Journeys for Health

NAHO Speaker Series Invitation

2009-02-11T10:03:00.000-08:00

The National Aboriginal Health Organization (NAHO) invites you to attend our next Guest Speaker Series presentation entitled “The cost of addiction: An ex-NFL star's journey to recovery” with Mr. Alvin Powell on Wednesday, February 18, 2009 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Mr. Powell is Director of Prevention Services with the Saving Station Foundation.

Mr. Powell is a former NFL football player for the Miami Dolphins and the Seattle Seahawks. At 6-foot-5, 320-pounds, he was an imposing figure on the football field until he fell prey to the disease of addiction. Now recovered, Mr. Powell has turned his life around and works tirelessly to help others quit their habit and prevent young people from ever starting.

As Director of Prevention Services for the Saving Station Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to the prevention of substance abuse, Mr. Powell has visited hundreds of high schools, universities, sports associations and corporations. In his visits, he tells his compelling life story of how drugs ruined his NFL career, his life, and brought him to the brink of death.

Mr. Powell has dedicated the past 10 years to prevention of drug and substance abuse, as well as helping those in crises who are suffering from the disease of addiction. “Drugs do not care who you are,” he says. “They do not discriminate against color, creed, race, size, economic background or even age.”

I hope you can join us for a first-hand account of the struggles and loss Mr. Powell faced when trapped in his addiction, and the path that ultimately lead to sobriety and helping countless others avoid the pit-falls of a disease that affects so many Aboriginal communities.

Click here for more information on Mr. Alvin Powell and the Saving Station Foundation.

If you plan to attend, please R.S.V.P. svanloffeld@naho.ca.

We look forward to seeing you on February 18, 2009.

NAIG Day 8 - The Conclusion

2008-08-09T13:16:00.000-07:00

The trip is nearing the end and unfortunately, due to the sweltering heat and long days, my energy levels are depleting.

Eight days of hand shaking, baby kissing, and interacting with well over 7,000 people is enough to drain anyone.

I have to hand it to our National Aboriginal Role Models though, they did an amazing job helping out.

They had the opportunity to do performance testing, hand out medals to the athletes and speak about their experiences of being voted 2008/09 National Aboriginal Role Models.

All in all, I had an enjoyable time and I am happy to have been a part of the games. I’ll make it back out there some day, but right now I am going home to sleep for the next two days. The entire trip, however, has been a blast and truly was a Journey for Health.

To find out more about the success of the role models who attended NAIG click here.

NAIG Day 7 - Mascots and more mascots

2008-08-08T13:14:00.000-07:00

Today was an afternoon of Mascots! One in which NARMP's own Bruce-Ma-Goose participated.

You didn't think he stayed home did you?

Bruce flew all the way out to the Cowichan Valley to meet and network with the role models, athletes and volunteers.

Chillin' with the BMO Bear!

Vancouver’s 2010 Olympic Mascots Miga, Quatchi and Sumi

NAIG Day 6 - Cultural Education

2008-08-07T07:19:00.000-07:00

Today, I had the chance to learn a little bit about the history of the Cowichan peoples and see some of the pole carvings and the 2D art work on the sides of some of their longhouses.

I also came across an interesting plaque posted by the Canadian Heritage Rivers Systems while wandering by the river. It tells the story of The Cowichan River. The story goes like this:

“The first people of Cowichan came to earth from the sky. They found a rich land, warmed by the sun and nourished with a river teeming with salmon, which they called Quw’utsun Sta’lo. For thousands of years, this 47 km river has provided their descendants with abundant food, transportation and water. When settlers arrived in the mid-1800’s, they also relied on the gifts of the river and prospered through fishing, farming and logging.

The people of this valley have benefited greatly from the gifts of the river, reaping natural wealth from its waters and the lands it flows through, living on its shores, playing in its waters, and enjoying its beauty. Today, the people of the valley are working together to give back to the river – to conserve the Cowichan.

Designation of the Cowichan River as a Canadian Heritage River is testimony to its significance as a national treasure. The commitment of local communities to conserving the river will be measured by the strength of the salmon culture. This plaque honours that commitment and the river.”

NAIG Day 5 - Breakfast, Beaches and Volleyball

2008-08-06T07:08:00.000-07:00

On Day 5 after a hearty breakfast...

I decided to go for a stroll along the ocean coast to see if I could spot any marine life. I didn’t see any whales as I was hoping to but I did see plenty of tiny crabs.

After my stroll, I decided to take in a girls volleyball game at the college before I started my noon shift.

The night ended with another concert, this time it was Digging Roots. Rumour has it a colleague of mine has a brother who is a member of the band, and she even sings with them from time to time.

NAIG Day 4 - Healthy Meals and Good Music

2008-08-05T07:03:00.000-07:00

During breakfast this morning, I was thinking about how many of the National Aboriginal Role Models are athletes themselves.

Of the group that is here, 5 of the 10 role models at NAIG this week have athlete profiles and two of them are even competing.

I don't need to tell you about them, you can find out for yourself from their profiles posted on NAHO's Healthy Living Web site. Check it out!

On Day 4, I also had the opportunity to take in George Leech at the evening concert. He’s an amazing guitar player, and a pretty good singer. It was just the kind of break I needed.

