From February 23rd to March 2nd, we had the privilege of hosting our Facilitator Training at Łı́ı́dlı̨ı̨ Kų́ę́ First Nation’s beautiful new Cultural Tourism Centre. The calm setting was perfect for our intense week of learning.

Eight participants from five different NWT communities came together to take part in this training. By the end of the week, these individuals officially became Facilitators-in-Training (FITs) and qualified to facilitate Supporting Wellbeing (SWB) Trainings with the guidance of a Mentor. Our four Mentors took part in the training as our support team: Mandee McDonald and Wendy Lahey as the training facilitators, Rachel Cluderay as camp manager, and Donald Prince as the emotional support person. 

We started the training with a Feeding the Fire Ceremony led by Gilbert and Mary Jane Cazon. This grounded our experience in Dehcho Dene culture and a recognition of the Land.

Our first full day of training was dedicated to understanding the role of a Facilitator in the SWB Training. We reviewed key responsibilities and learned useful facilitation techniques. The remainder of the training involved hands-on facilitation experience, as FITs took turns facilitating different activities from the SWB curriculum. The FITs took advantage of the warm weather by hosting many of their activities outside around the fire pit! After each facilitated activity, the mentors and fellow FITs provided constructive feedback, allowing everyone an opportunity to develop new skills and build on their existing strengths. 

An important part of the training was the cultural and on the land activities. These provided a meaningful break from facilitation practice and reminding us of the purpose behind our work. We had the opportunity to go skidooing with the Edéhzhíe Guardians and learned about their work. We also gathered medicines with Rosa Wight and made spruce salve and jiiju tea. In the evenings, Louisa Morreau guided us in making our own beaver mittens, a project that we worked on throughout the week – these mitts are proudly featured in our group photo!

We concluded our training in the same way that we had started, with Mary Jane and Gilbert leading us through a Feeding the Fire Ceremony. The fire was well-fed and we also burned spruce boughs and letters to mark the end of our journey together.

We now have a total of 15 FITs and 5 fully-trained facilitators! This growing network of trained facilitators will increase our capacity to run Supporting Wellbeing Trainings throughout the north.

Overall, the training was a motivating and empowering experience. It was inspiring to see the FITs improve throughout the training and come into their own as facilitators, each with their own different strengths and styles. Their dedication to the material is evident, and we cannot wait to see the positive impact they will have on wellbeing in the north.