Keeseekoose First Nation holds financial planning workshop ahead of cows and plows settlement

Louise BigEagle · CBC News

· Posted: Mar 13, 2025 6:57 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 minutes ago

Keeseekoose First Nation invited fiscal advisors from a adjacent slope to springiness a store to members earlier this period successful beforehand of the community's Treaty 4 cultivation benefits settlement.

Diane Musqua, manager of the household wellness programme successful Keeseekoose First Nation, about 285 kilometres westbound of Regina, helped signifier the workshop.

She said her set had a onshore assertion payout of $20,000 a fewer years agone and afterwards members were asking for assistance to beryllium financially prepared the adjacent clip they whitethorn person different payout.

"From past experience, we learned that a batch of the radical didn't person the tools oregon or the accusation to bash amended planning, truthful we privation to bash amended this clip and pass them and springiness them arsenic overmuch accusation arsenic we tin to marque amended decisions," said Musqua.

About 22 assemblage members ranging from 20-65 years of property attended the store successful the set hall, with advisors from the RBC slope successful adjacent Yorkton, Sask.

Musqua said the assemblage had a batch of large questions for the advisors, which was encouraging, similar wherever are the champion investments and about purchasing a home.

Musqua said they program to clasp much presentations, and that fiscal institutions coming to their community, to conscionable successful their territories, opens a spot relationship. 

"It gave maine affirmation that this has opened the doorway much for our rank to turn and recognize budgeting and basal beingness skills arsenic well," said Musqua.

The assemblage assembly members and unit came unneurotic to marque the fiscal literacy store hap successful Keeseekoose, arsenic it was thing assemblage members wanted.

Workshops planned for municipality members

Keeseekoose Chief Alvin Musqua said a batch of their members won't person a fiscal windfall similar this successful their beingness again, truthful it could beryllium beingness changing, whether done investing or being capable to acquisition things they couldn't normally. 

"If 1 oregon 2 radical determine that they're going to bash investing and marque a precise omniscient prime with their money, past it's a success," said Alvin Musqua.

He said they are going to enactment connected making these workshops disposable to municipality members whether it's done Zoom oregon booking a installation somewhere.

"A batch of radical benignant of statement First Nations radical arsenic being unspeakable with money," helium said.

"But I cognize there's a batch of radical who person precise bully plans with their money, whether it's investing, putting wealth distant for 5 to 10 years done GIC."

Justine Lutz, a fiscal advisor with RBC, spoke to those who attended the workshop.

Lutz said she talked astir simplifying their finances, empowering them to execute their beingness goals, creating amended relationships with their wealth and specifics astir tax-free savings accounts.

Going retired to the assemblage provides a harmless abstraction to inquire questions, arsenic she understands wealth tin beryllium a taboo taxable to galore people, she said, and we aren't taught astir fiscal literacy successful school.

"I find a batch of radical miss retired connected this accusation and it's a pleasance to beryllium capable to assistance everyone retired successful gaining knowledge," said Lutz.

"We can't beryllium an adept successful each country and if we each assistance each different retired a small spot more, we tin person that accusation shared."

Lutz said erstwhile it comes to investments radical whitethorn privation to bash with their money, it each comes to a person's goals, what they privation to really execute with their money.

"We privation to speech astir their extremity and past find the merchandise that would acceptable and the speech goes truthful overmuch amended that mode and marque definite that my solution is achieving their goals," said Lutz.