Michif Manor: ‘A place to breathe’

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This article was published 29/05/2023 (834 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The suffocating feeling that overcomes a family member while their loved one lies in a hospital bed is one Will Goodon knows all too well.

The Manitoba Métis Federation’s minister of housing experienced it in spurts over the better part of a decade while his son, Hunter, received medical treatment for acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a life-threatening type of cancer in the bone marrow.

The cost of staying in a hotel room each night certainly became an unwelcome financial burden, as well.

While his son has since been cured of the disease, it’s hardly a surprise why the MMF’s latest housing project is so important to Goodon.

This summer, the MMF will break ground on an $11-million facility at 790 Notre Dame Ave. (between Beverley and Toronto streets), named Michif Manor.

The 12-room dwelling will house Métis families whose loved ones are undergoing medical treatment at the nearby Health Sciences Centre, similar to the existing Ronald McDonald House at 62 Juno St.

“When I think about what this Michif Manor can mean to people — when you are in a sterilized area like the hospital, going into treatment rooms, even in cancer care, they have a really nice place for the kids to relax and be themselves, but parents still need a place to breathe,” Goodon told the Free Press in an earlier interview.”

“Whenever I’m in a stressful situation, I forget to breathe — I’m holding my breath the entire time. If you can allow yourself to let that go, take a few deep breaths because you’re in a place that looks like home, that feels like home… that to me is going to not only help heal the patient and help them to get the very best treatment they possibly can, but also the entire family, which, as we know, is something that will translate into the health of everyone involved.”

The MMF expects construction to be complete in July 2024 and its doors to open in September 2024.

Ten rooms will resemble a standard hotel suite with two queen-sized beds, able to accommodate up to four people. Michif Manor will also house two larger family rooms, which will accommodate up to six people. All rooms will have their own kitchenette and washroom with a shower.

The facility will have culturally-specific programming available, along with services to help with any language barriers that may exist between residents and medical professionals and 24-hour on-site security.

The idea for a temporary housing initiative was tabled in 2019 when the MMF submitted three proposals to be approved by the newly-formed Indigenous Homes Innovation Initiative, a contingent within the federal government that would choose 24 Indigenous-led housing ideas to support across the country. Michif Manor was one of two projects submitted by the MMF, to be approved by the federal organization.

The Indigenous Homes Innovation Initiative is funding up to $2.5 million for Michif Manor.

And the project will fill what has long been a glaring need within the community, one that Goodon credited MMF president David Chartrand for noticing nearly 20 years ago.

“It was so obviously in our face wherever we were,” said Goodon. “Whenever we saw folks who were in remote, rural, northern areas that needed this type of help — and we do our best to help them — but we had limited funds to help them. When this opportunity came, I talked to (Chartrand) and he gave his full approval for us to do this proposal.”

Indeed, the financial relief the project will offer families is paramount. Hotel rooms often run at least $150 per night, which can add up in a hurry for out-of-towners who are staying more than a couple of days to support a loved one in the hospital.

While pricing is yet to be finalized, the MMF plans to offer rooms at Michif Manor for $75 per night.

“When you’re looking at the health side of things, and you look at specialties and the lack of health services that they have across Manitoba, we’ve seen an influx of calls on financial assistance and health from our Red River Métis citizens’ families and children,” said Frances Chartrand, minister of health with the MMF. “They’ve been using the Ronald McDonald House, they’ve been utilizing hotels and it becomes quite costly when families are coming in to seek medical attention.

“We wanted to make sure that we could keep our families together in the city of Winnipeg when they’re coming for medical services, and we wanted to make sure what we had was culturally appropriate, we had interpreters on site and we had programming for our families.”

Family members being able to stay together is something Chartrand noted can have a positive ripple effect on the group’s mental health. She explained an all too common problem that arises — and became increasingly prevalent throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, which forced family members to isolate from their loved ones while receiving treatment — when children bring their elderly parents into the city.

“They’re able to stay together and able to go through the process of getting from one medical appointment to the next without worrying about who’s going to pay for it, what’s the cost going to be and they’re going be able to be there with their parents and their grandparents, walking through the medical system, which (the elderly) can’t really understand,” she said.

“We’re going to try and lift the language barriers to make sure that everyone is on the same page when they’re going through medical surgery, why they’re seeing a specialist… we’re going to have family there to make sure that they help heal together.”

jfreysam@freepress.mb.ca