nkwancinem Kim Montgomery, gifted a fox pelt in recognition of her community impact, was one of those recognized at the ONA annual general assembly this year With her family, colleagues and community surrounding her, an emotional nkwancinem Kim Montgomery is gifted a special fox pelt from her sister on July 23, honouring 20 years of service with the Okanagan Nation Alliance. Photo by Aaron Hemens With her family, colleagues and community surrounding her, an emotional nkwancinem Kim Montgomery was gifted a special fox pelt to honour her 20 years of service with the Okanagan Nation Alliance (ONA). A key and dedicated member of ONA’s wellness team, nkwancinem was honoured by her colleagues in her home community of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band.She was one of four syilx Nation members to have had their lifelong achievements and contributions to the community celebrated at the ONA’s 2026 annual general assembly, which took place July 22 and 23 in sməqmíx homelands. nkwancinem Kim Montgomery, third from the left, walks with her family and community at Similkameen powwow arbour grounds on July 23, after being honoured for her 20 years of service with the Okanagan Nation Alliance. Photo by Aaron Hemens As the mental health lead for the Okanagan Nation Response Team, nkwancinem oversees a group of “community members who have received extensive training in the areas of suicide education, community mobilization, and critical incident response.” “We have the skills in our communities to take care of our people,” she told IndigiNews in 2021. “We forget we have the timxw (wildlife), we have ceremony, we have the sweat, we have the water, we have rose bush. We have all the things we do in our grief work.” ONA wellness team manager c̓ʔak̕ʷm Jennifer Lewis called nkwancinem her “sister” and “comrade,” and acknowledged “her love, her passion, her commitment to the people and to the future.” “It’s really important to honour her. We would not be where we’re at,” said c̓ʔak̕ʷm. “Twenty years, Kim. There’s some children that you’ve impacted that are young adults. You’ve impacted Elders. You’ve impacted babies. You’ve impacted fathers, mothers. All of our people.” smukaxen Inez Pierre described nkwancinem as “a warrior woman,” adding that “there’s not many people that will walk into our communities when we’re troubling.” “She goes into homes when we’ve lost our Elders. She goes into homes when our children are not wanting to live,” smukaxen said of nkwancinem. “A lot of the things that you hear us talking about is what’s best for the Youth — this one can speak at that … You don’t see and find this kind of woman easily.” The gift pays tribute to fox’s esteemed role in the syilx Nation’s collection of oral stories, teachings and histories — known as captikʷł — where fox is a notable companion to sen’klip (coyote). “sen’klip gets involved with lots of trouble and mischief. But he also made laws for our people. Fox brings coyote back to life,” said smukaxen. She explained that in their stories, fox is always there to gather pieces of coyote and put him back together. “And for you, Kim, you are that. You saved a lot of our people, from the babies to the Elders. The old people. You’ve done that. You’ve brought a lot of us back to life.” An emotional nkwancinem Kim Montgomery is gifted a special fox pelt from her sister on July 23, honouring 20 years of service with the Okanagan Nation Alliance. Photo by Aaron Hemens Similarly, nkwancinem’s sister, Tara Montgomery — the communications lead for ONA — said that her sister has dedicated her life to “breathing life back into people.” Along with c̓ʔak̕ʷm, Tara wrapped the fox pelt around her sister’s neck. With her community behind her and her new gift, nkwancinem walked hand-in-hand with her loved ones, circling the Similkameen powwow arbour grounds before proudly dancing at its centre. nkwancinem Kim Montgomery dances at the Similkameen powwow arbour grounds on July 23, after being honoured for her 20 years of service with the Okanagan Nation Alliance. Photo by Aaron Hemens The day before nkwancinem was honoured, fellow nation members Lillian Marchand, Buzz Manuel Jr., and Kelly Terbasket each had similar celebration ceremonies. All three were honoured with blankets, and both community members and syilx leadership lined up to greet and congratulate them each. Like nkwancinem, the community cheered them on as they circled the powwow arbour grounds with their loved ones. syilx Nation members and decorated athletes Lillian Marchand and Buzz Manuel Jr. are honoured with blanket ceremonies by the Okanagan Nation Alliance on July 22. Photo by Aaron Hemens Terbasket, who’s also from the Lower Similkameen Indian Band, was celebrated for her years of building and transforming community through her various regional and national positions, most notably through her recent work as the program director of IndigenEYEZ and KinSHIFT. She was also the recipient of the Alumni Changemaker Achievement Award from Royal Roads University earlier this year. “She is a connector and relationship builder at a time in history when deeper connections to self, each other and the land are critically needed,” Tara said. Chief Keith Crow of the Lower Similkameen Indian Band congratulates Kelly Terbasket on July 22, after she was honoured for her transformative work by the Okanagan Nation Alliance. Photo by Aaron Hemens Earlier this year, Manuel Jr. was awarded an Indspire Award for his decades-long contributions and achievements in sports. Indspire Awards are given out annually to Indigenous peoples across “Canada.” “Buzz has inherited from his father and his mother a real desire – and a strong commitment to – sports and mentorship for young people,” said Dan Manuel, the chief of Upper Nicola Band, which is Buzz’s home community. “He’s an elite master athlete, and he transfers that knowledge on — and his teachings around that — to young people.” Chief Dan Manuel of the Upper Nicola Band, left, celebrates Buzz Manuel Jr.’s lifelong achievements in sports, which was honoured by the Okanagan Nation Alliance on July 22. Photo by Aaron Hemens When the time came to honour Marchand — a young, decorated world champion in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu — Elder Pauline Gregoire-Archachan looked her in the eyes and told her, “from the bottom of my heart, I give thanks to you.” “She’s a champion of the world,” Gregoire-Archachan said, which was met with thunderous applause by the community. “I knew her since she was a kid — she was a baby. I love her like my own.” syilx Elder Pauline Gregoire-Archachan congratulates Lillian Marchand for her various international successes and championships in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, which was celebrated by the Okanagan Nation Alliance on July 22. Photo by Aaron Hemens While recognizing “one of the world’s top Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu competitors,” Chief Dan Wilson of the Okanagan Indian Band — Marchand’s home community — said that “her story reflects discipline, resilience, sacrifice and unwavering dedication to achieving her goal.” “Alongside her competitive career, she’s passionate about sharing her knowledge through coaching, and inspiring the next generation of athletes to pursue their goals with the same commitment and determination that defined her own journey,” said Wilson. Chief Greg Gabriel of the Penticton Indian Band congratulates Lillian Marchand and Buzz Manuel Jr. for their achievements in sports, which were celebrated with blanket ceremonies by the Okanagan Nation Alliance on July 22. Photo by Aaron Hemens We live in a media ecosystem that thrives on misinformation. Big Tech and AI companies are consuming the work of real human beings and Canadian news has been banned on Facebook and Instagram. And yet, I have hope for journalism because of the work we’re doing at IndigiNews. At IndigiNews, we embody tâpwêwin — the Cree value of integrity and responsibility in truth-telling. We are committed to our independent, Indigenous-led newsroom rooted in community, accountability, and relationality. We believe storytelling is a sacred fire that connects our pasts, presents, and futures through the storytellers in our Storytelling Lodge. 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You saved a lot of our people: Four syilx Nation members honoured for contributions
