CAMP La Ronge Youth Summer Camp Recording Session with Mentors and Mentees. (Eliza Doyle)

By Nigel Maxwell

Community support

Arts mentorship program receives $700K boost

Apr 18, 2024 | 5:00 PM

A program that brings music education to remote and underserved communities in Saskatchewan, is receiving a big financial boost.

The Community Arts Mentorship Program (CAMP) has been named the first recipient of the Downie – Wenjack Blanket Fund Capacity Building Grant – and will receive $175,000 per year for four years.

Prince Albert’s LJ Tyson Kimbley has been involved with the program for the past three years, both as a director and a mentor. Reflecting on his own experience, teaching music to youth in the La Ronge area, he said the program has made an incredible difference

“Making those connections and seeing the kids light up when their play their first guitar cord or sometimes even sing their first note, its been an amazing experience,” he said.

CAMP was Co-founded in 2020 by Eliza Doyle (Settler, Juno-winner) and Holly Yuzicapi (Standing Buffalo, Knowledge Keeper). Their goal was to help rebuild the intergenerational connections lost through colonization and the residential school system, the 60’s scoop, lateral violence, and addictions. Kimbley noted he too has felt the impact.

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“Selfishly it is a very fulfilling feeling, but when you think about the impact it makes in their lives, I mean it gets them to school more, it enriches the arts in their lives so it is really is helping their mental health in some capacities,” he said.

Mentee and Mentor – CAMP Beauval Youth Summer Camp.

Inspired by Chanie’s story and Gord Downie’s call to build a better Canada, the Gord Downie and Chanie Wenjack Fund aims to build cultural understanding and create a path toward reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples.

“Gord Downie was and is an amazing artist and musician and philanthropist and I think he would be really proud of what CAMP is giving to communities,” Kimbley said.’

The Blanket Fund, initiated with a generous $1 million investment from Hudson’s Bay Foundation, has pledged to direct 100 per cent of net proceeds from the sale of HBC Point Blankets to support Indigenous communities.

Through an innovative participatory granting process, the recipients of the first round of Capacity Building funding were selected, empowering Indigenous organizations to direct resources where they are most needed.

Currently, CAMP works with eight communities, offering 10 different programs: Hip Hop Collaboration, Fiddle Teacher Mentorship, Music Teacher Mentorship, Trauma & Cultural-Sensitivity Training (TACT), Girls Rock Camp, Youth Music Camps, Northern Lights Bluegrass Music Camp & Festival Partnership, Music Curriculum Development and Doylefest.

This week’s funding announcement will enable the organization to expand its reach and impact, supporting grassroots Indigenous arts and cultural practices while nurturing the next generation of Indigenous leaders. In addition to music education, Kimbley noted his personal desire to branch out and include both visual arts and drama.

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nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell