The doors to a new childcare facility have officially opened in Deh Gáh Got’îê First Nation (Fort Providence) this week.
The children’s centre is called the Gotsų Margaret Vandell, Nezų Ts’ųdaa K’éodhı́h Gok’é GóɁǫ which means Elder Margaret Vandell, place of good child care.
Vandell is celebrated for her contributions to community, especially youth. Back in 2016, Vandell was a recipient of the Governor General’s Academic Medal for her work in Deh Gáh Elementary and Secondary School.
Deh Gáh Got’îê First Nation drummers opened with a prayer song.
(Photo courtesy of Lorraine Whiteman)
“That’s so cool that I could work in a building that’s named after my grandma,” says Erin Sullivan, daycare manager and granddaughter to Margaret.
“It’s a big responsibility,” she says, “I hope that I could live up to her, like her teachings and how she impacted the community.”
Sullivan says she taught her how to sow, make slippers and bannock together— something she hopes to one day bring to the program.
As part of the grand opening, a portrait of Vandell was unveiled to depict the diversity and richness of Dene culture.
A commissioned piece of Margaret Vandell was done by an Elder in the community. (Photo courtesy of Lorraine Whiteman)
In the sign three symbols can be found to represent all Indigenous peoples in the community; a fiddle to represent the Métis, a pair of slippers for the Dene and an ulu for the Inuit.
The image is said to be placed on the daycare door as a reminder “to keep the culture alive within the children.”
She says this program will give children some structure, “they could build confidence learning to play with others, learn manners, how to sit at a table nicely and have snacks and just develop sharing skills.”
“I see parents struggling; like younger, teen moms that are still in school and I really hope they bring their children so they could go and finish and have a better life for their children,” she says.
“But I’m just excited for something new in our community,” she adds.
After a tour of the facility, people gathered in the Community Hall to honour Vandell with a feast. (Photo courtesy of Pearl Leishman)
“We really needed a daycare center,” says Joyce McLeod, lead program coordinator for Aboriginal Head Start. The Aboriginal Head Start in Urban and Northern Communities program focuses on early childhood development for Indigenous Peoples living off reserve.
And with the roll-out of the $10 a day subsidy, McLeod says, “will make a difference to the young parents because they can afford it.”
McLeod says the program has come full circle, assisting multiple generations, “the number of children who have passed through the program, some of them are young adults, and they have children and now those children are coming into the program.”
Early on she noticed that services for young children, newborn to two years old, were missing in her community.
Especially since the last childcare facility had to close its doors due to staffing issues.
“Families need a facility,” she says,” so that way they can bring their children to the daycare center, and they can leave the children in the program without having to worry about them.”
One day, McLeod hopes to have a central location to house most of the programs supported by Aboriginal Head Start. This includes a daycare, wellness centre, administration as well as friendship centre.
Currently, three children are registered out of a total of 12 spots.
(Photo courtesy of Pearl Leishman)
