As hundreds of Kashechewan First Nation evacuees continue to spend their winter in Niagara Falls, service providers are looking for ice skate donations to help them feel more at home.

So far, the Niagara Regional Native Centre has accepted almost $10,000 in donations to buy 150 pairs of skates, some new and some used, said manager Elizabeth Sault.

The donations came from staff at GlaxoSmithKline Inc. — a company in Mississauga — as well as a person in the Niagara Region who wishes to stay anonymous, Sault said.

“It came at a perfect time,” said Sault, of the money.

More than 1,000 evacuees are staying in Niagara Falls at the moment, according to Xpera, the risk mitigation company coordinating the evacuation.

Some evacuees were yearning for ice time, Sault said. And Xpera was looking for a way to make it happen.

Xpera vice-president Robert Garland said some evacuees are missing playing in their usual winter hockey tournaments, taking place closer to Kaschechewan First Nation, especially with the Winter Olympics taking place recently.

With 150 pairs of skates, they’re well on their way to including everyone in some “friendly skating,” but still need about 24 more pairs, he said.

People can either make monetary donations or drop off used pairs to the Niagara Regional Native Centre, said Sault.

Centre also looking for gift cards, activities for kids

The total number of evacuees staying in Niagara Falls hotels is 1,032 — less than the 1,700 expected as some people stayed back to look after the community and pets, while others went to Kingston, Cochrane or Timmins instead, said Garland.

The northern Cree community, near Fort Albany and on James Bay, was evacuated in January because of an ongoing water crisis due to a damaged treatment plant.

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It’s been deemed unsafe for nurses and paramedics to keep working in Kashechewan, a First Nation in northern Ontario. This comes after a state of emergency was declared on Jan. 4, when a parasite called cryptosporidium was discovered in local water samples. Most of Kashechewan’s 2,300 residents have already evacuated from the community.

Indigenous groups in the Niagara Region have been helping the evacuees deal with culture shock as they adapt to urban life.

Sault said they’re all welcome to take part in her centre’s weekly events, such as open gym time for youth, Monday drum night and “Silver Fox Day” for seniors.

The centre is also looking for gift cards and activities for children, as well as gently used board games for any age, Sault said.