House of the Moon is a cross border coalition of Indigenous First Nations’ leaders in Canada, Tribal leaders in the U.S. and non-Indigenous allies who have come together to formulate a facilitator training program to address the MMIWG crisis on Turtle Island at a grassroots and community level.

It is a Holistic Empowerment and Self-Defense Facilitator training for Indigenous women and once completed, the trainees are able to hold gatherings in their own communities to pass on what they learned from the program in culturally relevant ways.

A pilot training program was conducted during the fall and winter of 2020/2021, where eight Indigenous women from across Turtle Island (North America) participated in a 12-week Facilitator Training Program.

The curricula portion of the training included presentations by Indigenous leaders covering many topics, such as: Lateral Violence, Environmental Racism and Activism, How to Heal from Historical Trauma, Traditional Ceremony and Self-Care practices, Human Trafficking Predator/Victim dynamics, and Self-Defense. A primary focus was on how each impact and directly relate to the increased vulnerability of Indigenous women, girls, and relatives who are murdered and going missing at genocidal rates.

Melissa is a Founding Council and Core Faculty member of House of the Moon and is also one of the trainees on the pilot program. She has completed the curricula portion of the training, and now has the opportunity to facilitate her own gatherings. She will cover empowerment and self-defense on a Mental, Emotional, Physical and Spiritual level during 4 consecutive sessions.

By attending these gatherings, you are actively empowering an Indigenous woman as well as yourself and your own community. Let us continue what the ancestors and countless Indigenous leaders have fought for, by taking back our own communities and learning ways to protect ourselves, our people, and reclaim our inherent worth and sovereignty. May the ripples of empowerment and webs of support and connection through House of the Moon help to end the MMIWG tragedy one sacred relative at a time!

Melissa will facilitate 4 Community Gatherings with Guest Presenters on the following topics:

March 9: Emotional Empowerment - "Food As Emotional Nourishment" with Guest Presenter, Chef Andrew George, Executive Chef and Instructor for Nicola Valley Institute of Technology

Learn to recognize how stress can trigger eating patterns as a means to calm our emotions. What if we learned how to use food to uplift our emotions, rather than eating foods that bring us down.

Join Melissa and Chef Andrew as they share ways to reconnect to Traditional Foods, Food Systems and preparation. By remembering how our ancestors use to connect with the land, seeding and harvesting, we can once again take part in the reciprocity and bounty of what Mother Earth can provide for us and how we can be in relationship to that abundance. Foods are meant to uplift and nourish us, making us feel full, not just in our stomachs but our whole being.

They will share tools and tips for how to prepare nourishing foods, how Traditional Foods and Food Systems can literally make us stronger by feeding our emotional well-being and resiliency.

"We Will Nourish Ourselves"

March 16: Physical Empowerment - "Using All of Our Senses" with Guest Presenter Sifu Shannon Spahan, a 5th degree Kajukenbo/Wun Hop Kuen Do black belt

Learn to recognize how known and unknown predators use "grooming & desensitization" tactics that can lead to sexual assault and child sex abuse.

Our physical body if held with confidence, attention, and awareness can communicate a powerful energetic message of boundary, protection, and strength. Melissa and Sifu will share postures and techniques that will help you remember how to fully stand in your own personal power. They will discuss what to look out for in predatory behaviors.

"We Are Strong!"

March 23: Mental Empowerment - "Knowledge is Power" with Guest Presenter, Cathy Peters, who raises awareness and fights to end Human and Child Sex Trafficking and Sexual Exploitation

The Murdered and Missing Indigenous Women and Girls crisis began upon contact. When we understand the origins of this insidious tragedy, we can begin to connect the dots and recognize how the same systems of old are still present and how those systems propagate the continuation of this once silent genocide.

Melissa and Cathy will discuss how Human Trafficking and "Victim Mentality" all lead to increased vulnerabilities of Indigenous women, girls and communities, offering tools and strategies for Indigenous people to reclaim their inherent worth and power.

"We Will Rise!"

March 30: Spiritual Empowerment - "Traditional Ways to Break the Grip" with Guest Presenter, Elder Amelia Washington, Elder Support and Core Faculty for House of the Moon and UBCIC Elder Representative

Domestic Violence is way more than physical abuse. It effects our very Spirit. By reclaiming tradition, and by returning to wholeness and calling out "Lateral Violence" for what it is in our relationships and communities, we can begin to dismantle those cycles of violence.

Melissa and Elder Amelia will discuss traditional ways to heal from negative and toxic experiences and people. They will provide insight into the many different kinds of domestic abuse and offer tools for awareness, strengthening, and healing.

"We will no longer tolerate abuse."