For Scott Elliott, CEO of Vancouver’s Dr. Peter Centre, no single treatment can undo the trauma and addiction faced by many Indigenous clients. What he sees working most powerfully, he says, is love.

“There is no single prescription that can break the cycle of addiction or cure the layered trauma that many of our Indigenous participants carry with them. Yet of all the treatments we provide, one of the most powerful medicines is love,” he said.

That kind of healing is being made possible in part through the Archdiocese of Vancouver’s, and the Canadian Catholic Church’s, commitment to reconciliation. On Sept. 14, parishes will take up the Healing and Reconciliation Collection for the Indigenous Reconciliation Fund (IRF), created in 2022 by Canada’s bishops. The bishops’ have pledged to raise $30 million over five years toward the national fund. 

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Vancouver Archbishop Richard Smith points to listening as the heart of reconciliation: “Taking the time to hear someone’s story is a way of saying: ‘You are worthy of being listened to.’ It is a profound way of honouring the dignity of the person.” He describes the collection as a “concrete way we continue this journey,” helping Indigenous peoples embrace language, culture and wellness, and ensuring that those often marginalized can receive care with dignity and respect.

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The IRF supports local projects chosen in collaboration with First Nations partners, with priorities in healing and reconciliation, language and culture revitalization, education and community building and dialogue promoting Indigenous spirituality. Dozens of organizations nationwide have already received grants for initiatives ranging from culturally sensitive health care to addiction recovery and language renewal.

At the Dr. Peter Centre, IRF grants sustain the Indigenous Wellness Program, which offers cultural healing practices including smudging, drumming, storytelling and land-based healing led by elders and Indigenous peer support workers. IRF funding also helped create the totem pole now standing in the centre’s lobby.

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Storytelling circles, seasonal feasts and arts workshops such as drum-making and cedar weaving are led by elders and help connect clients with their cultural roots, some for the first time.

The initiative is also reshaping the centre itself: training staff and embedding Indigenous teachings into its culture, while documenting a “playbook” to share with other organizations.