To the Metis Community Services Society of BC

MÉTIS PROCLAMATION

Defining Who We Are

We are Métis, with roots and rights that extend 9,000 years into this continent.

We are neither First Nations nor Inuit, nor are we European immigrants to this land, instead we are the middle-ground between camps; the compromise between differences and; the dawn that separates night and day.

We are not half-breeds, but the children born of a marriage between two very different worlds. Our right and our purpose is to strengthen the voice of justice and bend the arm of greed, whose hand has taken far too much from the mouths of the meek.

The very duality of our heritage appoint us, and no other, to the task of mediating between the new and ancient ways, that we might be the People to strike a chord of lasting harmony amidst the mounting chaos of nations.

The essence of our uniquely diverse culture is Harmony, or in the moment of our conception there was union. The birth of the Métis Nation signifies the undeniable powers of those possessed of tolerance and the gentle spirit of compromise. The birthright of our people is to mediate on behalf of justice and common good for both our parent strains, and bring forth a means of governance that protects and prospers all who would be unjustly treated.

To be Métis is to be blessed with the best fruit of not one, but two family trees. We are not "half" of anything but doubled.

Being twice blessed, we are likewise proud, strong and determined.

                                                                                                                                                      By: Terry St. Amant

Our Mandate, Mission Statement, Vision and Values

Our Mandate

Métis Community Services Society of BC has a mandate from the Métis citizens to provide integrated, holistic, family centered, wraparound services to all those who need assistance, with special emphasis on Aboriginal populations, specifically Métis populations.

Mission Statement

• Métis Community Services Society of BC is a non-profit Society that is recognized and empowered by Métis citizens in British Columbia to provide holistic services that ensure the health and well being of the Métis community.

• Métis Community Services Society of BC will promote the health and well being of the Métis community by increasing cultural awareness to the communities in British Columbia, which reflects our unique heritage.

• Métis Community Services Society of BC will promote the health and well being of the Métis community by honoring and supporting the importance of a healthy family environment in the delivery of holistic programs and services.

• Métis Community Services Society of BC will promote the health and well being of the Métis community by encouraging stronger relationships among Métis Elders and our youth and our families and our community.

Our Vision

• We will promote the health and well being of the Métis community by increasing cultural awareness to the communities in British Columbia, which reflects our unique heritage.

• We will promote the health and well being of the Métis community by honoring and supporting the importance of a healthy family environment in the delivery of holistic programs and services.

• We will promote the health and well being of the Métis community by encouraging stronger relationships among Métis Elders,our youth, our families and our community.

Our Values

• We believe in honoring our Métis culture and in fostering pride in our history.

• We believe in focusing in on family strengths knowing that there are many resources and much knowledge within our Métis families.

• We believe in working professionally, confidentially, and respectfully with our clients, practicing ethically at all times.

• We believe in creating a safe and nurturing environment in which people will be open to change and growth.

• We believe when you heal a child you heal a family, when you heal a family you heal a community and when you heal a community you heal a Nation.