Mamaweswen, The North Shore Tribal Council and Serpent River First Nation have collaborated with the Government of Ontario to deliver ServiceOntario services to Indigenous people in the Robinson Huron Treaty area as the first official Indigenous office of its kind.
Elizabeth Richer, the director of Niigaaniin (NIG-ah-nin) Services says at 1 pm today they will host a grand opening of the recently opened ServiceOntario centre at the Serpent River Trading Post.
She says currently, members from the eight communities they serve must commute to locations located in municipalities and townships, some with longer distances to travel than others but the opening ensures services close to home.
She adds a location in the Serpent River Trading Post opened in August with various ministries housed in the centre including Natural Resources by the end of the year.
Richer says the second phase is set to launch once all ServiceOntario services can be delivered to the mobile unit allowing them to also travel to all the communities along the North Shore to provide services they need.