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September 2024

Native Child and Family Services of Toronto Hosts 27th Annual Community Pow Wow

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Toronto, ON – Monday, September 16, 2024 – Native Child and Family Services of Toronto (NCFST) is excited to announce the 27th Annual Community Pow Wow, taking place on Saturday, September 28th, at Dufferin Grove Park. This vibrant annual community event will bring together nearly 2,000 people for a full day of Indigenous culture, dancing, drumming, singing, and more.

Attendees can explore an Indigenous artisan market, participate in children’s activities, and witness the special Commemorative Red Jingle Dress ceremony, which holds significant meaning in the community. The day will also include a feast open to everyone, celebrating unity and culture.

Join us in honoring Indigenous traditions and community spirit at this free, family-friendly event.

Event Details:

  • Date: Saturday, September 28, 2024
  • Time: 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
  • Location: Dufferin Grove Park, 875 Dufferin Street, Toronto, M6H 3K8


About Native Child and Family Services of Toronto

Native Child and Family Services of Toronto is a multi-service urban Indigenous agency providing holistic, culture-based programs and services for Indigenous children and families in the Greater Toronto Area and Peel region. NCFST strives to provide a life of quality, well-being, healing, and self-determination for children and families in the Toronto urban Indigenous community. We do this by implementing a service model that is culture-based and respects the values of Indigenous people, the extended family and the right to self-determination.  To learn more about NCFST, please click here.

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February 2023

Check out this Bursary Available for Former Youth in Care!

Storwell Provides an Annual $2,000 Bursary for Former Foster Children and Youth in Care Seeking Post-Secondary Education

In an attempt to assist foster children and youth in care who struggle to afford post-secondary studies, Storwell has developed the Storwell Foster Children Bursary Program. There are over 63,000 children and youth living in permanent care with foster families, group homes, or in kinship care across Canada, with Indigenous children representing over 50% of all children in foster care. These children often experience difficulties gaining access to adequate education opportunities, especially when it comes to post-secondary education. For every one thousand youths in Canadian foster care, only eight go on to graduate with a post-secondary education.

One of the largest barriers to entry for children in foster care is the financial burden that comes along with post-secondary education. The objective of the Storwell Foster Children Bursary Program is to provide foster children and youth in care with resources and opportunities that might be otherwise unavailable to them. With the proper support, these students can work towards building a better life for themselves through the pursuit of higher education.

Storwell Self Storage is a premium self-storage company with locations across the GTA. Along with providing accessible and affordable storage units in Toronto, Scarborough, and Mississauga, Storwell is also devoted to helping out the local community by supporting various social initiatives. Students who fulfill the eligibility criteria are encouraged to apply HERE!

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August 2022

Decolonizing Child Welfare Webinar Learning Series #6 – August 23, 2022

Webinar #6 of our Decolonizing Child Welfare Learning Series focuses on the services we offer when vulnerable children must be removed from unsafe circumstances and placed in alternative care. In this webinar, we address some of the most crucial questions arising from the experience of Indigenous children and families with colonial child welfare systems.

  • How do we meet the holistic needs of children and youth placed in care? What are the dimensions that guide us?
  • How do we work alongside the Alternative caregivers to guide them, in helping our children and youth who are placed in their homes?
  • How do we work to keep children connected with culture, family and community while they are in care?
  • How do we work to keep children to family, extended family and community and culture?

Please join us to explore the programs, resources we use, and the challenges we face as we work to help children to heal and stay connected to family, community and culture.

This event has passed, please find the recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M00RnANQRR0

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May 2022

Decolonizing Child Welfare Webinar Learning Series #5 – June 28, 2022

Webinar #5 of our Decolonizing Child Welfare Learning Series focuses on Holistic Healing, Prevention and Early Intervention programs.

NCFST offers a wide array of programs available to children, youth, individuals and families open to all self-identifying community members, whether or not a child welfare file is currently open. Holistic programs seek to empower families to access resources and supports that can avert crises that may necessitate child welfare, and to support Youth in strengthening resilience and personal growth in contemporary cultural contexts.

In this webinar, we describe how our culturally grounded holistic healing and early intervention services work to provide the necessary resources and supports to families to prevent the need for Child and Family Wellbeing (child welfare) involvement or help families succeed so that time involved in child welfare services is minimized. Please join us to learn how our services can work together and can work with external Indigenous and mainstream services to strengthen parents and children at risk of involvement in child welfare services or who are already working with child welfare services as part of their healing journey.

This event has passed, please find the recording: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1mziO-41Uc

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Red Dress Commemorative Art Project – Virtual Reveal Event

In honour of National Day of Awareness for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls and Two-Spirit People (MMIWG2S), NCFST revealed the Red Dress Commemorative Art Project in a virtual presentation. This Art Project was created to honour the lives of MMIWG2S through the facilitation of virtual “Bead In” community engagement sessions. These “Bead In” sessions were guided with cultural teachings and beading instructions along with a variety of guest speakers who each shared their own experiences, stories, and ways of healing trauma through art.

Participants created two beaded red dresses: one red dress was beaded to keep in honour of #MMIWG2S and to memorialize a family member or friend, and the second beaded red dress was given to #NCFST to contribute towards a community art exhibit, including a photobook, that will become a living legacy of their artistic expressions. 

Chi-miigwetch (Thank you) to the Women and Gender Equality Canada (WAGE) for their support with this project and many thanks to our Support Staff, Elders, Knowledge Carriers, Beading Facilitator, and all the Guest Speakers. This community art exhibit will continue to honour our lost loved ones and raise further awareness of MMIWG2S.

Watch this video to hear teachings, impact stories, ways to navigate trauma, as well as ways to increase #MMIWG2S+ awareness.

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