From your ONRC North of 60 Team
Summer 2025 Report

All nine of our Arctic communities have received our gift of food. Six communities received sea containers filled with food and household items and three communities received crates of food. The weather this year was uneventful permitting the ships and barges to safely drop off everything to the beach sites and then to the missions.

Families worked diligently to unload and store all non- freezable items to keep them safe from exploding over the winter months. Equally fast, the first hampers were made bringing much relief to the families.

For 22 months all Indigenous families across Canada have benefited from a program called Jordan’s Principle. This meant that every family with children under the age of majority received funds for each child to improve their daily experiences. This program has now been curtailed. Going forward families and organizations will need to identify the request for support, with funds being awarded on a case-by-case decision. Typical groceries were delisted. Families are now experiencing fear and confusion about what their future will be like. Our gift of food has calmed some fears and offered them strength as providers for their families.

Gratitude is extended to each and every Vincentian who helped to gather food, and to pack and load a sea container - plus the many of you who supported through pass ups, enabling essential food items to be purchased and ultimately getting everything there - the pivotal transportation costs. None of this would have happened without your solid commitment to the project. A huge THANK YOU to everyone!

In July, I attended a meeting in Edmonton with many Elders and youth from across Nunavut. For three days we discussed their concerns. Several expressed how the food has helped them to believe that they are not a forgotten people. Elders will ask their grandchildren to recite prayers of gratitude and good wishes for us after they prepare meals from the hampers. I was humbled. However, three new communities shared the conditions of their daily lives. It is their profound hope that we will remember them should more Ontario help become available.

Over the years, St Patrick’s in Markham and St Raphael’s in Burlington have painted their sea containers - a way to say Hi! Ontario has established a business relationship with a sea container company called ATS. This year I sent pictures of the painted containers to ATS. They were thrilled and asked if we would partner with them to advertise the sea containers on their social media pages and promote our work to all their viewers. I jumped at this opportunity. Please check out their Facebook and Instagram pages.

Sister and Brothers, if you have wondered about North of 60 for you and your members…. I would like to be bold and invite myself to any of your meetings. I will eagerly come to explain about Nunavut and how you too can be a part of this wonderful project. There is so much we can accomplish together - there are so many Nunavut lives we can help to improve and lessen their daily struggles to provide for their families.
Together we can do this - please reach out.

Below is my email address, ONRC’s postal address and a link to the form for pass ups as well as the Canada Helps link for a direct donation.

Please support our mission of sharing,
Pegg Leroux, North of 60 chair north.of.60@ssvp.on.ca
On-line: Click here www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/48540 OR
mail: Society of Saint Vincent de Paul Ontario Regional Council
PO Box 23016 Brantford PO Main, Brantford ON N3T 6K4
including this form to clearly designate the destination of your monies.