Ontario First Nation helping in deer cull, part of plan to help species at risk
Caldwell First Nation Chief Louise Hillier remembers frolicking on a beautiful southern Ontario beach as a little girl. It was quiet and the surrounding vegetation lush.
The serenity and peace remain, but much else has changed at Point Pelee National Park over the decades. Storms have eroded the point that juts south into Lake Erie. Rare species — like the prickly pear cactus that is found in only one other place in Canada — grow there, but in dwindling pockets.
Time has its way of beating down the park, says Hillier, who lived there as a child when cottages were still allowed. Despite the changes, Point Pelee, part of Caldwell First Nation’s traditional territory, still holds a special place in the minds of the members of the nearby First Nation.
“It just seems to have a healing presence,” she says. “And you can’t help but feel good.”