Saskatoon Tribal Council Chief Mark Arcand begins his presentation to Humboldt and District Chamber of Commerce members with a few laughs. (Aaron Schulze/northeastNOW Staff)

By Aaron Schulze

STC Humboldt Partnership

Saskatoon Tribal Council discusses future partnerships and relationships in Humboldt

Sep 19, 2019 | 6:00 PM

Chief Mark Arcand of the Saskatoon Tribal Council (STC) and Lisa Mooney of Nutrien spoke about First Nations partnerships in front of Humboldt and District Chamber of Commerce members.

To Arcand’s knowledge, the luncheon hosted by the chamber on Sept. 19 was the first time the STC has had an opportunity to have an introductory conversation to a bigger picture in Humboldt.

“We’re open to all kinds of partnerships and relationships – whether it’s in the City of Saskatoon, urban, or the rural setting – just to work on reconciliation,” Arcand said. “We’re open to Humboldt reaching out, whether it’s through the chamber or the mayor, and saying how do we make this happen. I’ll call it a calling that everybody should be open to working together, understanding and respecting cultures, languages, identities, and how we all live in the same space and make sure it’s better so everybody can have a quality life.”

Some of the messages Arcand mentioned during his presentation touched on community investment, jobs for Indigenous peoples, and community engagement.

“What does a community need?” he said. “Is it infrastructure, a program, or what’s working in this community that could work in a First Nations community?”

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For Brent Fitzpatrick, executive director of the Humboldt chamber, it wasn’t the messages presented by Arcand or Mooney that made him feel like the luncheon was a success. It was the 40 chamber members who were fully engaged to the presentations.

“In order to enter in any partnership you have to have a very strong awareness of the person you’re entering into partnership with,” Fitzpatrick said. “Today with the messages both of them brought, in particular Chief Arcand, he brought that awareness so that when people do begin discussions, you’re not talking to a stranger. You have an idea of the core values that the STC and Chief Arcand have.

“Moving forward, we’ll be getting a hold of the chief and the STC in opening a dialogue that basically says ‘What do you need, what are you looking for, and what can Humboldt and area businesses provide?’ Today was the handshake and tomorrow we start entering into partnerships.”

Fitzpatrick said businesses in Humboldt don’t have a lot of experience of doing business with First Nations organizations, with the closest First Nations group being the STC. He said the chamber members he talked to after the presentations were appreciative of the opportunity to learn about history and doing business with First Nations.

Both Arcand and Fitzpatrick said there are currently no future events between the Humboldt chamber and the STC planned, but both are looking forward to working with one another.

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aaron.schulze@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @SchulzePANow