Yekooche First Nation facts for kids

The Yekooche First Nation is a group of Indigenous people who live in British Columbia, Canada. Their main community is about 75 kilometers northwest of Fort St. James. It's located at the north end of Stuart Lake on their own special lands, called reserves, which are about 380 hectares in size.

People sometimes call the Yekooche community Portage. This name comes from its location along an old travel route, or "portage," between Babine Lake and Stuart Lake.

The Yekooche community is quite small. As of March 2019, there were 236 members of the Yekooche First Nation. About 98 of them live right on the Yekooche reserves. Their traditional lands are near or include Babine, Cunningham, and Whitefish Lake. These areas are very important for hunting and gathering food for families, especially for winter.

The people of Yekooche are part of the Dakelh group. They speak the Stuart Lake dialect of the Carrier language. Because they live close to the Lake Babine territory, they have also traditionally spoken Babine-Witsuwit'en.

A Look at Yekooche History

The Yekoochet'en people have lived in the area around Cunningham Lake for thousands of years. Their name, Yekooche, actually comes from this region! "Ye Koo" refers to Yeko Bun (which is Cunningham Lake), and "Che" describes the end of Nankut Creek.

The Yekooche First Nation was once one of five communities that made up the Tl'azt'en Nation. However, in 1994, the Yekooche First Nation became a separate and independent nation.

Community Life and Services

The Yekooche First Nation has several important buildings in their community. These include a band office, a health clinic, a resource house, a church, and a graveyard. There is also an elementary school and about 50 houses where people live.

The elementary school is very important for the community. It offers a "head start" program for young children, basic education for adults, and special courses to learn the Carrier language. It also teaches students from Kindergarten up to grade seven. The school has homes for the three teachers, so they can live in Yekooche during the week.

Health Services for the Community

Even though the Yekooche First Nation is not part of the Carrier Sekani Tribal Council, they are part of something called Carrier Sekani Family Services (CSFS). Yekooche First Nation and CSFS have an agreement for health programs. This means CSFS helps provide many health services to the Yekooche community. These services include having a nurse, dental care, doctor appointments, money for medical travel, health workshops, and keeping the clinic in good shape.

Working and Learning Opportunities

The main way the Yekooche First Nation is working to grow its economy is through a forestry program. This program helps manage the forests and provides jobs. Currently, many people in Yekooche use social assistance programs like the Work Opportunity Program to help with their needs. Many young families sometimes have to leave Yekooche to find jobs or more education opportunities in bigger towns.

Working Towards a Treaty

The Yekooche First Nation began important discussions, called treaty negotiations, in 1995. These negotiations are about their rights and lands with the government. Their treaty team worked hard and reached an "Agreement in Principle" in 2005, which the Nation accepted. The Yekooche First Nation is currently in Stage 5 of the British Columbia Treaty Process. This means they are getting closer to a final agreement.

How to Reach Yekooche

You can get to the Yekooche First Nation by road. You can also travel by boat across Stuart Lake. A boat trip usually takes about 1.5 hours if you start from Tache, or about 2.5 hours if you start from Fort St. James.