Neechie Gear Founder and CEO Kendal Netmaker was among the participants at a special charity golf event Thursday at Kachur's Golf Course. (Nigel Maxwell/paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Healthy communities

Teeing off for a good cause

Aug 20, 2020 | 2:00 PM

Neechie Gear Founder Kendal Netmaker says he fully supports young leaders and a big part of that development is ensuring they have healthy role models.

Netmaker was among the participants in a special four-man Texas scramble at Kachur’s Golf Course Thursday, a fundraiser for a men’s group at Beardy’s and Okemasis First Nation. One of the group’s key goals is providing mental health support for single fathers on the First Nation.

“Myself growing up, at my community in Sweetgrass, I never had a lot of male figures so I had to learn from role models,” he said. “There’s a bunch of leaders here helping and trying to give back and support these young people that will be our future leaders.”

The men’s group was started roughly three years ago by Delano Mike and Everett Gamble. Gamble told paNOW the idea for the group arose out of a program offered at the Willow Cree Health Centre, that was providing services for children under eight years old.

“We wanted to support the children so in order to do that, we figured it would be a good idea to support the parents as well,” Gamble said.

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Gamble added there are many initiatives out there for women, but very little offered for men, and the single fathers in their community need a lot of supports.

“Child care is a big thing like a lot of these dads are out there, they are doing their thing, they are taking care of business and they don’t have a lot of support behind them,” Gamble said, adding the group offers the men a chance to be around their peers, and take a break from being dads.

“A lot of that is taken away because they don’t have time for themselves,” he said.

Much like many other non-profit groups, the men’s group relies on fundraising to stay afloat and pay for the costs of activities such as fishing trips, and movie nights. All are alcohol and drug free.

Both Mike and Gamble have training in mental health supports. Mike teaches a life skills training course, and Gamble has taken courses on critical incident stress management, as well as mental health first aid.

“We didn’t always go on outings. We met and we had meals and basically the opportunity was there for us to sit down and try to help these guys come to terms with anything that was bothering them,” Gamble said.

Mike told paNOW men get next to nothing financially from divorce, and have next to nothing for tools to help with cope with loss, grief, forced trauma, and crisis.

“Therefore we lose them to drugs, alcohol and suicide, therefore we need all the support for all mankind,” he said.

Bill Cameron Sr. is among of the elders at Beardy’s and Okemasis First Nation, and was also participating in Thursday’s fundraiser. He told paNOW he was proud to help the cause.

“It was never done before so it’s got to be a positive change,” he said.

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nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell