Carol Mason

“I met George Clutesi when I was 13 years old. He was teaching a culture and folklore at night school in Port Alberni. My mother signed both of us up for his class. He was an amazing teacher. Learning from him, I gained a respect for native Canadian culture, particularly the Tse-Shaht. He was always so kind to me, always making me feel respected as a person, not as a child.

He visited at our home and invited us in return, to his. I didn’t have much more of a relationship with him than that but I have remembered him my whole life. Now that I am 70 years old, I consider him to be one of the most memorable and influential people in my life.

I understand now that he was, with his stories, working at broadening the world’s understanding of his cultural heritage. It was what he did his whole life. He deserves to be remembered and honoured.”

Karen Pelletier

“My mother, Georgina Musqua,  of Keeseekoose, literally survived the local residential school. At 14 years old she was so I’ll and the nuns never called for a doctor to see her. Everyday she lay in her bed until classes were done. The other girls would come and clean her up afterwards. She woke one day to see her mother in front of her. My Cocoo Nellie Musqua took her home that day. My mother didnt go back. She started to work along side her mother.

After birthing four children and realizing she needed an education, while the children were still young, she and my dad, Ivan Pelletier attended to school to upgrade and get thei full high school education. Both started at local jobs because my mother wanted more than a two room shack, without electricity or running water for their children. This was the early 1970. She started work as a clerk with SK Social Services. My dad started as a carpenter with a local company. They moved into Yorkton. We change schools from the Metis day school, Allary school, on Crescent Lake to St. Alphonse school. My dad wouldn’t allow my my mom to teach us Ojibway because of his being beat at the Metis day school.  They were able to qualify for a home under a new program for Metis and non-status people. My dad worked on own home. We moved into our own home.

My dad was a binge drinker. He was very violent with my mother. She suffered many beatings and mental abuse from him. Yet, he was extremely proud of her accomplishments for the rest of his life. I know my Dad suffered low self esteem  and he didnt know how  to treat his wife with the respect she decided. During her social services job she made friends with Fran Wach. Through this friendship, my Mom became a stronger minded woman. Dad started to attempt to quit his drinking and went to treatment and AA. Mom went on to becoming one of.the first Native Court Worker in SK.

My Mom had a heart and our home always had upgrading residents and foster children staying with us. More heart than most people. Her freezer was always packed with food. If she and dad weren’t taking us to powwow and Ceremonies  she was cooking food for the freezer. In our home if you were hungry you ate. But, we always sat down as a family to eat supper. And we talked.

She left my Dad by during my teen years. She literaly took my oldest sister to apply for.the RCMP, after high school because she wanted better for her. By this time my mother was working for SK probation. This is the career she would retire from down the room. She also applied for the RCMP in her 40’s, graduated and served with the RCMP at the same time as two of her daughters, my older sister, Ivy Pelletier and Darlene Pelletier.

After retiring from Probation, she took a short 3 month rest. Meaning she grew restless and started work with Kilburn Hall Youth Centre and continues to work there. She has served on many committees.

My mother raised my oldest sister’s two children when she passed away. She is also raising her great grandson, because his parents couldn’t parent properly given his health difficulties.

My Mother, Georgina Musqua, 78 years young, has served over 50 years (a life time) working in the justice field. She faced and fought sexual racism and never back downed. She raised three daughters who had and have professional careers in western society’s so called traditional man’s work. She continues to grandparent many of our youth in Kilburn Hall.

She is an unrecognized hero in SK First Nations because she is not scared to speak the truth.

She is my hero.”

Mackenzie Brown

“My name is Mackenzie Brown. I am a traditional First Nations Cree drummer from Sturgeon Lake. I saw your post on Facebook about who has made an impact on you and I had to email you to tell you about my mother Matricia Brown.

My mom has hands down been the most impactful person in my life. My mom was a part of the 60’s scoop, growing up without ties to her community or culture. When she had kids, she realized that teaching culture and identity would be the most important thing. She began her journey to cultural reclamation. She always taught me how to honor and care for myself, my culture and others. She made me proud to be Indigenous and spread my culture. She taught me to teach others about the beautiful parts of my culture so that we can spread pride and awareness. She taught me that I am an educator and that my voice matters.

