thanked Phil Rideout of Nain for installing the new furnace.

There was 4 people looked on at the Holy Communion Service on New Year’s evening at 7pm.

All north Consultants, in partnership with Norlogics, have been awarded the contract to complete the pre-feasibility study for the road into Northern Labrador.

Public comments will be accepted for consideration in this study until March 10 of this year.

For more information and/or to submit comments, please visit www.northcoastroad.ca.

The Winter Sports Meet is being held in Rigolet this year.

And it begins today and will be held until Saturday, February 10, 2023.

Here is the schedule:

The opening ceremony will be starting at 6pm followed by 5 games of Ball Hockey.

Tomorrow Friday at 7:45am, students will be arriving at school for breakfast and will have Cross Country Skiing at 8:30am.

Female Cross-country skiing will be at 9am, and male cross-country skiing at 10am.

Snow shoe races will start in front of the school at 12:30 until 1pm, and then complete hockey schedule will be from 1-5pm, and Northern games from 6:30-9pm at the school gym.

On Saturday, February 18 at 8am, students will again be arriving at the school for breakfast, followed by Labrathon walk through, and Labrathon starting at 10am.

Soccer will be starting at 12:30 until 4:30 at the ball field (tentative), and coaches will be meeting after soccer at the school.

The event will be closing off with a banquet at 6:30pm, and public will be allowed in after the athletes have eaten; they will then be presenting the awards.

Six people in the province have died from COVID-19 during the first few weeks of February.

That’s according to the latest numbers from the Provincial COVID dashboard, which covers the days from January 29 to February 11, 2023.

As well, 21 hospitalizations during that period, one of whom was admitted to the ICU.

Lab confirmed case counts remained low, with most days seeing no more than 10 new cases.

The one exception was on February 4, when 14 new cases were reported.

Just over 23 per cent of the eligible population is up to date on their vaccines.

Story Courtesy of the VOCM news.

The Makkovik Department of Health and Social Development (DHSD) are short staffed, but they are keeping the programs running.

Kim Andersen is the Team Leader.

She says every Tuesdays, they hold their Kid’s Club for grades kindergarten to grade 3, from 3pm to 4:15pm and again from 6:30 to 8:30pm, women have cross nights.

On Wednesdays, children in grade 4 to grade 6 have their Kid’s club program.

On February 19, teenagers from grade 7 to 12 have Diamond Dots at 6pm.

Adults have paint night with the Mental Health and Addictions worker, on Monday, February 20th at 6pm.

For Wednesday, February 22, there will be Adult Support Group at 6:30pm.

On February 23rd, there will be wellness for women and a spa night but all spots for the spa have been filled.

On February 26th, at 2pm, there’s Blast from the Past, there will be a film for people to watch as well as women’s movie night at 6pm.

The Inuit Community Government (ICG) in Makkovik are doing the best they can to keep their operations going.

Barry Andersen is the AngajukKâk.

Andersen says they’re still looking to hire a Recreation Director to help with programs with the recreation department.

The trail markers are also being prepared by two groomer operators and an assistant.

Click here to hear what else is on the go with the Makkovik ICG.

The workers in the Community Employment Enhancement Program (CEEP) in Nain are busy while the workers in Hopedale are done their hours.

Joe Dicker is the AngajukKâk for Nain.

Dicker says the program is still ongoing with four workers getting their hours.

One worker is doing craft work, while the other three are doing labor work around the community, like shoveling the doors of the Jeremias Sillitt Centre, the fire brigade, etc.

Dicker adds that the program will run until the workers have their hours done.

Marjorie Flowers is the AngajukKâk in Hopedale.

Flowers states that there are no workers in the CEEP program.

There were three workers, but they have their hours done and no one else have signed up to the program.