First Nation students shown the Thunder Bay ropes

Misty Nodin says she thought she’d be in physical danger moving to Thunder Bay.

As an Aboriginal teen, the thought of moving to a big city with a bad reputation among First Nation youth as a not-so-friendly place to live, was daunting.

But, the Grade 9 Dennis Franklin Cromarty student said, the adjustment from her home community, White Sand First Nation, has been a pleasant surprise.

“It’s not been pretty bad,” she said on Wednesday at the Victoria Inn, where students from reserves across Northern Ontario went through a day of orientation, helping to acclimatize them to life in Thunder Bay.

“I get work at school. There are programs after school, so I do boxing, I work out a lot and try to keep myself occupied. DFC’s a pretty good school and I like it a lot.”

Nishnawbe Aski Nation leaders hope the youngster is the rule, not the exception, these days.

It’s one of the reasons they started holding the orientation about a decade ago, after several students died while living in Thunder Bay.

Jordan Wabasse, whose body was found in the Kaministiquia River four years ago, was the latest, the sixth student from the school to die while in town attending classes since DFC opened in 2000.

NAN Deputy Grand Chief Anna Betty Achneepineskum said it’s important to let students know what their adopted home has to offer, the services available to them and the nuances of life on the big city streets not found in their remote hometowns.

“We are making every effort to welcome them here, to build that awareness about the resources available in this city, and also to build relationships with the organizations, the citizens and the services this city has to offer,” she said.

In the past many students, despite having their worlds ripped apart and being away from their families for the first time in their young lives, found trouble easily.

Drugs, alcohol and unsavory friends were just some of the temptations awaiting students arriving in unfamiliar territory.

But things have changed. There are supports in place now that weren’t in the past.

“We encourage our students, if they come across a situation that might be traumatizing to them, where they’ve been physically or verbally assaulted harassed – and that does happen – that we hear about it. We’re trying to build those resources and services to ensure there is that support mechanism for them and for us to be the ones to take action on it,” Achneepineskum said.

“That’s a small number, but that number is still disturbing.”

DFC vice-principal Sharon Angeconeb said an orientation won’t solve all the problems facing Aboriginal students in Thunder Bay, but it’s a great start.

“It is a huge adjustment for students, especially those coming into Grade 9,” she said. “They’re 13 or 14 years old and it’s a huge city, full of strange places and strange people.”

More than 500 high-school students took part in Wednesday’s orientation day.