Status of Women committee  My children were elated to know they might actually be able to live in their home. They were really happy. They said, “Can we move back into our own home if this bill is passed? We've been living in somebody else's home for so long.” They were very happy. You know, I'm the mom,

Status of Women committee  I've never gone to a shelter—ever. I've been fortunate enough to have family open their homes to us, so I cannot say.

Status of Women committee  When I went to court, the judge did want to help us. He said he would help if he could, but he couldn't. He said his hands were tied. He said the only thing he could do was to give me the right to occupy the home. That's all he could do. I said I was under the impression that our

Status of Women committee  I think everybody needs to be consulted. In order to get support from our leaders, they would need to be consulted. For them to support me, somebody has to support them, right? It goes around. It has already been more than 10 years that we've not been able to live in our home.

Status of Women committee  Really? If it was in place, we wouldn't have paid over $80,000 in somebody else's mortgage.

Status of Women committee  It definitely would have helped. I know it will help.

Status of Women committee  I'm not certain of your question. Can you elaborate?

Status of Women committee  It's just like any other community—there's a lack of housing everywhere. I can't speak for our leaders, because they're not here. But I do see that there are families who need homes. It's probably not their fault, but it's really hard to find homes. Even me finding a place in P

Status of Women committee  Exactly.

Status of Women committee  Yes. I'm not sure about the politics of this legislation, this bill. I just know that there should be something in place to help. I'm sure I'm not the only one who has gone through this in a first nation community. There are probably many, many other women who have gone through w

Status of Women committee  That's one of the steps.

Status of Women committee  Yes.

Status of Women committee  First of all, thank you for listening to my story. I'm really nervous. I've never told this story in front of so many people before. My name is Jennifer Courchene. I have four kids. I'm a first nation woman from Sagkeeng First Nation, Manitoba.

Status of Women committee  I'm here today to tell our story. It's not only my story; it's my children's and my story. I'm here today with the support and approval of my children. With that, I am only here to represent my kids, nobody else. We currently reside in Winnipeg due to the fact that we're not ab