National Indigenous History Month 2021: Our Conversation with the Bear Clan Patrol

On June 21, 2021, to celebrate the Indigenous History Month, Robertson had the honour of speaking with Kevin Walker, Interim Executive Director of the Bear Clan Patrol. We want to tell you more about what the organization does in the local community, what we discussed during the event and how you can get involved. 

The Bear Clan Patrol

The Bear Clan Patrol, established in 1992, is a volunteer-led organization that provides support to Winnipeg’s vulnerable communities. There are over 1500 volunteers (including youth members) working for the Bear Clan Patrol on an ongoing basis. 

They provide support to the community by:

• Going on nightly walks through the neighbourhood to hand out food, care packages and to clean up the community
• Engaging with community members in a safe, non-threatening, non-judgmental way
• Providing rides, escorts and early responses to situations
• Educating others and helping them get involved 
• Keeping Indigenous traditions, beliefs and philosophies at the centre of their work

Event Recap

We had the pleasure of sitting down with Kevin Walker, Interim Executive Director of the Bear Clan Patrol, to learn more about the work they do for the community. Kevin currently walks with the patrol five nights a week, chatting with community members, handing out hygiene packs and snacks and picking up sharps and other objects in order to keep the community safe. 

Kevin shared some of the ways the organization helps the community (also listed above) and encourages everyone to volunteer if they want to get involved. Some of the key takeaways on how we can all become better allies is that “healing is helping” and the best way to heal the community is to lend a helping hand. If we can bring awareness to the challenges and struggles of our community members, we can all work together to make a change and offer support.

Getting Involved

If you want to get involved, you can get in touch in the following ways: 

• Website: bearclanpatrol.org
• Phone: (204) 914-1708
• Email: [email protected]

 

The Bear Clan Patrol operates on a drop-in basis so there’s no requirement to register. You can arrive between 5:30-6:00 pm at one of their locations:

• North End Patrol: 584 Selkirk Avenue
• West End Patrol: University of Winnipeg, The Hive in Lockhart Hall 
• West Broadway Patrol: 195 Young Street
• Point Douglas: Corner of Euclid Avenue and Lusted Avenue
• Youth patrols happen on Saturdays

If you’re unable to donate your time but still want to get involved, you can donate funds or highly-needed resources including granola bars, water, sunscreen, deodorant, bug spray, hats and feminine products. 

Thank You

We want to thank everyone who tuned into our conversation with the Bear Clan Patrol. If you missed it, you can check it out here. 

As an organization, Robertson pledged to donate $50 for every person who attended and thanks to all who gave their time to listen in, we were able to donate $5,000 to the Bear Clan Patrol! Thanks to you, we are able to support our local community. 

Stay tuned for our next live event.