GN Trust Newsletter - July 2012

GWA'SALA-'NAKWAXDA'XW TRUST

The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

Trust All-Band Meeting July 18 3

Learn more about the Trust All-­‐‑Band Meeting on July 18, including info about the two proposals up for voting!

Proposal 1: Youth Sports & Recreation 5

This is a proposal to continue helping with Youth Sports & Recreation. This grant would cover sports registration costs for Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw youth, plus other activities.

Proposal 2: Culture 6

This is a proposal to continue building the Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑ 'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Treasure Box for community use.

Frequently Asked Questions 2

Find the answers you’re looking for!

The Trust Works for You… Over the last year, the Trust paid for sports registration for dozens of Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw children and youth, while other programs had benefits like helping people out with groceries, paying for trips to the home lands, covering costs for the elders’ annual gathering, and much, much more. Have you benefitted from the Trust?

Come to the all-­‐‑band meeting on July 18 and

Vote YES to sports & culture!

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The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

Frequently Asked Questions

The Story of the Trust: The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Nations received a settlement from the government of Canada in 2008 due to the relocation of our people in the sixties.

This settlement, amounting to $24 million, is intended to be used in three main ways: 1. Annual cash disbursements to each Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑ 'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Band member ($5 million was set aside for this) 2. Projects which benefit the entire Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw community ($19 million was set aside for this) 3. Administration costs for the Trust (these costs come out of the $19 million)

When we voted “yes” to the settlement in 2008, we also voted “yes” to the Trust Agreement, which is a set of guidelines for how the Trust will be managed. The Trust Agreement has rules that are basically meant to make sure that the Trust funds are managed responsibly.

The group whose job it is to make sure the Trust Agreement is followed is called the Trust Committee, which has 12 members, including: 1. All 8 members of Chief and Council 2. 2 Community Trustees (elected at All-­‐‑Band meetings) 3. 2 Independent Trustees (appointed by the other Trust Committee members)

The Trust Committee may also hire experts to help with accounting, auditing, communications, meeting coordination, etc.

During the first four years that we have had the Trust, the Committee has been working hard to establish policies and good practices that will make sure the Trust is available to the community forever. At the same time they have approved four grants, two of which may continue: 1. Culture (may continue) 2. Elders 3. Emergency 4. Youth Sports & Recreation (may continue)

Now that the groundwork has been laid, prepare for even more community projects to occur in the coming years. After all, the Trust works for you!

Q: Why haven’t we been using the Trust funds for new houses or fixing up the roads?

A: We didn’t want to use up all of the money before we had a better idea of how much we could spend each year. Now that we have a better idea (from completing the investment strategy), we can start to use more funds for projects that benefit the community. For things like housing, though, where there’s government funding, we don’t want to replace the government funding with Trust funds, only top them up.

Q: Who makes decisions about how Trust funds get used?

A: The Trust Committee does, but they must follow the Trust Agreement, which was voted on by the people. When it comes to spending money on projects, the community gets final say in a vote.

Q: I heard the Trust funds have all been used up, is this true?

A: Absolutely not! In fact, the amount has grown slightly due to being well-­‐‑managed by the Trust Committee. Financial records are available in the Trust Office.

Q: Where is the Trust Office?

A: In the Elders’ Centre, in Willie Walkus’ old office.

Q: I heard so-­‐‑and-­‐‑so stole money from the Trust, is that true?

A: There has been no misuse of Trust funds. The Trust is audited annually everything is in order.

Copies are made available at the Annual General Meetings. If you didn’t get one at the meeting and would like a copy of the audit, please make an appointment with the Trust Chair at (250) 230-­‐‑ 2155.

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The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

July 18 All-Band Meeting cont.

3:00 – 4:00 p.m.

Registration

Meeting starts when 25% of eligible voting Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw members are present

No Vote, No Free Sports Registration…

Without a “yes” vote on the Youth Sports & Recreation proposal, the Trust will not be able to cover sports registration this year!

If this is important to you, make sure you bring your friends and family to the meeting to vote.

4:00 – 4:10 p.m.

Overview of Voting Process

4:10 – 4:30 p.m.

Overview of Proposals -­‐‑

Youth Sports & Rec

-­‐‑

Culture

4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

Vote

5:30 – 6:00 p.m.

Count Vote

6:00 p.m.

Announce Results

Door prizes drawn throughout the meeting.

