November 19, 2020 -
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OTTAWA, ON – Today MP Brad Vis welcomed Carol Camille, the Executive Director of the Lillooet Friendship Centre Society, to the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (HUMA).
“Carol is a Rockstar in my riding and she does incredible work,” said MP Vis, “Every time I come up to Lillooet, I am impressed by how she is able to manage so much with so little.”
Today’s HUMA meeting was the second to be held as committee members continue their study into issues pertaining to urban, rural, and northern Indigenous housing. Executive Director Carole Camille testified to the work done by the Lillooet Friendship Centre Society and the need for additional support, both prior to and now within the context of COVID-19.
“Most rural and remote Friendship Centres do not have a housing program,” relayed Ms. Camille. “Friendship Centres are then tasked with finding safe, affordable housing for Indigenous individuals and families who require housing or who are homeless or at risk of being homeless. We work with families and landlords to find new housing sources, even to develop relationships with those landlords. These are just a few of the tasks that myself and staff at the Friendship Centre do off of the corner of our desks for our clients that come through our doors. We deal with these gaps in services in our communities and start seeking funding to support and fill those gaps.”
Like many Canadians, Indigenous people have moved to urban centres over the past 70 years. Today, more than half of the Indigenous population lives in cities across Canada. Despite their proportion of the Indigenous population, there is limited research and data on Indigenous people living in urban areas.
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Additional Information:
• The full committee meeting may be viewed on the parliamentary website.
• Exec. Dir. Camille and MP Vis’ discussion can be found on MP Vis’ Facebook page.
Media Contact:
Blair Kesteven
Office of MP Vis
[email protected]
613-992-1275