Kwe, teluisi Salome Barker. I am an L'nu woman, born and raised in Grand Falls-Windsor. I come from a very large, beautiful family who has helped shape who I am today. I am running for a youth co-representative seat. I was previously the youth rep on the Qalipu First Nation Chief & Council from May 2020-November 2020. I learned a lot from this experience & it gave me an even deeper passion for uplifting Indigenous youths voices in Ktaqmkuk.

I believe in the youth both here on Ktaqmkuk and those who live outside the province, they are our future & they hold new perspectives & knowledge. I’ve been seeing & listening to all the work that they’re doing in their respective communities and it couldn’t make me more proud. In this role as co-representative I want all youths voices to be heard, even when we don’t agree with one another. It’s vital that everyone is listened to. I am also very passionate about education reform in the Newfoundland and Labrador school systems when it comes to Indigenous peoples history, culture, practices and stories. I wish to create safe spaces for LGBTQQIP2SAA kin to be themselves & never feel the pressure of colonial structures to conform into something they don’t identify with. Lateral violence is visible in our communities due to ongoing colonial violence, in this role I aim at addressing all forms of lateral violence & working with community rather than casting people out. I look forward to a future free from colonial structures & would be honoured to have a hand in helping. Wela'lin.

Kwe’ teluisi Avery, n’in l’nuwey weji-sqala’tmik Mi’kma’ki K’taqamkuk, kepmitelsi puoin. My name is Avery, I am Mi’kmaw grown from the land now called Newfoundland, and I am proud to be a queer, trans L’nu.

I recently returned to Ktaqamkuk after living away for several years. When I left Ktaqamkuk for Ottawa in 2014, I had a card in my pocket that said I was an Indian, but I knew nothing about what it really meant to be Mi'kmaw. Over the next six years, I learned from both colonial education systems and an extended network of Indigenous kin. I learned about governance, policy, and politics - but more importantly, I learned about culture, identity, reclamation, activism, and nation-building. I've found myself in a thousand ways since I moved away, and over the last year, I've finally been ready to come home and bring the things I've learned back to community.

I'm running for governance rep because at the Mawita'jik Maljewe'jk Youth Gathering back in November, there were so many youth with incredible ideas and visions and dreams, but they were unsure how to translate those into a formal youth council. I made a commitment to them that I would help establish a youth council using the governance, policy, and political experience I gained in Ottawa.

For the last four months, I’ve been trying to fulfill this commitment by acting as an unofficial governance advisor for the co-reps. I would really like to formalize this role by becoming the governance rep on our fancy new Qalipu Mi’kmaq Youth Council!

If you have any comments, questions, or concerns, or if you just want to chat with me before making a decision, please feel free to reach out to me on Facebook, Instagram, or via email.

I am passionate about cultural revitalization across Ktaqmkuk and the rest of Turtle Island, and I believe it starts with engaging our youth. I am interested in creating safe spaces for identity exploration and expanding access to teachings. I have seen the devastating effects of being separated from community, and how it can foster feelings of deep loneliness and a lack of worthiness. I want to help facilitate opportunities to combat those feelings that are directly linked to a loss of community connection and culture.

I have been working professionally as an arts administrator in St. John’s for the past 3 years, and I sit on Boards for several professional associations such as St. John’s Shorts, Lawnya Vawnya, and TODOS productions. I just completed producing the 15th annual Women’s Work Festival completely online. It was challenging, but I learned a lot about communicating effectively, managing a budget, navigating emotional situations, and maintaining commitments to accessible and equitable programming. I believe all these experiences combined make me an excellent candidate for the Finance / Admin position.

I look forward to supporting our first-ever Qalipu Mi’kmaq Youth Council and all the elected councilors. I hope I get the opportunity to be part of this first iteration.

Wela’lin,

Nora Barker

Hi! My name is Lindsey Swift and I am from Stephenville, NL!

I am running for the Qalipu Mi'kmaq Youth Council for many reasons but most importantly I want to become more engaged in my community and help make the changes that we as youth want to see. I also see this as a way of connecting with my culture and Mi’kmaq youth from all over as I truly enjoy making new connections. This leads me to the position that I am running for (Social media/comms rep). With my love for reaching out to people and making connections with people, I feel that this position is right up my alley! As for why I should be voted for, I think that my love for connections, my experience with social media both personally and professionally, and reaching out to people as well as my knowledge of how things like social media can impact people especially our youth would be a great asset to the council! Another reason is that I am very attentive to detail (and organized) when reading/developing posts, emails, forms, etc., so I think that would be another great asset to this role. I am also very responsive whether it be on posts, messages, emails, results, etc., so again I think it would be beneficial to this position! I love working with people so please consider me to work on a team with incredible youth! Thanks for reading :)

Kwe' everyone!

