'What this community needs': Pikangikum First Nation opens safe house for families in crisis
A northern Ontario First Nation has opened up a new safe house designed to help its residents heal from abusive and dangerous situations.
Share
toronto -
A northern Ontario First Nation has opened up a new safe house designed to help its residents heal from abusive and dangerous situations.
Pikangikum First Nation, a remote community about 230 kilometres north of Kenora, Ont., recently opened the Pikangikum Community Safe House, a multi-unit facility designed to help those in the community with nowhere else to go.
“We're very excited to have a place like this in our community to help our members,” Jonah Strang, deputy chief of the Pikangikum First Nation, told CTV News.
"It should help out the families that usually have problems at home."
Pikangikum First Nation was once known as having some of the highest suicide rates in the world.
Alcohol abuse remains a serious issue in the community of about 4,000 residents and a lack of housing has led to fewer safe spaces for people looking to escape a potentially dangerous situation.
"We have multi-generational families that live within one home,” said Vernon Kejick, a victims' services advocate in Pikangikum First Nation.
Kejick is largely considered a key player in seeing the project through and ensuring it’s completed.
"I felt that it was my purpose to bring a facility like this into this community,” he said.
The new safe house can hold up to eight families and also contains a seven-suite hotel, which will help provide mental health workers with a place to stay.
"It's so accommodating,” said Jojo Alfonso, a teacher in the community. “It's perfect. It's what this community needs."
Building the safe house was no easy task and took several years to complete. The multi-million dollar project relied on ice roads to transport equipment and materials into the community.
"It was a mad rush before the winter road went out to try to get the facility in,” Kejick said.
“The Safe House will be committed to assisting victims of abuse; women and their children in the difficult transition from an abusive and violent domestic environment to a positive, independent, and non-violent lifestyle,” the company said. “The facility would primarily offer safe, temporary shelter with access to support services for women, children, elders (and) LGBTQ who are victims of the many facets of family violence.”
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
Armed assailants killed two French prison officers and seriously wounded three others in an attack on a convoy in Normandy on Tuesday and an inmate escaped, officials said.
A Japanese company has announced it will build an approximately $1.6-billion plant in Ontario's Niagara Region that will make a key electric vehicle battery component as part of Honda's supply chain in the province.
The Israeli flag is flying at Ottawa City Hall today to mark the country's national day, with plans to hold a private ceremony to mark Israel's Independence Day. There is a significant police presence at City Hall, including security barriers outside the main doors.
A wildfire in the community of Fort Nelson has significantly expanded as residents in British Columbia's northeast receive more mandatory evacuation orders.
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
In the first of a three-part series on Gardiner Gridlock, CTV Toronto examines the impact that the three-year cut to capacity on the downtown expressway is having on commuters – and their outcry.
A Japanese company has announced it will build an approximately $1.6-billion plant in Ontario's Niagara Region that will make a key electric vehicle battery component as part of Honda's supply chain in the province.
The Israeli flag is flying at Ottawa City Hall today to mark the country's national day, with plans to hold a private ceremony to mark Israel's Independence Day. There is a significant police presence at City Hall, including security barriers outside the main doors.
Two Montreal businesses are apologizing after a video circulating on social media showed a man throwing water on a homeless person sleeping outside of a Chinatown storefront.
Can a National Hockey League coach play his top forwards half the game? Of course. It happened in the most recent Edmonton Oilers game when bench boss Kris Knoblauch ran stars Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl 29:42 and 29:04, respectively, over the 60 minutes played in Sunday's regulation 4-3 playoff loss to the Vancouver Canucks.
TLC fans looking forward to their concert in Moncton, N.B., on Tuesday will be disappointed to find out that the show has been cancelled due to illness.
A forensics expert has testified DNA of a victim of an admitted serial killer was found on a jacket but was not enough to determine the woman's identity.
A woman says her husband was turned away from a Saskatchewan detox facility because of a disability he lives with, which brought the centre under scrutiny in the legislature on Monday.
A second Guelph man has been arrested and charged in relation to a serious assault in March that left the victim with two broken arms and a leg, Guelph police said Tuesday.
The City of Saskatoon, the fire department, and the police service are uniting to launch nearly a dozen initiatives in hopes of cracking down on crime and improving safety.
