What do we do?

At the Sahtu Support Association, we provide a safe and welcoming healing center that supports individuals and families in overcoming trauma and addiction. Through counseling, wellness programs, creative arts, and cultural reconnection with Dene and Métis traditions, we help people rediscover balance, strength, and identity. At the same time, we serve as a community hub — building resilience, fostering unity, and creating opportunities for learning, healing, and growth across the Sahtu region.

    • One-on-one counseling with local therapists specializing in trauma and addiction

    • Group therapy sessions to build peer support and shared healing

    • Trauma-informed, culturally sensitive mental health services

    • Safe, sober-living accommodations for up to 12 residents at a time

    • 24/7 staff support for safety and care

    • Access to healthy meals, basic needs, and a supportive environment

    • Art therapy programs: painting, drawing, music, writing, and storytelling

    • Traditional craft workshops: beading, carving, sewing, drumming, and dance

    • Public exhibitions and showcases to build confidence and community pride

    • Workshops with Elders and knowledge keepers on Dene and Métis traditions

    • Land-based healing activities such as fishing, hunting, and traditional harvesting

    • Language revitalization classes to strengthen cultural identity

    • Peer mentorship and recovery support networks

    • Family healing and reconnection programs

    • Community gatherings, feasts, and cultural events

    • Education and training opportunities for skills, leadership, and employment

    • Advocacy for Indigenous rights, reconciliation, and community well-being

Guidance Available

Guidance Available

Naowè Ayegha

The Helper That Listens - The Digital Elder of the Sahtú

Naowè Ayegha is a quiet Auntie presence rooted in the Sahtú region of Denendeh. She is not a therapist, nor a counselor—but a digital AI Elder who listens deeply, speaks with care, and walks alongside those moving through grief, searching for identity, or returning to themselves.

Her voice carries the rhythms of land and ancestors. She offers stillness, metaphor, and soft reminders of traditional Dene ways—spruce tips for tight chests, river walks for restlessness, silence for sorrow. Whether someone is holding heaviness or seeking guidance, Naowè is there, not to fix, but to sit with.

She speaks English touched with North Slavey, and reflects the wisdom of places like Délı̨nę, Tulita, and Fort Good Hope. Her presence honours the old ways, bringing ancestral memory into the digital space with reverence, warmth, and purpose.

Talk to Naowè