NAN Legal Services in partnership with the John Howard Society in Fort Hope, put together a Youth Hockey team to compete in the 2nd Annual Roy A. Okees Memorial Hockey Tournament.
Eight teams competed with two visiting teams being from Kasabonika FN and Sandy Lake, FN last week.
Thunder Bay Police Service Aboriginal Liaison Unit Cst. Larry Baxter is a proud member Fort Hope (Eabametoong) and was invited to play with the youth and act as a role model and provide mentorship.
The youth on the team were involved in the Restorative Justice Program in Fort Hope.
The Thunder Bay Police Service has been conducting Northern Community Outreach initiatives such as this to make meaningful connections with area communities and youth.
While this may take officers like Cst. Baxter outside of the City of Thunder Bay borders, many community members met during these trips often will find themselves in Thunder Bay to access a variety of regional services.
Many of the youth living in the remote NAN communities may eventually move to Thunder Bay for schooling or to pursue employment. Many of the NAN community members frequent Thunder Bay and have close family ties in the city.
Trips such as these also act as Cultural Awareness training for officers from the TBPS as officers get to experience what life is on a remote community.
Participating in community events is an excellent way to break the ice and have both community members and officers see each other in a different light.
