Manitoba chief loses cousin to suicide while in Ottawa to discuss crisis – CBC

Sheila North Wilson says she’s ‘numb’ after learning her cousin took his own life as she met with ministers

A chief representing 30 Manitoba First Nations lost her own cousin to suicide Monday, a startling coincidence given she is in Ottawa this week to meet with senior government officials about the mental health crisis in northern and remote Indigenous communities.

Sheila North Wilson, grand chief of Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak (MKO), told the Indigenous Affairs committee Thursday that her cousin, Gabe Weenusk, took his own life at the same time she was meeting with Health Minister Jane Philpott and Indigenous Affairs Minister Carolyn Bennett about health care gaps.

“In the meeting, I was getting texts from my family, saying to pray, but I didn’t know what to pray for. And then, at the end of the meeting, as I was leaving Parliament Hill, I talked to my dad, and my whole family was wailing, saying my beautiful cousin passed away,” North Wilson said, fighting back tears.

Read More: http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/manitoba-chief-suicide-crisis-cousin-1.3973890