Nipawin Metis Local #134

10/11/2026

The day one man stepped on a chain and changed Canada forever 🇨🇦

On this day, October 11, 1869, exactly 157 years ago, a 24-year-old named Louis Riel walked up to a crew of Canadian government surveyors near present-day Winnipeg.

He put his foot on their surveying chain and reportedly told them: "You go no farther."

He and the Métis men beside him were unarmed. The surveyors packed up and left.

Here is why it mattered.

Canada had agreed to buy the vast territory of Rupert's Land from the Hudson's Bay Company. But nobody asked the roughly 12,000 people of the Red River Settlement, most of them Métis, what they thought.

Surveyors arrived before the transfer was even official. Their square-grid survey lines began cutting onto land that Métis families had farmed for generations in long, narrow river lots.

That one moment on André Nault's land became the opening act of the Red River Resistance.

What followed:

📜 November 1869: The Métis took control of Upper Fort Garry and stopped Canada's appointed governor from entering the settlement.

📜 December 1869: They formed a provisional government to negotiate with Ottawa. Riel soon became its president.

📜 March 1870: That government executed Thomas Scott, a prisoner who opposed it. The decision outraged Ontario and followed Riel for the rest of his life.

📜 July 15, 1870: Manitoba officially became Canada's fifth province, with protections for Métis land, the French language and Catholic schools written into law.

Riel was elected to Parliament three times but never took his seat. He spent years in exile, returned to lead the North-West Resistance in 1885, and was hanged for treason in Regina on November 16, 1885.

For generations he was called a traitor.

Today Parliament recognizes him as a founder of Manitoba. In 2023, Manitoba named him its honorary first premier. Every February, the province celebrates Louis Riel Day.

Rebel or founder? Canadians have argued about it for more than a century.

What do you think? 👇

10/09/2026

10/09/2026

The woman who helped map Canada, and was left out of the story for 150 years

Most Canadians know the name David Thompson, the man who mapped a fifth of North America.

Far fewer know the woman who travelled beside him.

Her name was Charlotte Small.

She was born in 1785 at Île-à-la-Crosse, in what is now Saskatchewan, to a Cree mother and a Scottish fur trader. Her father left for Britain when she was a small child and never came back. She was raised by her mother among the Cree.

In 1799, aged just 13, she married Thompson. For the next 13 years she lived the fur trade life with him, moving between posts across what are now Saskatchewan, Alberta, Manitoba and British Columbia.

She travelled by canoe, on horseback and on foot. Estimates of the distance range from 20,000 to more than 40,000 kilometres. By any count, that is farther than Lewis and Clark.

And she did much of it with small children.

In 1807 she crossed the Rocky Mountains through Howse Pass with three little ones, the youngest only about a year old. Thompson's journal describes men clinging to the horses' manes to cross a raging mountain river. Charlotte made those same crossings with the children.

She spoke Cree and English, and Thompson himself wrote that her language and her ties to the Cree gave him a great advantage in his work.

Then came the part that set them apart.

When fur traders retired, many simply abandoned their Indigenous wives and children. Thompson did not. In 1812 he brought Charlotte and the children east, and they married again in a Montreal church.

Life in the East was not kind. Two of their children died soon after the move. Thompson's businesses later failed, and the man who mapped half a continent pawned his instruments, and once even his coat, to survive. He went blind in his final years.

Through all of it, they stayed together. Nearly 58 years of marriage and 13 children.

David Thompson died in February 1857. Charlotte followed him less than three months later. They are buried together in Montreal's Mount Royal Cemetery, in a grave that sat unmarked for 70 years.

For generations, history remembered him and forgot her. No portrait of her exists. She left no diary.

It took until 2008 for Canada to name Charlotte Small a National Historic Person. Today a statue of her stands at Rocky Mountain House, Alberta, and another of the two of them at Invermere, B.C.

She represents thousands of Indigenous and Métis women whose knowledge, languages and survival skills made the exploration of this country possible, and whose names were never written down.

10/04/2026

October 4 marks the National Day of Action for Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQIA+ People, also known as Sisters in Spirit Day.

MN–S honours the lives of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQIA+ People, and we stand with survivors, families, and communities who continue to carry this grief.

The violence must end. Today, we call on all Canadians to take action:

➡️ Learn about the Calls for Justice: https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1717103903695/1757441810573

➡️ Reach out to the MN–S Family Information Liaison Outreach: https://mns.ca/services-and-programs/applications/filo

➡️ Speak up against violence and injustice in every space you hold, and share Métis-specific supports through the MN–S government: https://mns.ca/mns-government/departments-ministries/women-and-gender-equity

➡️ Attend the Sisters in Spirit Annual National Vigil in Saskatoon: https://www.facebook.com/OfficeoftheTreatyCommissioner/posts/happening-on-oct-4-in-saskatoon-starting-at-3-pm-at-st-georges-seniors-centre-de/1509141444577728/

We commit to building a safer future where our women, girls, and 2SLGBTQ+ individuals can live with dignity, safety, and community.

Today, as we observe a moment of remembrance, you may experience difficult emotions or require emotional support.
Call the support line for toll-free, 24-7 support: 1-844-413-6649, visit: https://www.rcaanc-cirnac.gc.ca/eng/1548700698392/1548701361628, or email [email protected] for additional resources.

10/01/2026

❤️❤️❤️

09/30/2026

We honour the survivors of the Residential schools and their families.

09/29/2026

The MN–S Ministry of Health, Mental Health & Addictions is excited to announce the launch of the Métis Mental Wellness Program!

This new program helps eligible Métis Citizens ages 13+ access counselling and assessments and reduces barriers to accessing support.

Whether you are looking for support through a difficult season, ongoing guidance, or a safe space to talk, this program is designed to make counselling more accessible for Métis Citizens and families.
Learn more about eligibility, available supports, and how to apply so you can take the next step when support is needed.

The program has limited funding available, and applications will remain open until funding has been allocated for each fiscal year. Should this occur the program will reopen at April 1st of the following fiscal year. This program will be available until March 31, 2028.

Please note: The Youth Wellness Program will launch right away, providing another exciting opportunity for eligible youth and families. We encourage citizens and wellness providers to visit our website to learn more about which program will be most beneficial to you.

For guidelines and FAQ's, please visit: https://mns.ca/services-and-programs/applications/metis-mental-wellness-program

For additional questions, please email [email protected]

09/27/2026

It was a great day making skirts today. Thanks to all the youth that came and the Granny's, Mom's & Auntie's that helped. They all turned out unique & beautiful!!!

09/17/2026

Remember office hours today 3:30-6:00pm