Councillor D. LaBillois – Community Update

Thank you to everyone who attended our recent general community meeting. These gatherings always bring me pride as your councillor. Representing our community is an honour that I never take for granted.

I also want to thank Chief Chris for his constant guidance. Any time there are internal differences or difficult moments, he is always there with support and sound advice. I also share regrets from Councillor Tiffany Boyd, who was unable to attend due to illness.

As the portfolio lead for Child and Family, I support the team through advocacy and project work. I do not oversee day to day case management, as that is the responsibility of trained social workers. I am very proud of the team and the work they continue to do for our families.

The department has recently moved into its new building. Head Start will remain in the current location until after Christmas and will then move down with the rest of the staff.

As the education portfolio lead, I want to highlight a few important updates.

• Chief and Council recognized a shortfall in hot lunch program funding. No child should go hungry, so we unanimously voted to subsidize the remaining three days each week.

• Daycare will take over the current Head Start space once Head Start relocates.

• We are moving forward with our standalone daycare building. The feasibility study shows the project is fully viable. The draft is awaiting ratification. I have also signed the contract with the design firm that will manage the build.

• A feasibility study for a standalone school is underway. An internal committee has been established, including myself, Councillor Boyd, Director of Education Tiffany LaBillois, Clement Bernard, and Chief Chris.

In the past four and a half months, I have been active on the front lines of important issues, especially around treaties and sovereignty. Many communities are discussing how to define treaty rights in a modern context. Canada continues to challenge our rights and identity, and I am committed to advocating for our sovereignty at every level.

I have also been working with youth in our community. We are setting up a Youth Council for Ugpi’ganjig, but it will not involve elections for youth chief. We want young people to participate without the pressures of electoral politics.

At the regional level, I am helping build an Atlantic Youth Council for elected leaders under 30. The goal is to share experiences, challenges, and ideas across communities, strengthening our work through collaboration.

Over the past months, I have written six detailed newsletter updates. It means a lot to share this work in person as well.

Thank you all for your continued support and engagement.