WINDIGO CATERING WINS SKOOKUM JIM AWARD FOR ABORIGINAL ACHIEVEMENT IN CANADA’S MINING SECTOR

Recognition by the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) positions Northern Ontario-based First Nations business for growth For Immediate Release.

Thunder Bay, ON, February 28, 2013 – Windigo Catering Limited Partnership, a business venture owned by five members of the Windigo First Nations Council in northwest Ontario, has won the prestigious Skookum Jim Award for exceptional achievement in the Canadian mining industry. The award will be presented at the Prospectors & Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) annual conference, which takes place March 3 – 6 in Toronto. Based in Sioux Lookout, Windigo Catering currently employs 66 people – 83 percent of whom are Aboriginal – and shares revenues amongst the five Windigo member First Nations of Bearskin Lake, Cat Lake, North Caribou Lake, Sachigo Lake and New Slate Falls. In addition to catering, Windigo provides camp management, laundry, janitorial, commissary and housekeeping services to Goldcorp Canada Ltd.’s Musselwhite Mine at Opapimiskan Lake.

The Windigo First Nations Council is a signatory to a business-to-business agreement with Goldcorp that has served as the genesis for a range of employment, skills training, economic development opportunities and environmental protection.
“The Musselwhite Agreement embodies cooperation, understanding, and mutual respect,” says Frank McKay, President of Windigo Ventures General Partner Ltd. “We’ve been proud to work closely with Goldcorp on their Musselwhite project since 1998. Our relationship is based on shared values, and continues to strengthen as we provide increasing support to a range of mining operations.”
McKay further notes that the Goldcorp partnership has been a key catalyst for business growth. “Profits generated through Windigo Catering are financing other aspects of our business, which include Windigo Property LP and Windigo Distributors LP. The Skookum Jim award feels like icing on the cake.”
According to Goldcorp, Windigo Catering has become a valued project partner. “The professionalism and work ethic of Windigo Catering staff have contributed significantly to the success of Musselwhite Mine,” says Gil Lawson, Musselwhite Mine Manager. “I’m proud of our long-standing association with the management and staff at Windigo, and hope to see our relationship continue well into the future.”