My mom is a knowledge keeper in Jasper and we do drumming for tour groups, train companies,schools, youth groups, councils and more. She has always taught me to use my drumming as a means of awareness and to create change. She has been such an incredible role model for so many people, and has even created drumming groups in Jasper to teach others how to drum and sing. She sings at centers with kids who have disabilities, in schools and everywhere in between. She started a drum program for grade 3 children two years ago, making 23 drums for kids. She has been such an incredible inspiration.”

Eleni Karipidis-Herrera

“Jessica Atatise and Meegwun Fairbrother are my Indigenous heroes. Jessica Atatise was a student of mine back in 2008 when I taught at the high school in Lac La Croix, Ontario. Although I was there for 1 term, my connection with Jessica has been everlasting. Jessica studied drama with me for the first time and was immediately taken by this ancient art form. Our class went on to produce a theatrical production to based on Michael Kusugak children’s book “Hide and Sneak” which was directed by Jessica. After graduating high school, she went on to study Theatre at York University. Upon returning to her roots Jessica has been finding a way to stay connecting with her culture through preserving her language and learning about Mother Earth through Indigenous teachings. Currently, she is attending Seven Generations Education Institute in Fort Frances, Ontario and collaborating with a team of writers and illustrators to write a children’s book derived from red pine tree ring data collected by scientists vision. When Jessica graduated from Anishinaabemowin, she will run an eco-tourism/ethnobotany canoe guiding business.

Meegwun Fairbrother is a close family friend and colleague. We met ten years ago at his graduating production at York University. He was playing the lead role of a Spanish king and I was blown away from the pure talent I witnessed. A decade later, Meegwun’s gone onto performing across the country on various stages and on the screen sharing the stories of his people. Currently, you can see him as a lead character of Owen, in CBC original drama series “Burden of Truth”. Recently, he released his one man show “Isitwendam” to great acclaim not only for his wide range of acting skills but his vulnerability of sharing a personal story about Residential School. It was a pleasure and also a learning experience for me to be apart of the play. Aside from performing on stage or on screen he teaches art-based workshops in First Nations communities and Okichitaw Martial Arts to indigenous youth throughout the continent.

These two people are my indigenous heroes because they are finding ways to connect to their roots but also ways to invite non-indigenous people, like myself in the fold of their journeys. One of the steps to Truth and Reconciliation is to come together in an understanding of each others gifts and coexist in a better more grateful world.”

Dr. Herman J. Michell

“It would be my 89 year old mother Therese Michell, a retired trapper from Reindeer Lake, northern Saskatchewan/Manitoba. She reinforced the importance of independence, resilience, and perseverance despite all the obstacles and challenges in life.

I remember early morning treks to check our rabbit snares. Out into the winter darkness we would go before the ravens came out. The sound of wind howling touching my face. I can still hear snow crunching beneath her moccasins as she led me through the bush. She taught me to stay quiet so as not to disturb animals that were also out hunting in the predawn hours. My job was to pull the sled toward the rising sun. I remember streaks of bright red, pink, orange, and yellow colors across the eastern skyline, followed by layers of purple and dark blue clouds that mark the timeline between night and morning.
Where have all the years gone? My precious mother, I think to myself as she sits in front of me so vulnerable. She was once a very strong woman. She delivered many children as a mid-wife. She knows about traditional medicines. To her, every day was about survival. I remember watching her for hours while she scraped and prepared animal furs. A retired trapper, I am grateful she taught me so much about self-determination. Today she is unable to do certain things and yet has an essence of strong will and self-sufficiency. She tells me she can still wash dishes and cook for herself. At the same time she tells me she sits alone with no human contact. My heart aches. I cannot imagine supporting herself with a walker while trying to do housework. She says grandchildren come to visit her to do chores and take her to bingo, her only source of entertainment and a chance to visit elderly friends.