NAIG Day 3 - Networking and Spreading the Word

2008-08-04T22:54:00.000-07:00

What to say about Day 3 at the North American Indigenous Games? Well, it all started with a breakfast fit for a king or should I say an athlete.

Since a few of my colleagues went to Victoria today to go on a whale watching excursion, the few of us that remained had to catch the proletariat chariot (a.k.a. the yellow school bus) to the venue.

Unfortunately, the person who told me the bus schedule from the college gave me the wrong time and I missed the last bus.

Thank goodness one of the volunteers at the Games was heading into town and offered to drop me off.

Once noon rolled around, it was time to shine and work the crowds yet again. Things have been going so well that I am going to have to send back to the office to see if they can courier some more NAHO information and swag or it is going to be a long 6 remaining days with no resources. Nonetheless, I can pitch the crowd on the great work that NAHO does because it really speaks for itself.

4:00 p.m. rolled around pretty quick (end of first shift) despite the fact it was a balmy 31C. I was off to the hall for an early dinner. However, as I was walking, I decided to detour to the soccer field to catch a bit of the junior girls soccer game between N.W.T. and Saskatchewan. I'm not sure of the score, but it was exciting nonetheless.

After dinner and schmoozing the crowds, I heard a faint rhythm coming from down yonder. I decided to take a stroll. Lo and behold some country singer named Shane Yellowbird was beltin' out the tunes.

Now, riddle me this, why is a country guy singing songs from the Counting Crows?

In the end, all the athletes and support staff seemed to really love him, I guess that's why he's up for a Canadian Country Music Award.

My night ended with me taking the big yellow school bus with 40 screaming 13-year-old girls back to the college. With that it's time for some shut-eye. Ya'll check back now ya hear.

NAIG Day 2 - Let the Games Begin

2008-08-03T22:21:00.000-07:00

24hrs has passed and here I sit reflecting on the day for all my loyal Journeys for Health blog readers.

This morning started off with me waking up at 7:30 a.m. and strolling the campus like a hungry animal for food to no avail.

While scrounging, I was asked by the head volunteer to be the official photographer of the morning prayer/ceremony, which was quite an honour.

After the brief prayer and words of encouragement, our group headed over to the Athlete's Village to get lunch.

To our surprise the line up was 500 people deep and 1.5hrs long in the sweltering sun.

After eating 3 plates of eggs, hash browns, chili, nachos, apples, plums, and salad, I was ready to get on with the day and to face/work the crowds.

I am sure you are all curious what it is I do at events like this. Well, I kiss babies and shake hands to promote NAHO, careers in health, health education, the Aboriginal Health Human Resources Initiative, and network.

Basically, I spread the word about what NAHO does and make business contacts.

Later, when I am back in the office, I follow up with people to see if there is anything we can work on together to advance the health of First Nations, Inuit and Métis.

At 2:00 p.m. everyone (except for me) went to the Opening Ceremonies to watch the parade of athletes from across North America and the Opening Ceremonies for the Games.

There were roughly 20,000 people in attendance (or so my colleagues tell me) and the parade of athletes and coaches etc. was a kilometer long.

It must have been quite the site but, because no one knows how to work a crowd like me, I can only speculate from the pictures my co-workers took for this blog.

It has been another tiring, but eventful day, and after 3 hamburgers, 3 salads, 4 plums, 2 apples and 3 juice boxes for dinner, it was back to the dorm where I now sit writing up the day's events for all of you in cyber land.

Don't forget to check back tomorrow for more adventures from B.C.

NAIG Day 1 - The Intro

2008-08-02T22:16:00.000-07:00

Here I am in Duncan/Cowichan B.C. and what a day it has been!
It started with me falling asleep on my alarm clock (because I use my cell phone) and waking up 10 minutes before I should actually be at the airport. With a little coaxing I managed to get the cabbie to run red lights (figuratively, not literally) to get to the airport ASAP.

Nonetheless, after fancy foot work, I managed to make it on the plane with only minutes to spare.

5.5 hours later, I arrived in Vancouver to hop a short flight to Victoria, and begin making our way the Cowichan Territory.

What a beautiful drive it is from Victoria to Cowichan, along the mountainous coast overlooking the turquoise ocean, with huge Douglas firs lining the highway, and everywhere else in between.

We stopped a few times along the way to take some pictures of the scenery. We didn't stop long, though, because we had to get to the college we're staying at to unpack, and then get to the Games to setup our booth and begin working the crowds.

All-in-all today was enjoyable, draining, both mentally and physically (since it's been an 18-hour work day), but it has been good.

Be sure to check back regularly for the latest on what's happening at NAIG, my take on the games and some great photos of my adventure to the West Coast.

Cowichan 2008 The Journey of a Generation

2008-08-01T05:57:00.000-07:00

The Cowichan 2008 North American Indigenous Games will be hosted in the Cowichan Valley, British Columbia from August 3 – 10, 2008. These games will host 5,000 athletes from 25 teams and 3,000 cultural artisans and performers, making it the largest Aboriginal event of its kind in North America.

The National Aboriginal Health Organization (NAHO) will be supporting the games through the participation of NAHO staff and 10 National Aboriginal Role Models.
For more information on this initiative visit http://www.naho.ca/english/newsReleases/08_01_08.pdf