From survivors to 'thrivers': Former residential school students connect with culture and each other

For one group of former residential school students in Winnipeg, returning to their culture and teachings has them identifying themselves in a new way.

Eva Wilson-Fontaine, who runs a program for former residential school students called Intergenerational Knowledge, said since they began meeting five years ago shehas witnessed the group's progress.

"Last year they said 'We don't want to be known as survivors anymore.We're thrivers.' And I thought, how amazing is that?," said Wilson-Fontaine.

"They totally are thrivers. They're supportive of one another."

Residential schools were part of a federal policy to assimilate First Nations children by removing them from their communities and sending them to schoolsrun by the government and churches. Many of the estimated 150,000studentswho attended these schools were emotionally, physically and sexually abused. The first schools opened in the 1880s and the last residential school closedin 1996.

Christina Kitchekesik, who is from Tataskweyak Cree Nationabout 900 km north of Winnipeg, attended residential schools for 14 years. She said that it was difficult being away from her parents; growing up in the schools, nobody told her that she was loved. Nobody hugged her or encouraged her.

She gives a lot of credit to the Intergenerational Knowledge group for her own personal healing.

"I've been thriving for the past five years, really thriving," she said.

"I'm still struggling with my emotions and my anger and my loneliness and hopelessness but when I started this journey, that's where I learned how to show my emotions... I carried a lot of shame.Fear was number one for me all my life. And then I connected with my culture."

In the past, Kitchekesik hadmade attempts to heal from her painful experiences during residential schooling by attending Alcoholics Anonymous, Gamblers Anonymous and various mental health counselling.

She said she has nothing against western healing practicesbut said theydidn't work for her. Despite those struggles, she is determined to live a good life.

"For me it's to show my family that... despite all the trauma I've gone through, you can overcome anything so long as you work hard within yourself, like you really have to go deep down andjust connect with our culture and practisethe seven teachings."

Programming decisions survivor-led

The Anish Corporation, anon-profit organization whosemandate is to deliver culturally appropriate health and wellness programming to former students of Indian Residential Schools, runs Intergenerational Knowledge. Intergenerational Knowledgeis funded by New Horizons, a government of Canada grant program which offers up to $25,000 in funding to enrich the lives of Canadian Seniors.

When the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, created by the Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement, was listeningto the personal stories of survivors in 2014, a few Winnipeg-based survivors reached out to Anish Corporation and said they wanted to incorporate their family members into a more holistic form of traditional healing.

Since its inception, the programming for the group has been led by the survivors themselves andincludes a long list of workshops on topics like internalized oppression/lateral violence, traditional parenting and activities likeceremonies and medicine teachings.

"Every year we come back to the table and we look at that list [of workshops] and we say 'Is there anything that we want to add?' And then we apply it. Andit's been working," said Wilson-Fontaine, the team lead for Anish Corporation.

One of the core components of theprogram is encouraging survivors to bring their children or grandchildren to attend the cultural programming.

Former residential school students go from survivors to 'thrivers'

5 years ago

Duration 2:50

Former residential school students go from survivors to 'thrivers'

"Survivors are wanting to give that [knowledge] back to the young ones too We're all learning together. We're all at different stages of learning about who we are."

Participantsmeet at the Ma Mawi Wi Chi ItataCentre in Winnipeg's North End. Over half of the programming offered are land-based activities, where the participants travel by school bus out to the Cedar Lake Ranch in Anola, Man., about 40 km east of Winnipeg.

Activities on the land

Cree knowledge keeper Fred Stevens was invited out to Cedar Lake Ranch recently to talk about the different traditional medicines on the prairies, herbs like sage, cedar and sweetgrass.

For Stevens, himself a residential school survivor, being able to share what he knows is also form of healing.

"It's a gratifying feeling for me. It helps me get stronger also," said Stevens.

"I'm doing my little portion by providing some of the things they lost. I make them try and remember it and they do."

He said that it took him over 30 years to get to the point where he's at in his healing. He also recognizes that not everyone who went to residential schools is able to recover from what they experienced.

But he hopes that former students and their families make an attempt to go back to their languages and culture.

"[It's about] knowing who you are and where you came from. Andnot forgetting what happened to you. And being able to share that openly and from the heart.. that keeps me going," said Stevens.