I am an L'nu youth born and raised in good ol' Stephenville, NL. I'm pursuing the position of Western Youth Representative because it is important to me that indigenous youth feel pride and acceptance to engage in their culture, and because ALL youth voices need to be heard and represented. I pride myself on being a nonjudgmental ally to those in need and for standing up in what I believe in; I'm understanding and personable, with an extra dash of enthusiasm!- qualities that I believe would make me an appropriate Youth Rep!

I'm really looking forward to showing all the love and support to our brand new, first-ever Qalipu Mi'kmaq Youth Council and would be honored to represent a group of such a bright and determined youth.

Wela'lin

Kwe’. My name is Danielle Williston. I am currently a Level 3 student at

Stephenville High, living in the beautiful region of western Newfoundland. I am

honored to be an Indigenous youth - even though knowing so acknowledges both

opportunities and disadvantages. If I am successful in my candidacy for Western

Regional Qalipu Youth Representative, my goal is to work with others to share the

beauty and healing of the culture.

For over seven years, I’ve been involved with the Mi’Kmaq Culture. It all started

when I was in Grade 4 and Elder Victor Muise visited. The way I felt in the circle

was my awaken to something that was unknow to me and certainly something I

wanted more of – my Indigenous Culture. Since that day, I have been involved in

drumming groups, taking part in Powwows, cultural workshops from crafts to

language and all points in-between.

Being involved I have found a safe space to learn and grow as an Indigenous

youth. I volunteer on the Boards of both the People of the Dawn Indigenous

Friendship Centre and the Melgignat Mi’Kmaq Women’s Group and volunteered

my time with Elders and Youth project.

My goal is to help other youth to find their safe space in our Indigenous culture;

help bring people together to heal from our complicated past as a nation; live a

balanced life using the teachings of our people; and prepare a better future for

the generations to come.

I hope I can count on your vote!

Hello everyone!

My name is Victoria, I am an eighteen-year-old from Appleton. I love to spend time outdoors, with my family, and friends. I am a very energetic, open-minded, and talkative person. I am currently in my first year at Memorial University doing Human Kinetics and Recreation. I am running for the central youth representative because I absolutely love this strong, powerful generation, and I want to be apart of change for our culture in any way possible. I think I would be a good fit for this position because I am young, fresh out of high school so I understand the issues surrounding that age category. I also stand firmly for what I believe in which I believe is a good asset for this position. I look forward to hearing from you all!

Wela'lioq!

My name is Ashley Marie Cornect-Benoit, my family and ancestors are from the Port Au Port Peninsula.

I identify as being of mixed ancestry, as my ancestors are Mi'kmaq, French, Irish. I was born and raised in southern Ontario and spent a lot of time during my childhood traveling back and forth between these two places that I refer to as home, a blessing that continues to shape the person that I am today. I have invested much of my early adulthood in pursuing higher education. This journey is dedicated to addressing the health gap that persists amongst Indigenous communities in Canada, honouring the need for holistic approaches to health and well-being that are guided by Indigenous voices. These opportunities have provided me with various teachings that I bring forward in the responsibilities that I cherish and spaces that I am invited into. I wholeheartedly believe that my responsibility to these experiences is to share with others what I have been gifted. This responsibility is an influential factor that has prompted my nomination for the youth council election. A Cree Elder shares with me that the youth are the Elders of the future and I foresee my involvement in the council as a pathway to honour the importance of youth voices from within our communities. If successful in this process, I position myself as a helper to the council and commit myself to honouring and respecting the unique stories of all peoples who are a part of this beautiful community.

Kwe’ / Hi everyone! Teluisi Ky, tleyawi Ktaqmkuk kikjiw Katalisk aqq Sinalk. My name’s Ky Pearce, I’m a queer Mi’kmaw PhD candidate and Joseph Armand-Bombardier scholar at Queen’s University. I’m non-status but I grew up on the land on NL’s South West coast and have spent the last 9 years working to reclaim our culture and build kinship ties with other Mi’kmaw folx. I have a master’s degree from Queen’s, and a bachelor’s degree from MUN’s Grenfell Campus. My current research explores queer Indigenous theory and Mi’kmaw philosophy based in our teachings, stories, and language. I use beadwork and poetry to challenge academic norms.

I have a lot of experience in youth organizations and advocacy! From 2008-2010 I served on FINALLY!’s provincial youth council, from 2014-2016 I worked with the Grenfell Campus Student Union, and in 2017 I was appointed to NL’s provincial youth advisory council. In 2017 I also participated in the 2Spirit/Queer consultations held to draft recommendations embedded in the national inquiry into MMIWG’s final report. I want to bring my experience to the Qalipu Youth Council to help mentor the next generation of young leaders. I’m dedicated to creating mentorship and scholarship opportunities to support our youth along whatever path we choose, be it post-secondary education, the arts, or the trades. I have a lot of experience in university settings, have served on scholarship selection committees, and chaired graduate curriculum committees. Following our passion is the key to Indigenous resurgence; I want to help our youth do that. Wela’lin nitaptut!