Healing Fund program promotes youth leadership skills.
Many of the Plains, Dakota, and Nakota peoples have a sacred connection to the horse. For them, the horse holds immense cultural and spiritual significance, and its energy is a powerful catalyst for change.
The spirit of the horse was certainly present among Indigenous youth from Plains Presbytery in Saskatchewan Conference during the equine-assisted learning (EAL) program at Cartier Farms in Spruce Home, Saskatchewan, a Healing Fund project that’s also supported by Mission & Service. Ten young men participated in the week-long leadership program in July 2018. The tools and strategies the EAL facilitators and Traditional Knowledge Keepers used would help the young men grow into strong Indigenous adults.
By interacting with these incredible animals, the young men brought innovation, strength, and energy to everything they did at the farm. Despite the injustices that Indigenous youth face every day, the skills these young people took home helped them understand their place in the circle of life and equipped them with the inner resources to strengthen it.
The EAL program acknowledges the need to support young people as they deal with difficulties in life stemming from systemic racism and intergenerational trauma. For Indigenous youth, the trauma from colonial oppression continues to reverberate powerfully in their lives and circumstances. The impact from the Indian residential school system and other colonial practices is still felt today. The EAL program is a place for Indigenous youth to begin their healing.
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