First-of-its-kind Mi’kmaw Centre for Healing and Resilience coming to Millbrook First Nation

A new and unprecedented resilience centre is coming to Millbrook First Nation in Nova Scotia.

The provincial and federal governments are putting more than $8 million towards the construction of the new Mi’kmaw Centre for Healing and Resilience.

The centre, which is considered the first of its kind in Canada, will be run by the Nova Scotia Native Women’s Association. The province says services are expected to focus on healing and resilience for Indigenous women, girls, LGBTQ2SIA+ people and their families.

For Karla MacFarlane, the minister responsible for the Office of the Status of Women and Office of L’nu Affairs, the development of the centre marks a new chapter of healing, strength, and resilience, led by Indigenous women.

"The Province of Nova Scotia is proud to invest in this transformative project, which will provide trauma-informed and culturally appropriate healing and wellness programs that will help people to live happier, healthier lives,” MacFarlane said in a news release.

The Nova Scotia government is set to contribute $1.4 million to the project, while the Government of Canada will spend upwards of $6.5 million through the Green and Inclusive Community Buildings program. An additional $232,000 has been put forward by Indigenous Services Canada.

The historic project is one that Sydney—Victoria MP Jaime Battiste, who made history of his own by becoming the first Mi’kmaw MP ever in Canada, is pleased to see come to fruition.

“Through culturally appropriate programming, users will be able to heal, build resiliency and reconnect with the customs and traditions that have defined our people for millennia,” Battiste said in a news release.

The historical element of the announcement was not lost on Bernadette Marshall, president of the Nova Scotia Native Women’s Association (NSNWA).

“We want to eventually see a Resilience Centre in every Indigenous community in our province. This Resilience Centre has been a dream of mine for years and now the dream is becoming reality -- it's very exciting,” she said.

Chief Robert Gloade of Millbrook First Nation calls the creation of a resilience centre thrilling and one that he didn’t hesitate to support.

“Millbrook and the NSNWA, along with the federal and provincial governments, are on a continuous path, making headway and joining forces to give back to the Mi'kmaw and Indigenous people in our community. I am privileged to be part of this historical moment,” Gloade said.

The Nova Scotia government says it has spent more than $250,000 over the past three years to support several phases of planning and the development work for the resilience centre.