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SEATTLE-Walking through Waterfront Park in downtown Seattle, along the shoreline of Elliot Bay in the Puget Sound, Pier 69 has long been home to the iconic whale watching tours aboard the FRS Clipper. This summer included an extra special tour grounded in Indigenous knowledge and storytelling. "Some people are really excited about seeing a whale and are also gaining a perspective from our point of view and the naturalist point of view," said Valerie Segrest, citizen of the...
BUSBY, Alb.-On May 14–17, 2026, Intertribal Life Ministries participated in the annual Native Youth Conference (NYC). ILM leaders participate in brainstorming and helping plan the event all year, as well as assisting on site. This year's NYC event included 251 youth, 46 chaperones, several dozen volunteers, speakers, and other invited guests who gathered at Camp Nakamun in Busby, Alb.. The theme was "Start Over," based on the scripture from 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore, if a...
Ottawa, Ont.-The Government of Canada is seeking feedback on a draft of the redesigned Additions to Reserve (ATR) Policy. This draft policy builds on years of engagement with First Nations, provinces and territories, and technical partners, through which more than 1,000 recommendations were received. Participants are invited to share their feedback in one of the following ways between now and September 22, 2026: • Complete the online feedback form: Share your views: h...
This 180-day devotional will highlight encouraging and thought-provoking, scripturally sound writings by Kene and Milly Jackson, along with members of their family, making this an intergenerational project. The patriarch of the family, Bill Jackson, also known as Grandpa Billy Jackson, found the Lord in 1951. When Grandpa Billy started serving the Lord the trajectory of his family changed for eternity. He became a faithful student of God's Word and a respected Bible teacher, a...
Washington, D.C.-The Department of the Interior recently announced a ten-year extension of the Indian Trust Asset Reform Act Demonstration Project. Under this program, tribes that are engaged in forest land management or surface leasing activities on trust lands may establish an Indian Trust Asset Management Plan, allowing the tribe to develop their own forestry and surface leasing regulations and assume certain approval authorities otherwise held by the Department of the...
WINDOW ROCK, Ariz.- The 25th Navajo Nation Council recently unanimously approved a historic investment totaling $244,617,938 to fund broadband infrastructure projects throughout the Navajo Nation. Legislation No. 0109-26 appropriates $75,546,678.33 from the Unreserved, Undesignated Fund Balance to the Navajo Nation Broadband Office and approves the Broadband Infrastructure Projects Plan. "This measure underscores the need to address the broadband divide that exists on the...
ADA, Okla.-At the end of June, Chickasaw Gov. Bill Anoatubby, 80, retired, after leading the Chickasaw Nation for 39 years. "This moment is bittersweet as I reflect on a lifetime of service to this mighty tribal nation," Anoatubby wrote on Facebook. "However, I have full confidence in the servant leaders, currently elected, appointed and employed to continue the momentum we have forged together and stay true to our mission, to enhance the overall quality of life of the Chickas...
TULSA, Okla.-After recording more than 380 stories from Indigenous boarding school survivors in 19 states, a national oral history project recently made its final stop in Tulsa. In the last two centuries, the federal government sponsored 500 boarding schools, intended to assimilate tens of thousands of Native American children into white culture. The schools began around 1819 and ended around 1969, leaving many elders who still remember the dark days of being pulled from...
OTTAWA, Ont.—Recently Indigenous Services Canada, Chiefs of Ontario and Nishnawbe Aski Nation celebrated the implementation of the Ontario Final Agreement to reform the First Nations Child and Family Services Program across the province. As of the end of May, funding began under the Agreement to support First Nations-led approaches focusing on prevention, family support, and better outcomes for children. The Ontario Final Agreement commits over $900 million per year to F...
LANGDON, Alb.- On June 6, Intertribal Life Ministries, in collaboration with Samaritan's Purse, hosted a First Nations Shoebox packing party in Calgary, Alb. The team of 20 packed over 300 shoeboxes, destined to arrive in Guinea-Bissau, Africa during their cashew harvest festival in October. Each box was packed with love and filled with the hope of the gospel. Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan's Purse, an international relief organization that has been...
Washington, DC-Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) Native Services hosted a ceremonial signing to commemorate the refreshed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between BGCA and the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Indian Education (BIE). The gathering reaffirmed the shared commitment of both organizations to strengthen academic success and education opportunities for American Indian and Alaska Native youth. Carla Knapp, National Vice President of Native Services at B...
Meet Ryan and Kristen O'Leary. Ryan, a member of the Bois Forte Band of Ojibwe in northern Minnesota, currently leads the First Peoples Initiative and is president of the National Association of Native Evangelicals. He holds undergraduate and masters' degrees in business management, a masters' of divinity, a doctor of ministry degree and a PhD in global leadership. Raised in a Christian home and coming to Christ at age six, before his current ministries, Ryan served as a...
If you're attending these events, come by and meet us at the events that are starred below! If you would like ILM to participate in your event, contact Todd at director@intertriballife.org. May 14–17: Native Youth Conference, Busby, Alb.* May 22-24: Indigenous Ladies Retreat, Busby Alb.* May 22–24: Waymaker Native Youth Gathering, Enderby, B.C. May 29–31: Kelliher Gospel Outreach, Kelliher, Sask.* June 6: Operation Christmas Child Indigenous Shoebox Packing Party, Samar...