A Cancelled Meeting Costs…

There was a Trust All-­‐‑Band Meeting scheduled for May 31, 2012 to vote on the Youth Sports & Recreation grant. Unfortunately, only 60 eligible voters came. We need over 124 to have enough people to do the vote.

When we don’t get quorum, we still have to pay the caterers, travel, honoraria, etc.. This works out to about $3,000 lost every time a meeting is cancelled at the last minute.

At the May 31 meeting some of the door prizes were given away to reward those who did go to the meeting:

• • • • •

Clock won by Sally Bruce Lawn chairs won by Pamela Charlie Coffee maker won by Betty Walkus George Foreman grill won by Lucy Scow Fishing Rod won by Perry Charlie

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The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

The two proposals up for voting are: Youth Sports & Rec:

Culture:

Amount Requested:

Amount Requested:

$34,600

$20,000

Proposed Activities:

Proposed Activities:

Fund youth sports & recreation activities.

Coordinate funding for registration fees for youth (up to 18 years old) for sports (soccer, ice hockey, floor hockey, softball, swimming, gymnastics, dance, karate, fitness programs).

Contract artists to create cultural regalia including: carved masks, blankets, and other cultural pieces

Fund Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Sports Day.

Project Purpose: Create and promote positive, healthy activities & lifestyles for the youth in our community. In conjunction with supporting youth activities, we will continue to support & promote parents to volunteer and be part of the activities.

Our guiding philosophies are: -­‐‑ To supplement Trust Committee grant monies with fundraising throughout the year to support ongoing sports activities -­‐‑ Build capacity and skills within our community -­‐‑ Foster community involvement and ownership -­‐‑ Provide incentives to youth to attend school

Our youth sports & rec coordinator will ensure that students who are being funded in any way are in fact attending school on a regular basis

Project Purpose: The projects will be undertaken to build positive relationships and bring the community together with a sense of unity and pride

Other To mitigate risk of perceived favouritism for use and to keep the culture regalia in good condition a sign-­‐‑out document stating conditions for use will be developed by the Culture sub-­‐‑committee to ensure the cultural regalia is fairly booked in advance, used appropriately and returned in good condition. The Culture Sub-­‐‑committee will include in the sign-­‐‑out document and procedure who can use the regalia and for what purpose.

The Culture Sub-­‐‑committee will develop a cost recovery procedure to deal with individuals who have used and damaged the culture regalia to cover the costs of repairing or replacing the asset.

The Culture Sub-­‐‑committee will contract universal designs and seek approval from the head of the families for any specific designs involving family crests.

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Youth Sports & Rec Activities to Date: •

Registration costs for youth to attend sports, including equipment costs.

•

Carnival bracelets

•

Sports equipment for the Wakas Hall, including basketball hoops, nets, balls, hockey sticks, etc.

•

Wakas Hall & Quonset Hut revitalization, including wall painting, floor painting, and court line painting.

•

Bought a passenger van for sports teams to go to tournaments.

Next Projects: •

Youth Sports & Recreation Coordinator

•

Continuing to cover registration costs.

The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

Youth Sports & Recreation: A project to “promote positive, healthy activities & lifestyle for the youth in our community.”

Everyone knows that our youth and children are precious, and it is important to help our youth live healthy, happy lives. We are proud that the Youth Sports & Recreation program has helped dozens of Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw youth take part in the sports and physical activities they love. Not only have we helped families with the costs of putting their kids in sports, but we’ve also helped revamp our hall, so it’s a better place for our community to play sports. We would love to keep doing this good work, please vote “Yes!” on July 18!

From the Youth Sports & Recreation Committee: David Charlie (Chair), Ravena Coon, Marion Wamiss, Quinten Coon, and Sandra Charlie,

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The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

Culture:

Culture Activities to Date: •

Helped elders, chiefs and others with their feasts, potlatches, gatherings that had cultural intentions.

•

Creating the treasure box: 4 cannibal bird masks, Bakwus mask, 3 Xwi Xwi masks, 2 Dzunukwa masks, Tlamalas, Bass drum, 3 cedar bark sets, and a Thunder Bird head piece.

•

Helping some band member get out food gathering for elders.

•

Had Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Healing Feast with wonderful food.

•

Had the totem poles fixed up and painted and had a cultural event.