My mother was born August 24th, 1929 on the Yellowknife tundra as Therese Peterson, a child of my Inuit grandmother and Swedish grandfather, Alfred Peterson. There were three sisters born out of this wedlock, my mom, Marie, and Francois. My grandmother’s people were the Padlimiut, an inland Inuit group that followed the circular migration route of the Caribou herds. I am proud of this heritage. A long line of strong northern hunters occupy my storied memory. My mother provides me with reference points, scattered thoughts and stories, left for me to interpret, like the fluttering sound of ptarmigan birds unleashed from tree nets, words flow through the wind, echoes touching rocky cliffs that bounce off as energies, silent voices enter the deepest darkest ravines of my being as tiny sparks of fire that become a part of my cultural identity.

Back at our one room trapper cabin, my mother fans the sparks in the fire until they flare with life just like she would so many times in my life when situations were too rough for me to handle. Situations can seem cold and harsh. Loved ones die. We go through separations. Winters can be fierce in northern Saskatchewan. Sâsīpithitâ’ (endure) she would say in her quiet way. When the cabin had warmed up, she would hang the frozen rabbits to thaw out. She would pull out her green canvas trapper bag. I was always intrigued what was in there as she took out one item at a time. There was a sense of mystery of what was in there even though I had watched so many times the survival things she would fill it with. But there was always something in there for me. Perhaps that was it or was she teaching me something more serious what was needed for me to stay alive? Later on in life, I am sitting in front of her as a grown person. Mentally I go back in time as a little boy. This time she has a plastic bag full of goodies. She pulls out one thing at a time and feeds me. She stares at my expression of gratitude. Some things never change for mothers. She still sees me as that little child needing to be nurtured. I am grateful. She has a way of fanning the spark in my life when I need it the most. I can still hear the cold harsh northern wind screaming against the side of our cabin like ancient voices that need to be heard.”

Ece Epp

“I would like to share the story of someone, who has greatly impacted my life, to celebrate and honour Indigenous people during National Indigenous Month. 5 months ago, I met Bomgiizhik (Isaac Murdoch) who is from Serpent River First Nation. He is the creator of the iconic Thunderbird woman image that’s been seen at Standing Rock and all around the world. Besides making art that is used worldwide in defending the environment and protecting Indigenous people’s rights, lands and ways of life, he is also a traditional knowledge keeper and storyteller. Through art and activism, he has made a lot of fans, supporters and followers all over the world.

He has had a difficult past and he is inspiring to me because of how he has transformed his life and is now an agent in transforming and defending others’ lives. He is inspiring because when he says something, you believe him and you know he knows. You feel it. You see his honesty in his actions. Even in the face of adversity, he is full of life. He doesn’t give up and neither does his integrity. He shows no sign of bitterness. He just wants things to change for the better and works hard for it, and because of his positivity, you believe it is possible. He is an agent of hope.

I met him when I was at the beginning stages of recovering from a severe anxiety disorder. I ended up spending a lot of time with him and his girlfriend who are on the road together working on various art, water and land protection projects. Thanks to long conversations, learning about their ways and customs, and getting the chance to work with them a little bit, My recovery has been much, much faster than anticipated . Throughout the last 5 months, my perspective/attitude has shifted from a pessimistic “I can’t change anything” to actually taking part in causes that matter to me. Bomgiizhik has lit a spark in me that I didn’t think existed any more. I even applied to and am starting school in September. Even though I’m 34, I feel like I’m starting again at 18 and feel so much power and life in me.”

Aunalee and Sophia

“We are emailing about our Dad, William Good for National Indigenous History Month to let you know that he inspires us.
Our Dad is the Master Carver and Cultural Historian responsible for the revitalization of the traditional Coast Salish style in our area, Snuneymuxw, Nanaimo, B.C.. He is a knowledge keeper and story teller, also from the Hereditary Chief family. We feel that he is a hero, as he plays an integral role in the revitalization of this style which was almost lost and at the brink of extinction when he began his art career in the 1970’s. He has shared his knowledge in the community, such as contributing to the Nanaimo Museum’s permanent Snuneymuxw exhibit in the 1990’s as well successfully passed on teachings to his children–as you can see with all our works and music.”