Provincial funding to help Indigenous Nanaimo youth overcome addictions, avoid overdose
NANAIMO — New money is putting boots on the ground in Nanaimo to fight the ongoing overdose crisis, specifically to save Indigenous lives.
As part of a recent provincial funding announcement, promising $20 million over three years specifically for Indigenous programs, Nanaimo’s Tillicum Lelum will be able to afford a new outreach navigator and fully support their existing programs.
Tillicum Lelum executive director Grace Elliott Nielsen told NanaimoNewsNOW providing relief and support for their one overworked substance abuse counsellor will let them touch on every aspect of addiction.
“Quite often, Indigenous people when they’re very young, teenagers or older, they don’t feel connected to a model that isn’t holistic,” she said.