The end of the school year and a looming fall election are putting additional pressure on the province to strike a deal with Saskatchewan teachers, according to two political scientists.
In a growing city it’s no surprise when suburban residents come across wild animals around their yards, but one Saskatoon homeowner in Kensington started poking around for answers when she spotted a quilled critter hanging out in her garage.
Wildfires have led Environment Canada to issue air quality advisories for parts of B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the Northwest Territories, as forecasters warn the smoke could drift farther east.
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
One person is dead and a second is injured following a blaze in London’s northeast end. Nearly 30 firefighters on eight London Fire Department vehicles arrived at 1600 Nairn Ave. at approximately 8:30 a.m.
The lawyers for five former Canadian World Juniors hockey players charged with sexual assault appeared via Zoom in a London, Ont. courtroom Tuesday morning.
St. Clair Township is still hoping to be in the mix for a Honda electric vehicle battery facility. Reports indicate the Niagara Region has landed one of the Honda battery plants, with an announcement expected on Wednesday.
Simcoe County was under a severe thunderstorm warning with the potential for strong winds up to 90 kilometres per hour, toonie-sized hail, and heavy downpours on Monday.
Windsor police bail compliance members have arrested a 24-year-old murder suspect following repeated violations of his bail conditions after he was charged in 2018.
Nobel laureate Alice Munro, the Canadian literary giant who became one of the world's most esteemed contemporary authors and one of history's most honoured short story writers, has died at age 92.
After four targeted shootings in four days, Mounties in Kamloops are taking the unusual step of warning the public about two men they believe are likely to be targeted in future violent incidents.
Some Lethbridge charities are having a hard time staffing volunteers, saying the number of people willing to donate their time to non-profits over the years has decreased.
Ontario Provincial Police are facing tough questions about their search for a missing Newfoundland trucker whose rig was found two weeks ago in Ontario, then sent back to Newfoundland, where his body was found Monday in the trailer.
Two daughters and a mother were reunited online 40 years later thanks to a DNA kit and a Zoom connection despite living on three separate continents and speaking different languages.
A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The foreign minister of the Philippines wants closer business and military ties with Canada, saying the two countries can help maintain the post-war order in the Indo-Pacific by maintaining peaceful relations with both the U.S. and China.
Artificial intelligence will have an impact on the Canadian labour force, a parliamentary committee recently heard, and MPs are suggesting ways the federal government can better prepare.
A Japanese company has announced it will build an approximately $1.6-billion plant in Ontario's Niagara Region that will make a key electric vehicle battery component as part of Honda's supply chain in the province.
Eating enough healthy fats is great for brain and heart health, but new research has possibly provided even more evidence for adding them, particularly omega-3s, to your diet.
New analyses of the longest clinical trial yet of the weight-loss drug Wegovy are shedding light on how quickly it helps people lose weight, how long they sustain that weight loss and how safe the medicine is over four years of use.
A woman says her husband was turned away from a Saskatchewan detox facility because of a disability he lives with, which brought the centre under scrutiny in the legislature on Monday.
A Japanese company has announced it will build an approximately $1.6-billion plant in Ontario's Niagara Region that will make a key electric vehicle battery component as part of Honda's supply chain in the province.
GameStop and AMC Entertainment have again captured retail investors' attention, reminiscent of "the meme stock frenzy" that gripped Wall Street three years ago.
The 148th Westminster show kicked off Saturday, and Monday marked the start of the traditional judging that leads to the best in show prize, to be awarded Tuesday night.
f you’d like to install a raised bed but don’t have the resources to build one, you can achieve the same effect by growing your plants in straw bales. It’s also a great option for those with poor soil or who don’t have a patch of dirt to call their own.
Minnesota Timberwolves centre Rudy Gobert was fined US$75,000 by the NBA on Tuesday for another 'inappropriate and unprofessional gesture' that suggested a lack of integrity with the league and its game officials.
A Japanese company has announced it will build an approximately $1.6-billion plant in Ontario's Niagara Region that will make a key electric vehicle battery component as part of Honda's supply chain in the province.
Amazon's self-driving robotaxi unit is being investigated by the U.S. government's highway safety agency after two of its vehicles braked suddenly and were rear-ended by motorcyclists.