Today in History
January 4 In 2007, the Anglican Church of Canada introduced Mark MacDonald as its first indigenous bishop. In 2022, Ottawa officially announced it had reached an agreement in principle with First Nations partners to compensate children harmed by its underfunding of child welfare. The federal Liberal government said that of the $40 billion earmarked to resolve the matter, $20 billion would be designated for compensation and the rest would be spent on reforming the system over five years. In 2023, Canada marked the first National Ribbon Skirt Day, after a bill to recognize the event every Jan. 4 passed in Parliament late the previous year. It was inspired by a 10-year-old girl who wore a ribbon skirt to her rural Saskatchewan school in December 2020. Isabella Kulak wore the colourful...
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UNDER THE NORTHERN SKY: Mike Was A Beacon Of Love And Friendship
By Xavier Kataquapit www.underthenorthernsky.com I lost the love of my life Michael McGrath this past Sunday December 28, 2025. He was a bright light that shone for so many people in our families but also in a circle of friends that seemed to span the world. Mike was born and raised in Iroquois Falls into a grand Irish Canadian family that originated from the Ottawa valley. His mother Emily McGrath imparted in him her kind and gentle spirit and his grandmother Margaret Dunn, whom everyone knew as Granny, guided and influenced his life. Their home was centred around the family piano where Mike and his sister Patty were serenaded from birth by their aunts Celia, Rita, Sara and Tessie. Their family then grew to include Celia’s husband Johnny Mercier; Rita’s...
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Animal Nation series premieres on January 8 on APTN
By Sam Laskaris Writer Jesse Bochner continues to have a passion for nature documentaries. But instead of just watching them now, Bochner, a member of Roseau River Anishinabe First Nation in Manitoba, has helped create what he hopes will become a hit series. Bochner is a writer, director and producer of Animal Nation, a seven-part series that will be aired weekly on the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN), starting on Jan. 8. “I’ve always loved documentaries,” said Bochner, who is 54 and lives in Montreal. “And as a kid, nature documentaries were definitely one of my favourite things. So, I’ve always been interested and eager to work on an animal nature documentary.” Each episode of Animal Nation is titled after a keynote species. The inaugural episode is titled Bear. Following...
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Local coaches named assistants for Haudenosaunee Nationals men’s field lacrosse program
By Sam Laskaris Writer Vince Longboat has been given another opportunity to win some more hardware at an international men’s field lacrosse tournament. Longboat had served as an assistant coach for the Haudenosaunee Nationals who captured the bronze medal at the 2023 world tourney, held in the California city of San Diego. It was announced in late December that Longboat has also been named as a coach for the Haudenosaunee club, expected to participate at the 2027 world championships in the Japanese capital of Tokyo. Another Six Nations member, Jason Johnson, has also been named as an assistant coach for the squad. A total of six individuals were chosen to be part of the Haudenosaunee coaching staff. “I think it’s going to be a good thing,” Longboat said. “We’ve got...
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Sports headline makers from 2025
By Sam Laskaris Writer Six Nations athletes and teams had their share of success during the past 12 months. And no doubt there will be plenty of local sporting achievements that will be heralded this year. Until then, it’s worth taking a look back at some of those athletic headline makers in The Turtle Island News from 2025. A closer look at five of these headline makers is below. Five others will be profiled in the Jan. 14 edition. In no particular order, the first five headline makers from the past year are: JOHN MONTURE JR. The Six Nations member captured the men’s title at the Indigenous Ontario Golf Championship. The tournament, held in August, was staged at the MontHill Golf & Country Club in Caledonia. For Monture Jr., it...
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Six Nations Skating Club raises $18,000 in sales in 50/50 draw
A $9,000 winning smile! The Six Nations Skating club was the big winner in their 50-50 draw held over the holidays raising over $18,000. But the largest smiles came when club president Rhonda Skye gave the biggest ticket seller Artie Martin and his wife Shyla (pictured) a nice $9.067.57 holiday prize! His wife Shyla accepted the prize. (Photo by Jim C. Powless)...
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RCMP break into Chief Allan Adam’s home on Christmas
By Jeremy Appel, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Alberta Native News (ANNews) – Chief Allan Adam of Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation was in Fort Chipewyan celebrating Christmas with his family when he learned the Wood Buffalo RCMP had broken into his home. Adam told Alberta Native News that on Christmas Day, the Mounties broke down the front door of his house, tore into a ceremonial drum that was gifted to him from the Athabasca Tribal Council, damaged the doors to his wife’s and grandson’s bedrooms, and took three pairs of his wife’s boots. “I can’t call the RCMP, because it was the RCMP that broke into my house,” Chief Adam said in a Facebook live stream recorded when he arrived at his Fort McMurray home in the early hours of Dec....
