About Willow Lake Métis Nation
By operating through a structured governance of transparency and accountability we aim to improve our community's way of life and sovereignty through responsible leadership.
Our Vision
To effectively represent the rights-bearing community of the Willow Lake Métis; ensuring trust, cultural retention, economic stability, a sustainable environment, and a better life for all.
History of Willow Lake Métis Nation
Economic development
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Economic development
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
Economic development
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua.
RECENT NEWS
Judy: I'd like to honour my son, Joshua Cheecham. It was late January, and he was staying at my home with his children. He was outside, and he said, "Mom, I'm just going to go outside, have some drinks." I said, "Yeah, okay, whatever." Then all of a sudden I get a knock, knock, knock at the door, and it's the RCMP. It's a long hallway from my bedroom to the main door. As I was walking to the door, I saw blue and red lights, and I could hardly see because I didn't have my glasses on. I thought, "What are they doing here?"
Christine: My son Christopher went missing in January of 2025. He was thirty-three years old at the time. He loved nature, being outdoors. He was an arborist, a sponsored skateboarder. From the time that he could walk, he was on skates, and he captained his hockey team as he got older. He finished hockey when he was seventeen, and he made the choice. He was very academic. He was fluent in French. He made the choice that he was going to finish high school and study for his exams, and hockey practices were getting later, so, "Mom, I'm quitting hockey." That was a big change in our household, from him being at the arena and playing hockey so much of his life. He was very kind, very, very caring. When he was around twenty-three, probably earlier than that, we started to really notice some changes in his behaviour. He would get very loud, or accentuate things and get very upset about things, but never in a violent way. At the time my mom was very sick with cancer, and we thought that had a lot to do with his behaviour. I just thought, you know, he's nineteen, he was so close to his grandma, and grandma is very sick, and we knew she had terminal cancer.
First of all, I want to thank the Creator for another day. I'm honouring my late son, Theron Gregory Poitras, on my journey. It's been over eleven years since he was murdered. I'm here on behalf of my two remaining daughters and my grandchild, who came after my son was murdered. She's truly a gift to our family, the love and light to our home. She brings so much purpose to us after this extremely traumatic event. My son's spirit name is Eagle Man. My spirit name is Danny White Buffalo Grove. A lot of the work I do, I do through culture and ceremony, helping others in their journey of gaining awareness of their ancestry, their history, their identity, and of ceremony. I help people with healing and moving forward in a good way.
I'm a survivor, I am a family advocate, and a family member. Coming from those realms, it's important to me to share as much as I possibly can. My mother, Ruby Anne Macdonald, was murdered in Edmonton in 1999. That was, you know, the awakening point for me of how we are treated in this country, and what we had to fight through, and what we're still fighting through. It's really sad though, you know. My mother never received any kind of justice. No kind of care, really. It was my Fort McKay family that came in to care for her while we were out there looking for the person who took her life. We were successful bringing him in, but again, I had to watch him walk away, and that really broke me. I went into, you know, a lot of addiction and problems. I just felt like I didn't want to be here anymore.
It's hard to even talk about him right now, you know? He was a good kid. He lived his own life, and it wasn't the best kind of life that I would've wanted him to have. He went off on his own. I think he was fourteen when he left. But he had a heart of gold. You had to know him to see that part of him. And the highest respect for women. He couldn't see a woman even carrying groceries without going to help her, even if he didn't know her. He was like that with women. I had said to him, "Don't ever touch a woman in anger, don't ever hit a woman." After a while I thought, "Hmm, I'm kind of sorry I said that, because he's the one that's getting hit," you know? But, he was a good kid. He just went down the wrong road with all his friends, in and out of jail, in and out of jail. When he was in jail, I was happy, because I knew where he was. When he wasn't, oh God, I'd just worry if he was still alive or whatever, you know? Turns out, that's eventually what happened to him. Somebody murdered him.
RECENT NEWS
Well it’s been 2 weeks since that chilly day we welcomed the new residents of the farm and we wanted to let people know how things have been going so far. Firstly, we’re so encouraged at how the region has taken to our project! The positive comments and interest in our efforts to build a safe sustainable source of food near Anzac are much appreciated and we hope you’ll continue to follow our progress. Our bison are settling well into their new home, eating lots and establishing their leadership structure. We’ve had some pushing and shoving among the bigger animals but nothing unexpected and they’re respecting the enclosure so in short, the herd is adjusting well and we remain diligent in their care. On that score, we’d like to thank everyone for respecting the herd’s privacy. It’s important to remember that these are wild animals and capable of massive force. Groups of people, loud noises and activity will spook them. Their preference is to flee but individual buffalo are unpredictable and will attack with a mean intention if they feel provoked. That said, The buffalo love it when you wave to them as you drive by and appreciate that you respect their space and your own safety by not obstructing traffic, pulling over and especially not entering the private laydown area. We plan on building a nice viewing area for the public in the future but right now we’re focused on building a healthy, calm herd. We have 4 individuals authorized to work on the ranch and with the animals. Part of the introduction is to create a relationship and familiarity between each animal, the herd and each worker. Right now, we’ve studied bison and bison behaviour generally. The next step is individual to individual, understanding each animal’s tendencies and the herd as a whole. We’ve worked hard to ensure the safety of the public and the animals and appreciate the support of the communities of RMWB. If anyone has any questions about the Willow Lake Métis Farms Project, feel free to call the office at 780 334-0008 and let’s have a conversation. -Matt Michetti
Bison heard released at Willow Lake Métis Nation aiming to bring food security to Métis in northern Alberta.
Explore how Willow Lake Métis Nation is preserving Métis heritage through traditional knowledge, intergenerational learning, cultural events, and community-led programs.
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