THUNDER BAY – Laila Doblej remembers when she first came from her home in Whitesand First Nation to attend high school at Superior Collegiate and Vocational Institute.
It was the school’s then-newly formed Aboriginal Student Council that really helped her get settled.
“When I first got here I had nowhere to go. I didn’t really know anybody,” she said.
“These were the only people I knew and they were my go-to. They made me feel a lot more safe and made me feel better. I had guidance. I think it’s a really good thing we have this here for students that come into Thunder Bay from northern communities or anywhere.”
Now a Grade 11 student and president of the council, she accepted a $1,000 donation from Whitesand’s band councillors when her community’s leaders came to the school for a special visit on Tuesday.
Alex Wanakameg, one of the community’s band councillors, said he was proud of the work done by the student council.
“It shows me and tells me that our future looks good,” he said. “When we see a group like this working not just with Indigenous people but non-Indigenous, it’s one of the things we’re trying to fix in this country. It takes steps and this is one of them. It’s a small step but I think it’s large in general.”
The student council, which was established in 2015, has 13 members with students of Indigenous and non-Indigenous backgrounds, with 10 of them from Whitesand.
The group organizes an annual powwow and regular events throughout the school year such as bake sales and other initiatives to demonstrate traditional teachings.
“We work really hard every day to come up with new ideas and ways that we can put our culture into everyday activities for students to come together,” Doblej said, adding the council provides a safe space and an opportunity to teach the broader student body about their culture.