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Eby pitches ‘pivot’ from oil pipeline to refinery talks after Maduro capture
British Columbia Premier David Eby said Canada needs to “pivot” from talk of a potential new pipeline carrying oil bound for Asia and instead think about building a new refinery. Eby said Tuesday that if tax dollars are being considered to build a pipeline to B.C.’s northern coast, the money would be better spent supporting oil and gas products made in Canada rather than being relying on American and Chinese refineries. The premier’s comments come after Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was captured by the United States and U.S. President Donald Trump announced plans to take over the oil industry in the country. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said the situation underlines the urgency to build a new pipeline to B.C.’s coast. Alberta and the federal government signed a memorandum of understanding...
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City staff recommend giving $450K to new community food hub
By Clint Fleury, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TBnewswatch.com THUNDER BAY – Our Kids Count could be getting $450,000 from the city to help establish a new community food hub. City administration is supporting the funding request, which would go towards buying the former Circle K building at the corner of Simpson and McKenzie Streets. Jackie Knough, executive director of Our Kids Count, told Newswatch the facility would be a home for its food security program. “We’ve been doing a lot around food security, and we’re just noticing more and more the need is continuing to increase. We haven’t been able to meet everyone’s needs. When we do a community breakfast, the lineups are throughout the door. We have over 200 people, and so this new space will allow people to...
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Alberta launches website for potential new West Coast oil pipeline
By Lauren Krugel The Alberta government has launched a website for the bitumen pipeline it wants to see built to the northwest B.C. coast. It says the page will act as a central hub for project information and updates to ensure transparency and open dialogue. It includes a section dedicated to debunking myths, such as that construction has begun, the province is paying for the project and that a route has been decided. In October, the province announced it would spend $14 million on early planning work, but the aim is for the private sector to eventually take the lead and for Indigenous partners to come on board. Support for the idea was a centrepiece of a sweeping energy accord signed between Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Prime Minister Mark...
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Alexina Kublu, Nunavut’s third languages commisioner, passes away at 71
By William Koblensky Varela, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Nunavut News Alexina Kublu, Nunavut’s third languages commissioner and first justice of the peace, recently passed away at age 71. “Ms. Kublu was an educator, interpreter-translator and lifelong advocate for Inuktut who served with distinction as a member of the National Task Force on Aboriginal Languages and Cultures. Ms. Kublu was a dedicated community volunteer and senior justice of the peace,” said Nunavut Legislative Assembly Speaker David Joanasie on Jan. 6. Kublu, from Iglulik, was a residential school survivor. Her story of survivorship can be found on Isuma TV in Inuktitut. She went on to become a teacher in Arctic Bay, Arviat, Kinngait and Iglulik. She also taught at Nunavut Arctic College’s language and culture program, later overseeing the college’s Inuit studies...
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Damage extensive to homes in Manitoba First Nation hit by power outage, frozen pipes
The chief of a First Nation in northern Manitoba says residents are dealing with cracked floors and overflowing sewage after a power outage caused pipes to freeze in many homes in the community. Chief David Monias says it’s unclear how many of the more than 1,300 homes in Pimicikamak Cree Nation will require repairs because the community lacks the proper resources to inspect the homes. He says the First Nation desperately needs plumbers, home inspectors and electricians to assess the damage after the outage that happened Dec. 28. The community has identified at least 200 homes where the water has had to be shut off to prevent any leaks and future destruction. Monias has been calling for the deployment of the Canadian Armed Forces for emergency logistical support, including water...
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A town in North Carolina is returning land to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians
By Graham Lee Brewer An important cultural site is close to being returned to the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians after a city council in North Carolina voted unanimously Monday to return the land. The Noquisiyi Mound in Franklin, North Carolina, was part of a Cherokee mother town hundreds of years before the founding of the United States, and it is a place of deep spiritual significance to the Cherokee people. But for about 200 years it was either in the hands of private owners or the town. “When you think about the importance of not just our history but those cultural and traditional areas where we practice all the things we believe in, they should be in the hands of the tribe they belong to,” said Michell Hicks, principal...
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Fulmer says B.C. Conservatives must be a grand coalition as he enters leadership race
By Wolfgang Depner Yuri Fulmer said the Conservative Party of B.C. needs to be a “grand coalition” that refrains from “undisciplined” behaviour if it wants to govern, as he becomes the first high-profile candidate to run for the party’s leadership. Fulmer, the chancellor of Capilano University who made his fortune with fast food franchises, said that means that the Conservatives have to “welcome a lot of people” into the party who don’t feel comfortable there now — including former B.C. Liberals. “Let me very clear,” he said in an interview. “I’m running to be the leader of the B.C. Conservatives. I am a Conservative. What I will do, though, is welcome into the Conservative tent people who are conservatively minded, and they may have called themselves B.C. Liberals in the...
