Pope's visit to Canada increases calls to Indigenous support group on Vancouver Island

The director of a Vancouver Island society offering traditional and cultural treatments to Indigenous people says it has seen a sharp jump in requests for help since the Pope apologized for the Catholic Church's role in Canada's residential schools.

Nola Jeffrey with the Tsow-Tun Le Lum Society in Lantzville says people came “in droves” to her team of elders, survivors and people living with intergenerational trauma after the Pope issued his apology in Alberta earlier this week.

Indigenous Services Canada also says the number of calls to the federal government's 24-hour crisis support line has doubled since the apology - with some callers finding the Pontiff's words healing, and others saying the Vatican's actions have triggered their trauma.

Jeffrey says Canadians need to think about how those who can't let go of their pain can get support in the days, weeks and years to come.