A project to “build positive relationships and bring the community together with a sense of unity and pride.”

We the culture committee have been working hard ever since the start of our program, putting together a lot of different things and thinking very hard on all that we do and have been creating our very own treasure box that belongs to the Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw people for when they have their own potlatches or feasts. We are currently working on getting a sign-­‐‑out sheet for all the items we have purchased. We don’t like to take advantage of our carvers but have been working on getting the best deals on our purchases to save money to get more pieces later and thank you to all carvers and everyone who has been a part of our projects in the past and look forward to working with other people in the future.

From the Culture Committee:

Next Projects: •

Getting the canoe fixed.

•

Homeland trip to Smith Inlet and Blunden Harbour on July 26 (77 people signed up)

•

Continuing to build the treasure box.

Gary Walkus (Sub-Chair), Betty Walkus, Lucy Scow, Lloyd Walkus

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The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

More Frequently Asked Questions: Q: I want to be on the Trust Committee, how can I do that?

A: All Councillors automatically become Trustees. Other Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw community members can run for one of the two Community Trustee seats at the Trust All-­‐‑Band Meetings. The term is two years. One seat is currently open, you may put your name forward at tomorrow’s meeting.

Q: What has been happening with the Trust?

Why aren‘t they doing anything with the money?

A: There has been a ton of work done by the Trust Committee. Some of the projects that have used Trust Funds include: •

Elders’ Annual Trips in 2011 & 2012

•

Elders’ Centre renovation & new furniture funding

•

Elders’ teas, field trips, exercise classes and other get-­‐‑togethers

•

Community Christmas Dinner, 2011

•

Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Healing Feast

•

Pole refurbishing & raising

A: You can submit a proposal, but you have to make sure to use the template (available from the Trust Chair) and you must include details like who will benefit from the project, what the budget is, how you will report back on your project, etc.

•

Wakas Hall renovations & sports equipment

•

Sports registration costs & equipment costs

•

Food bank support

•

Travel and other support for people in emergency situations

•

Traditional food gathering trips

•

Masks and Tlamalas commissioned for Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw treasure box

•

Contributions for culture-­‐‑related events

•

Assistance with sports teams’ travel & purchasing a van for sports teams

Q: Why are the monthly meetings held in secret?

•

Covered the cost of carnival bracelets

A: The Trust Committee meetings deal with a lot of confidential information including a lot of financial records. It’s important that this information is kept confidential, but all of the meeting minutes (and other Trust-­‐‑related documents) are available for Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑ 'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw community members to look at in the Trust Office. Call the Trust Chair at (250) 230-­‐‑2155 to make an appointment to look at them.

•

Topped up medical fees

•

Developed a set of policies and guidelines for the Trust itself

Q: I have a great idea for a community project.

Can I put in a proposal?

Q: Why are there non-­‐‑community-­‐‑members working for the Trust?

A: When the Trust Committee needs professional help (accounting, communications, coordinating meetings etc.) the Trust Agreement says they’re allowed to hire people for that work.

As you can see, there has been a lot happening!

Please come to the meeting on July 18 and VOTE so we can keep many of these activities going!

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The Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Trust: Benefits Today, Security Tomorrow

Want to learn more about the Trust?

Stay connected! Check out our web page at www.gwanak.info/trust

Trust-­‐‑related information is also included in the Yo! News and on the Gwa'ʹsala-­‐‑'ʹNakwaxda'ʹxw Facebook page.

Trust Committee Members: At the next Trust Committee meeting a new chair will be selected. The Trust Committee includes:

Council: •

David Charlie

•

Eddie Charlie

•

Sandra Charlie

•

Darryl Coon

•

Ernie Henderson

•

Gary Walkus

•

Paddy Walkus

•

Victor Walkus

Community Trustees: •

Cathy Swain

•

(one seat open)

The Trust Committee & the Investment Strategy: The Trust Committee members’ main job is to act on the guidelines in the Trust Agreement. Their main goal is to protect the original Trust amount while also trying to use the Trust for community benefit, which is a balancing act.

In the last year they have been working very hard on an Investment Strategy, to make sure the Trust will be available for future generations while still benefitting our community members in the present.

Independent Trustees:

•

Chris Roberts

•

Garth Sheane

If you would like more info on the Investment Strategy please make an appointment to meet with the Trust Chair at (250) 230-­‐‑2155.