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Federal, provincial leaders to tour Manitoba First Nation hit by outage, frozen pipes
By Brittany Hobson Federal, provincial and Indigenous leaders are expected to travel today to a beleaguered Manitoba First Nation that has been crippled by a frozen water system due to a days-long power outage. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew, federal Minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs Rebecca Chartrand and Assembly of First Nations National Chief Cindy Woodhouse Nepinak are scheduled to be part of a delegation that visits Pimicikamak Cree Nation to survey damage that has prompted the community to declare a state of emergency. Damage to critical infrastructure has forced thousands out from the nation, about 530 kilometres north of Winnipeg, with no timeline on when they can return. Chief David Monias says it’s unclear how many of the more than 1,300 homes in the community have been affected by...
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Six Nations School bus in ditch
OHSWEKEN, SIX NATIONS OF THE GRAND RIVER- Six Nations motorists need to take care on local roads this morning. Some roads are slippery. Slippery spots on Fifth Line between Seneca and Chiefswood Road caused a school bus to slide in the ditch . (Turtle Island News photo)...
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At least 24 Venezuelan security officers killed in US operation to capture Maduro, officials say
By Regina Garcia Cano, Aamer Madhani And Megan Janetsky CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — At least 24 Venezuelan security officers were killed in the dead-of-night U.S. military operation to capture Nicolás Maduro and spirit him to the United States to face drug charges, officials said Tuesday. Venezuela’s Attorney General Tarek William Saab said overall “dozens” of officers and civilians were killed in the weekend strike in Caracas and that prosecutors would investigate the deaths in what he described as a “war crime.” He didn’t specify if the estimate was specifically referring to Venezuelans. In addition to the Venezuelan security officials, Cuba’s government had previously confirmed that 32 Cuban military and police officers working in Venezuela were killed in the raid. The Cuban government says the personnel killed belonged to the Revolutionary...
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‘More work to be done’ on marine border crossing rules: CAO
By Matt Prokopchuk, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, TBnewswatch.com SIOUX NARROWS-NESTOR FALLS — The pending end to the remote area border crossing program is one step in a “multifaceted situation” of border enforcement in the region. That’s according to Heather Gropp, the chief administrative officer for the Township of Sioux Narrows-Nestor Falls. The municipality is one of several stakeholders in a coalition who has long been concerned about what it says is a need for tighter regulations and better enforcement on Northwestern Ontario’s border waters. One of several concerns, the group says, is the ease with which U.S.-based anglers can cross into Canadian waters on Lake of the Woods and Rainy Lake without having to check in at the border. “I think there’s more work to be done,” Gropp said of...
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Traffic stop leads to drug charge for woman
By Carl Clutchey, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Chronicle-Journal A 39-year-old Whitesand First Nation woman started the new year on a sour note last week after provincial police charged her with drug-trafficking. Provincial police said officers encountered the accused Thursday afternoon while conducting a traffic stop involving a pickup truck on Armstrong’s Airport Road. “Officers seized suspected crack cocaine, (cash) and various drug-related paraphernalia,” a provincial news release said. Police pegged the street value of the seized drugs at about $2,500. In addition to the drug-trafficking offence, Tammy Shapwaykeesic was charged with possession of proceeds of property obtained by crime under $5,000, the news release said. Shapwaykeesic, who has been released from custody, is to appear in Armstrong court on Jan. 20, the news release said. None of the charges...
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R.O.P.E . Squad seeking public’s help in locating federal offender
Sima Doban Caledonia, ON – The Repeat Offender Parole Enforcement (R.O.P.E.) Squad is requesting the public’s assistance in locating a federal offender wanted on a Canada Wide Warrant as a result of a breach of Statutory Release. Sima Doban is described as Caucasian male, 44, 5’10” (180 cm), 205 lbs (93 kgs) with brown hair and brown eyes. Sima Doban is serving two years, one month for; Possession of Prohibited / Restricted Firearm with Ammunition Fail To Comply with Probation Order Possession of Weapon Contrary to Prohibition Order x 2 Theft Under $5000 Escape Or Being At Large Without Excuse The offender is known to frequent Hamilton and Caledonia, Ontario. Anyone having contact with this offender or information in regards to their whereabouts is asked to contact the Provincial R.O.P.E....
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