Marcia Halfe

I was born in southern Manitoba, raised in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation with my grandparents and single mother. Growing up with grandparents that did not attend residential school was the saving factor for our family until after their passing. The residual effects of residential school have surfaced within our extended families. Our grandparents encouraged independence, hard work and secured our identity by ensuring the teachings of language, history, and traditions of our Dakota Nation. I have been married for 35 years to a member of the Goodfish Lake Cree Nation in Treaty 6. We have five adult children and 16 grandchildren. Calgary has been our home for the past 9 years. Currently, I work with Fishing Lake First Nation in Saskatchewan as the Executive Director with Kahkinah Kanawapateeing Family Wellness and Mino Pimatisiwin Healing Lodge. I’ve worked in the Human Service industry for 32 years from Income Support, Family Support Service work, frontline CFS Case management, Team Lead to Executive Director of First Nation CFS Agencies. In the years of executive management, repatriation of children in care to family and community was a priority in my CFS leadership. The focus on permanent ward children, their connection to family, community, culture and assertively implementing prevention practices, the teams were successful in returning over 70% of permanent ward children back to their First Nation in 4 years. I hold a Bachelors of Indigenous Social Work and combined with many years of direct experience working in the industry, as well as analyzing the needs, services and outcomes of CFS involved in the lives of Indigenous children, youth and families.