ABOUT kinSHIFT
“Powerful, deep workshops. So inspiring...
total facilitation rockstars in my books!”
snaqsilxw
The wellbeing of one is connected to the wellbeing of all.
Our Story
We Are Stronger Together
Founded by a trio of Indigenous facilitators, IndigenEYEZ has sparked a movement of creative empowerment with a focus on Indigenous youth. Based in Syilx-Okanagan territory, we have been delivering impactful programs since 2013, touching the lives of more than 9,000 people through 200+ workshops and 30+ camps.
Changing Lives: Many youth tell us our programs have changed them for the better. We focus on instilling empathy, teamwork, and creativity—tools that help emerging leaders come together for positive change and result in tangible effects on health, education, and employment.
kinSHIFT was built in 2020 as an IndigenEYEZ social enterprise designed to meet two objectives. One, respond to the growing requests from non-Indigenous allies for Truth & Reconciliation workshops. Two, create a sustainable means of funding our work with Indigenous communities.
Reciprocity: kinSHIFT workshops are a vehicle for mutual contribution. If participants have capacity to give more than the requested fees, that is wonderful and we will apply that DIRECTLY to our work empowering Indigenous communities. At the same time, we honour the contributions of all participants and are happy to accommodate anyone who finds ticket price to be an obstacle.
Coyote image by Hazel Bell Koski
Indigenous principles that guide us...
In many of our traditional stories, Coyote/Raven is a transformer, both literally and metaphorically. Coyote/Raven has taught us for thousands of years that change and transformation are the reality of life and that we have the capacity to reinvent ourselves. Coyote/Raven endures mishaps and damage, but they are resilient.
Our traditional stories and our cultural teachings, protocols, and practices contain the values that sustained us as a flourishing society for thousands of years before contact. They teach us how to be kind to one another,
to co-operate and support each other to our fullest potential, and to see reality as nuanced rather than rigidly black and white.
For more information on terminology and Indigenous concepts often used when learning about Truth & Reconciliation, we encourage you to explore our resources and glossary. It is not essential to have read all of this before attending our workshops, but you will find a wealth of information and resources there to guide your learning as we move forward together.
Our Vision
IndigenEYEZ is actively working to create a world in which Indigenous peoples are living an intergenerational legacy of well-being. We are led by the truth that Indigenous wisdom is vital to our collective path forward as human beings on this planet. Guided by principles of interconnectedness and shared responsibility, we use proven practices in community building and creative facilitation to deliver trainings that help cultivate healthier relationships so that we can work together for the wellbeing of all.
The enthusiastic response to IndigenEYEZ speaks to the need for our work, the power of the methods we practice, and the growing demand for strong Indigenous voices.
IndigenEYEZ operates as a project on MakeWay’s shared platform.
Facilitators
Kelly Terbasket
primary facilitator
As Program Director of IndigenEYEZ, Kelly is known for her energizing, out-of-the-box workshops. Coming from a mixed heritage, Kelly has been bridging distinct worlds all her life, weaving together the strengths of her Syilx and European ancestry. She brings 30 years of community development at the community, nation, and provincial levels. Through her on-the-ground experience, Kelly came to see that a common barrier to the success of programs is relationship breakdown and that the key to turning this around is revitalizing Indigenous ways as the foundation for tackling current challenges. She co-founded IndigenEYEZ as a means of supporting natural champions in communities to better respond to the impacts of colonization.
Kelly is focused on the role of relationships in systems change and is sought out for her capacity to help deepen relations at a time in history when connections across differences are essential. Kelly has a BSW, Executive Coaching Certification, and extensive training in Creative Facilitation through Partners for Youth Empowerment (PYE Global). She lives in her family’s ancestral home on the Blind Creek Reserve in Syilx territory in the South Okanagan-Similkameen.
Denise Lecoy
primary facilitator
Situating herself within family and community, Denise is a Syilx-Okanagan woman, daughter, sister, auntie, wife, mother of 6 adult sons, and grandmother who is blessed to live in her home community on the Penticton Indian Reserve. A popular facilitator with IndigenEYEZ, Denise learned the importance of relationships from her father snpinktn Hereditary Chief Adam Eneas. From her mother, Verna Baker of the Sḵwxwú7mesh people, she learned the importance of family.
Denise is an adjunct professor supporting Indigenous students at UBC Okanagan, she teaches Indigenous Studies at Okanagan College, and co-facilitates cultural safety workshops for future health professionals at UBC. Denise holds an MSW as well as a diploma in nursing, and brings 30 years of diverse and in-depth experience in health and social services with both Indigenous and non-Indigenous organizations. Denise finds joy in being out on the land and spending time with her family.
kinSHIFT Allies and Partners
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