In 1987, the Barrie Native Friendship Centre (BNFC) was established by thirteen local women and one man, who wanted a central place to meet and provide services to area Native families. The BNFC is affiliated with the Ontario Federation of Indian Friendship Centres which was established a little more than twenty five years ago. After they were incorporated in 1988, the BNFC applied for core funding. In that year a moratorium was placed on funding new centres. This moratorium remains in place to this day. As a result the Centre has had to rely on the creativity and resourcefulness of it’s members and volunteers to remain afloat. They have since been able to access financial assistance from the Ontario Native Community Infra- structure Program in 1993 to purchase the building at their present location and transformed it into a large multi-purpose facility located on Bayfield Street close to downtown Barrie.

      There are approximately 200 families registered on their membership list. Members reside in Barrie and the surrounding area. The Centre maintains connections to the local First Nations and Metis. In the spirit of friendship, this Centre also welcomes non-native persons to it’s community membership.

      Economic development includes a craft store on the premises, rental of office space to a local Aboriginal organization and meeting space rental. The Centre is also equipped to do small scale catering off site and there is a computer lab available for rent. In the past economic development consisted of a Catering business and leasing out office space. The spirit of entrepreneurship is nurtured by accommodating people and organizations with a limited budget; reasonable and affordable agreements are worked out. Entrepreneurship has always been included in employment programs, as such they have set up a resource library of funding sources. Individuals have been sponsored to attend an Entrepreneurial Spirit Workshop and various workshops on entrepreneurship have been offered. Emphasis is given to help people to nurture their own independence in their business. The Board of Directors also supports entrepreneurial activity by offering time, resources and referrals.

      Revenue is generated from various sources such as governments when these are available, foundations and private grants. Fund raising is done through bingos, raffles, donations and auctions. In light of the fact that they are not core funded, the Barrie Native Friendship Centre’s efforts to flourish through fund-raising are exemplary.

      Future ideas for economic development are offering craft workshops for the community members. Members would have the opportunity to learn various crafts, one for themselves and one for the centre. With the products that the centre acquires, they would be sold to support the workshops. They are also considering going into real estate and coordinating an annual festival that would have components of a Pow Wow with traditional entertainment and getting back to the roots.




Gaps in business services identified in the Barrie area:

• Catering Business
• Native craft production of our own products, custom production. Prospective retailers could be local tourist gatherings such as Inns and National Parks.
• Aboriginal Marketing Firm
• Aboriginal Residential Boarding House, apartments or rooms.
• Aboriginal Day Care
• Aboriginal Consultation and Training Centre providing cultural awareness training to the community and various organizations to meet the demands of the overwhelming number of requests for this service.
• Native Art Gallery
• Native Interpretive Centre

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