Reconciliation fund changing lives

Cardinal Frank Leo is inviting Toronto Catholics to continue their support of the annual parish collection on behalf of the Indigenous Reconciliation Fund (IRF) set for liturgies Oct. 3 and 4.

“Through prayer, generous support and a sincere willingness to listen and learn, may we continue walking together in faith and hope, guided toward the Holy Spirit toward truth, healing and renewed relationships,” said Leo in a letter to the faithful.

Patrick Douglas, director of the Toronto archdiocese’s Office of Social Care and Community Outreach, said IRF initiatives championed by Canada’s largest Catholic community have already made significant restorative progress. The archdiocese has committed over $4.5 million to date.

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Citing The Catholic Register’s recent profile about the organization Gakino'amaage: Teach For Canada, Douglas shared that the archdiocese is extending and bolstering the original funding commitment made in 2023 — $450,000 over three years — for an additional three years at $600,000

“That will go to support more than 200 educators and now over 10,000 (Indigenous) students in these northern and remote communities,” said Douglas. “We're really pleased by that. It's just really heartening to hear about how education is changing the lives of these students and offering career development and stability for the educators in those northern communities.”

Gakino'amaage, meaning “one who teaches” in Anishinaabemowin, strides towards its mission to dismantle educational barriers for rural students in 34 First Nations communities across Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta by recruiting, equipping, supporting and retaining teachers. A robust 96 per cent first-year teacher retention rate was achieved during the 2025-26 school year.

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Douglas also highlighted the $178,835 dedicated to amplifying the educational documentary film The Cost of Silence #UsToo nationwide. The Archdiocese of Vancouver provided the funding and support that helped director, producer and writer Jeremy J, a survivor of childhood sexual exploitation, create a nonfictional account about nine male survivors of abuse. The documentary also features conversations with experts on preventative justice and an interview with a self-professed pedophile.

“I want to push us to a point of having a meaningful discussion,” Jeremy J told The B.C. Catholic during a 2021 interview. “We can never have the meaningful conversations we need to have if we’re not listening to all the victims.”

Douglas said the Archdiocese of Toronto is amplifying the documentary’s national footprint by making it accessible to Indigenous organizations and main branch public libraries across Canada.

Feather Carriers is also among the 11 reconciliation projects supported by Archdiocese of Toronto funding. This Indigenous-based training organization, slated to receive $323,400 over two years, presents culturally grounded approaches to mental health and suicide prevention.

“It proactively (shifts) the focus from suicide prevention to life promotion by embedding (Feather Carriers) within the Indigenous teachings that have been passed down as a way of life for them to have a sense of connection and purpose and place,” said Douglas. “When individuals have a healthy sense of identity, they're better able to handle these difficult times in their lives.”

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Looking ahead, Douglas shared that one of the Office of Social Care and Community Outreach’s goals is to “have stronger connections and to better appreciate the work that's happening in the projects we've been funding.”

Learn more at https://www.archtoronto.org/en/outreach/home/indigenous-reconciliation-fund/.

(Amundson is an associate editor and writer for The Catholic Register.)