Over the past couple of years, the major initiative for the Turtle Mountain Local has been not only sharing their rich heritage and history, but ensuring food security for their citizens. During the COVID-19 pandemic many events and activities went dormant, including Turtle Mountain Local. Since 2022, however, Chair Chris Leforte has been doing his best to reinvigorate the Local and their headquarters on the northeast corner of Dromore Lake. Aside from regular maintenance to the property and the addition of a small foyer, the Local has been busy planting, growing, harvesting, sharing, and building.
In 2023, the group started its food security program, which includes two small greenhouses and a collection of raised beds full of vegetables that are shared among Métis citizens who may be experiencing food insecurity.
“It wasn’t that great of a yield last year because we were still learning, but this year has been phenomenal,” said Leforte. “We’ve had hundreds and hundreds of pounds of vegetables go out of here this year.”
In addition to the greenhouses, 80 fruit and privacy trees have been planted between the building and Highway 450, and the MMF has purchased land close by to be used as a “harvesting property”.
The MMF has two additional properties in other remote areas which were purchased for the purpose of providing Métis citizens with a place to hunt and harvest a deer or other game or fowl, as well as fish, trap, and otherwise gather food and plants. With this program, Métis citizens, three at a time, have the chance to come up to Turtle Mountain and camp and hunt for five days.
“Maybe a lot of our citizens might not be so fortunate to be able to access hunting land, or harvest a deer,” said Leforte. “And it’s a harvesting property, so it’s more than just hunting. There are a multitude of berries there, mushrooms, wild medicine, and stuff like that.”
It also opens the door for a lot of youth programming, he said, to keep kids busy and out of trouble, as well as share heritage and traditions. Leforte is involved with Leaders of Tomorrow, a youth-based organization, Team Lead with the Stewards of the Land program, and sits on the Southwest Horizon School Division Board as a Traditional Knowledge Keeper and Elder, so he is often giving presentations to youth groups, schools, and Hutterite colonies. Sharing his knowledge with the next generation is rewarding no matter what, but it was particularly meaningful to host a weekend retreat for high risk inner city LGBTQ2S youth.
“We had a whole weekend retreat here. They did traditional elk tanning, they braided sweetgrass, they did a medicine walk, and went swimming, and fishing, and had sharing circles and stuff like that,” he said. “They were pretty apprehensive when they got here and then as everything fell into place they didn’t want to leave come Sunday.”
Over the weekend of October 4, the Local held its third annual Field Days, where over 30 citizens from all over the province got together for learning and fellowship. The itinerary included a visit to the Irvin Goodon International Wildlife Museum and other local history tidbits, as well as a nature hike, birding, and many discussions focused around climate change, conservation, and nature.
The purpose of all this programming, especially for youth, is to keep the ball rolling. Attitudes both inside and outside the Métis community are slowly changing for the better, largely due to awareness generated by organizations like the MMF, and the positive trend can only continue if each generation gets involved.
“There are lots of variables with kids wanting to get involved. Some kids are in sports, or other extracurriculars, and the dollar only goes so far, right?” said Leforte. “There could be single parents involved that never had the chance to do stuff like that, so the kids don’t get a chance to do stuff like that, but for the most part, Red River Métis Citizens that do bring their kids? They’re into the harvesting, they’re into the grassroots, boots-on-the-ground stuff.”
And if not, Turtle Mountain Local wants to make sure the opportunity is there for anyone who wants to be involved, and they do not seem to be slowing down anytime soon.
“You have to keep the traditions alive,” Leforte said. “I’m gladly here to be able to do that. If you keep that knowledge in and you don’t share, what good is it?”
by JACQUIE MAYNARD, Recorder staff