Saskatoon Healing Camp

Chris Martell, In 2010 I lost a child in foster care and for past 8 years I’ve had it hard dealing with the death of my son where I developed PTSD. After many bouts with mental illness I tried a first nations approach to healing myself by talking about it in a open circle with friends and family and going back to traditional teachings and lifestyle. Lynn Thompson is the founder of Original 60s scoup survivors group and a social justice activist with many other groups along with Darla Fourstar a 60s scoup and foster care survivor and foster care activist. I went to set up a tipi camp at Saskatoon Victoria Park and called it Healing for Justice and applied for 10 day permits to hold this camp and I invited the public to join us for traditional native American healing practices and culture and tipi teachings to help others deal with trauma and mental health. The feedback was great and the demand was enormous we had over 250 people attend our sharing circles and touched so many trauma and people with pain so much it grew so big we struggled with financing the camp. We had people come and say they loved the positive atmosphere and culture. Families and parents with children came daily to be around the tipis and camp and we fed everyone for free and did traditional songs and dancing and teachings everyday and closed the day off with 3 to 4 hours sharing circles. It was a success with local and provincial governments workers and officials praising the camp and local city of Saskatoon it’s people and the city itself and the Saskatoon police where all but more then a support they where excellent to work with. This was 100% all grassroots movement and we are now fundraising for the next camp which will be located in the inner city of Saskatoon and we will be partnering with local organizations to make this more logistically possible and sustainable but also help more people who are living in core areas of Saskatoon who where effected by foster care or 60s scoop or residential school. By using these local organizations supports and the teachings of a traditional setting in Aboriginal culture and using a sacred talking circle we can help those just like it helped me and Darla Fourstar with our trauma and PTSD Healing journey for Lynn Thompson . We plan on opening the new camp August 23rd 2018 till September 4th 2018 then annually after that. We are 100% grassroots and relay on donated items and food for daily activities etc. We would like to purchase 2 tipis and the Poles and  equipment bedding and tobacco and funds set aside for cultural type events and teachings also we need to pay for permits and liability insurance. We want to purchase all these items and use it for future annual healing camps and we need help raising funds to help keep the camp going through the 60 days planned.
http://thestarphoenix.com/news/local-news/healing-camp-for-justice-leaves-victoria-park-looks-to-the-future