Truth and reconciliation asks us to do more than reflect on the past. It asks us to:
- Listen to Indigenous voices
- Learn how history continues to shape people’s experiences
- Act on what we learn
At Radiance, this means continuing to examine how our services support Indigenous families. Even when we bring care and professional experience to our work, we may carry assumptions about what family looks like, where support comes from, how risk is understood, or what healing should involve. We have a responsibility to keep learning from the families we serve and to let that learning shape our practices.
The following is an outline of how at Radiance, we put into place the practice of listening, learning, and acting to support Indigenous families on their path to healing.
Listening to Indigenous Families
We are continuing to learn how the history of residential schools, experiences with service systems, and cultural differences can shape whether Indigenous families feel understood, respected, and supported when they come to Radiance. A family may bring experiences and relationships that our usual ways of working do not fully recognize. Listening gives us the chance to understand what matters to each family, including whom they trust, where they find strength, and what support feels right for them.
Families are experts in their own relationships and needs. By listening to the families we serve, we have learned that conventional social service approaches do not always make room for the people and connections an Indigenous family identifies as important.
Extended family, community members, Elders, and other natural supports may be sources of protection, belonging, and strength. Listening means taking those relationships seriously and asking families what support looks like to them.
Learning from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Calls to Action offer guidance for organizations continuing this work.
Call to Action 1 addresses child welfare. Among its priorities are keeping Indigenous families together where it is safe to do so, educating those who work with families about the history and impacts of residential schools, and recognizing the role Indigenous communities can play in family healing.
At Radiance, this call encourages us to keep listening to Indigenous families and considering how their perspectives can shape our work. We have brought more culture, including Indigenous culture into our programming, with the goal of helping families feel seen, welcome, and supported.
This learning has also informed our efforts to make more room for extended family and natural supports. Our shelter includes a dedicated Faith, Culture, and Wellness space. The Connection Centre, which opened in 2024, provides a larger place for families to gather and maintain important relationships.
Call to Action 22 speaks specifically to health care and the value of Indigenous healing practices, including collaboration with Indigenous healers and Elders when requested by patients. Although Radiance is not a health-care provider, the call reinforces the importance of respecting Indigenous knowledge, teachings, and cultural practices as part of how people may choose to experience healing.
Acting On What We Learn
Learning matters when it changes what we do. For Radiance, culturally responsive practice includes continuing to question how our services understand family, support, and risk. We want to ensure that institutional assumptions do not unnecessarily exclude relationships that offer genuine connection, protection, and belonging.
We are grateful for the guidance of Elder Cheryle Chagnon-Greyeyes, a Cree-Métis woman and member of Muskeg Lake Cree Nation. A Traditional Knowledge Keeper, Cree Elder, and Pipe Carrier, Cheryle shares her knowledge with Radiance through sharing circles, storytelling, smudging, bannock teachings, Indigenous protocols, Territorial Acknowledgements, and individual support when requested.
This year, Elder Cheryle has expanded her involvement across Radiance, including more direct engagement with our Children’s Centre and Radiance Family Day Homes program. Her time with children offers opportunities to experience Indigenous teachings and traditions in meaningful, age-appropriate ways. For educators, it offers a chance to learn through relationship and conversation, grounding their understanding in Indigenous perspectives.
Continue Learning With Us
There is hope in the changes that listening and learning can make possible. There is also more work to do. Reconciliation is an ongoing responsibility: to remain open to what families tell us, to examine our assumptions, and to carry what we learn into our actions.
Our team will be taking part in experiential learning and reflection on September 30th, and an Indigenous lunch and learn on October 1st, led by Elder Cheryle. We will be bringing these valuable lessons into action through our work at Radiance.
We invite you to continue learning alongside us by watching the videos below, and listening to Indigenous voices: