Volunteers gather to build the Batchewana First Nation teaching lodge
A special structure is going up behind the Anishinabek Discovery Centre in Sault Ste. Marie. A group of volunteers gathered over the weekend to build a teaching lodge, which will serve as a centre for traditional learning.
The process of building a teaching lodge begins with site selection and gathering of building materials. In this case, maple saplings are tied together to form the "ribs" of the structure, which will then be covered with a tarp.
Chief Dean Sayers of Batchewana First Nation was on hand for the opening ceremony and to lend a hand in building the lodge. He says it's the historical and traditional equivalent of a present-day school.
"It's a holistic lodge, and you connect in so many ways when you're in this lodge," says Chief Sayers. "Visually, spiritually, emotionally. You'll get a connection that you'll find in no other educational institute."
Chief Sayers says the lodge is constructed using all natural materials, with each piece serving a purpose.
"Every section has teachings, every rib has teachings," he says. "It's our encyclopedia. It's our Google. Everything is right there. You want to know something? Google it right there. You can Google it in the lodge and the ancestors will help us with that."
An activist cycling from Quebec to British Columbia was among those invited to the lodge site. Guillaume McMartin, who not long ago considered ending his life, says he is bringing a message of hope across the country.
"It's finding a purpose and hope, a little piece of hope in my heart, that I could make a difference," says McMartin. "That's the journey I take today. Because if I can save one person's life who's thinking about suicide, who's thinking to give up, if I can help put hope in one person's heart, then this entire journey is worth it."
McMartin says while his journey is taking much longer than he expected, he's grateful for the experience.
"I thought it would take two or three months," he says. "And now, I'm like two months in and I'm still in the middle of Ontario. But, I've met so many amazing people and generous people and people giving from the heart."
Officials say the teaching lodge, which will remain up year-round, is designed to compliment modern-day teaching methods at Shingwauk Kinoomaage Gamig, the Anishinabek university in the Soo.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
BREAKING Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Doctors visiting a Gaza hospital are stunned by the war's toll on Palestinian children
An international team of doctors visiting a hospital in central Gaza was prepared for the worst. But the gruesome impact Israel’s war against Hamas is having on Palestinian children still left them stunned.
Crypt near Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner could fetch US$400,000 at auction
A one-space mausoleum crypt in the vicinity of Marilyn Monroe and Hugh Hefner will go on auction Saturday, when it is expected to reach between US$200,000 and $400,000.
This Toronto restaurant is no longer accepting tips. Here's how it's going
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff – tipping is no longer accepted.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Premiers not being truthful about carbon tax, Trudeau says while sparks fly in Ottawa
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says Conservative premiers across the country are 'not telling the truth' when it comes to the carbon tax. Trudeau's comments came as fresh sparks were flying in Ottawa at a recalled House of Commons committee.
Far North police 'dispatch' polar bear stalking schoolyard
Police and local hunters in an Ontario Far North First Nation community have “dispatched” a polar that was showing abnormal behaviour and treating the area as a hunting ground.
What new auto insurance reforms will mean for Ontarians, if they get introduced
Ontario has among the highest rates for auto insurance premiums in Canada -- just below Alberta and Nova Scotia -- however, the introduction of an insurance reform in the provincial budget could soon lower prices.