The Healing of the Canoe
The Healing of the Canoe (HOC) project began almost two decades ago as an idea to develop a community driven, culturally relevant, substance abuse and mental health intervention program for tribal youth. The resulting Culturally Grounded Life Skills for Youth Curriculum uses the Canoe Journey as a metaphor, providing youth with the skills needed to navigate their journey through life.
The curriculum was first implemented in the Suquamish & Port Gamble S’Klallam tribal communities. A generic version of the curriculum was then created for Native American tribes across the country to adapt and implement in their communities.
Since 2013, the Healing of the Canoe team has focused on dissemination of the Culturally Grounded Life Skills for Youth Curriculum to other tribal communities. We are excited to report that to date we have trained 604 attendees from 51 tribes and 21 tribal organizations in how to adapt and implement the curriculum.
The HOC team is currently housed within the Suquamish Tribe, and consists of two employees, and a handful of Suquamish community members that volunteer their time to continue this important work. HOC is sponsored by SaltFire and NPAIHB.
Digital Story: What is Healing of the Canoe?
This 3.5 minute video was created by Nigel Lawrence of the Suquamish Tribe. He provides information about the original Healing of the Canoe research project, including background information on the name. He also includes a Suquamish story about the origins of the canoe, and its meaning and importance for many Pacific Northwest tribal communities. The video is an excellent summary of the work we do.
