Feels like mid-30s in parts of Canada, while other areas expecting snow
Anything is possible this week, as far as Canada's weather is concerned, with forecasts ranging from scorching heat in some parts of the country to rain and snow in others.
Warning: This story contains details some readers may find disturbing.
Indigenous leaders of Keeseekoose First Nation in Saskatchewan say the community is struggling to cope with the intergenerational trauma caused by a residential school that once operated in the area, with many residents turning to drugs and alcohol to cope.
Keeseekoose Finance Director Amy Cote says drug addiction and death is an epidemic that has been a part of the First Nation for decades.
"The opioid crisis out here, like it’s huge. Everybody has been affected by it, there is not one person that is not," Cote said in an interview with CTV National News.
At least 12 people died by overdose and suicide in Keeseekoose First Nation last year, and since January, there has been six more deaths.
Cote says it's a harsh reality for a community with only 2,550 residents.
"I've lost a nephew and niece to the opioid crisis because it’s so much easier to go see a dealer than deal with the issue and seek help," she explained.
Chief Lee Kitchemonia recently lost his daughter to a crystal meth overdose.
"She was only 24 years old, she had an 8-year-old daughter. She’s definitely an effect, the residual effects, of, I would say, residential schools," Kitchemonia said.
The St. Phillips Indian Residential School opened in the area in 1928. Now, a memorial honouring residential school students stands in its place.
While the school is no longer there, survivors says the trauma from it has affected people in their community for years.
Residential school survivor and former chief Ted Quewezance says the trauma he experienced at the school still burdens him.
"The sexual abuse, the physical abuse, you will never forget that. You see an RCMP, there’s a memory there. You see a preacher, there’s a memory there. You see a brick building, there’s a memory. You have a shower, there’s a memory. There’s lots and I am just one. Imagine all the 750 kids that went to school here," he said.
Cote said many in the community have turned to drugs and alcohol to try to forget the trauma.
"It all started from being stripped away from your parents when you were a kid. It’s not easy and it’s not something you can get over," she said.
Zoey Sinclair-Straightnose, 16, has never stepped foot in a residential school, but she told CTV News that she lives with its impacts everyday.
"I have a mother that’s an addict, but she’s trying to clean herself up, but ever since I lost my brother, that’s when I lost my mother," she explained.
Sinclair-Straightnose said her grandmother has been her rock through it all. However, the matriarch acknowledges that she too has her own demons.
"I carry my dad's story. His sexual abuse started when he was eight, and I look at my little grandchildren – I can’t even imagine anybody doing that to them – and I think what my dad had to endure, and it’s very painful," Janice Straightnose said.
Chief Kitchemonia says he is trying to save what is left of his First Nation. He said the community needs trauma counselling, a methadone healing clinic and ambulance services but it’s difficult with little funding.
"We have one nurse for the entire community here and that’s not good," Kitchemonia said.
Instead, members are turning to their elders for guidance and they say regaining identity and returning to their culture and traditional ceremonies is the key to healing.
"Be proud of who you are. Don’t ever be ashamed, because that is what they try and do, they try and make us be ashamed of who we are," Straightnose said.
Anything is possible this week, as far as Canada's weather is concerned, with forecasts ranging from scorching heat in some parts of the country to rain and snow in others.
One person has died aboard a London-Singapore flight that encountered severe turbulence, Singapore Airlines said Tuesday. The plane was diverted to Bangkok, where emergency crews rushed to help injured passengers amid stormy weather.
As the month-long boycott of Loblaw-owned stores wears on, small independent food retailers and alternative grocery options say they're seeing a boost in traffic and sales.
If you've been to a party lately and haven't seen someone drinking a BORG, you're likely not partying with college students.
As we enter another wildfire season, Environment and Climate Change Canada is advising people to pay attention to air pollution levels and check the Air Quality Health Index – especially on smoky days.
The Vatican has announced that the investigation it commissioned into allegations of sexual touching against Cardinal Gerald Cyprien Lacroix did not confirm any act constituting misconduct or abuse on the part of the Vatican.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is in Philadelphia today, on his first trip south of the border since his government launched a new 'Team Canada' charm offensive in the United States.
The Edmonton Oilers weathered a late Vancouver Canucks charge on Monday night, beating the hosts 3-2 to win their seven-game second-round playoff series in the decisive showdown.
Katy Perry said her goodbyes on 'American Idol' after seven seasons. On Sunday night’s live 'idol' season finale, a medley of Perry's hit songs were performed, including 'Teenage Dream,' 'Dark Horse' and 'California Gurls.'
A sanctuary dedicated to animals with disabilities is celebrating the third birthday of one of its most popular residents.
Catching 'em all with impressive speed, a 7-year-old boy from Windsor, Ont. who only started his competitive Pokémon journey seven months ago has already levelled up to compete at a world championship level.
2b Theatre recently moved into the old Video Difference building, seeking to transform it into an artistic hub, meeting space, and temporary housing unit for visiting performers in Halifax.
A B.C. woman says her service dog pulled her from a lake moments before she had a seizure, saving her life.
A Starbucks fan — whose name is Winter — is visiting Canada on a purposeful journey that began with a random idea at one of the coffee chain's stores in Texas.
Members of Piapot First Nation, students from the University of Winnipeg and various other professionals are learning new techniques that will hopefully be used for ground searches of potential unmarked grave sites in the future.
ALS patient Mathew Brown said he’s hopeful for future ALS patients after news this week of research at Western University of a potential cure for ALS.
When Adam Kirschner wrote 'Slap Shot,' he never imagined the song would be embraced by his favourite team.
A team is ready to help an entangled North Atlantic right whale in the Gulf of St. Lawrence.