A project in Taykwa Tagamou Nation is teaching basic construction skills while improving infrastructure in the community.

Taykwa Tagamou Nation (TTN) Employment and Training, the TTN community operations department, Northern College Training Division and Indigenous hub Keepers of the Circle have partnered for a community carpentry program.

The program was developed by Cherilyn Archibald, an employment and training co-ordinator at TTN, and Kelly Lamontagne, a program co-ordinator at Northern College.

It’s provided through Skilled Trades Training Across Rural Sections of Ontario (STTARS).

During the six-week co-ed program in Taykwa Tagamou Nation, 12 participants are helping the operations department in basic carpentry skills.

“I think it really empowers them when they’re out in the work field, they really like carpentry,” Archibald said.

The participants have already built two patios, a ramp and bins needed around the community. The plan is also to build a gazebo to cover the sweat lodge at a community cultural site and a gazebo at the community playground.

“Infrastructure in our First Nations is always beneficial to the community, to the people that live there. Because not everybody has the means to build their own stuff, so it helps our elders, community members, safety-wise,” Archibald said.

There are three carpenters who are working with the students in the field.

Before putting their skills to use in the field, participants took the safety training and working at heights training provided by the college.

They also took a CCC (Culture, Confidence, Competence) pre-employment training program provided by Keepers of the Circle.

The training takes 180 hours to complete and can be taken online or in-person, depending on the pandemic restrictions.

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