NATIONAL ABORIGINAL DAY 2017 Rising up for North Central
From the beginning, All RISE Project Inc. has been putting Regina’s North Central to work.
All RISE is a status-blind human service organization focused on developing and delivering communitydriven support services centred on traditional Indigenous values that are culturally relevant for all treaty people in urban Regina. As executive director Pam Raymond explains, a big goal for the organization since it started up in early 2015 has been to work with Indigenous people to secure meaningful employment.
“We started off with a research project funded through Indigenous Affairs looking at the barriers women in North Central face when it comes to obtaining and sustaining long-term employment,” Raymond said. “We wanted to look at addressing the root causes of unemployment rather than just finding people a job immediately.
“Through our research project, we identified that the need for personal identity and personal awareness is a critical component for an individual to sustain long-term employment. You can go out and get a job, but it’s about keeping that job. You need to have a sense of personal identity to gain stability.”
With the initial funding All RISE received, it was able to run two intakes of its employment program for Indigenous women. All RISE later received additional funding and held two more employment program intakes this year for Indigenous youth. Raymond said there have been plenty of success stories.
“One of our female participants had a desire to go into a non-traditional women’s career and she has successfully obtained and is currently employed as a welder,” Raymond said. “She went from being unemployed and on social assistance to working full-time and making over $20 an hour.”
As with many not-for-profit organizations, All RISE has learned that securing funding is no guarantee. This is why the organization decided to come up with some creative ways to generate its own revenue and help further its mandate.
In March, All RISE officially opened The Bannock House, a restaurant in the North Central area featuring soup and bannock, bannock pizza, bannock and bologna sandwiches, bannock fritters and other unique creations. Bannock is a historically Scottish meal staple that inspired the post-colonialist traditional Indigenous food. It comes prepared in a variety of flat quick bread or any large, round article baked or fried and made from grain.
Raymond said All RISE received some great mentorship from local business owners, including Chris Plumb (owner of Mercury Cafe & Grill) and David Hansen (part-owner of Mercury and the Famoso Neapolitan Pizzeria in east Regina). She notes that The Bannock House runs as a social enterprise, meaning it operates as a business but is also there to benefit the community.
“The mission of The Bannock House is to always keep what’s needed in the community as the primary goal, rather than solely focusing on profit margins,” Raymond said. “We work with other organizations; if we’re asked to cater something and aren’t able to meet that order, for example, we would refer them to another community group like Chili For Children. We’ve been adamant about maintaining accessible pricing for the community so that a family can come in and have a hot meal and it’s not going to cost an arm and a leg. We encourage local artists to display their work in the restaurant and benefit with us in showcasing local art for sale.”
An added bonus of The Bannock House is that All RISE is able to provide jobs to the people it works with.
“The Bannock House itself has had a significant economic impact within the community because we’ve created four new jobs that didn’t exist before. That means that not only are those employees no longer dependent on social assistance, but they are now also contributing through their own income tax,” Raymond said. “These are people who are interested in the food services area and have the opportunity to access some training and gain experience in a supported environment.”
All RISE has also become certified to teach Canadian Red Cross first aid/CPR courses.
“It’s a fantastic service to have, because, when non-profits are applying for funding, they are required to show that they’ve found other sources of funding, whether it’s in-kind or cash donations,” Raymond said. “With our Red Cross training, we’re able to provide in-kind donations to other non-profits in the area in the form of affordable training.”
Culture plays a large part in All RISE’s mission. The location is home to the first permanent urban sweat lodge in the Regina in partnership with All Nations Hope Network. While sitting in the sweat lodge, a type of sauna covered in blankets and tarps, water is poured onto hot rocks and participants sing traditional Indigenous songs, pray and talk about different issues.
“Sweat lodges are part of teaching and healing in Indigenous culture,” Raymond said. “It’s an opportunity to heal while honouring everyone’s individual spirituality – facing your own issues and having an opportunity to talk freely in a safe space.”