On June 6, Intertribal Life Ministries will host, for the first time, an Operation Christmas Child First Nations Shoebox Packing Party. It will be held from 2 to 6 (MTN) at 20 Hopewell Way NE, in Calgary Alb. Operation Christmas Child is a project of Samaritan's Purse, an international relief organization that has been providing shoeboxes filled with small toys, hygiene items, and school supplies as a means of reaching children with the Good News of Jesus Christ for thirty...
STURGEON LAKE, Sask.-Recently, members of the Sturgeon Lake First Nation celebrated the grand opening of the Shirley Bighead Nihtāwiki and Ohpikihāwasowin Birthing and Child-rearing Lodge. This is the first Indigenous-led birthing lodge on a First Nation in Saskatchewan. Before the birthing lodge came to be, pregnant women had to travel to larger cities, such as Prince Albert or Saskatoon to give birth. Not only will the birthing lodge be available to First Nations' women, b...
In Oklahoma, an average of two to three people die by suicide every day. This rate is more than 1.5 times the national average and has increased by almost 150 percent since 2000. Overall, as reported by the Oklahoma Voice last year, the state's soaring suicide rates place them in the top ten nationally. For Native Americans in Oklahoma, these rates had long been even more concerning. As recently as 2021, Indigenous Americans suicide rates were more than twice the national...
BROOKLYN, N.Y.-A new ruling by Etsy has distressed Native American and First Nation sellers. In an email sent by Etsy to sellers in April, the company announced that it will ban the sale of all animal fur products, including raw pelts, finished garments, and accessories starting in August 11, 2026, claiming the move is part of "ongoing biodiversity efforts." Etsy has long held an animal product policy, which prohibited the sale of products made from animals designated as...
WASHINGTON, D.C.-The U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Indian Energy (IE) has announced a $50 million notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) aimed at fostering affordable, reliable, and secure energy solutions in Indian Country. This investment will support Tribal-led community-scale energy project planning and development and large-scale energy project planning. Through the Unleashing Tribal Energy Development NOFO, the Office of Indian Energy is soliciting applications...
SAULT STE. MARIE, Ont.-Neoen, one of the world's leading renewable energy companies, has been awarded two 20-year contracts by Ontario's Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) through its second Long-Term Energy Supply procurement process, for two new solar farms with a total capacity of 318 MWp / 250 MWac. These contracts cover 100 percent of the output of the future power plants, which are both located in Ontario. The first solar farm, sized at 253 MWp / 200 MWac,...
REGINA, Sask.-May marks 50 years that the First Nations University of Canada has been welcoming students. Begun in May 1976 as Saskatchewan Indian Federated College, the goal for the school was to have a culturally safe institution that taught Indigenous values, customs and languages, as well as teaching Canadian history from a First Nations' perspective. The 50-year celebrations began with an annual spring event on April 18–19, 2026, which brought together hundreds of d...
RAPID CITY, S.D.-New data from the Federal Bureau of Investigations released on May 5 showcases declining rates of missing American Indian and Alaska Native people in 2025. The data's release fell on the National Day of Remembrance for Missing and Murdered Indigenous People. According to the new data, 9,687 American Indian and Alaska Native individuals were reported missing in 2025 alone. Nationwide, 498,038 individuals were reported missing, meaning just under 2 percent of...
LANGDON, Alb.-Intertribal Life Ministries hosted a Dessert Night Fundraiser on May 2, 2026 at the Abundant Life Church in Calgary, Alb. "The Dessert Night Fundraiser is about so much more than raising funds," said Todd Wawrzyniak of the ILM director team. "It's an awareness raiser, a prayer raiser, a volunteer raiser and a financial raiser. It was encouraging to see the diversity in those who attended, those who came locally and those who travelled a great distance to come to...
WASHINGTON, D.C.—The Department of the Interior today affirmed its commitment to tribal sovereignty by adding the Lumbee Tribe of North Carolina to the official list of federally recognized tribes, formalizing the tribe's government-to-government relationship with the United States and carrying out federal recognition enacted into law in December 2025. "Federal recognition is about respect, accountability and self-determination," said Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum. "...
DARTMOUTH, N.S.—Chief Bob Gloade of Millbrook First Nation and Minister of Crown-Indigenous Relations Rebecca Alty recently announced the addition of over 7 hectares (17.35 acres) to Millbrook First Nation through the Addition to Reserve process. This addition will open new opportunities for Millbrook First Nation: opportunities to plan, to grow, and to invest in the future. "This is a momentous occasion for our community. We have been working for a number of years on m...
WASHINGTON, D.C—The Department of the Interior recently announced that the Bureau of Indian Education reached its highest graduation rate in its history, reflecting sustained reforms and accountability measures. Student graduation rates at Bureau of Indian Education-funded high schools increased from 51 percent in 2015 to 79 percent in 2025. These gains surpass pre-pandemic levels and continue despite national declines in student outcomes following the COVID–19 pandemic. “Th...
