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Bishop Christian Riesbeck of Saint John, New Brunswick, poses with his fellow diocesan delegates at the National Shrine of Sainte-Anne-de-Beaupré in Quebec on July 28, 2022 during the penitential pilgrimage of the late Pope Francis to Canada. Pictured to the right is Graydon Nicholas, the former lieutenant governor of New Brunswick and a current IRF board director.
Photo courtesy Diocese of Saint John
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Canadian Catholics remain well ahead of pace in accruing the promised $30 million for the Indigenous Reconciliation Fund (IRF) within five years.
This national endeavour has netted $25.98 million as of June 30, meaning the final amount raised by Dec. 31, 2027, will likely significantly surpass the approximately $4 million needed to reach the target.
These contributions have put into motion 394 projects that align with the IRF pillars of fostering healing and reconciliation, culture and language revitalization, education and community building and dialogues uplifting Indigenous spirituality and culture.
Rosella Kinoshameg, the IRF’s board chair, explained to The Catholic Register how initiatives taking root across Canada are already bearing culturally and linguistically restorative fruits.
“I went to residential school and was forbidden to speak my language,” said the Odawa/Ojibway woman from the Wikwemikong Unceded First Nation in Ontario. “I know parents who went didn't teach their children how to speak the language. And so those are the children who are missing out on the language and who are now learning. There are also people learning how to dance, make the regalia, sing, drum and all these things that are good for healing to take place.”
Carol Bragagnolo, the IRF’s administrative officer, said the IRF board members would like to thank Canadian Catholics for helping bring these projects to life. Kinoshameg and Bragagnolo also spoke positively about their collaborative relationship with the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops’ (CCCB) liaison Bishop Christian Riesbeck, who shepherds the Saint John diocese in New Brunswick.
Likewise, Riesbeck told the Register he enjoys working with the IRF board and receiving updates on the many active hope and healing endeavours.
“It's been very edifying to see even the sense and words of gratitude we receive from those who have been directly impacted by the funding of these projects,” said Riesbeck. “I visited some of the projects (and) organizations that have benefited from our own financial support here in the diocese. They're very grateful. I think that is very edifying to me. (It) builds my faith, and the momentum continues. Relationships have been built and have been strengthened as a result.”
He has enjoyed visiting IRF project sites in person, including the Nignen Women’s Shelter in Natoaganeg, a Mi'kmaq First Nations community. Launched in 2024, it is the first Indigenous women’s shelter ever established on First Nation land in New Brunswick.
Like Riesbeck, Kinoshameg also enjoys beholding IRF-backed initiatives in person. She said with a chuckle that “I wish I could visit all the projects because they are so interesting.”
She is planning a visit to Guelph, Ont., in September to view the dedicated Indigenous Health Sacred Space that opened its doors within St. Joseph’s Health Centre last month. It will offer smudging, a kitchen for preparing traditional food and medicines and an indoor garden space for sacred plants. The space is named Manitou Wiigwaam, meaning "Spirit Lodge" in English.
An IRF project approved in the Archdiocese of Toronto back in October 2023 that Kinoshameg and Bragagnolo seek to spotlight is Gakino'amaage: Teach For Canada, a non-profit that recruits and invests in dedicated teachers to practice their vocation in remote First Nations. The organization has amassed a network of 26 First Nations community partners across Northern Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. IRF funding helped in skills development for teacher assistants and for administrative leaders.
According to the IRF, this funding will “create local talent pools and strengthen northern education systems, benefitting over 4,300 students from Kindergarten to Grade 12.”
While Dec. 31, 2027, officially concludes the five-year drive to collect $30 million, the IRF will remain active until at least the end of the decade, as the deadline to activate every proposal is Dec. 31, 2029.
And considering that both CCCB and Indigenous leaders have stressed that reconciliation is a long, ongoing process, there is intrigue over what initiatives could succeed the IRF.
“We have our vision of where we want to go,” said Kinoshameg. “I think it's good we have that vision, and I hope we get there and have something materialized after 2027.”
She declined to share further details for now. All she added was that Bragagnolo “has been working hard to try and, you know, come to something that we all had talked about.”
Riesbeck affirmed that the reconciliation and healing journey will remain moving forward.
“We know that support for reconciliation encompasses more than monetary donations,” said Riesbeck. “As the Church in Canada seeks to move from apology toward authentic reconciliation, it's also important to foster relationships that are not defined solely by past accusations or financial expectations, but by a true desire to move forward in hope for truth and reconciliation and healing.”
Visit irfund.ca to learn more about each of the 394 approved projects.
(Amundson is an associate editor and writer for The Catholic Register.)
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