Serpent River First Nation opens first Indigenous-run Service Ontario location
CBC News | October 19, 2022
Categories: news
Before this new location opened, community members had to travel 30 km to Elliot Lake for services
CBC News · Posted: Oct 19, 2022 4:28 PM ET | Last Updated: October 19
The first Indigenous-run Service Ontario centre had its grand opening in Serpent River First Nation on Tuesday.
Before it officially opened in August, members of the First Nation and surrounding communities had to travel about 30 kilometres north to the city of Elliot Lake to get their health cards, drivers' licences and other provincial services.
Elizabeth Richer, director of Niigaaniin Services, which provides services for Indigenous communities along the north shore of Lake Huron, spearheaded the effort to get a Service Ontario location in the community.
"During COVID, our community shut down," Richer said.
"We had borders to slow down COVID coming into our communities and we realized at that point that there were a lot of services that we weren't able to access, and Service Ontario was one of them."
Richer said she and other community members approached the province in January 2022 to discuss opening a new Service Ontario location at the First Nation.
"They realized that there were a lot of issues that our people have accessing the services and they met us halfway. And so now we have the first-ever Indigenous-operated Service Ontario, which is fantastic."
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Serpent River First Nation Deputy Chief Wilma Lee-Johnston said it was exciting the project came together so quickly.
"Normally things seem to take a while when you're working with ministries," she said.
In addition to the permanent location, which is housed in the Serpent River Trading Post, Lee-Johnston said the community also has a mobile Service Ontario unit that can travel to nearby First Nations.
Steve Meawasige, a Serpent River band council member, said is important because a lot of people in the community, and in nearby communities, don't have access to a vehicle.
Meawasige recalled a time when he travelled to the Service Ontario location in Elliot Lake, and had to return a second time because he forgot a piece of ID he needed that day.
Brian Day, who owns a restaurant near the Serpent River Trading Post, said the new Service Ontario location has been good for business.
"They've been open for a while and I've seen a lot of people come in here," Day said.
"It's quite convenient for my business because people are saying, 'Hey, you're open?'"
