Law student cooks up fundraiser for aboriginal shelter

Montreal law student Joey Flowers, originally from Kuujjuaq, plans to cook up a delicious meal March 20 to benefit the cash-strapped Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal. (FILE PHOTO)

When Joey Flowers heard about funding cuts at the Native Women’s Shelter of Montreal, he wanted to help.

This organization, which provides shelter and support to First Nations, Métis and Inuit women in the Montreal area, was forced to cut some of their core programming last summer when their Aboriginal Healing Foundation money came to an end.

The AHF had funded the shelter’s Moving Toward the 7th Generation project since 2000.

After meeting Nakuset, the shelter’s director, at a Montreal radio station last year, Flowers, a Kuujjuaq native, McGill University law student, and Arctic Voices Fellow, decided to cook something up.

On March 20, Flowers and a team of volunteers now plan to prepare a benefit dinner, directing all proceeds from the meal to the shelter.

“Since they lost their funding, they’re no longer able to do a lot of the innovative projects (they once did), like traditional healing,” Flowers said.

“We know the [urban] Inuit use these services. My mom works at the women’s shelter in Kuujjuaq, so this is an issue that’s close to my heart.”

Flowers, who is also a trained cook, plans to serve up country foods and other ingredients for the March 20 dinner, such as donated shrimp from Makivik Corp., char from a Nunavut organization and seal meat from a Montreal butcher.

The five-course meal will be served up by Flowers and volunteers at Le Nouveau Palais restaurant at 281 Bernard Street West in Montreal.

Flowers is asking guests to pay a minimum of $75 per ticket, although anyone can make a tax-deductable contribution online.

The event, called Mamu chu chi nan (“together we are strong” in Naskapi) begins at 6:00 p.m.

Contact Melissa Isaac for tickets at melissa23isaac@hotmail.com or by calling 514-465-6026.