Reclaiming Indigenous children’s futures in Splatsin – FNHA
July 10, 2025
Sabrina Vergata gently bounces her nine-month-old daughter Lila on her knee, sitting in the cultural yard of the Splatsin Tsm7aksaltn (Splatsin Teaching Centre) Society near Enderby, BC. It’s the yard where all four of Sabrina’s children learn about their culture and Secwepemctsin language as part of the daycare programming.
“For us, especially here in Splatsin, we’ve really lost a lot of our culture,” says Vergata, sharing that intergenerational trauma has impacted many First Nations families’ abilities to pass on cultural teachings, including her own. “I’m at a point where I want to incorporate as much culture into my life and my family’s life as possible because I want my children to grow up proud of who they are, and I didn’t get that.”
Sabrina and Lila are one of seven Splatsin families currently receiving culturally relevant, evidence-based home visiting support through the Family Spirit® pilot program. The program includes weekly visits from a community-based health educator teaching First Nations mothers 65 lessons taught from pregnancy to age three, with plans for an expanded curriculum through age five.
Read More: https://www.fnha.ca/about/news-and-events/news/reclaiming-indigenous-childrens-futures-in-splatsin
