Lona’tshistanet (Fire Keepers)
Lona’tshistanet was a wellness program for Oneida youth and their families that combines Indigenous healing with Western practices.
It was a series of traditional cultural Indigenous learning activities, spanning from April 2021 to April 2022, adapted to intergenerational family participant groups to improve connectedness to culture and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A week long summer camp in August was part of the program that provided a wide range of skills building and cultural immersion activities. Events were held on the last Thursday of each month for 3 to 5 hours for the duration of the program and were facilitated by LFCC’s Indigenous Consultant, Kahawani Doxtator, and externally evaluated by Dr. Jason Brown from Western University in the Department of Counselling Psychology.
- Intensive counselling and support for youth and their families
- Learning Dance and Song of the Haudenosaunee
- Creation Stories
- Making Traditional Foods
- Haudenosaunee Art
- Naming Ceremony
- Eagle Dance Ceremony
- Sweat Lodge and Fire
- Personal Bundle
- Making the Water Drum/Social Songs
- Lacrosse
- Archery
- Graduation Ceremony
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Funding for this initiative is provided by Mental Health Research Canada (MHRC) and the Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI)