Blood tribe students take to the field

LETHBRIDGE – They’ve completed the theoretical training, now, 26 trainees with the Blood Tribe Agricultural Training Initiative are taking to the field.

Henny Bruised Head is one of those trainees, she says the training initiative has already taught her a lot.

“If I didn’t know better, I’d say they’re crazy to trust me with this machinery.  But, now that I know what I know, it’s not scary at all.”

For Bruised Head, the program couldn’t have come at a better time.  She moved home to the Blood Reserve after being laid off from her last job.

“(The program) gave me more hope that we’re starting to step back in, and we could stay at home and work for our people instead of having to go somewhere else.”

From seeding to beef production, the project gives band members a chance to build a skill set on their own land, something chief and council says is crucial.

“Jobs are scarce on the reserve and having the land as our biggest asset, it’s a no brainer.   Go in this industry and you’re going to create hundreds of jobs so it’s going to allow our people to stay home instead of having to leave the reserve.  It allows for our band members to provided for their families,” added council member Aloyuisius Black Water.

The first batch of trainees will seed about 4,200 acres of wheat and canola.  For some, it’s the first time they’ll step out of the classroom, and into the dirt.

Wayna Beebe with Blood Tribe Employment and Skills Training says students are learning from industry leaders.

“A lot of the industry players that we have known, a lot of them get their knowledge right from day one, they’re raised in agriculture.  What we are trying to do is recapture some of that knowledge.”

Band members are learning the in’s and out’s of farming on their own equipment, buying it outright with money made from increasing the cash rental rates on reserve land.

“Take that money and reinvest that back into the tribe, reinvest it back into buying those machinery so it will give us the opportunity to help generate and build our economy on the blood tribe,” added Black Water.